Our last blog post explored the reasons why having a healthy business culture is important for your brand. The positive effects of a healthy culture are many, while the result of letting the culture of your company degrade can be very negative indeed. In our prior post, we touched on ways to measure the cultural health of your company, so how do you do you strengthen that culture if necessary?

The first step is to ask yourself a few questions to get a sense of the “feel” you’d like your organization to have:

• What attributes do you value that you want to show up in your company’s culture? Respect, acceptance, ingenuity, fun, etc.?
• What are the major values or focus of your company? How can you make that prominent in the culture?
• How is information currently distributed in the company and how does this affect the culture?
• How do you reward or motivate employees now, and how would you like to in the future?
• Does everyone feel heard in the company? Do people feel free to express their ideas and give their opinions?

These can lead to more questions. To find answers try brainstorming with your peers. Listed below are some suggestions to get the process started:

Suggestion/Thought box – Providing people with a means to share their thoughts, anonymously or not, helps make the culture of a company feel more open. You could learn some important things that need tweaking and may wish to bring them up in companywide meetings.

Empower employees – Let your staff make decisions. Treat your staff as peers; allow them to have a say and listen to their ideas. Also be a transparent leader. Don’t just notify your employees when things are great, but also let them know tactfully when things aren’t going very well.

Flexible hours – Giving people some flexibility to get their work done demonstrates trust. Trusting them to regulate themselves will lead them to respect you more.

Dress code – Have a more relaxed dress code. It’s remarkable what permitting people to express themselves can do for a company’s culture. Consider themed days: silly hat day, Hawaiian shirt day, or anything that gets people thinking imaginatively and brings smiles to the day.

Celebrate – A business is comprised of the people in it, so celebrate together. A monthly movie day, a catered lunch, or lunchtime board game days are only a few ways you can get your staff together to celebrate.

Below is a list of things that real companies have done to incorporate some fun to their culture:

• Spontaneous Nerf gun wars
• Painting inspirational quotes on the walls
• Hitting a loud gong when there is a success to let the whole company know
• Foosball tournaments
• Lunchtime Yoga
• Lunchtime Crafting Club
• Monday Mad Libs, whoever wishes to contribute, does, and then the completed Mad Lib is emailed to the company

Strategy is usually at the forefront of a company’s focus. Strategy is not the only thing that makes a company prosperous. Culture also plays a huge role. The culture of your company impacts your branding, your marketing success, and daily operations, all of which have an effect on how the world sees your business. The logos of brands like Apple, Google, and Starbucks are recognizable not only because they seem to be everywhere, but also these businesses have strong cultures that shine through their employees, storefronts, and logos. These positive, strong cultures all begin inside the walls of their offices.

Why Culture is so Important

A healthy workplace culture encourages creativity. When employees like the place they work and feel like they are part of the team it makes them challenge themselves in innovative ways. In a workplace in which people feel invisible or stifled they will often do the minimum amount required. It is part of human nature to want to feel valued and important. A business is made of its people so whatever mindset prevails will show up in your brand and the products and service you offer. Ultimately, nurturing the culture of your workplace is everyone’s duty from the CEO to HR.

If you are not yet convinced, here are a few of the obvious advantages of promoting a healthy culture.

• Focus – Keeping employees dedicated to the same goal helps a business run with efficiency. Getting people to care about the goal comes with having a healthy focus. If your employees feel like they are a significant part of achieving that goal they’ll be more likely to push themselves. When individuals feel like they have no impact on the main goal, they loose focus, and can become cynical.

• Cohesion – The basis of cohesion is strong communication between team members, whether they are dealing with successes or roadblocks. Strong communication strengthens teamwork and makes operations run more smoothly. In a workplace with an unhealthy culture, people might be nervous to offer feedback about issues that arise or may not care enough to act quickly when issues do arise.

• Motivation – It’s simple; motivated people accomplish more. This may seem obvious, but in companies where the culture is suffering, productivity may also suffer.

