Past Events
April 16, 2008 • Wednesday 5:00-8:30 PM
The Delaney House, Holyoke, Mass
Don't Run Your Business With Your Heart, Or Make Family Decisions With Your Head (pdf)
advises tonight’s speaker, Howdy Holmes, President of Chelsea Milling Company, in Chelsea, Michigan, the manufacturer of "JIFFY" baking mix. His grandmother founded the company, but the family has milled flour for eight generations, causing Howdy’s father to comment, "It just goes to show you what idiots we are. We're too dumb to get out of the business." But Howdy didn’t start in the business, preferring a 20 year career competing in motor sports, including the Indianapolis 500 , where he finished in the top ten 26 times, and was named Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year in 1979, and Formula Atlantic champion in 1978. In 1987, he returned to the family business as fourth-generation president and CEO. Howdy will share his unique vantage point on entrepreneurship and competition, and how he led a transformation of the then 100 year old family business. The need for modernization was clear, but difficult to execute. He sought to become a professionally managed company to secure Jiffy's place atop the home baking mix industry, but still retain the innocence and values of a small-town, family business. Between the benefits of their long tradition, recognizable blue and white box, great value (still costs less than a candy bar), they have succeeded: Jiffy owns 57 percent of the nation's muffin mix business, selling almost four times more units than General Mills', five times more than Martha White, 13 times more than Pillsbury and over 23 times more than Duncan Hines; impressive, considering that aside from a simple website, they do no advertising. Jiffy also has earned the loyalty of its workers, who enjoy good pay and benefits, and not one layoff in the company's long history. Holmes explains his personnel policy this way: "C'mon, just treat 'em right." Come enjoy Howdy’s homespun philosophy that has brought Chelsea Milling generations of success: "We have an innovative combination of aw-shucks family business and professional management, much of it developed internally. This serves us very well and we are able to remain nimble and highly competitive in our market niche."
PLUS "Do You Know That You Don't Know What You Don't Know?"
Charlie Epstein, CLU, ChFC, of Epstein Financial Services explains why you should be very afraid!
March 11, 2008 • Tuesday 5:00-8:30 PM
Log Cabin Banquet & Meeting Hourse, Holyoke, Mass
Is Your Family Business Run By Rulers Or Governors? (and why does it matter?)
Families in business struggle to manage and sustain a very complex situation, made even more convoluted because the more you rely on leadership (ruling) the harder it is to create functional structures through which you can “govern,” and vice versa. Clearly, both are needed, but how can families anticipate and handle the contradictions and dilemmas that these two integrating mechanisms create? FURTHERMORE, planning for your family business continuity requires that families articulate what they want for the future. While it may seem easy to state what you want, it can be quite difficult for a business family to share a vision, not to mention express it with clarity. We are fortunate to have a return visit (last in 1997) by noted family business thought-leader Ivan Lansberg who will share what he has learned after many years of experimenting with different ways of getting families to think about the future. In preparation for this session, we will be collecting your pressing questions (email them to bryck@contined.umass.edu) so that Ivan can make his talk as relevant to your specific situations as possible. Though his work, Ivan has gained an understanding of what it takes for a family business to evolve from an entrepreneurial venture through the various stages of family ownership.
IVAN LANSBERG is an organizational psychologist in New Haven, Connecticut, and a cofounder and senior partner of the family consulting firm Lansberg, Gersick and Associates. Dr. Lansberg was a member of the organizational psychology faculty at the Yale School of Organization and Management, and a research fellow at Yale’s Institute for Social and Policy Studies. He has worked extensively with multi-generational family businesses in the United States and abroad, including some of the world’s oldest family businesses, and serves on several family business boards of directors. Ivan is the co-author of two of the authoritative works about family business, Generation to Generation: Life Cycles of the Family Business and Succeeding Generations: Realizing the Dream of Families in Business (Harvard Business School Press).
Massachusetts Healthcare Reform – What You Need To Know In 2008
As the Massachusetts Healthcare Reform Law enters it's second year, we'll help you understand what's new, what's changing, and what's staying the same. Probably the most significant new requirement for 2008 is that all plans must meet minimum creditable coverage requirements. We'll explain what that means in addition to providing a refresher on other obligations under the law - for employers, insurers, and individuals. Presented by RENEE WROTH. Director of Service Operations for our newest Corporate Partner, HEALTH NEW ENGLAND.
December 11, 2007 • Tuesday 5:00-8:30PM
The Delaney House, Holyoke, Mass
The Starbucks Experience: Lessons in Leadership to Spark You and Your Business to Unimaginable Success
What once was a service economy has now transformed into an "experiential revolution." Learn strategies for achieving the UCE (ultimate customer experience) by combining employee (internal customer) empowerment with a strategic view of operational precision. Borrowing from his Wall Street Journal best selling book, The Starbucks Experience, Dr. Michelli shares 5 principles that will help you generate employee retention, empowerment and enviable customer loyalty. When a focus on transactions and customer satisfaction just won't do—explore a world where "everything matters" and companies are "beloved." Starbucks took an extremely ordinary product and revolutionized the way people perceive and experience it. Just as Starbucks went from one small shop in Seattle’s Pike Place Market, to approximately 11,000 stores internationally (growing at a rate of six new stores a day), so too can we all maximize our "ordinariness" for positive impact, organizationally and in our communities. Examine how cutting edge encourage leadership and front line workers to make a consistently extraordinary difference—on and off the job.
JOSEPH A. MICHELLI, Ph.D., is an internationally sought-after speaker, organizational psychologist, and business consultant who has been described as “catching what is right in the world and playfully sparking people and businesses to grow toward the extraordinary.” In addition to writing best selling books about enduring business principles, he hosts an award-winning daily radio program in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Dr. Michelli transfers his knowledge of exceptional business practices through keynote presentations that explore ways to develop joyful and productive workplaces. His insights encourage leaders and frontline workers to grow and invest passionately in all aspects of their life. Dr. Michelli's third book entitled, When Fish Fly was co-authored with the owner of the "World Famous" Pike Place Fish Market in Seattle. When Fish Fly was released last year by Hyperion and in audiobook format by Random House. His new book The Starbucks Experience: 5 Principles for Turning Ordinary Into Extraordinary was released worldwide by McGraw-Hill on November 1, 2006. Dr. Michelli believes his greatest accomplishment is his ability to learn from the laughter and humor of his children, Andrew and Fiona.
Should We Grow Our Business by Acquisition?
