Nita F asked:


This loan program is a “pilot” meaning that the number of loans that can be made are limited a percentage of the total SBA loans approved. My business assists small business owners and this is an excellent program to get credit to business owners but it doesn’t have a champion!

Karen

Danka asked:


I have my business degree, and money for investing. I am interested in buying a business that doesn’t require my presence and that is profitable. What is a good type of business to purchase in the next year in South Florida?

Ewiniar

Casey Gollan asked:


As a business coach I often observe that the challenge with growing a business for most business owners is that they can be scared of ‘letting go’.

You see, most business owners start off in their business doing everything… and as the business grows they try and take on more and more to keep ‘in control’.

Yet the time comes in the growth of the business where they HAVE to let go…

They can’t physically keep up!

Sometimes the business owner does their best to keep up. They work more, longer and harder but despite all of their efforts the business starts to ’stagnate’.

And the owner becomes tired.

There are no more hours in the day.

They begin to realize that they can’t possibly keep their fingers in ‘all the pies’.

They have to let go.

Now most business owners are proud of the fact that they ‘know what’s going on’ in every area of their business…

And some dread losing this ‘contact’ or ‘control’

You see by being ‘in’ the business the business owner gets a feel for how the business is traveling.

If they keep on the ‘floor’ they can see customers coming in, what stock is selling, what stock is being delivered.

Now the big step (for them) is moving away from being involved to overseeing. Because they are scared that they’ll lose the ‘feel’ of the business.

And it’s at this point that some business owners panic.

What’s the answer?

The best business owners learn how to keep a ‘feel’ of their business without having to be there.

How can they do that, you may ask, if they’re not involved every day?

How can the best business owners know if it’s busy?

How can they know what stock is needed?

How can they know if customers aren’t happy?

How can they know which staff are being productive and which ones aren’t?

How can they keep their eye on the registers and the petty cash?

How can they do all this?

They can do it by setting up and monitoring their measuring and reporting systems.

I call them ‘dashboards’ or ’scoreboards’.

You see the best business owners set up ‘dashboards’ so that they can ’see’ how their business is going.

It’s like a dashboard in a car, or a cockpit of an airplane.

When you’re driving you don’t need to put your head out the window to ‘feel’ how fast you’re traveling. You just look at your speedo.

And you don’t need to look in your petrol tank to see how much petrol you have used. You just look at your fuel indicator on your dashboard.

If you set up Key Performance indicators in your business you can see how different areas of your business are performing.

All the best businesses do it. And you should too.

And you should start now… before you put on more people…

I get all my clients to start measuring critical areas of their business. And there’s a certain process to do it, and a certain way to measure it so that it works.

And when you get it working it can help liberate you from your business.

When you have your own ‘dashboard’ or ’scoreboard’ you will need to look at some key things daily, whilst others are better to look at weekly, monthly and even quarterly…

And when you have them you can step out of your business. Because the ‘dashboard’ will tell you what’s going on when you’re not there.

It’s magic.

Even if you’re not in the business you’ll be able to gauge how things are going and how your people are going. Who’s doing things and who’s not… so you can step in and take action to improve the situation immediately.

With the right systems, people and training like I have outlined, works like a charm and it’s one of the most powerful things that you can do to take your business into the multi-millions of turnover.

I use these with my clients with extraordinary success.

We look at them every week to assess how the business, and how the team in the business are performing and based on the accurate and timely information take action to correct anything that ‘off-track’ and caress anything that is on track.

For example.

One of my client’s critical areas dropped from 37% to 22% then 21%. Now to you that may just be a percentage figure but to the business owner and I it meant we were losing $2,000 profit per week every week that it stayed at the new lower level. That’s $100,000 profit in a year.

So we jumped into action. After a certain process that I stepped him through we drove it back up to 44% and kept it there. That one thing alone made him tens of thousands of dollars in just a matter of weeks let alone what it made him over a year.

Another step that I take my clients through is setting up their ‘dashboard’ whilst they are still ‘involved’ in the business then the next step is to send the ‘dashboard’ to their home for them to look at in their own time

This steps them from having a ‘feel’ of the business to looking at the ‘dashboard’ so that they can transfer their ‘feel’ of the business into assessing the numbers that are on their ‘dashboard’.

As we step through that we determine ’standards’ that each of the critical areas should be reaching each day, week, month for the business to be dong ‘nicely’.

Then armed with the standards and the dashboard the business owner can comfortably step out knowing what the dashboard has to show for him/her to stay in control of the business.

We then work on getting the business owner out of the day to day running of the business. For example if the owner is working 5 days in the business… the first step is to move him to 4 days in, and one day out. Then 3 days in, 2 days out… then 2 days in 3 days out and so it goes until the owner is able to choose their work hours because the business runs without them having to be there.

Then when you choose to come into the business you can do the work you want to do, and focus on the building your team to run your business for you.

Remember when your business is working it means that you don’t have to.

Your life may never be the same.

Join me when the timing is right for you and together we can grow your business and help you ‘let go’ of your business and stay in control.

Set up your business so you can let go and stay in control.

Copyright © 2006 by Casey Gollan. All Rights Reserved

Business Coach, Mentor And Growth Specialist

Casey Gollan, Business Coach, Mentor And Growth Specialist. Grows $1 Million p.a. Small Businesses Into $2 to $5 Million p.a. Businesses Over a 2 to 3 Year Period.



Virginie

Casey Gollan asked:


Let me ask you this… What makes a successful business owner?

Well for me, a successful business owner is someone that earns well into six figures or more each year from their business, working around 3 to 4 days (or less) per week.

I call this ’successful’ because if they can make a few hundred thousand a year from their business, and only work a few days per week they have to have a lot of great things in place…

Not just in their business but in their personal life.

It tells me that in their business they have fabulous systems and staff members that are willing and able to work even when the owner isn’t there.