Measuring the Cultural Health of Your Company

This can be a difficult step but ought to be assessed a few times a year. One of the primary steps is to look at how individuals are managed, how jobs are given out, and do people have some say in what they are doing? Obviously you might find some people who’ll never be happy, but if the general opinion is negative, start thinking about making a few changes for the healthy of your business. Check back soon for some tips on transforming your company’s culture for the better.

You launched your own catering business because you love to cook. You went into the bakery business to sell cookies and cakes. You didn’t open your own landscaping company because you love paperwork. Yet to be a prosperous small business owner, you can’t neglect the financial side of your business, and this means that you must make sure that you accurately invoice your clients. Forgetting to invoice your customers can leave you with a serious cash flow problem, one which, if left unchecked, could put you out of business.

Invoicing help online

Online invoicing services are plentiful nowadays that make the financial side of business far more manageable. Online services make the tedious task of paperwork much quicker.  Depending on the service you employ, the communication to the client can also be automatic! Let’s consider some of the most well known online invoicing services available:

A free but powerful invoicing service

Sometimes the word “free” is synonymous with “not very good.” Happily, that isn’t the case with the free system, BillingBoss. Suitable for most small businesses that want to automatically invoice customers monthly and occasional once-off invoicing, BillingBoss packs a big punch at no cost!

A power tool

AcceptPay from American Express is unquestionably for the power user. For only $30 a month, users of AcceptPay can connect with QuickBooks, collect online payments from clients, and set up a wide array of customizable automatic invoices. It seems a fairly small price to pay for such a powerful tool.

Invoicing for the tech-savvy

If you need more control over your online invoicing, you might consider downloading BambooInvoice. This is another free service. What sets it apart, though, is that small business owners host it on their own servers, not in the cloud. Because it is an open source program, tech-savvy entrepreneurs can customize it to fit their business’s specific needs.

These are just a few of the available options online. Most services are free or exceptionally cost-effective. If you want to take the reigns on your invoicing process, think about using an online solution.

If the rumors are true, Microsoft is stepping up considerably to join the fight against cyber crime. Apparently, Microsoft is developing a real-time feed that documents current cyber threats and provides necessary steps to safeguard against them.

Microsoft currently has a process in place to take down harmful botnets. Microsoft “swallows” the botnets and permits them to infect accounts that are highly controlled by Microsoft’s team. Once the botnets infect the accounts, Microsoft learns the way they work and removes them as a threat.

Microsoft is now able to collect threat information and share it with ISPs, government agencies, private organizations, and CERTs. The result of such a move by Microsoft could be significant. Analysts say that while a real-time threat feed won’t lower the number of attacks, it will help information security professionals respond to these threats faster. This could limit the level of damage caused by these attacks.

Microsoft’s live threat feed may have a much more important impact: It could lead the information security industry to share more data. For too long, companies have hesitated to share important security information that they fear could lead to a copycat attack. This is a mistaken belief as cyber criminals are already exchanging information amongst themselves. It makes sense, therefore, for security professionals to also share real-time information.

Microsoft’s real-time feed is a good first step toward a change for the better in IT security. Let’s hope this trend persists and that the IT security world will recognize that secrecy is not more useful than sharing information!

Many small business owners have utilized the cloud during these tough economic times. Business owners can conserve money by using programs within the cloud, from Photoshop alternatives to project-management tools. However, the cloud can be a bit questionable when it comes to security. Documents stored in the cloud can be jeopardized or damaged.

Password issues

One of the biggest security issues when dealing with the cloud is password protection. This is also one of the biggest security issues outside of the cloud.

You must always carefully select passwords to your projects stored in the cloud. The more complex your passwords are the more challenging they are to guess. One way to accomplish this is to use a mixture of numbers and letters in your passwords. Also, you shouldn’t share these passwords with lots of people.

Hacker alert

Hackers, malware, and spyware remain serious issues for cloud environments, just as they are issues that business owners face when logging onto their personal computers everyday. The thing that makes this particularly scary is that individual business owners have little control over how secure cloud services are. The big names — companies like Microsoft and Google — must provide their own security for the data that business owners store in the cloud.

