What I’m Reading
The CEO of Axiom EPM, Peri Pierone, and the co-founder of McMenamins, Mike McMenamin, share their recent reads.
Lifestyle
When the employee is the customer
BY LINDA BAKER
In 2013, Gallup published a poll showing that 70% of U.S. employees were “disengaged” in their jobs, costing companies $450-$550 billion a year in poor performance.
Protecting your business from cybercrime
BY DON MORRISON | OB GUEST CONTRIBUTOR
BY DON MORRISON | OB GUEST CONTRIBUTORWhile the technology renaissance we have gone through has certainly benefited consumers and businesses alike, it’s also brought a new vulnerability with it – the emergence of cybercrime.
How to measure marketing effectiveness
BY TOM COX | BUSINESS TIPS CONTRIBUTOR
How can you measure marketing effectiveness? If it gets better, how can you measure the improvement? By business modeling. The modeling process itself will uncover any holes in your marketing process.
Three ways to be nicer to your future self
BY TOM COX | BUSINESS TIPS CONTRIBUTOR
Have you noticed how different your future self is, from yourself today? My future self, apparently, has lots of free time. He has money. He’s very decisive. He goes to the gym with the regularity of a metronome. His self-control is a thing of legend. Or would be, if he existed. Future-me’s only weakness is on-time performance — he still hasn’t shown up. All his work keeps showing up on my desk each morning. Current-me needs a new strategy.
How to add merit selection in a family business
BY TOM COX | BUSINESS TIPS CONTRIBUTOR
If you have a family-owned business, younger family members can expect to start near the top. Here’s how to create a new culture where merit selection is the new rule.
Mandatory corporate fun
BY TOM COX | BUSINESS TIPS CONTRIBUTOR
If you really want your team members to connect, there are few worse ways than “Mandatory Corporate Fun” that’s too obviously aimed at manipulating them.
How to write a perfect thank you note, again
BY TOM COX | BUSINESS TIPS CONTRIBUTOR
One of my most popular articles is “Three Steps to Writing a Perfect Thank You Note.” If you already write thank-you notes regularly, it’s a great reminder of the basics. For the rest of us who don’t, it provides a simple checklist that lets us dramatically increase the likelihood we’ll offer thanks in writing — and in the process, we’ll discover we’re making huge investments in our relationships. Here’s a fresh take on the topic, with some guidance on avoiding common errors.
Why the boss is always wrong
BY TOM COX | BUSINESS TIPS CONTRIBUTOR
“Are you ready to be a transference object?” Fred hesitated. The coffee shop seemed to become dead silent. One week earlier, Fred had been offered a dream job, as part time CEO of a startup, working for a proven star CEO — now Chairman — who had also offered to mentor Fred.
Six steps to solving a problem
BY TOM COX | BUSINESS TIPS CONTRIBUTOR
Good managers adopt a shared problem-solving framework. Here’s how.