And the business would have great information systems so that the business owner would know everything that’s going on (even though they’re not there) so they can still ‘control’ the business.

They’d have excellent marketing and sales systems that day in day out draw in ‘ideal’ customers that willingly buy from the business, at full price.

Plus because of the level of service and quality in the business the customers are loyal and enthusiastically refer other people to the business.

The business owner would also have a high level of trust in their staff to run the business which shows me a couple of things.

Number 1, they’d have excellent staff recruitment and training programs to build their staff into competent team members.

And Number 2 They’d have a high level emotional maturity to allow this to happen.

In their personal life, I’d consider these business owners successful because they would have enough free time during the week to spend on their own doing exercise or their favourite hobbies.

This recharges their ‘batteries’ and keeps them fresh. Thus they always seem to be ‘on-the-ball’.

Plus, they spend good quality time with their partner at home and their family.

And that’s crucial.

Just ask anyone whose business has caused a marriage break up, and/or illness through stress.

You see, growing a business that overtakes your life is very, very easy. Most business owners achieve this within the first couple of weeks of starting!

Growing a business that also enhances your lifestyle is a lot more difficult.

But it is possible.

And that’s what I do with the business owners I work with.

We create profitable business growth that enhance their lifestyles

For me it’s about Business and Life Harmony.

So what’s the underlying secret to achieving it?

Commit to becoming a better business person.

Every successful business owner will tell you this…

It’s not one single thing that will make the difference to your business growth.

It’s a lot of things.

You see most business owners are waiting for the ‘one big’ order or the ‘one great year’ or the ‘one great staff member’ that will make all the difference.

The successful business owners know differently.

The successful business owners know that to have an extraordinary business they must be an extraordinary business person.

They know that if they want to grow to $2 Million… they have to learn how to become a $2 Million business owner. And this requires improving their business skills.

There are many skills to learn.

You’ve got to know how to make the product or deliver the service.

You’ve got to know how to market your business

How to sell, how to find suppliers, how to negotiate, how to hire people, how to train people, how to read and understand financial statements the list goes on and on.

Yet it can be, and is simple… when you learn how to do it simply.

And that’s my role with you.

You see as a business coach my skill is making your business growth predictable, controllable and a hell of a lot easier.

All of my clients will tell you that.

So back to you.

If you want to grow your business you may realize that you need to learn some new information and skills.

And that’s what Super successful business owners have done before you.

They realize that to really grow their business they MUST become a better business person.

Most ‘unsuccessful’ business owners believe that the way to grow their business is by making a better product, or providing a better service.

They feel that if they have the ‘best’ product the market will come to them.

Well the product or service is only one part of your business. It’s not enough.

Super successful business owners initially build their business on a good product or service. Then when it comes time to grow… they focus on areas that will grow their business.

Super successful business owners focus on areas that most unsuccessful business owner’s neglect or are too busy to focus on.

Areas like…

- Creating Vision, Mission and Values Statements

- Marketing

- Sales

- Customer Care

- Operations

- People

- Team building

- Financial statement

- Financial analysis

- Taxation

- Law

- Technology

- Key Performance Indicators

- Business/life balance

-And building their wealth through

All of these areas sound separate yet they are extremely interconnected and dependant on each other. And as we travel through each session you’ll hear how each topic is linked to, and how much each topic relies on the other topics for its success.

That’s what makes a great business person using all the areas.

It may seem like a long list. If it does or doesn’t don’t worry. It’s a list that I’m absolutely passionate about helping you with.

Because that’s the first step to growing your business.

Become a better business person by working on your business, rather than just working in it.

It’s what I do with clients that I work with one-on-one over a couple of years in my Business Coaching Program.

Copyright © 2006 by Casey Gollan. All Rights Reserved



Danielle

Grover Rutter asked:


Sooner or later you are going to exit your business. The question isn’t whether or not you will be ready. The sixty four thousand dollar question is whether or not your business will be ready. It is estimated that seven out of ten privately held businesses have no succession plan to transfer the business to the next generation of owners. What does that mean to you? It means that if you do not currently have a plan in place to transfer your business to family members, existing partners, management or employees, someday you will think about selling your business.

That day might come sooner than you anticipate. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that just because you are not currently ready to retire that you have plenty of time to prepare your business for sale.

As a business broker, I have been involved in a number of transactions (and potential transactions) where the business owner wanted to sell, or in some instances, was forced to exit the business earlier than expected. In fact, retirement is NOT the number one reason why businesses sell.

Here is a list of the most common reasons why owners sell (or otherwise discontinue) their businesses: Burn-out (the number one reason for selling) Health issues Personal diversification Retirement/semi-retirement Death Divorce/partner disputes Business growing too fast Second generation not up to the task Loss of market share

TAKE GOOD CARE The sad truth is that many business owners do not take good care of their most valuable asset: the business. They don’t groom someone to continue the business in their absence, and do not keep the business in salable shape during the time they operate the business.

Business owners tend to get too bogged down in the day to day business operations to worry about–or plan for an event that they perceive won’t occur until sometime in the distant future; selling the business.

Unfortunately, fate sometimes dictates circumstances beyond your control, and tough decisions must be made. If your business isn’t ready to sell when the time comes, what are your alternatives?

1. Liquidation of business assets—may be a solution, but one that usually returns very little money to the business owner. If the business had been an operating business, the underlying assets (except for real estate) may be outdated and of little use to anyone. At auction, the assets will bring only what the attending bidders are willing to pay. In some instances, underlying assets are sold to liquidators (or scrap) for only pennies on the dollar. Liquidation of a going business often occurs where the owners have become ill or disabled, or need to retire and have not planned adequately for their exit from the business. 2. Closing the business—is even less attractive than liquidation. That is because many who find themselves in this situation have a tendency to “put off” liquidating the underlying assets in hope that maybe someone will come along to buy this business. This almost never happens. BUILD WEALTH NOW BY PLANNING FOR THE SALE OF YOUR BUSINESS Okay, so you think you have enough to do without throwing more onto the pile. Am I right? That is why I have written this article for you. It provides a “down and dirty” overview of things that you ought to begin thinking about and planning for right now. Doing so will provide you with an additional safety net that will help safeguard your valuable business asset.