A panel discussion of our Corporate Partners will shed a lot of light on a situation which many of you might relate to. We will discuss the case of a company that is considering growing by buying competitors. How should they pay for it? Who of that company's employees should they keep? What if some of the family business members don't want to take the risk? What if, instead of buying, we should be selling ourselves to a bigger company? Though no two snowflakes or family businesses are alike, you will recognize yourself enough to help yourself from this multi-faceted session.
October 23, 2007 • Tuesday 5:00-8:30PM
Log Cabin Banquet & Meeting Hourse, Holyoke, Mass
Your Eyelids are Getting Heavy, You Can't See the Money Sitting Right There: Harnessing the Awesome Power of Your Subconscious to Achieve Those Goals you Forgot You Set.
In our attention deficit plagued society, it’s no wonder you have trouble getting and staying focused. Too often we set goals for ourselves, and before we know it, we’re back to our old habits, and the reward for a job well done is nowhere to be found, and we can’t even summon the motivation to look for it. This event will demonstrate the awesome power of your subconscious mind. With actual volunteers from the audience, Tony guides you through a series of visualization techniques that must be seen to be believed. And even though you will not soon forget how fabulously entertained you were, even more dazzling is the effectiveness of the tools you will be given that can be used continuously to improve many aspects of your life. Learn how to set goals, reinforce them over the long haul, stay enthused and motivated, and best of all, focused and productive.
Tonight’s presenter is ANTHONY GALIE, a Psychotherapist with a B.A. Degree In Psychology from Rutgers University, and also attended Florida Atlantic University for his Masters degree. In addition to his own practice as a psychotherapist, he is a published author in leading technical journals, and a columnist for key trade and industry publications. He has also been a guest lecturer for colleges and universities, and a consultant to such organizations as the American Cancer Society. As a lecturer on the "The Subconscious Aspects of Business", Anthony Galie has regularly appeared before major industrial, manufacturing and business associations, medical groups, and major corporations throughout the United States. His clients include Prudential Insurance, Fedex, Walmart, Sprint, State Farm, and the National Association of Homebuilders, to name a few. His program is geared to defy logic -- because that is what stands in most people’s way. It deals with the subconscious - how to use it to develop positive outlooks, how to train it to improve concentration, and how to get it to achieve results. His presentations are the perfect blend of education and entertainment and are sure to have you spellbound and talking about what you experienced for weeks afterward. In the last 27 years, Anthony has trained thousands of business people to get and stay focused on their goals with simple, practical, hands-on techniques that work.
What The Founders Found When They Retired
Hear some perspectives from company founders who succeeded at what is described as the hardest part of family business: letting go. What do they do when they need to make their opinion known? How do they mind their own business, when that’s the right thing? How do they keep themselves vital and interested? What is their advice to others who are contemplating handing over the reins? Whether you’re months or decades away from this life stage, it’s good stuff to pay attention to. Featuring Bob Grenier, founder of the Grenier’s Photography (now Grynn & Barrett Studios), and Carlo Buendo, founder of Reminder Publications.
September 20, 2007 • Thursday 5:00-8:30PM
Clarion Hotel & Conference Center, Northampton, Mass
How The Upcoming Generation Can Overcome Its 8 Biggest Challenges and Take Ownership For Their Future
What is it you wish you knew then, that you know now, about the opportunity to join your family business that you should probably be talking about with your teenagers now? Or if you or other young adult children (say 25-40 years old) in the family business didn’t have the proper discussion, is it too late? There is still much that can be achieved through some self-analysis and self-improvement, building credibility, determining your career path, building a life plan, clarifying your values, determining your marketability, and keeping yourself open to the risks and benefits of objective feedback. No matter your age, there is work to be done to make sure your inner child in the family business is both behaving him/herself, but keeping hope alive! This session would be a great one to invite your teens, or college age kids to hear, whether or not you’ve ever had “the family business talk.” This session will deliver concrete benefits of self assessment and blazing a path forward, as well as helping you think through some enormous life decisions, no matter your age or experience.
GREG McCANN will help tonight’s audience figure out what it is they want, and then help your frame the steps to take to achieve it. Greg works with family businesses in the areas of succession, communication, conflict resolution, gender issues and development of the next generation. He is founder and architect of Stetson University’s Family Business Center, where he developed the nation’s first major in family business. McCann partners with expert advisors and businesses to improve communication, client relations, and professionalism. He is a tenured full professor of business at Stetson (in Florida), as well as an attorney and CPA, and is certified to administer and interpret the Myers-Briggs type Indicator. He is author of the new book When Your Parents Signs The Paychecks.
June 19, 2007 • Tuesday 5:00-8:30PM
Log Cabin Banquet & Meeting Hourse, Holyoke, Mass
Seven Irrefutable Rules of Business Growth
"Every business owner needs to be a trendspotter," says Steven S. Little. "The most successful, growth-oriented entrepreneurs I know are voracious gatherers of information. By combining their own internal trend data, their external scanning efforts, and understanding of potentially disruptive weak signals, they are prepared to take their forecasting to the next level." Author and Senior Consultant for Inc. magazine, Steven S. Little is one of the nation's most sought-after speakers on the subject of small business growth and the future of opportunity. He urges owners to reject the unrealistic, pie-in-the-sky positivism that he sees as harmful to small business, and exchange it for real-world, practical solutions. Owners must step back and look at the big picture if they want their businesses to grow, Little argues, since opportunities and answers are not just inside a company, but all around. Training oneself to be attuned to "weak signals" (i.e. new ideas, new styles, new products) is the best way to ensure the future growth of any enterprise and The Future of Opportunity: A 20/20 Vision of Your Success how to identify the most impactful macro-changes taking place in our world today, and dovetailing them with the specific developments within your industry or organization, Steve illuminates the future of opportunity and success for your group over the next 3 to 15 years. No crystal ball or tea leaves here…just factual, down-to-earth information your group will find interesting, entertaining and actionable.
STEVEN S. LITTLE is a much sought after speaker, consultant and writer on the subject of business growth and the future of opportunity. As a Senior Consultant for Inc. Magazine since 1998, he now speaks to thousands of owners and managers of growing businesses each year. His style has been described as “real-world,” “highly credible” and “uniquely engaging.” Mr. Little was President of three fast growth companies, two of which (FAME, Inc. and Erb Industries, Inc. achieved profitable growth rates of over 500% during Mr. Little's tenure). As President of The Queensboro Shirt Company, Little helped to build one of the country's most successful sites for Internet commerce. Steve and family live in sunny Wilmington, NC and historic Merida, Mexico. Steve’s new book “The Seven Irrefutable Rules of Small Business Growth” was published by Wiley in March, 2005 and is already on its third printing.
