Archive for May, 2009
Does Your Golf Game Reflect How You Manage Your Business
Posted by Mike Haworth in Small Business on May 21st, 2009
The great thing about golf is that how you play is really a reflection of how well you manage and treat people in your life . It is not a question of How Good You are or What Your Score Is, but rather how well do you stand up to challenging situations and adversity?
If you mess up a shot and the ball only goes 10 yards three times in a row, do you throw your club? Do you yell and scream?
How do you feel as the three other guys stand there and think “this guy needs lessons”.
I have often seen people on the golf course make all sorts of excuses and blame others for how they play.
They will rant and rave and perhaps swear when things do not go well. They may even throw their club or pick a fight with the foursome that is coming up fast behind. Perhaps they will answer their cell phone in the middle of the fairway showing total disrepect for others on the course.
Are you nice to those in your foursome that do not play as well as you? Do you treat the new player kindly and issue words of encouragement or do you count his score to make sure he does not say “I got a 5″ when “he really got a 6″
Does your behaviour on the golf course reflect how you behave in business? Do you keep your head down and persist even during the most difficult of times when everyone seems to be watching? Do you treat your clients and staff respectively and always act with integrity?
Golf (and success in business) is a game of integrity and those that play the game well play the game with respect and honor. The real winners are not those below 80 but those who leave the course knowing that they played well.
Mike Haworth
Binatech System Solutions
West Seneca, NY and Hamilton, ON
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National Small Business Week
Posted by Mike Haworth in Uncategorized on May 13th, 2009
Next week is National Small Business Week and I would like to congratulate all the owners and employees of Small Businesses.
I believe that the contribution that Small Businesses make to our society in North America is greatly under appreciated and the economic contribution is under estimated.
People seem to think that bigger is better but as seen in recent economic times, do large corporations really set examples by which we should run our businesses?
Is working for a large corporation really better then working for a small organization?
Is getting the large corporation as a client really much better then serving many small clients?
Perhaps as a society we should do all we can to encourage entrepreneurship. Many jurisdictions offer very low tax rates for small business and provide support services to help small business owners learn how to run a business.
In the US organizations like SCORE, and BDC in Canada provide mentoring services to new entrepreneurs and these are invaluable resources.
Individuals like John Jantsch (www.ducttapemarketing.com) are fantastic resources to learn how to market your small business.
Organizations like HTG founded by Arlin Sorensen (www.htgmembers.com) provide Peer Mentoring to small business in the IT Services Field.
Next week in Washington DC, there is a conference celebrating Small Business Week and the contribution the millions of Small Business make. http://www.nationalsmallbusinessweek.com/index.php
Congratulations to all those making a difference in our lives.
Michael Haworth
Binatech System Solutions
Hamilton, ON and West Seneca, NY
The Time and Materials Service Model for SMB is Broken
Posted by Mike Haworth in Small Business on May 8th, 2009
Why Most Companies are Unhappy With Their IT Service Provider
Most companies we contact express dismay with their IT Service Provider. These companies complain about endless bills and a lack of partnership with their Provider. The reason for this is that most Service Providers bill clients on a Time and Materials basis.
The client wants the problem fixed as quickly as possible to save money and the consultant is able to bill more the longer the call takes and the greater the frequency of problems. This conflict of interest does not work in the best interest of the client.
This approach is reactive, the consultant is rushed to complete the work and the client usually does not allocate time for the consultant to properly manage the Network. This Time and Materials Service Model is Broken.
There is hope. By entering into a relationship with a Service Provider where you are not charged by the hour results in a better managed network with much fewer problems.
A new breed of IT Service companies has developed over the last 5 years where the focus is on strategically managing IT Resources for the SMB market place. If you own an SMB it is in your interest to identify providers where they will take ownership of your entire IT system and be held responsble for all IT matters. These service companies will offer a flat rate per server and workstation and will look after all issues for the set fees.
If an IT Services company believes 100% in the IT management that they provide then they will be willing to be held responsible and charge a set fee.
Something for Small Business owners to consider.
Mike Haworth
President,
Binatech System Solutions
Hamilton, ON and West Seneca, NY
When a problem arises the client contacts the Service Provider who arranges a time to come on site, who then bills the client for the time taken, for every hour spent on the job.