The 4 Brutal Questions

As requested, here are the 4 Brutal Questions I spoke about on BNN's The Pitch.  These four questions are taken from Warren Buffet: he uses these points to analyze any business in order to see if it will be profitable over the long term, making it an attractive investment. This list is very useful for the start-up right up to the mature owner-operated business looking for private equity. As adapted from Money Magnet: How to Attract Investors to Your Business. (Now available in Kindle too). The 4 Brutal Questions:

1. Are you the right people to make this happen? While there is a place for planning, successful businesses rely on the execution. The teams most likely to attract money will be those that demonstrate they will roll up their sleeves, get on with the unglamorous grunt work of operating plans and do things just a little bit better. Anyone new to running a company who has a good idea and now wants funding, probably will not get the money, no matter how smooth they appear. No one, except your mom, is going to fund your learning curve.
2. What is the investment opportunity? Next up, once you have jumped the people hurdle, it's the investment opportunity. Is there a real business? Are there people digging into their wallets to pay for what you produce? What is going to bring in beaucoup cash? as the French say. To illustrate the business, begin by defining your company around the customer and theirpain. Then position your company to solve that problem. Remember to do the math, because your investors will.
3. Is it sustainable? Do you have a unique and sustainable competitive advantage? If your intellectual property or technology is similar to what's already in the market, that will pop the profit balloon.
   
   Demonstrate that customers will reach out to your basket of goodies, pushing aside the competitor's basket each and every time. Your competitive advantage is the cornerstone of your presentation. But be prepared to identify the risks. What could be the worst thing competitors could do over the next two years? If you are vague on the answers, do not start the conversation.
4. What's the return on investment? If you've gotten through the first three questions, investors are ready to get serious and decide if they are going to give you the money. Do not make the mistake of going with your story and expecting them to figure out the amount of money you need and how you are going to pay them back. To get the chequebooks flipping open, you will have to prove three things:

• What is the growth rate to make the business worth backing? 

• What is the return on investment? This depends on company size, but can range from 8% to 25% to 40% plus.

• How will your investor get out his money (exit) within his desired time frame? Demonstrate that you get the importance of an exit plan for the investor

The Pitch - Business News Network with Andrew Bell

Business owners looking for capital should look for the Business News Network's new weekly show on Wednesdays called “The Pitch”, hosted by the positive Andrew Bell. I was on this past week and was impressed with the courage of these business owners to pitch. Here were the two companies both seeking under $2M in capital.

• First up was Gary McCone, President & CEO, Preo Software, who discussed his software management system, which helps large companies save money and trees by printing less. It is a public company and has signedon some big name clients.
• Then there was Marcus Anderson, President, Broadplay, who has a mobile marketing and application development company looking to expand vertically and geographically.

Each firm is looking for between $750k and $1 million.

5 Factors to Make You Happy

Keeping yourself motivated for business is critical. Does your personal happiness levels have an impact on your company's performance. It seems logical that happiness and motivation go hand in hand. But business people are struggling along and it is very 1982 right now. Is happiness also elusive? You may have heard about The Happiness Project best seller helping people maximize their own joy, and hopefully those around them too - Tiger Woods had his own Happiness Project and we know how that impacted on his family...

Researching how to get happy, expert Gretchen Rubin, writes:

I recently read the very interesting collection, C.G. Jung Speaking: Interviews and Encounters. In 1960, Jung was interviewed by journalist Gordon Young, who asked, "What do you consider to be more or less basic factors making for happiness in the human mind?" Jung answered:

 "1. Good physical and mental health.
2. Good personal and intimate relationships, such as those of marriage, the family, and friendships.
3. The faculty for perceiving beauty in art and nature.
4. Reasonable standards of living and satisfactory work.
5. A philosophic or religious point of view capable of coping successfully with the vicissitudes of life."

Jung also added, “All factors which are generally assumed to make for happiness can, under certain circumstances, produce the contrary. No matter how ideal your situation may be, it does not necessarily guarantee happiness.”

10 Steps to Get Your Staff Ready for A New Hire

With a new hire, the people within the company may get their feathers ruffled by not being involved early enough. Managers are busy and sometimes it is easier at the time not to bother with managing the human emotions of new hires. I was reminded by Jocelyn Cossar, an expert in managing change, of the importance of getting organized and it really takes such a small amount of time with big pay-offs. Cossar gives The 10 Steps For Good Change. These were appreciated by my client, and I asked Jocelyn if I could share her process:

"Many have said, although sometimes hard to believe, that change is a good thing. We all know that employees resist change because they feel they stand to lose once the change goes through.  A good approach to resistance to change is to see it as an opportunity for engagement. Below you will find a step-by-step guide to change management."

1.  Consult with employees during the decision-making stage
2. Discuss with employees the reasons for the change
3. Ask for feedback on the proposed change
4. Clarify everyone's role in the change process
5. Involve employees in the implementation strategy
6. Develop a timeline on specific actions of implementation
7. Determine the priority of actions
8. Provide training on new systems or procedures
9. Review the progress of the change
10. Maintain open lines of communication

Jocelyne Cossar, CHRP

HR ON DEMAND

www.hrondemand.ca

jocelynecossar@hrondemand.ca

office: 905.582.4379

mobile: 416.333.7081

10 Steps to Get Your Staff Ready for New Hire

With a new hire, the people within the company may get their feathers ruffled by not being involved enough. I was reminded by Jocelyn Cossar, an expert in managing change, the importance of getting organized and who gave Human Resource input about the 10 steps I needed to get in place. These were appreciated by the client and I asked Jocelyn if I could share her process:

"Many have said, although sometimes hard to believe, that change is a good thing. We all know that employees resist change because they feel they stand to lose once the change goes through.  A good approach to resistance to change is to see it as an opportunity for engagement. Below you will find a step-by-step guide to change management."

1.  Consult with employees during the decision-making stage
2. Discuss with employees the reasons for the change
3. Ask for feedback on the proposed change
4. Clarify everyone's role in the change process
5. Involve employees in the implementation strategy
6. Develop a timeline on specific actions of implementation
7. Determine the priority of actions
8. Provide training on new systems or procedures
9. Review the progress of the change
10. Maintain open lines of communication

Jocelyne Cossar, CHRP

HR ON DEMAND

www.hrondemand.ca

jocelynecossar@hrondemand.ca

office: 905.582.4379

mobile: 416.333.7081