BROTHER (AND SISTER), DO YOU KNOW YOUR NUMBER? CHARLES EPSTEIN of EPSTEIN FINANCIAL SERVICES will help you think about how to build a successful retirement plan for your family members and employees.
MAY 16, 2007 •Wednesday 5:00-8:30PM
Clarion Hotel & Conference Center, Northampton, Mass
Is Birth Order Ruining Your Succession Plan?
Owing to biological evolution, conflict is built into family life. On average, siblings share only half of their genes, so they are inclined to keep for themselves twice as much of any scarce resource as they give to a brother or sister. Because parental investment is a scarce resource, offspring typically manifest sibling rivalry. Fortunately, biological evolution has also predisposed family members to cooperate with one another. Close relatives tend to behave cooperatively because they share many of the same genes and thus represent genetic insurance policies for one another. In addition, unrelated individuals tend to cooperate when there are clear benefits to doing so—a process that biologists call reciprocal altruism. To what extent do these Darwinian principles, which are well documented for animal species, apply to human beings? In particular, what can family members do to maximize cooperation, rather than competition and conflict, within the family system? This presentation explores these and other important questions in terms of recent studies about family dynamics, including new research on the kinds of problems that most threaten the survival and continuation of family businesses.
FRANK J. SULLOWAY is a Visiting Scholar in the Institute of Personality and Social Research at the University of California, Berkeley, and a Visiting Professor in the Department of Psychology. He has a Ph.D. in the history of science from Harvard University (1978) and is a former MacArthur Fellow. His book Freud, Biologist of the Mind: Beyond the Psychoanalytic Legend (1979) provides a radical reanalysis of the origins and validity of psychoanalysis and received the Pfizer Award of the History of Science Society. In addition, Dr. Sulloway has written about the nature of scientific creativity, and, on this general topic, he has published extensively on the life and theories of Charles Darwin. For the last two decades, Dr. Sulloway has also employed evolutionary theory to understand how family dynamics affect personality development, including that of creative geniuses. He has a particular interest in the influence that birth order exerts on personality and behavior. In this connection, he is the author of Born to Rebel: Birth Order, Family Dynamics, and Creative Lives (1996). Dr. Sulloway's researches on birth order and family dynamics have been featured on a variety of national television shows including "Nightline," the "Today Show," "Dateline NBC," the "Charlie Rose Show," and the Discovery Channel. Dr. Sulloway has been the recipient of fellowships from the Institute for Advanced Study (Princeton, New Jersey), the Miller Institute for Basic Research in Science (University of California, Berkeley), the National Science Foundation, the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation, and the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences (Stanford, California). In addition, Dr. Sulloway is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and a recipient of the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement (1997). He lives in Berkeley, California.
CASH FLOW IS KING hear this educational, non-commercial presentation from HAMPDEN BANK.
April 10, 2007 • Tuesday 5:00-8:30PM
Log Cabin Banquet & Meeting Hourse, Holyoke, Mass
And They Sold Their Family Business and Lived Happily Ever After
You may often feel married to your family business, but when did you ever say “till death do us part?” If you are succeeding and building value in your company, one obvious way out is to sell, and get on to the next chapter. But selling a business is a complex process, and is not something many business owners are at all familiar with or skilled at. This session will educate you on the selling process, including how to maximize the value of your business, attracting buyers, tax considerations (“it’s not what you sell it for, it’s what you get to keep”), financing transactions, and succession (transition) to the next owners. Types of buyers including high net worth individuals, equity groups and corporations seeking acquisitions will be discussed. Two knowledgeable business brokers, PHILIP STECKER of Country Business, Inc. and MICHAEL CAMEROTA of I.C.E. Business will cover both the basics and your specific questions, and will be joined for additional Q&A by RONALD WEISS of the law firm Bulkley, Richardson and Gelinas and DAVID KALICKA of the accounting firm Meyers Brothers Kalicka, PC, to ensure you leave smarter about selling your company than when you came in.
MEET YOUR NEEDS AND MEET OTHERS TOO in a unique and interactive socializing time. Come on time to get maximum usefulness and enjoyment from this lightly structured "strategic schmoozing" opportunity. Bring extra business cards- you'll probably be making some great new connections.
March 8, 2007 • Thursday 5:00-8:30PM
Chez Josef, Agawam, Mass
A Dozen FBC Members Describe the 14 Ways in Which Toyota Bacame the Most Waste-free, Value-added, Problem-solving Company on Earth
For several years the members of the FBC roundtable known as “CEO Circle” have gotten to know each other well, and have experimented with various formats to explore ideas and share their smarts. Now they are all reading a great book together, The Toyota Way: 14 Management Principles From The World's Greatest Manufacturer, and are excited by the prospect of sharing it with everyone smart enough to show up on March 8th. Hear from a group of down-to-Earth business owners about how these principles helped Toyota, and may apply to their Western Mass businesses. Take home great information about how you can, in your own business, speed up business processes, improve quality, cut costs, reduce defects, and so on. If terms like Heijunka, Jidoka, Jishuken and Kanban are Greek to you, you may want to explore this fascinating topic with a great line-up of presenters. BONUS: UMass School of Management Professor ALAN ROBINSON, author of Ideas Are Free and expert on The Toyota Way and all thinks Lean, Quality and Continuous Improvement, will give the opening talk on The Toyota Way, and answer audience questions after the members of CEO Circle explain the 14 principles!
EXPERT ADVICE FROM ONE OF OUR CORPORATE PARTNERS on a topic of vital importance for your continued success. You will benefit from the educational, non-commercial presentations from BULKLEY, RICHARDSON & GELINAS
December 12, 2006 • Tuesday 5:00-8:30PM
Clarion Hotel & Conference Center, Northampton, Mass
Would Washington Have Won the Civil War? Would Lincoln Have Won the Revolution? The Leadership Lessons of Two American Superheroes
Two fantastic leaders, each in his own way rescued America. George Washington rescued it from colonial bondage, Abraham Lincoln from national dissolution. Other than a large measure of kindness and great physical strength these two men had nothing important in common, yet they both achieved the same end, earning our eternal gratitude, their faces adorning the heights of Mount Rushmore. Washington was a creative logistical leader, a political and military magistrate, who, faced with obstacles of incredible proportion and tenure, put in his way by his Congress, his generals, and his fellow citizens, defeated the vastly superior British expeditionary force by sheer tenacity, and this despite his mediocre strategic abilities. Lincoln was a creative strategist, a political and military wizard, who, despite the long continued blunders of a train of ill-chosen generals, the weakness of the Congress, and the intrigues of many of his fellow citizens, beat the Confederates by sheer foresight, and all this despite his mediocre logistical abilities. These men were probably equally intelligent, but in entirely different ways. Washington was a superb quartermaster, brilliant in logistical monitoring and conservation; Lincoln a superb systemist, brilliant in strategic coordination and engineering. They were diametric opposites in both attitude and action. (this unimprovable passage quoted from “Please Understand Me II” by David Keirsey) What a fascinating opportunity for both of them to compare notes, and for us to interview them on their thoughts about leadership, their perspectives on modern theories of leadership, why there aren’t more leaders deserving of Mount Rushmore these days, and what they think it takes to be all that you can be.