Here are just a few of the benefits of planning now: A planned sale allows for your goals and objectives on your timetable You may begin to identify potential buyers You may be able to create an attractive acquisition candidate You can begin to understand why a buyer may want to buy You might learn why buyers would not want to buy—and be able to fix the problems You may begin to realize the worth of your business now, and learn how to increase the value as part of your retirement planning

BUSINESS VALUE HOUSEKEEPING CHECKLIST

Record All Sales Business owners often invent remarkable ways to beat the tax collector. But the taxman can be a business owner’s best friend when it comes to selling one’s business. Income taxes are a great investment in the years immediately preceding an anticipated sale of the business.

Paying income tax proves to the buyer AND the banker that your business operations have been profitable. Nobody wants to pay more income tax. But consider this example: Ronald Bunk systematically underreported business income by an average of $20,000 per year. Assuming a combined tax rate of 40%, Mr. Bunk saved $8,000 in taxes per year. But, the underreported income also reduced the company’s earnings base by $20,000 per year. If, for example, the business could be sold for a multiple of 5x the company’s reported earning base—the company would sell for $100,000 less ($20,000 average earning base not reported times the price multiple of 5) than it is really worth!

Without considering the time value of money, it would take in excess of twelve years of (illegal) tax savings to make up for the loss of $100,000 in business value. The lesson: In trying to screw the government, business owners often find themselves on the short end of the stick; often in more ways than one.

Eliminate co-mingling of business and non business assets A common practice among closely held companies is to co-mingle non business assets and expenses with business assets and expenses. I have seen businesses owning motor coaches, boats and airplanes; all reported as business assets. The costs of maintaining and operating the assets were expensed as regular business operating expenses.

It is true that those businesses (not audited by the IRS) are saving a certain amount of income tax, and providing an extra “fringe” benefit for the owners of the company. Wise business owners should endeavor to separate non business assets from the business in the three to five years before a planned sale of the company. Doing so will make it much easier to accurately measure and reflect the true earning power of the business, as it will be unfettered by the capital investment in non business assets and the associated costs. Buyers of your business are generally purchasing future income and benefit streams that will be produced by your business. The leaner and more productive your business is—the more it is worth. It is never too early to begin segregating non business assets from your business, as it may take some planning and time. Do your own due diligence

Some executives of both public and private firms get a physical check-up once a year. Many of these same executives think nothing of having their personal investments reviewed at least once a year, if not more often. Yet, these same prudent executives never consider giving their company an annual physical, unless they are required to by company rules, regulations or some other necessary reason. Anyone interested in purchasing your business will perform “due diligence” procedures on your business before closing on the purchase. All too often, sellers are surprised at the skeletons purchasers can find in the closet. These skeletons can reduce the value of your company, and in some cases, kill any chance at closing a sale. What skeletons are your company’s closets?

Why not give your business a periodic physical? In essence, I am suggesting you would do well to treat your business as if someone else owned it—and you were the potential purchaser. What problems would you discover that could cause you and your advisors to reduce or withdraw your offer?

Spending the time and money to discover and fix your company’s problems now will pay huge dividends in the form of increased company value—which is exactly what you want when it’s time to sell.

Compliance with taxing and regulatory authorities Mountains of regulation often seem to impede a company’s growth and profitability. Some regulations might seem rather easy to “slight” or ignore.

Take for example one of my recent sellers who swore to me that the business had no regulatory violations of any type. I reminded the seller that anything “hidden in the closet” would most likely be discovered in a buyer’s due diligence (investigatory) process. “Nope—no problems of any kind” I was assured. Well, guess what the buyer’s due diligence turned up? Seems the seller had a couple of shipping/storage containers sitting behind the building—which the sellers KNEW were in violation of local zoning ordinances. How did they know? They had received four previous “reminders” from the trustees about the containers, and the need to remove them. “Why didn’t you mention that to me, or disclose that fact on your disclosure statement?” I asked. “Gee, nothing ever happened and the township never did anything—so we just figured it was no big deal.” Was the seller’s reasoning.

No big deal, except when the purchaser turned up the non compliance issue, it threw a few extra wrinkles into the mix. In that case, the issue was easily resolved (yet, much to the additional cost and chagrin of the sellers). But, sometimes known violations are not so easily remedied. In those instances, a seller runs the risk of blowing a good deal.

What’s the bottom line?

Clean up any tax, industry, OSHA, EPA or zoning issues with which your company does not comply.

Organize and keep records available. One never knows when opportunity might knock. If and when it does knock, will you be ready to strike while the iron is hot? How many times have you heard someone say something like, “I’d sell anything, including my business for the right price?”

Maybe you have even said it yourself. But would you know what paperwork and documents a serious buyer will immediately need in order to pursue the purchase? When a qualified buyer is ready to begin serious due diligence, they will need a variety of company documents.

Following is a partial list of things a buyer will ask for: • Three to five years income tax returns • Copies of one to three years quarterly payroll reports • Three to five years CPA prepared financial statements • Current year to date financial statements • Detailed depreciation schedules listing each fixed asset owned by your company • Corporate Minute Book with updated minutes • Recent aged accounts receivable trial balance • Recent aged accounts payable trial balance • Company organization chart • Copy of the Summary of Insurance Coverage (provided by your carrier) • Information about Employee Benefits provided by the company • Information about Employee Retirement Plans • Copies of labor contracts • Copies of other contracts to which the company is a party • Copies of licenses, registrations for patents, copyrights, trademarks, etc.