Common sense protection

As with all computing, companies can safeguard themselves from the loss or theft of data with some common-sense practices.

First, owners should think about what kind of information they are storing in the cloud. The most sensitive data, data that could damage a business if it is lost or stolen, might not be suitable for cloud storage. Instead, this data may be better stored on a business owner’s individual computing system and dependably backed up.

Secondly, before giving every employee free access to cloud-stored data, think carefully about which employees actually needs access to that information. People are often careful about protecting their laptops and desktop computers from prying eyes; this attitude should be applied to the cloud as well.

The advantages of storing information in the cloud are numerous. Backing up important data, creating more space on your servers, and having your information easily available to your employees are just a few. If you have been looking into this route, you most likely have many questions about the security of the cloud. If your company handles sensitive information that belongs to your clients you may need to stay compliant with HIPAA, PCI or Sarbanes-Oxley regulations.

It can be hard to tell if your cloud storage solution adheres to these requirements, as many don’t state in their privacy policies. To help you navigate these difficult waters, let’s look at this topic in greater detail below.

Compliance

Security has always been an important issue and as increasingly more companies use the cloud for storage solutions the question arises: How secure is the cloud? Storing information in the cloud can be very economical, yet the cost for poorly handling customer data can be very high. If your organization must comply with regulations like HIPAA, your main dilemma is what regulations do cloud services comply with.

Who is responsible

Who’s shoulders does the responsibility fall on? There is no law requiring that cloud service providers divulge the level of security they maintain. While they probably do have a decent amount of safety protocols in place, the safest option is to take their privacy policy at face value. In this case, if you wish to stay in compliance with HIPAA, PCI or Sarbanes-Oxley, cloud computing may not be for you. Having said that, if your industry doesn’t require tight regulations, then you could take advantage of the benefits cloud-computing offers. 

Ultimately, as there is no current law that states that companies must divulge how tight their security is, the responsibility is in your hands. You have to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of cloud storage to decide if it’s right for your business. 

Disasters can happen to any organization and they come in many forms and severities. They can be everything from a natural disaster, to a well-meaning employee accidently downloading a destructive virus, to something vital getting mistakenly deleted. These what-ifs can keep you up at night, so for your own peace of mind develop a disaster recovery plan.

Decide What’s Important

First off, consider what data is the most essential to get your company back up and running. What information needs to be backed up and saved and what can you afford to lose? This should help you figure out what you need to back up. Choosing an online provider or storing your data in the cloud can be the best way to ensure you can access your data quickly.

Make a Plan

The second step is deciding the steps that must be taken to get your company back on its feet as quickly as possible. Consider the worst possible scenario and the way to recover from that. Which systems must be recovered first and what technology is going to be required to do this?

Know Your Workflows

I’m sure you have an overall idea of the way your organization is run, but knowing every last process is virtually impossible. That’s why you have employees. Have your employees document their workflows so that any team member can carry out the tasks in case of an emergency.

Decide Who is in Charge

Many people panic when disaster strikes. To make sure the panic doesn’t make things worse, put someone that has helped you develop the plan in charge of carrying out your data recovery plan. This way you are free to reassure everyone and supervise the company and you can be the strong leader your employees need in time of crisis.

When we hear of disaster people often think it can’t happen to them, but we never know what is around the corner. It’s important to be prepared. Having a strong disaster recovery plan will not only make you feel more secure, but will comfort your employees as well.

The name Segway is synonymous with tech failure. After all, inventor Dean Kamen once believed that his two-wheeled scooters would become a substitute for cars. He pictured a future in which people buzzed to the grocery store, library, or work on their Segway PT scooters.

That hasn’t happened. However, Segways are still around. Believe it or not, Segway celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2011, and it’s not completely rare to see the devices zipping along downtown sidewalks. That’s a rather amazing feat for a tech “failure.”

Let’s talk about how the Segway actually works though.