FBC director IRA BRYCK will lead a spectacular exploration of Presidents George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, that will not only thrill history buffs in the room, but inspire you with ways in which the traits of a Washington or Lincoln may be the things to emulate in running your family business. Ira is honored and thrilled to share the stage with: a man who is hailed by historians and politicians as the definitive dramatic portrayer of George Washington, WILLIAM ARTHUR SOMMERFIELD, who fascinates audiences with the insights, warmth, and humor of our first President. Sommerfield strips away the marble image of the ideal man and replaces it with a portrayal of George Washington, the intensely human being-a man of humor, anger, sorrow, failure, sacrifice, and love. He is the only man ever to interpret Washington at the general's home, Mount Vernon in Virginia, Every detail, from costume to powdered hair and dress sword, is historically accurate; he even captures the flourish of Washington's signature.He has continued to captivate audiences on NBC's Eyewitness to History, the DC Bicentennial Celebration, the National Bill of Rights Tour, Good Morning America, the Today Show, and A&E's The Crossing. As artistic director and chief writer of the American Historical Theatre in Philadelphia, Sommerfield re-creates history, bringing a piece of the past to life. A native of central Illinois, JIM GETTY resides in historic Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. He holds a Master of Music degree from Illinois Wesleyan University, has taught choral music in Illinois and Ohio, and was director of Choral Activities at the University of Maine. Getty has spent years researching Abraham Lincoln and his contemporaries, and has developed several first person presentations as the 16th President. His performances have met with wide acclaim before audiences throughout the country, including the Library of Congress, Smithsonian Institution, Bush Inaugural Gala, Corcoran Gallery, National Archives - Chicago Branch, and the Reagan Presidential Library. Getty’s voice is that of Abraham Lincoln in two A&E programs, and he is greatly involved in leadership programs for the corporate world.
Best Practices of the Better Half: A Look at the Data to See What Kind of Leader is Mama
There sure are a wealth of articles trying to make the case that females might make better leaders. What could account for this, if it’s at all true? Our corporate partner, GIOMBETTI ASSOCIATES is taking a hard look into their database of comprehensive profiles of 1200 executives , extracting all the females, to look for concrete explanations. The answers may surprise you, and may inspire you to get in touch with your feminine side.
October 18, 2006 • Wednesday 5:00-8:30PM
Log Cabin Banquet and Meeting House, Holyoke, Mass
Big Changes in Store: How We Decide That Something Must Be Done, And Go About Mking It Happen
The membership/audience of the UMass Amherst Family Business Center is the source of what we claim is our main product: Wisdom, Experience, Honesty and Frankness. There are many stories to illustrate this, and tonight you will hear four of them. Presentations by four of our business-owning members (Whalley Computer, Bottaro Skolnick Interiors, Moss Nutrition, and Design Works/ Wild Apple Design) will illustrate (a) an innovative growth strategy, or introduction of a new product or service they are undertaking (b) how and why they are doing it - what is the potential gain, what is the cost of doing nothing? (c) how they diagnosed the problem, prescribed a solution, decided to do it, did the research, garnered the resources, dealt with resistance, etc. You will get a great look inside the decision making process of other local companies, to see what you may adopt for yourselves (or avoid), and they will get the benefit of your friendly interrogation, where you get to throw a few thoughtful darts at their plan, to help make it sharper.
Health Care- The Budget Buster!
Most employers cite rising health care premiums as one of their top budget concerns – usually alongside workman’s compensation and energy costs. Our corporate sponsor, The AXiA Group, has partnered with MillBrook Benefits and Insurance Services to assist their clients in navigating the complex issues of providing employee benefits.This evening’s presentation will review some of the trends in health insurance and suggestions on how to preserve benefits for employees while minimizing the impact of rate increases. We will also review ways that consumers can help control their health care expenditures. Important information will also be presented on the Massachusetts Health Care Reform Law and the key provisions that will impact employers. The implementation of this legislation is being watched by governing bodies in other states as a possible model for their reform bills.
September 20, 2006 • Wednesday, 5:00-8:30PM
Clarion Hotel & Conference Center, Northampton, Mass
On Trilobites, Troglodytes, Armored Knights, and Owner's Rights: Can Missing Links Recognize Themselves?
Driven by the pressure of change in technology, markets, industries, culture, society, and general attitudes toward work and business, successful owner-managed family companies have been evolving, often unknowingly, toward a very different species. It’s not quite algae to hummingbird in scope, but a profound transformation, nevertheless. Some key structural “evolutions” that will be discussed: (1) From feudalism toward federalism (i.e., working on a more egalitarian basis with key publics, particularly knowledge-worker key employees) (2) From secrecy toward transparency (driven by the above) (3) From plutocracy toward meritocracy (a natural result of 2) (4) From stockholder toward stakeholder (i.e., widening the concept of who actually is an “investor” to include non-involved family, spouses, key employees) (5) From business transition toward opportunity transition (i.e., with such rapid change in the offing, what’s worth preserving is less the specific business/products than the opportunities and options they have produced) (6) From prognostication toward expectation (i.e., discarding the concept of strategic planning in favor of establishing financial return expectations, analyzing the current business’ ability to meet them, then positioning to close the gap between the two) (7) From CEO to The Plan (this one’s really subtle and difficult to deal with, but refers to the increasing numbers of co-presidencies, offices of the president, etc., resulting from siblings resisting the classic management hierarchies—and how, with a board, the Operating Plan can become “the boss”)
We are glad to welcome back a wonderful presenter, DON JONOVIC of Family Business Management Services, Cleveland, OH.. Don created this new presentation after Ira Bryck challenged him with “I’d only bring you in again if you can come up with something totally provocative.” He did. Dr. Jonovic is a professional advisor to owners of family and closely held businesses, working with businesses in most phases of industry and agriculture as consultant, educator, author and corporate director since 1973. His columns on business ownership and management are read annually by millions. His approach to business ownership issues and solutions comes from a breadth of experience that is rare among specialists in his field. In his own words: "These are challenges with no definitive answers, only a state of the art we adjust as experience teaches us."