The foregoing list is an example of the types of records your company should have up to date and on hand at all times. These records are extremely important to speed the sales process along. Though this advice sounds basic, I often encounter companies whose records are not complete and up to date. This situation can dramatically affect a potential sale.

I suggest using a three ring binder to keep the basic updated records available at all times. This also makes other business needs for the documents much more manageable.

CONCLUSION

You can increase your wealth by knowing a few simple ground rules for successfully selling your business. Just like other owners of closely-held businesses, you know how to operate your business on a day to day, month to month and year to year basis. But your experience in running the business has not prepared you to know how to sell your business.

While the information I provided in this article is not all inclusive, it should help you get started in preparing your business for a successful sale—no mater when the business might be sold.



York

Casey Gollan asked:


Picture this…

The typical business owner starts a business. Usually it’s just them by themselves or maybe one or two other people.

They do a great job. As the number of staff is small everyone is working together and they are getting things done.

They become successful and it’s time to employ some more people.

A couple more people are employed – but some cracks start to appear.

As the business employs some more staff – the cracks become wider and wider.

Soon the business owner notices that there’s not much money being made by the business.

There’s staff problems.

There may be some customers complaining. Some customers may even be lost.

Things just aren’t working anymore.

The business ‘plateaus’ and the owner becomes stressed, tired and overwhelmed.

The business owner starts to ask whether it’s all worth it.

Should they downsize and just go back to the way things were… Or do they grow.

They want to grow the business – they know that’s there’s heaps of potential in the business – yet they keep hitting ‘a brick wall’.

They are trying to make it to the next level, but they keep getting sucked back in to the business to ‘put out fires’… and it’s wearing the owner down.

Sound familiar?

I see this all the time. It’s at this point that my clients seek me out.

I specialise in helping business owners through this point in their business growth.

And it’s easy; I do this day in day out.

Let me describe how the previous situation happens.

In the initial growth of the business, when a business only has a few people – everyone has an idea of what everyone else is doing – so they can work effectively together.

Yet when you get to about 3 to 7 people or more, things need to change.

Because around that number of people, some of the people can ‘bludge’, they can hide. So they do.

After all – at this size, the business owner is usually still ‘doing’ things in the business at this stage, so they have their hands full.

And they want to grow so they know they need staff to help them. But because most business owners don’t have much training in how to hire, train and motivate staff – they tend to ‘put up’ with staff that JUST do enough to stay employed.

But what happens is that the business owner ends up ‘finishing things off’ that their people have started or can’t do.

The business owner tends to ‘save’ the day.

They know it, and so does their staff!

So their staff let the owners come in to save the day – and they do it often. After all, most people have a lazy streak in them. So why not wait for someone else to do it, “after all it’s their business” – the employee thinks.

It’s at this point that the business can often start to wander off track, the business owner can become stressed, overwhelmed and questions whether it’s all worth it.

It is worth it, and if you’re at this point in your business – don’t give up – because with a little guidance from me, it’s easy for you to fix.

And the rewards can almost immediately start flooding in.

If you’re at this point you’ve done most of the hard work in business. You’re turning over good money, you have customers, you have a place in the market, and you have employees.

Now it’s a process of getting IT all to work for you.

Rather than YOU having to do all the work – to make it work.

Because when you get your business working – you won’t have to work.

The reason why most business owners work so many hours – is because their business doesn’t work.

All successful business owners have stepped through this phase in business growth.

It’s a phase where your staff have to step up and do what you are employing them to do – without you having to ‘look-over-their-shoulder’ to make sure it’s getting done.

There are 3 Crucial things that you must have in place for you to make it through this phase successfully.

On my 1-on-1 business coaching program I take you though these 3 crucial things so that you have them specifically and especially designed and implemented for your business.

That way it’s unique for you and your situation.

When you have these 3 crucial things in place here are the benefits you’ll enjoy…

When you have first Crucial element in place – you’ll find that your staff will individually take ownership and responsibility for their roles and responsibilities in your business. They will willingly want to work at their optimal in your business, and make it happen.

It’s at that time that they’ll do what’s required of them – willingly.

When you have the 2nd crucial element in place you’ll find that Your staff will regularly review, plan and improve areas in your business to help the business grow.

Everyone in the business will willingly work together and will be aware of what is going on in the business. Everyone will work efficiently and effectively so that their individual roles work harmoniously with each other thus creating the power of synergy in your business.

They’ll also have the initiative to find out what they have to do and when they have to do things by.

And finally, when the 3rd crucial element is in place you’ll benefit because your staff will naturally start to follow you. And they’ll willingly want to perform at higher levels.

They’ll be aware that for everyone to benefit from the business, everyone must work together like a team. And they’ll all know that there’ll be consequences for anyone that lets the others down. So they’ll work extra hard to make sure no-one lets the team down.

This sounds like a dream to most business owners. And sadly – for some – it is.

Despite being readily able to achieve this in their business – for some odd reason they think it could never happen. So they never try to find out how to do it.

And it’s disappointing. Because it can happen.

I’ve been doing it with business owners just like you and with businesses just like yours – for years now. Successfully. Go to my testimonial pages http://www.caseygollan.com.au/businessgrowthtestimonials1.htm and listen to the long interviews – you’ll hear success after success.

Wouldn’t any passionate, determined business owner want to at least try to achieve this level of success?

Happily some business owners do. And with great success.

In essence, the secret is to get everything else working ‘together’ in your business – that way you (the business owner) don’t have to work.

And these 3 crucial areas will allow you to make it happen.

How fast could you do it? Well that depends on you, your business structure and your situation.

But rest assured you can do it.

All the best business owners use these 3 crucial areas. Learn what they are – put them into place and you can reap the rewards.

