Monthly Archives: September 2016

09/30/16

Decisions—Instruments of Movement

When struggling with a theme for this blog, I often seek inspiration from Seth Godin, well-known author, entrepreneur and marketer. In a recent blog entitled The ripples, Godin opens with: “Every decision we make changes things.” http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2016/09/the-ripples.html

It follows therefore that every business decision we make changes the business. It can be large–move the business from Brooklyn to Florida–or it can be small–meet a casual contact for coffee at Starbucks. The apparent size of the decision does not foretell the size of the consequences.

Some decisions are made for the short-term, some for the long-term. But decisions are instruments of movement… and what is seen initially as a short-term decision can start a series of dynamic changes that continue far into the future.

At the end of the same article, Godin asks: “How did you get to where you are? Who is going to go even further because of you?”

It may be useful in the conduct of our day to day business to keep this in mind. What decision that you made today, however small and ordinary, may bring your business and your family further than you can imagine? For generations.

09/24/16

Women—A Powerful Presence in Family Business

Some of the world’s oldest businesses are family businesses, and women have perennially played significant roles in them. From generation to generation women have served in one or more of these high-level capacities:

  • Business partner, playing a functional or organizational role
  • Senior advisor and business confidante to the CEO
  • The keeper of family values and chief advisor to the family’s upcoming generations.

Today women have become visible as prominent business leaders worldwide.

At the 4th Annual Global Family Business Event, coming up on September 29th, the keynote speaker will be Harshbeena Zaveri, leader of the engineering firm NRB Bearings and one of India’s most powerful business women.

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/global-family-business-event-leading-an-international-family-firm-tickets-26881440111.

*Previous speakers at this event have included:

Lena Jungell, granddaughter of Fazer Group founder Karl Jungell. Starting in 1891 as a small cafe in Helsinki, the Fazer family now owns an international bakery and confectionary company.

Ana Urea, one of the owners of The Privax Group, a conglomerate of predominantly fashion-related family businesses, now involving its second and third generations. The Privax Group is the current industry leader throughout Canada and Latin America.

Raya Strauss Ben-Dror, and her daughter, Nava Michael-Tsabari of The Strauss Group. Starting in 1938 with two cows, the company sold dairy products. The Straus Group is now a multinational family business and Israel’s largest food and beverage company.

*See past events at http://blogs.baruch.cuny.edu/fieldcenter/global-family-business-event-3/

09/9/16

Momentum–Let it Ride!

The NY Times’ Corner Office, by Adam Bryant is one of my favorite business columns. In it he reports on his interviews with business leaders. On Sunday, September 2, he turned his spotlight on Ben Chestnut, CEO of MailChimp.

When Bryant asked him to name some of his leadership lessons, Chestnut’s answered: “Never sacrifice momentum. I might know a better path, but if we’ve got a lot of momentum, if everyone’s united and they’re marching together and the path is O.K., just go with the flow. I may eventually nudge them down a new path, but never stop the troops midmarch.”

This lesson came to mind while I was working with a client who was trying to decide on one of several possible paths. The choice became obvious upon considering where there was the greatest momentum, and thereby the possibility of a quicker return.

Recognizing a path with momentum can be tricky, but it can make all the difference in your business’ success.