Beware and Prepare for the Oncoming Boomer Brain-drain by Focussing On What, Not Who
Say “succession” to a business family and they think of passing a torch to the next generation. But there is a looming threat, needing a different succession strategy; for your baby boomer employees, who’ve worked hard to build their dreams in and out of your company. Every hour of the day 330 boomers turn 60 in America, and when they go, they take a lot of institutional brainpower with them. The family business wisdom that succession is “a process, not an event,” applies here, too. To build the organization you want in the future, you must begin now, looking at future needs, defining future ideal candidates, learning to find them, motivate them, and train them. This session will be a look at this pressing issue, and how to prevent the draining of vital information as your current generation of employees departs, instead transmitting it to your up and comers.
Prepare yourself by hearing from “COACH RAVI” KULKARNI, Engineer and Business/Executive Coach with over 30 years of experience building businesses in Asia and the United States. Ravi specializes in “bottom-line” coaching and helping businesses achieve growth in a technologically changing and ethnically diverse market. Ravi’s approach involves helping organizations create clarity and focus, strategize, plan action and organize self-sustaining management processes
Special Event of the Division of Business Excellence of the Affiliated Chambers of Greater Springfield
Cost: $15, payable to Affiliated Chambers of Commerce of Greater Springfield, includes continental breakfast
Register: @ (413) 787-1555 or http://www.myonlinechamber.com
Thursday, September 21, 8:00-10:30am
Best Western Hotel & Conference Center, Springfield, Mass
A Customized Conversation About Your Family Business Situation That Will Leave You Informed, Provoked, Diagnosed, and Prescribed
It's a wonder our economy and society functions as well as it does, with 80-90% of U.S. companies being family owned, and 99% of families suffering from all the usual dysfunctions. If you're in that lucky 1% of high functioning families, and know how to balance innovation, structure, conflict, strategy, etc., you have a tremendous competitive advantage. But if, like most, your family business could stand to be more professional, your governance structures don't govern or structure as well as they might, your communication could be a tad more efficient, appreciative and businesslike, you may benefit from this very practical and individualized session. This event will be a mixture of useful content and even more useful interaction, with two presenter/discussion leaders, who are aiming to help the audience think more clearly about some confounding matters:
DONALD JONOVIC of Family Business Management Services, Cleveland, OH. He has worked with businesses in most phases of American industry and agriculture as a consultant, educator, author and corporate director since 1973. His columns on business ownership and management are read annually by millions of readers. His approach to business ownership issues and solutions comes from a breadth of experience that is rare among specialists in his field. In his own words: "These are challenges with no definitive answers, only a state of the art we adjust as experience teaches us." Sample feedback from Don Jonovic's last visit to the UMass Amherst Family Business Center: "Dr. Jonovic is a man totally in charge of his subject and presentation"; "down to earth" , "thought provoking", "clear, accurate and professional ", "touched on sensitive issues in a humorous way." and IRA BRYCK, Director of the UMass Amherst Family Business Center at the UMass Amherst Continuing Education. The center provides a non-commercial, interactive learning community for business families in Western New England abd beyond. Ira and the center also produce the family business newsletter Related Matters, website www.umass.edu/fambiz and advice column, Dear Ira: Fresh Air and Cold Water for the Perplexed Business Family, and as consultant and mediator, helps business owning families deal with their relationship struggles, and help the business be both professional and high in family-ness. Ira is the author of three plays about life in family business, presented as “edu-tainment” to forums of business families. His third play, A Tough Nut to Crack, is based on his 17 years in his family's 4th generation childrenswear business on Long Island, where he served simultaneously in every role from president to tailor.
June 28, 2006 • Wednesday 5:00-8:30PM
Log Cabin Banquet and Meeting House, Holyoke, Mass
Read The Minds of 120 Business Owners, See Their Innermost Thoughts and Secrets in Full Color Graphs and Charts
Through the ultra-modern magic of PRS (Personal Response System)/ InterWrite technology, find out the deepest secrets, common and uncommon beliefs and hopes, best and worst practices, salaries, horrible experiences, and what have you, without betraying a confidence, revealing yourself, or acting like a rude jackass in public. How does this work? Everybody gets a handheld transmitter, and responds privately to questions or prompts. The responses are collected, and the summarized, anonymous results are displayed as on the screen for all to see. At UMassAmherst, and campuses worldwide this technology increases the interactivity in large lecture halls, providing quick student responses to questions posed by faculty. But at the UMass Amherst Family Business Center, you can have the guilty pleasure, not to mention pick 120 brains, to reveal all, while revealing nothing publicly. The questions will be both pre-planned and impromptu. Ira Bryck is now accepting suggestions for what you’d like to know about the 100+ people in the room. What percentage of the audience wants to fire a family member? How much do you make? Do you think your family is overpaid? Have you ever done anything to sabotage a competitor?
Financial Reporting, Enron and You: How a Major Public Company Fraud is Affecting Financial Reporting at the Local Level
Financial reporting requirements meant for publicly traded companies are "trickling down" to privately held businesses resulting in more complexity. The program will take a look at some recent examples, the effect of those changes and the reporting options available to the small business owner. Presented by Howard Cheney, Partner and Co Director of Accounting and Auditing at MEYERS BROTHERS KALICKA, PC.