Copyright © 2007 by Casey Gollan. All Rights Reserved



Selma

Alex Sutovsky asked:


The positive economic atmosphere in the market is also felt in the large number of new businesses opening in Israel. Each day, many new businesses are opened, most of them small and medium sized. More than once this relates to young people who have finished their world tour and now are full of energy and attack the market with a view to conquering it. Our office feels the reawakening of the economy and mentioned that recently there has been a sharp increase in the number of those contacting us in order to receive advice and to open a new business. Also, the new reforms planned by the Ministry of Finance make the establishment of new businesses more worthwhile and more profitable.

Nevertheless, even if a business owner has a fantastic idea and a tremendous potential for success, incorrect decisions at the start of the road may decide the fate of the business already at its infancy. Most of these incorrect decisions in opening a business result from a lack of knowledge of legal and accounting affairs connected with establishing a business. In order to assist businesses at the outset, we hereby submit a complete manual for opening a business:

Location of the business

Throughout the country and in the center of the large cities, there are many areas available for leasing. The prices are lower than at any time and one can choose the most suitable building for the business’s needs. In a new business, it is not recommended to sign a lease for over a year, but to have an option to extend the lease under identical conditions. A short-term agreement will ensure the transferring of the business to another place should the chosen location not be successful from the business’s point of view. When choosing the location of a business, remember that the costs of transferring it are very high and include transport, renovations, etc.; and therefore, it is most important to choose a suitable location.

Bank and credit frameworks

Despite the fact that many self-employed continue to run the business also using their private bank account, this is not recommended. The management of a separate account for the business provide a more precise indication of the business result and makes the management of cash flows in the business easier. In addition, in order to recognize bank expenses and commissions as recognized expenses, the tax authority requires the business to have its own account.

It is recommended that the business account will not be kept in the bank in which the private account is kept. Generally, the bank will see both accounts as one account for the purpose of giving credit frameworks and calculating indebtedness. The opening of a bank account with another bank can increase the credit framework given to the business.

It is very important to see the bank as a partner and to maintain a positive reputation with it. When a problem is expected in cash flows, it is recommended to inform the bank and come to a joint solution. Cooperation with the bank is even more important due to the new regulations which forbid the bank to allow an overdraft without approval as from July 1, 2006. Maintaining good relations with the bank does not contradict that it is recommended to negotiate the amount of interest and commissions, and in this way to save money.

Funds for small businesses

One of the central problems of new businesses and businesses in general is credit difficulties. In Israel, there are many funds that operate and encourage new, small, and medium – sized businesses with the method of granting credit changing from time to time.

Generally, assistance is given to businesses that already exist and operate, but there are also funds that give loans to businesses being established. At the time of taking credit, it is important to ensure that the business can meet the monthly repayment. For businesses that cannot meet immediate repayment, there are loans where repayment is made only after a period which is decided in advance.

Value Added Tax

The business can operate only after registering and opening a VAT file.

There are two types of independent business:

a. An exempt business – where the expected annual turnover will not exceed NIS 65,720 – generally, these are small business and employees who are only starting their activities as self employed. Such a business only reports once a year to the VAT and does not collect and cannot set – off VAT. Businesses such as the liberal professions cannot register as exempt businesses, no matter what their revenues

b. A taxable business – anyone whose annual turnover is expected to exceed NIS 65,720 must be registered as a licensed dealer.

When filing an application to the VAT authorities for opening a business, you should have the following documents: an application to open a business signed by the dealer/partners, a photocopy of an identity card/identity cards, a cancelled bank check / any other document showing details of the bank account and details of the holder of the bank account and the rental contract.

In certain cases, the Value Added Tax Authorities are entitled to demand additional documents such as future engagement agreements etc.

Income Tax

After the change in the law, about a year ago, dealers are required to report to the Income Tax on the opening of a business, and anyone who does not do so is exposed to administrative fines. In order to register an independent business, an application to register one must be made with the assessing officer. Despite the fact that it is possible to open a business with the tax authorities independently, it is recommended to obtain the assistance of a CPA to do so.

Opening a deductions file for employees

If the business employs people, a deductions file must be opened with the assessing officer. The opening of a deductions files with the National Insurance Institute is carried out automatically by obtaining data from the Income Tax Authorities.

National Insurance Institute

In addition to registering VAT and income tax, an independent dealer must register also with the National Insurance Institute. Registration is done by completing the annual report form. The Institute requires that the number of hours expected and the level of expected income. There are two types of self employed in National Insurance:

1) A self employed person who meets the definitions of a self employed person – pays advances on account and insures the income for which he pays advances.

2) An independent who does not meet the definition – a dealer who works in the business less than 12 hours a week and earns less than NIS 3,692 per month. This status generally is suitable for employed people where the business provides him with complementary income. When the business is registered with the National Insurance Institute – the Institute examines whether insurance fees were paid from the age of 18 until the age of opening the business -whether there are periods where the dealer was abroad or did not work – he will be required to pay for these periods.

Keeping books of accounts

Every person who has income from a business or profession must keep books. The method of keeping books changes according to type and size of the business. At the start, it is recommended to keep close contact with a professional person – certified public accountant or tax consultant in order to obtain a detailed explanation of the method of managing the books and the procedures of issuing invoices and receipts. In addition, cooperation with a certified public accountant assists the business in understanding more correctly and releasing its owners from waiting unnecessary time.

Non keeping of proper books causes their disqualification by the tax authorities. This sanction is likely to result in a situation where the assessing officer will determine for himself the annual assessment that the business owes, and its owner will have to prove the exact income according to which the tax is paid.

__________________________

For additional details regarding the specific requirements of every client, send us your query and we will gladly get back to you with a response regarding your specific needs.



Howard

John Leonetti, Esq., M.S. Finance, CM&A.A asked:


Most business owners believe that an ‘external’ sale of their business is their only (or at least best) Exit Alternative. Typically this is because business owners know that their employees and/or fellow family members don’t have the type of money required to secure a successful exit plan for them. So often times, business owners approach (view or see) the topic of Exiting a business as meaning that they need to sell their business to an outside buyer with enough money to pay them what they want.

