Ethical and sustainable sourcing

September 29, 2013 in Business profiles, Success in business | Tags: , , , | Leave a comment

SOMETIMES I just love this job.

NovaMonda logoI was speaking with Rich Bradfield recently, one of the founders of Nova Monda Cacao & Chocolate in Lafayette, Colorado.  Of course I couldn’t fully appreciate what they do without trying some of their wonderful products, as dried cacao nibs, a couple of ganaches, a truffle, and then a chocolate bar.

The things I put myself through for my readers.

Nova Monda does indeed make some very special and exclusive products, but that’s just a tiny portion of the story of this company.

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Companies with Trust and Integrity

September 22, 2013 in Success in business | Tags: , , , | Leave a comment

MAYA (SYLVIA) DOLENA Sylvia Dolenais a colleague of mine from when we both worked for Hewlett-Packard. She led and provided consulting, coaching and training expertise for dozens of initiatives in employee engagement, technology implementation, and customer satisfaction.

Now, Sylvia is a Master Business Consultant and Executive Coach in Hawaii, and founder of Conscious Commerce Coalition and Winning Edge University. I was grateful to have a conversation with her recently about her experience working on building trust between people and companies.

Sylvia, you have some expertise on building companies which have Trust and Integrity. Could you help me understand how you’re using these concepts?

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Restaurants with character

September 15, 2013 in Business profiles, Success in business | Tags: , , , | Leave a comment

THE MootHouseMOOT HOUSE is a Fort Collins landmark: serving the community since the 1970s, and a flagship of the Hot Corner Concepts group for 25 years.  They’re known for their top-notch food and fantastic people.  A superb date night out.

There’s more to the story, though.

We all know that restaurants are one of the toughest businesses to be in – hard-to-please customers and tight margins.  Especially when you market yourself with high standards.

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Building incredible community involvement

September 8, 2013 in Business profiles, Success in business | Tags: , , , | 3 comments

OTTERCARES FOUNDATION is the philanthropic arm of OtterBox.  OtterboxWe’re familiar with OtterBox as the company which builds wonderful phone cases.

For those of us in Fort Collins, they’re also an inspiring example of an amazing employee culture and a rapidly-growing superstar.

I had the privilege of speaking with Tricia Lemmer and Gary Rogers last week, who are one half of OtterCares.  They told me more about the history behind this amazing organization, and how they bring their mission to life.

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Taking away the culture

September 1, 2013 in Success in business | Tags: , , , | 1 comment

BACK IN MAY I mentioned that Google would bear watching, because it seemed like they might be losing some of what made them special as a company.  So it was interesting that I ran across a Quartz article which discussed the death of Google’s “20% time” policy.

You may not be aware of this, but it was a HUGE DEAL in the high tech industry.  It was astounding that a company would give every employee 20% of their work time to pursue unrelated opportunities.

When I started at HP back in 1978, there were some philosophies which were similar to this, including the concept of the “G-job” as a sanctioned means of working on unassigned projects.

But 20% of your time, a full day every week?  That’s outrageous!

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What is a B-corp?

August 25, 2013 in Success in business | Tags: , , , | 1 comment

B-CORPS (Benefit Corporations) are a new kind of business structure which is sweeping across the US.  Its official name is now Public Benefit Corporation, which defines a legal structure in which a company can balance profit-making with other important business goals.

We’re particularly lucky in Colorado to be on the leading edge of this opportunity, which might be of great interest to readers of this blog.

I’d like to introduce to you Ariana Friedlander, who has been following these developments.  I asked her to give us some insight into this news, so here goes!

On May 16, 2013 Colorado Governor Hickenlooper signed Public Benefit Corporation Legislation into law making Colorado one of 20 states to pass such a bill. Starting April 1, 2014, companies in Colorado may begin registering as a Public Benefit Corporation (PBC). But what does this mean for business?

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Why business plans are bunk

August 18, 2013 in Success in business | Tags: , , , | Leave a comment

THIS MORNING I read yet another article on “Why business plans don’t work.”  It seems that these things crop up periodically, perhaps when people are frustrated, or just trying to display their mental superiority.

I hope I’m a little more humble than that.

Here’s how I view it:  If you have unrealistic expectations of a business plan, then of course you’re going to be disappointed.  Some people expect that a plan will remove all risk, and force reality to align with your desires.

That’s unrealistic.

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Helping Clients Build Deep Values into a Business

August 18, 2013 in Christianity, Success in business | Tags: , , , | Leave a comment

Here’s the story of what most companies do:  deliver products and services, build a loyal customer base, and make as much money as possible.  Eventually the owner retires rich, sipping rum drinks in the Caribbean and perhaps playing some golf.

While that’s a lovely scenario, it’s not very deep.

When I coach business owners, I often find that there are some goals which are much deeper, more heartfelt.  The companies who are driven by something deeper are different.

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Quality is everything

August 11, 2013 in Business profiles, Success in business | Tags: , , , | 2 comments

STEFANIE AND PATRICK O’NEILL own a third generation family business called Verns ToffeeVern’s Toffee House.  It was started by Stefanie’s grandfather, Vern Hackbarth, in 1976, as his second “retirement project” at the age of 60.  I met her father last year, as the company was in the process of transitioning to Patrick and Stefanie.

It’s a fascinating little business.  They had survived quite nicely for 36 years with just family and some seasonal part-time employees, and just last year took on someone year-round.

How does this survive?  Quite simply:  An amazingly wonderful product, a simple business model, and flawless quality.

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Family comes first

August 4, 2013 in Business profiles, Christianity, Success in business | Tags: , , , | 1 comment

GREG MUSTO started RJMRJMlogo Automotive Buyer’s Agency back in 2011 based on a strong desire to change the way relationships are treated in the automotive industry.

We’ve all had the experience, right?  You walk into a dealership and are instantly encircled by sharks, looking to make sure you don’t leave the lot without filling their pockets.  Today.  Now.

This is the sad reality, but based on his experience and convictions, Greg wanted to create a different kind of company.  But first I have to tell you about the company name.

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