May 23, 2006 • Tuesday 5:00-8:30PM
Clarion Hotel & Conference Center, Northampton, Mass
An Evening with Laurie Puhn, Author of "Instant Persuasion: How to Change Your Words to Change Your Life"
This evening’s presenter, Laurie Puhn, says “We spend a lot of time walking around the supermarket aisle figuring out the carbs and the fat and what we are putting into our mouths, and spend so little time figuring out what comes out of our mouths and the effect our words have on others." But it is easier said then done: how can we find the right words at the right time to convince others to give us what we want? Laurie will offer creative yet practical rules for activating one’s innate power of persuasion to help people quickly and easily reduce conflict and get what they want in their personal and professional lives. Instant Persuasion is an amazing tool that has the power to transform friendships and marriages, and in the workplace, mastering these skills can mean all the difference in trying to be less "boss" and more "leader.” Managers, administrators and executives cannot presume that their job titles give them authority. Instead, they must use their power of persuasion to win people over and earn the trust, confidence and respect of the people within and across their organization. Recognizing and using the right words that connect, motivate and inspire people enhances performance and productivity. You will come out of this forum with improved abilities, whether apologizing, complaining, criticizing, disagreeing, delivering a compliment, or asking for a favor. Laurie will give you many specific ways to move from Blunders to Wonders, with tips on how to: Punch with a Smile, Earn Your Favors, Complain with Impact, Disagree Without Being Disagreeable, Beware of Uncomplimentary Compliments, Avoid Superficial Offers and dozens more. Everyone who attends this session will get a copy of Laurie’s new book “Instant Persuasion: How to Change Your Words to Change Your Life”
LAURIE PUHN has a B.A. from Harvard University and a J.D. from Harvard Law School, where she served on the Board of the Harvard Mediation Program. She is a dynamic speaker on personal and professional development, and is regularly on radio, TV and in print, including NBC, CNN, NECN, AP’s “Between the Lines,” Bill Thompson’s Eye on Books, The New York Times, Newsday, the Chicago Tribune, Redbook, Reader’s Digest, Women’s World and The Young Lawyer. Through the Laurie Puhn Institute, she has provided thousands of people nationwide in the academic, legal, medical, business and sales-focused communities with professional and personal development training. Her memorable programs educate and entertain audiences through interactive techniques and real-life stories that parallel our own life experiences. Audiences learn new communication skills they can immediately incorporate into every day conversations at work and in their life. (FYI: more at http://www.lauriepuhn.com)
HONEST ANSWERS TO YOUR BANKING QUESTIONS, PRESENTED BY MICHAEL GRANDFIELD, V.P. AT HAMPDEN BANK Very simply, give us your questions about any aspect of banking, and we will have them answered as clearly and honestly as possible. So far we have: How do I find the best deal for processing credit card transactions? Is it advisable to establish multiple banking relationships (or with other credit providers) before reaching some unanticipated lending limit? We still need a couple more- submit yours to Ira Bryck (bryck@contined.umass.edu)
April 19, 2006 • Wednesday, 5:00-8:30pm
Chez Josef, Agawam, Mass
The Only Thing Not Designed by Anybody is Nature
noted Ted Koppel on a Nightline special about Ideo, the most innovative industrial design firm in the world. Ideo designs over 90 new products a year, including the first computer mouse, the Palm V, Prada's ultrahip Manhattan store. stand-up toothpaste tubes that don't get icky, etc.. What they are superb at is fostering an environment for innovation - not just about innovative products, but processes that meet needs now unsatisfied. So whether you’re pondering how to create that great new item, or simply how to reinvent yourself and your processes, this talk will help you develop the most fabulous and practical combination of form and function. The Ideo “secret” involves teams composed of your people, your customers, plus social scientists, designers, architects, and engineers all taking a deep, empathic look at the experience of how you currently, and how you need to, deliver your product or service. ANAND VENGURLEKAR, from Ideo’s Boston office, will reveal the Ideo method and show how it can produce not only great product, but help small and medium companies design effective processes that reduce waste, improve innovation, deliver something great, and are way cool. You will leave being able to think like Ideo about your particular company.
WHAT I LEARNED FROM MY PERSONAL HERO (OR MENTOR, OR FAVORITE BUSINESS PHILOSOPHER) What are the most visionary but down to Earth, theoretical yet practical take-aways from your biggest heroes, who might be your mother, Superman, your first boss, Warren Buffet or Frederich Nietzsche. We will hear from several of you, and maybe what has stuck with you will stick with us. (Ira Bryck is now looking for a few 4 minute speakers.)
March 8, 2006 • Wednesday 5:00-8:30pm
Log Cabin Banquet and Meeting House, Holyoke, Mass
Several Habits of Highly Successful Successors
With life expectancy now approaching the mid-eighties, statistics reveal that the real challenge for family businesses is not ownership transition at death, but rather management succession before the senior generation retires. For successful transitions, the successors must take the initiative and assume a pro-active role in transition planning. In this seminar, Dean Fowler will use case examples to describe the habits of these pro-active successors based on his twenty years of leading round-table peer groups for successors in family businesses. IF THE BATON HAS ALREADY BEEN PASSED IN YOUR CASE, and you and/or your siblings / cousins are running the place; you will find many gems herein, as well.
DEAN R. FOWLER, Ph.D, CMC, has been selected by the Family Firm Institute as a Family Business Advisor with Fellow Status. His recent book- Love, Power & Money: Family Business Between Generations - has won worldwide acclaim as one of the best books published on integrated family business planning and development. He is one of the world’s leading family business advisors with expertise in the impact of emotional dynamics on business strategy and generational transitions.
May I See Your License, Please?
Most small businesses are party to multiple licensing agreements and don't really think about them. Did you read the software licensing agreements on the shrink-wrap of disks or online when downloading software? Do you understand what you have agreed to when you use trademarks of wholesalers and retailers in your marketing or advertising? Have you disregarded the needed licensing agreement when using someone else's intellectual property without permission? You may think these are not the most threatening storms on your horizon, yet it's another type of creature that could bite you when you can least afford it. Presented by Jim Duda of FBC sponsor BULKLEY, RICHARDSON AND GELINAS LLP.
December 8, 2005 5:00-8:30pm
Clarion Hotel & Conference Center, Northampton, Mass
Secrets of Success & Lessons Learned From Centuries of Leadership
PRESENTED BY UMass Amherst Family Business Center BUSINESS OWNERS & EXPERT ADVISORS
One huge benefit of surrounding yourself with good people is that it sometimes rubs off- otherwise it would be so depressing to think you’re surrounded by people to whom you’ll never measure up. So let’s get to the bottom line and see what’s the best you can glean from our thousands of years of collective experience. Taking a break from our steady supply of brilliant technicians, philosophers, teachers and entrepreneurs from across the nation,this presentation will be one gem after another from closer to home. Members and sponsors of the UMass Amherst Family Business Center will take turns contributing their brilliant nuggets - sometimes lessons learned the hard way, other times flashes of insight. Think you have some incredible – or very simple- observation, rule of life, adage, or word to the wise? Here’s your chance to make it useful to others. Contact Ira Bryck to get your contribution into the line-up.
Straight From the Gut: Darby O'Brien Predicts What Future Trends Will Affect Your Business
Not everything worth considering comes from a database-… sometimes it takes a keen eye and a strong gut feeling to spot that speed bump on the event horizon or opportunity lurking or even hiding in plain sight. Darby O’Brien, of Darby O’Brien Advertising is that trend spotter. What he has to say will not just fascinate, not just inform, but will forewarn and forearm.