So while an ‘external’ sale is intuitively appealing, it’s my experience that an understanding of ‘internal’ transfers will help open up a very good dialogue with a business owner so that they can understand all their options and make a well informed decision. In fact, analysis of an ‘internal’ transfer of the business can be a powerful alternative to a business owner looking for an Exit Strategy. And, depending upon the business owner’s motives, it may be the best alternative available.

‘Internal’ transfers of ownership in a business are often times overlooked because they are not intuitively understood by the business owner and/or the business owner’s advisors. So let’s examine some of the ‘internal’ transfer methods that are available to a business owner to illustrate the benefit of a well-conceived Exit Strategy.

‘Internal’ transfer methods include Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOP) Transfers, Management Buyouts (Sales to Family and Management), Gifting Strategies, Private Annuities, Family Limited Partnerships, and Charitable Transfer Strategies. The three (3) primary differences between these ‘internal’ transfer alternatives versus (and the) ‘external’ transfer alternatives are:



(i) the corporate assets, including future cash flows, are leveraged to achieve these strategies;

(ii) the driving force behind these ‘engineered’ strategies is a business owner’s motive of passing the business to someone other than an outside buyer, and;

(iii) the business owners will frequently be considering tax planning and estate planning along with their Exit Strategies. ‘Internal’ transfers, as a general rule, allow for more flexibility in these areas than ‘external’ transfers.



A business owner considering an ‘internal’ transfer can set the price and terms for the transfer and say to their family and/or management team, “Here is what I want/need for my business”. For this reason, ‘internal’ transfers are often referred to as ‘controlled’ transactions because the business owner is working with ‘assets’ that they already possess in structuring their Exit from the business. So if those ‘assets’ are sufficient to achieve that business owners’ goals (based on their motives), then it is worthwhile to examine an ‘internal’ transfer.

This is in sharp contrast to a business owner attempting an ‘external’ transfer because they are often subject to a process that includes outsiders investigating their potential investment in the ‘Target Company’ and then telling the business owners, “Here is what we are willing to give you for your business”. So, the Exiting business owner can expect to lose quite a bit of control over the process. And, because many business owners possess a unique psychological mix of independence, intelligence and control orientation, losing control to an outside buyer often leads to ‘choppiness’ in a deal.

Mergers and Acquisitions professionals will often advise business owners that if the business owner wants to set the price for the deal, then the outside buyer will be setting the terms for the deal. A deal is struck when each party is ‘equally happy’. Or, as one dealmaker said, every successful ‘external’ deal is a “little miracle”.

So, one will naturally ask, “What’s the downside of an ‘internal’ transfer versus an ‘external’ transfer”? Quite simply, negotiating with family members and key employees can be inherently dangerous. These individuals (and their advisors) will require detailed and confidential information from the business owner in order to fully understand all the risks inherent in owning the business – really no different than the ‘external’ buyer. And of course, most business owners are not anxious to share all their information with their employees; it goes against the nature of the relationship amongst workers and owners.

So then, how does one go about negotiating an ‘internal’ transfer? The answer is “very carefully”. And, the most cautious first step that a business owner can take is to engage an intermediary – which can be any one of the existing advisors to that business – to assist with the transaction. Having trusted advisors involved in the process raises the level of objectivity and lowers the level of emotions when negotiating the transfer.

Because, after all, if the ‘internal’ transfer does not work out, it will not add a lot of Value to the business to have [further] frustrated employees due to that business owner’s own doing. It’s easier to place blame for a failed transaction with a third party advisor so that all parties involved can amicably return to the business of running [and not transferring] the business.

Yet another downside to an ‘internal’ transfer is the loss of potential for extraordinary gain on the transfer. As a general rule, ‘external’ buyers for businesses include ‘Strategic’ (or industry) buyers and ‘Financial’ (such as Private Equity Groups) buyers.

A Strategic Buyer of a business stands to offer the selling business owner the highest total Value in buying the business because that buyer can apply ‘synergies’ to the valuation of the deal. In other words, a buyer who is already in the same business as the seller, can eliminate duplicate expenses and acquire new customers for their existing products. These ‘synergies’ help raise the Value of the transaction to the Industry buyer, and a good M&A intermediary will argue for the sharing of those synergies with the selling business owner. This synergistic value is likely not available with an ‘internal’ transfer.

So to summarize my original point, a business owner who wants to Exit their business should be aware of the various methods by which an Exit can be directed. Thereafter, consideration should be given to that business owner’s motives. In other words, what is most important to that Exiting business owner and how can it best be accomplished?

An Exit Strategy is defined as ‘The written goals for the succession of a businesses’ ownership and control, derived from a well thought out and properly timed plan that considers all factors, all interested parties, and the personal goals of the owners in a manner and time period that is accommodative to the business, its shareholders, and potential buyers.’ Accordingly, knowing the pros and cons of ‘internal’ and ‘external’ transfers is a critical step in establishing an Exit Strategy.

Exit Strategies are hard to design and even harder to properly execute. I am pleased that you are pursuing a pro-active interest in Exit Strategies because a pro-active approach to an Exit Strategy is the only approach to a successful Exit Strategy.

© 2007 John M. Leonetti



Beryl

Luis Luarca asked:


Business management refers to one’s ability to manage a business effectively and efficiently while retaining profitability. But what does that mean? Anyone can ‘manage’ a business, right?

But do we really know how to manage a business? And if we do, what does that entail? Do you just run around your company telling people what to do or run to the bank and make deposits at the end of the each week? Is that business management?

If that is all it takes to run a business, why isn’t everyone a business owner? If managing a business is so easy, why are there consultants? Simple answer: business management is more daunting a task than we may think.

I have always said that no matter how large or small a company is, it is an overwhelming task to manage the everyday issues. We could all use a little bit of help.

