Chosen Thought

Archive for the ‘Consultants’ Category

Almost all organizations have to deal with poor workers. Several hours are wasted on training such employees and often rigorous training sessions also go in vain. According to research conducted by some of the most well known HR consultancy firms, it has been found that companies can prevent wastage of time and money by sharing employee feedback on a regular basis. This has been proven to be a highly effective means by which employees can be told about areas where they need to improve. However, it is important to remember that the feedback has to be constructive.

Sharing regular feedback with employees can prove to be immensely beneficial in breaking the ice. It can also help the under performing employees to learn about their errors and take adequate steps to prevent recurrence. A large number of firms have introduced an HR policy that necessitates for the managers to share regular feedback with their subordinates. The purpose is to make the work place more productive and conducive for work. Managers also opine that such initiatives will make it easier for them to address issues that they face while dealing with their subordinates.
A number of organizations are also laying focus on improving their assessment procedures. They are replacing obsolete employee review policies with modern procedures such as the KRAs that have become quite popular thee days. The KRAs are points awarded to each employee on the basis of his/her performance.

Consultants can spend a lot of time writing proposals, and it’s important that time isn’t wasted. Obviously some of it will, as some proposals have little chance of success, and work can’t be reused, but we need to maximize our chances of success as well as follow on work. Here are three essentials.

1) Don’t submit a proposal every time you are requested to. Ask a lot of questions first. Is there a favorite already? What about scope? Is it in your area of comfort? A consultant can spend all their time just writing proposals, and that obviously does no good. You must be selective, even if you really need the work.

2) The proposal must address the core problem the client has. They may be asking for band aid fixes and trying to relieve symptoms. Ideally, you can find the root of the issue and address that. Actually solving problems will get you follow on work, not merely doing what is requested like sheep. Companies have enough sheep; they’re called employees. You are a consultant.

3) Give the client multiple ways to say yes. A proposal cannot be “yes” or “no.” There need to be multiple options. I always make one option the barebones option. This is one that will address the issue with a minimum of work and cost. I always have a midrange option, which offers more value at more cost, and a high end option. The high end option can go way above what was originally requested, and sometimes the client will accept it.

Erin Alli is a Virtual Business Manager, Business Coach and Writer. She has 13 years experience as an office manager and the skills to teach you how to manage your time, stay organized and make your business run more efficiently while you become increasingly more successful. For more information on the services Essential Assistance provides, please contact

You know, generally speaking when there is a recession the franchising industry takes off like a rocket ship. This is because so many people are laid off from corporate America, the jobs are not coming back fast enough, and people know that they have to find something to do for a living. Often, if they can’t find a job they turn to starting a business of their own. Indeed, one of the easiest ways to start a business is to just buy a franchise with a perfect business model, and an attached brand name which is already proven in the marketplace.

However, during this last recession things were a little bit different. Franchising never really did take off like it normally does during recessions and this is because the commercial credit markets were so tight. And even as we exit the recession in a jobless recovery those folks out of work cannot afford to purchase a franchise because there are no banks or companies willing to lend the money. Will the franchising industry ever rebound from this conundrum and catch 22?

The answer is yes, absolutely. After all, it makes sense from a banker’s standpoint to lend money at the bottom of recession knowing that they will get the money back as all those businesses grow. It’s a safer bet from a risk standpoint. Therefore, there will be small business banks, and entrepreneurial capitalists who fund the growth of the franchising industry, there is a lot of profit to be made. Where there is profit, there will be investment and cash available.

With a family to support he spent many hours researching other sectors, industries, products and services to see how they could use their current infrastructure and adapt it to generate income from a new sector. After 10 years recruiting in the IT industry he decided to introduce a consumer cleaning arm to the business and a wedding services firm hiring wedding chair covers .By targeting the upper class consumer and implementing correct marketing strategies, they were able to create strong brand awareness in these demographics.

As the economy slowed and consumers pulled back, a small {business
|company|partnership|firm} in the child clothing retail sector decided the time was right to invest and start a new business. This company owner I also met last week at the same presentation.

She explained to me that with the new design clothing sold at discount prices within supermarkets and the increase of the internet, her customer base began to dwindle before the credit crunch started. Borrowing off her credit cards and utilising her company overdraft, she set up an online Nanny Agency recruiting experienced nannies across London. Investing £10,000 to build a customer website, off the shelf database and stationery, she then began to ask herself if this was the right thing to do.

After this she reached out to her potential clients, telling them about the services on offer and offering discounts to promote sales. From her knowledge and experience in marketing, she employed a leaflet distribution company to target the wealthy demographics in London. Advertising in local directories worked well, whilst all this was happening her domain name was becoming more and more popular. The organic google listing began to rise through the rankings, thus making more sales leads.

From speaking to these 2 entrepreneurs, it is quite clear that if they held back and wasn’t brave, they could have lost everything. I guess borrowing money and growing your debt can be very daunting, however the power of the internet makes researching a {business
|company|partnership|firm} idea easier.