Authority: It's Not Just For Authoritarians
A look at the use of authority, and the assumptions made by many executives that may be based on widespread misconceptions. Get over imitating your parents, whether Ozzy Nelson or General Patton, and discover the way you need to do it. Presented by RICK GIOMBETTI AND PAUL ALVES of GIOMBETTI ASSOCIATES, sponsors of the UMass Amherst Family Business Center.
October 25, 2005 • Tuesday, 5:00-8:30pm
Log Cabin Banquet & Meeting House, Holyoke, Mass
Hug Your Customers: The Proven Way to Personalize Sales and Achieve Astounding Results
Tonight’s featured speaker, Jack Mitchell, owner of Mitchells and Richards of Westport and Greenwich CT, says: “When I'm bored at home, rather than reading a book, I often punch the button on my computer and put in parameters to pull up our top one hundred or top one thousand customers, men and women, and I study them like I was studying vocabulary words for the SAT's. The names go into one of the attic rooms of my brain and lodge there. As I once knew all stats on Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle, I now try to know all the stats on my top thousand customers. Because that's the game: knowing the customer.” You will benefit greatly from hearing Jack outline a series of principles that can be adopted by any company to gain a larger share of current customer business and to attract new customers.
In 1969, JACK MITCHELL joined the family business founded by his parents, Ed and Norma. In 1995 Mitchells of Westport acquired Richards of Greenwich, the leading men’s clothing store in Greenwich, Connecticut. Jack’s responsibilities are fundamentally strategic, keeping the family together and synergistic and maintaining strong positive relationships with customers, clients and vendors, and spending Saturdays and busy times on the selling floor. Under his leadership, Mitchells and Richards are committed to providing exceptional customer service and high quality merchandise in an exciting, friendly and visually dynamic atmosphere. Richards received the honor of store of the year for 2000 in the annual Retail Design Awards competition held by the National Association of Store Fixtures Manufacturers. In 2001, MR Magazine, the magazine of Menswear retailing, named Mitchells/Richards Retailer of the Year. In 2003 Harvard Business School profiled the Mitchell family business and Jack was honored to attend the Executive Management course when the paper was presented. Jack’s first book, “Hug Your Customers, The Proven Way to Personalize Sales and Achieve Astounding Results” is in its 6th printing, with 86,000 copies in print, and enjoyed the recognition of being on BusinessWeek’s and The Wall Street Journal’s best seller lists. It is published in United Kingdom, Australia, Brazil, Columbia, Japan, China, Korea, Taiwan, Russia and Estonia. He has shared his passion with audiences including MassMutual, Midas, Prudential Realty, Hewlett Packard, Conde Nast Magazines, Fairchild Publications, Young Presidents Organization, and has appeared on NBC Today Show, and Kudlow & Cramer. Jack resides in Wilton, Connecticut with Linda, his wife who is the Women’s Merchant for Mitchells/Richards. Together they raised four sons, Russell, Bob, Todd and Andrew, who hold senior positions within the Mitchell family business.
Insurance Stuff: In The Aftermath of "Katrina" What You May Or May Not Know About Insurance (What You May Not Know Could Affect You)
This presentation about asset protection will cover the strange things that could happen to you and how to prevent them . You will learn about strategies that you can use protect yourself and what you have worked to hard to obtain in life. Presented by MICHAEL LONG of FBC sponsor AXiA Insurance Services Inc.
September 20, 2005 • Tuesday, 5:00-8:30PM
Clarion Hotel & Conference Center, Northampton, Mass
Nobody Moved Your Cheese: How To Ignore The Experts and Trust Your Gut
We are proud to present, and you are lucky to hear, Ross Shafer, champion of workplace accountability and responsibility. Ross brilliantly skewers the advice of so called "success experts" of our culture, daring to expose just how irrelevant much of their preaching is to your life. Challenging some of our most revered cultural icons, Ross will shock and empower you with his message, including such topics as Nobody Moved Your Cheese!, Anthony Robbins Hasn't Done a Damn Thing, Sweat the Small Stuff...Or Die!, Goal Setting Is Stupid, Stop Taking Credit for Your Phenomenal Success, Throw Out Your Business Plan, Good Customer Service Can Bankrupt You. ROSS SHAFER’s comedy writing career includes 6 Emmys, but began with ad copy for desperate carpet companies. “3 Rooms for $399” was his writing peak. Investing his earnings in “the next big thing,” he was co-owner of America's Only Stereo and Pet Shop. Business failures aside, his jokes still managed to get laughs. In fact, he won the 1983 Showtime Comedy Laugh Off…and virtually overnight (six grueling years) major nightclubs and corporations were duped into hiring Ross to open shows for Dionne Warwick, Eddie Rabbitt, Crystal Gayle, Neil Sedaka, and other famous people with good voices. In the summer of 1984, a Seattle television station (KING-TV) had the notion to produce a weekly comedy/talk show called, “Almost Live with Ross Shafer” and launched a search for a comedian with that name. In the four years Ross was at the helm , the show collected almost 40 Emmy Awards; six going to Ross for his work as Host, Actor, and Writer. His other achievements include appearing regularly on Dick Clark's “TV's Bloopers and Practical Jokes,” changing the Official Washington State Song to “Louie, Louie,” hosting the USA network game show, “Love Me, Love me Not,” a recurring role on “21 Jump Street,” replacing Joan Rivers as the host of a late night talk show, co-hosting a nightly ABC entertainment magazine with Matt Lauer, writing the comedy cookbook, “Cook Like A Stud”…38 recipes men can prepare in the garage using their own tools,” and a run as host of ABC-TV's “Match Game.” All along, Ross has continued to perform for corporate audiences worldwide. Two new careers came from his corporate exposure. He found that many top company executives are plagued with stage fright. So, Ross is frequently asked to work one-on-one as an executive Public Speaking Coach. Secondly, he has taken a special interest in the decay of Customer Service in this country. With as much traveling as he has done, he found that good customer service was as rare as a five-legged chicken. So, rather than complain about it, he has written and produced a dozen funny HR Training Films, distributed globally. What about comedy? Besides his speaking schedule, Ross is a comedy and game show consultant for the USA network, Bravo, Comedy Central, Broadway Video, and TNN.
Bad Enough My Marriage Is Ending; Can't I Now Just Mind My Own Business?