Traditional business management, which is what I have studied and is the methodology I use when discussing business issues with clients, takes into account all aspects of running a business, large or small.

Whether it is a million-dollar company or a billion-dollar company, all companies run the same.

Traditional business management is pretty much self-explanatory; it is managing business through traditional methods that have been used for many years.

Those traditional methods incorporate three aspects: sales and marketing strategies, efficient operation and productions methods, and finance and accounting (SG&A). I believe all business owners should have some understanding of these areas of business and try to manage them as best they can. Most large companies focus on these areas in that they have the resources to pay employees who specialize in these particular areas.

For example, consider some of the largest companies in the United States like Home Depot, Starbucks and Dell. These companies require precise and expert management of their business operations at all times while maintaining a positive financial position for investors. These businesses pay full-time employees to function in the company in particular capacities.

When we look at small businesses in the United States, we have to ask, “Do small businesses have the financial resources to pay for similar resources such as a chief financial officer, or a qualified VP of Sales”? Quick answer: no! Actually, no is the only answer.

When we look at larger companies and how they manage their sales and marketing efforts, we find that larger companies have the financial resources to hire employees on a full-time basis who are experts in sales and marketing.

We can say the same for the third aspect of traditional business management, operations and productions. Once again, large businesses have the revenue available to have full-time positions for a general manager, a production manager, and sometimes, a Vice-President of Operations.

Again, small businesses rarely have the opportunity to pay experts full-time salaries, which could cost a business thousands of dollars annually.

So, now we know that traditional business requires the expertise of individuals in particular areas, such as finance, marketing, sales, production, operations, and management.

As a small business owner, can you pay the full-time wages of each of these employees? Do you have to hire all these employees in order for you to spend less time in the office worrying about business issues?

I have seen many million-dollar companies and I have seen a few billion-dollar companies; the only difference is that one pays for expert full-time employees and the other doesn’t. Obviously, the larger companies have the money to pay for expert employees, and small businesses don’t.

So how does the small business owner learn the basics of business management without paying for an MBA or spending thousands of dollars in annual salaries for experts?

Recently traditional business management had to make room for a new aspect of business: technology.

Through the years traditional business management has had to marry its strategies with the proliferation of technology where every business owner from Starbuck’s to Jim’s Auto has had to incorporate technology into its everyday operations.

The problem is that business believed that technology was going to be the solution for every problem, but it wasn’t until recently that business management thinkers realized that technology will fail if it is not implemented properly. That is, traditional business management must seamlessly marry itself with technology.

So, now you have this traditional business model to think of, and you also have to think that the model has incorporated technology. You see, managing a business is not as easy as it sounds. When you look at this business model I know for sure that you have never looked at your business in this way before. Believe it or not, graduate schools teach this stuff and larger companies obviously have the money to pay someone to think of this stuff, but what about the small business owner?

Small business owners do not have the financial resources to pay for this thinking and consulting companies for some reason; do not necessarily speak to the small business owner. Why not? Most consulting companies are always looking to fry the “big fish”, the 1% of businesses in the United States that can afford the phenomenal fees they charge.

Larger consulting companies do not have the time or the desire to speak to small businesses, nor will they change their fees which range over $400.00 per hour.

One of the comments I hear often in small businesses is, “Great idea, I wish I could get my people to do that, but I can’t expect them to change their ways.” I say, “You’d better get them to change their ways or you could be out of a job”!

Oddly enough, small business owners are reluctant if not skeptical in getting help for their business. To this day, I have yet to figure that one out. Why don’t small business owners look for help?

I firmly believe that business is business regardless of the size of the company, the annual revenues, or the number of employees. Keep in mind that the largest businesses in the world were once small businesses and today they are worth a great deal of money. All businesses “managed” their way to the top, regardless of the industry.

I have seen numerous multi-million dollar businesses in every industry, to include contractors, restaurants, service companies, and manufacturing companies. And I have also worked for companies that are worth billions and billions of dollars. They all have one thing in common: They all run the same some just have more revenue than the other.

I have always said that no matter what you produce to sell, HOW you produce it is what is of paramount importance to the growth of your business.



Your business is not too small or too large for a review of its current business processes. I have not met a business owner, a president or CEO of a company who can tell me that their business is running so smoothly that they don’t need to change. That is simply not true.

The natural stirring of the U.S. economy is what causes the need for change in all businesses of all sizes and I guarantee that if you are not constantly rethinking your business strategies, your competition is.

Can you say that your business is flexible enough to manage your competition and stay ahead of the curve, or that your business can handle the daily economic fluctuations in the U.S.?



Ask yourself some of the following questions.

1.Have your total revenues gone up or down from last year?

2.Has your profitability gone up or down from last year?

3.Where is the next dollar coming from?

4.Are you tired of going to work?

5.Do you have adequate inventory levels?

6.How many employees report to you on a daily basis?

7.Do your employees actually do what you ask and expect of them?

8.Do you have a management team in place?

9.Is there business expenses you wish you didn’t have?

10.Does every employee in your company have a specific job function that justifies their labor burden?

11.Do you remember when owning your business was fun for you and your family?

12.Do you believe your company operates as smoothly and efficiently as it could?

13.Do you have a long-range plan?

14.Do your employees share your vision of the business?

15.Who do your employees go to when there is a problem?

16.If you actually met me, would you be able to tell me that your business doesn’t need to change, or that it is truly profitable?

If you are ready to move your business forward, get some help. Believe it not, the success of your business is important to this great Nation.



Roslyn

Casey Gollan asked:


When it comes to successful business growth – one of the key differences that separates the successful business owners from the average ones…

Is what the business owner ‘works’ on – when they have employees.

I have noticed that the best business owners work on improving their employees…

Why? Well, so that the employees learn and then do certain tasks that the business owner used to do.

By doing this, the owner can remove themselves from the ‘day-to-day’ running of the business so that they can work on areas that can grow the business – and/or do the things they enjoy doing.