Powering the Segway

The Segway PT is powered by electric motors.  Those motors are fueled by a group of lithium-ion batteries which are easily charged by a standard household electrical socket. Five gyroscopic sensors, two tilt sensors, and two computers with specialty software keep the Segway from falling over.

Making the Segway Move

The user plays the largest role in making the Segway move. By simply shifting your weight in the direction you would like to go and moving the handlebars a little, the Segway’s sensors identify the change in balance point and react accordingly. The most recent version of the Segway features a top speed of 12.5 MPH. For obvious reason, it performs best on flat surfaces.

Lowered Expectations

The device never did live up to its hype. Many technology specialists predicted that the Segway PT would be a bigger deal than the Internet. Consequently, when company officials revealed the first Segway scooter in December of 2001 in Manhattan, expectations soared.

Unfortunately, once the Segway was released many thought it looked strange and you looked bizarre riding one. Others thought it looked hazardous. Regardless, the downsides were enough to keep the Segway from reaching its promised potential.

As a small business, there is a good chance you have to manage projects and people that are not always located in one area.  So how do you maintain these projects and off location employees while still having the ability to share updates, documents, and delegate tasks?

Project management solutions

Conveniently enough, many project management tools can be found that make handling all of these things easier.  Using these tools will help your small business in coordinating projects and keeping employees and clients informed. Here’s a few available options:

Basecamp

Many entrepreneurs use this tool for project management solutions. Basecamp creates a platform to manage your small business projects: share materials, correspond with coworkers, assign tasks, and set up project calendars. Basecamp’s client access allows clients to follow and comment on the progress of their projects. 

Quickbase

Quickbase has a lot to recommend it, not least of all the fact that the maker of Intuit business software is behind this program. Quickbase performs the same general tasks as Basecamp. However, it offers a unique version of a simple interface and is equally helpful for both large and tiny small businesses.

Huddle

For the more creative projects, like marketing and advertising, Huddle is ideal. Certainly one of this tool’s perks is its live-conferencing tool. If you need to assemble the team in a quick and easy fashion, this tool lets you, regardless of where your team members may be.

Deskaway

Deskaway allows you to keep clients and employees current by using snapshots of a project’s development. It has the functionality to create and post blogs based on individual projects as well as keep in contact about important updates with ease.

There are many other options for project management tools, each with their own benefits for individual businesses. Be sure to look for the one that will help your business manage your projects and personnel the best.

The promise of a paperless office has been around for years. Unfortunately, most offices must still use paper regularly. Is the paperless office just a pipe dream that we will not attain?  In a nutshell, no. We’re constantly moving toward paperless offices, but it’s just taking us considerably longer than we’d hoped.

The advantages of paper

Digital copies of documents and communications are nice, but paper continues to be useful in many cases. Even individuals who work at the most eco-friendly offices, with reduced paper use policies, find a need for paper. Paper can be extremely portable and quick. You can quickly jot down a phone number on a sticky note and slip it in your pocket or leave your cubicle neighbor a quick note stating the boss stopped by. If you’re in charge of going over important documents prior to release, hard copy editing is often much easier than editing on a computer screen. Sometimes it is easier to spot small typos on a physical copy.

Less paper than ever

Paper is becoming less and less essential.  A number of our past paper processes can now be done on a computer. Team communication is handled via email. Even instant messaging has taken the place of paper notes to coworkers. Smartphones and tablets have taken over the need for a physical calendar/schedule system. If you take a look back at how far business has come in the past decade, it’s pretty clear that paper, while not fully obsolete, is no longer king.

The future

Clearly the future of the workplace is using less and less paper, but will it ever be really paperless? Will notepads and sticky notes go the way of the milkman? Perhaps. Let’s look at the milkman: some still prefer to have their milk hand-delivered to their homes, but the majority of us just pop out to the store and pick some up when we need it.

Paper will likely end up the same. As we use business solutions like the cloud, smartphones, and computers for invoicing, writing and spreadsheets, there will always be people that prefer the physical  feel of pen and paper.