Like playing golf, going on holidays, spending time with their families.

On the other hand, the average business owner continues to work ‘in’ the business despite having employees. For a number of reasons the average business owner says that they don’t have the ‘time’ to improve their employees.

As a result, the employees lack the skills and/or the freedom to do the tasks that would free up the business owner from the day-to-day running of the business.

So guess what happens? The business remains dependent on the Business owner.

So the Business owner has to continue working.

Despite having employees, the business owner is still working a million hours… but the business never seems to grow to the levels that the business owner is hoping for – even though they’re working harder than they ever have.

Does this sound familiar?

Let’s explore how this happens.

The average business owner that wants to grow their business – but find it very hard to grow successfully… tends to do the following.

They have a business – and it’s growing. Early in the business it’s just the owner and maybe a few others. The business is growing, and the owner is working a million hours.

The average business owner knows that they should employ staff, but they put it off and put it off, until they can’t possibly cope with the workload anymore.

So they hire new staff at the last minute.

Usually the new person is employed in such a hurry that the business owner doesn’t have the time to train them. Because the business is so busy.

After all, the business owner has been working a million hours, so they’re probably feeling a bit stressed and overwhelmed.

They’re typically not feeling in control and calm – that’s for sure.

And the business owner usually doesn’t have a system to hire appropriately skilled or passionate people.

Because they don’t have a proven hiring system, the staff that are employed can often lie their way through interviews telling the owner that they do have skills – when they actually don’t.

You know how the story goes…

Anyway, a new person is hired.

But because the business is busy, and the business has no real induction or training system to get the new employees up to speed – the business owner continues to focus on doing the work themselves.

When the owner checks to see how the new employee is performing, they get disappointed because the new person doesn’t have the ‘skills’ or the initiative to do things properly.

So the business owner steps in to ‘do it themselves’ because they think that they can ‘save time’ by doing it themselves.

It’s at this time the business owner starts proving to themselves that ‘no-one can do it as good as me’.

And they are correct. Of course no-one can do it as good as them – because no one has taught the new employees properly.

So the average business owner continues to do the ‘day-to-day’ things, and take over from their staff when the staff aren’t doing the right things…

By continuing to do the work that the employees are suppose to do, the staff very quickly realize that the business owner will always ‘save the day’.

So they back off on their productivity, and their passion.

The staff quickly learn how to ‘hide’ in the business so that they just get by.

They become ‘clock watches’. They turn up to work, to watch the clock and as soon as it turns 5pm – they’re out of there.

And this hurts your customers. Because the customers of the business receive inconsistent levels of service.

The customers quickly begin to realize that if the business owner serves them – they may get extraordinary service.

And if the staff serves them – they’ll get inadequate service.

If the service is poor and inconsistent the customers will start to get annoyed. They’ll literally ask for the owner every time they come into the business. Because they know they’ll get the service they want.

And that’s a sign of a poorly trained team.

As a result the customers end up going somewhere else, the business suffers, the sales and profits dwindle – and the business owner blames it on the ‘staff’.

The business owner may then go into “see I told you I can’t find the right people’.

The average business owner has tried to grow the business, yet misses a few crucial things that makes them miss out on the rewards of a successful business.

The result is unhappy staff, unhappy customers, a business that barely makes any money – and an owner that works around the clock, stressed and overwhelmed for little or no return.

Well it doesn’t have to be that way!

You can quickly and easily turn this around, if you’re in this position, or even better you can completely avoid it by following my guidance.

Every great business owner that I know, that has successful business growth follow a number of specific steps to get them out of the situation I’ve just outlined.

And it’s crucial for the growth of your business too.

It’s wonderfully easy when you learn how to do it for your situation.

Let’s look at what the best business owners achieve by following these specific steps – and what you could possibly achieve by following my guidance.

Firstly – your staff will have the right skill sets and attitude to work in your business. Plus they’ll improve and grow rapidly (faster than you may think). This means that you can comfortably rely on them to get the ‘job-done’.

By focusing on getting the team up to the standard you can be assured that in a few weeks or months they’ll be at the point where you can depend on them.

They’ll be doing a great job and delivering consistent levels of service.

As a result you can now forget about having to ‘look over their shoulder’, or forget about having to ‘save the day’ like other average business owners.

Because your staff are now producing – you have freed yourself up from the day to day running of the business – so you can focus on ways to grow and improve your business.

And you can even spoil yourself with reduced work hours, time off and even holidays.

Imagine that?

Now, back to your staff.

Because they’re learning, growing and producing you’ll be happy with them and they’ll be happy with themselves – and of course they’ll be happy working for you.

And it’ll rub off on your customers.

Why?

Because your customers will get great consistent service from your entire business.

So what will this mean to your business?

For a start, your customers won’t always be asking for you, because they know your staff are consistent – so you won’t feel trapped.

Because of this consistency your customers will reward your business with their repeatable profitable custom, positive word of mouth and ongoing referrals to your business.

Now you’ll have a business where the team are growing and happy, your customers are happy and raving about you, and your financials are healthy and very profitable.

That’s right, your business will be profitable which means you’ll be making great money – and remember, your staff will be doing most of the work… so you’ll not only be making great money – you’ll also have ample free time.

Can you see, hear and feel what’s happening to your business?

Multi-millionaire business owners always tell me that the most important part of their growth – is good people. They’ll always hire people that know more and perform better than them on the certains task they are employed for.

People are one of your greatest assets as a business owner. And like any asset you need to invest in it to get returns.

Invest your time and your focus on growing your people to do better than you. That way you’ll have the time to grow your business.

On my one-on-one business coaching program I take my clients through this process step by step so that they can fast track their growth – with the safety and peace of mind knowing that they are following a process that has worked time and time again.

Copyright © 2007 by Casey Gollan. All Rights Reserved



Kyle