Sorry to say, half of all marriages still end before "till death do us part." But that's not the end of your troubles if you haven't done your homework to protect your business with a prenuptial agreement. You could be off the couch and into the street, if you don't know what could happen to your business in a divorce. This presentation will give you a needed education about prenuptial agreements and defensive buy-sell agreement provisions for divorces and other involuntary transfers. All the information we hope you never need-- but you never know. Presented by ELLEN RANDLE, a partner in the law firm of BULKLEY, RICHARDSON AND GELINAS, LLP. Ellen practices with BR&G's Domestic Relations and Litigation/ADR Departments. She has successfully negotiated myriad prenuptial agreements, divorce settlement agreements, and agreements resolving various contested issues arising after divorce.
Golden Handcuffs: How To Compensate and Retain Key Family & Non Family Employees
Learn about financial strategies, such as Deferred Compensation plans, Phantom Stock Plans and Non qualified Bonus plans that you can use to retain, compensate and motivate key employees on a discriminatory basis. Presented by CHARLES EPSTEIN of EPSTEIN FINANCIAL SERVICES.
June 28, 2005 • Tuesday, 5:00-8:30pm
The Delaney House, Holyoke, Mass
An Evening With Jason Jennings, Author of Think Big, Act Small and It's Not The Big That Eat The Small, It's the Fast That Eat The Slow
We are proud to present as tonight’s speaker JASON JENNINGS author of It's Not the Big That Eat the Small, It's the Fast That Eat the Slow. As an author, researcher and speaker, Mr. Jennings teaches companies how to increase their productivity for use as a competitive tool. Along with his research team of recent Princeton and Stanford grads, Jennings describes the relative handful of organizations that seem to defy reality with their unbelievably impressive profits, productivity and employee loyalty, often accomplished more with common sense and truth telling than by adding employees or other overhead costs By examining the tested and successful programs from the ten great examples (out of 4000 companies he studied), Jennings will describe how you can achieve similar results as companies that have increased sales 300 percent without increasing head count, become 10 times more efficient, and keep track of every penny. The profiled companies, which range from finance, manufacturing, and industry, all share one secret: they operate at peak productivity. Jennings studied their methods and operations and will lay out their secrets to success in clear, easy-to-follow steps.
Jason Jennings was the youngest radio station group owner in the world and his unique and legendary programming, sales and management strategies are credited with revolutionizing many parts of the broadcasting industry. Later, he founded Jennings- McGlothlin & Company, a consulting firm that, within three years, became the largest media consultancy in the world. More than 300,000 businesses worldwide have purchased his best selling videos on leadership, sales, management, and customer satisfaction. When not traveling the world on research and adventure travel Jennings consults companies around the world and does more than 60 keynote speeches annually for companies like Verizon, GlaxoSmithKline, Invesco, Sun America, Lexmark, Ford, Wells Fargo and AOL Time Warner. He and his family live in the small picturesque bayside village of Tiburon, California.
MASSACHUSETTS BUSINESSES: TAKE HEED OF CHANGES TO THE INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR LAW an educational, non-commercial presentation by KRISTINA DRZAL HOUGHTON, CPA, MST from the accounting firm of MEYERS BROTHERS KALICKA, P.C..
May 25, 2005 • Wednesday, 5:00-8:30pm
The Delaney House, Holyoke, Mass
How To Sell, Market, and Advertise Like Nobody's Business (Except Your Own)
You've built the perfect mousetrap, but where, oh where, are those path beaters? Did you really think the world was just waiting for you to put your product on the market, and they'd line up to show you the money? At best, your proud and excited message is lost in the din of hundreds of millions of other claims and promises. How will they ever discover that your product or service is the one that will make them better, sexier, faster, richer, cheaper, happier? Tonight's team of experts will get you thinking and get you going towards much more strategic and productive selling, advertising, and marketing. That team is: DARBY O'BRIEN, president of Darby O'Brien Advertising, South Hadley. The 21-year-old business publishes the trend-spotting quarterly The Gut, which is mailed to thousands of subscribers around the country. The Gut has correctly predicted the comeback of the summer camp, the rise of the retro-preppie look, the return of the suit, and the popularity of Latin music, among other trends; AMY ZUCKERMAN, who works with companies as small as sole proprietors and as large as FORTUNE magazine to help with business development and marketing, media placement, target outreach/door opening, and leads development, and boosting image and brand awareness. Amy founded Hidden Tech, a group of 800 members ranging from software developers to film producers and others who use technology to drive their small, often-homed based companies; and SHELDON SNODGRASS, owner of the Steady Sales Group, coaches businesses infour profit boosting arenas: Sales Diagnostics: Uncovering impediments, from strategy to execution. Sales Planning: Turning sales goals into actual results. Guerrilla Sales & Marketing: Executing quick-start, low-cost campaigns Sales Training: Finding, qualifying, and closing prospects. This dynamic treo will not only give you their best stuff, but put one family business on stage and perform a sales/ marketing/ advertising makeover, right before your very eyes.
YOUR BANKING QUESTIONS, ANSWERED BY GLENN WELCH, Senior Vice President, Business Banking at Hampden Bank, who wanted to know what you wanted to know. As a result, there was a small storm of great questions. This presentation will be his best answers, to help you make better banking decisions. Questions might include: How does the bank determine what is an acceptable level of debt (leverage) for a small business? Having read "it's not your banker's job to make your rich" and knowing that financial institutions are driven to make a profit, where can people turn for impartial, informed banking and investing advice? How do banks determine fees for corporate customers, and what is thebest way to moderate those fees? It seems like there are a lot of new shenanigans going on with hidden interest, shortened payment cycles and punitive charges. Is there any safe way to have credit cards? Come and hear real answers to real questions.
April 20, 2005 • Wednesday, 5:00-8:30pm
Clarion Hotel & Conference Center, Northampton, Mass
How To Get, Grow and Keep Customers: Making CRM Work For You
Large companies have been using CRM (Customer Relationship Management) software for years to leverage information and create internal synergy. They coordinate their calendars, manage their tasks, stay on top of their contacts and handle e-mail with enterprise-wide CRM. It's also how they predict future sales - by managing prospects in the pipeline. An efficient CRM system can be critical for business success—no matter what its size. Your company can stay in touch with customers efficiently, keep on top of critical tasks, manage information overload, retrieve data effectively, and control business ebbs and flows. At this interactive session, you'll learn how businesses have experienced dramatic increases in revenue with CRM. The session will address the following questions: what is CRM? What's in it for my company? Are we ready for CRM? How do we get started? and What are realistic expectations for CRM? You'll receive: actionable information for implementing CRM in your organization, valuable lessons learned from the CRM battlefield and a blueprint for increasing your sales revenue without adding staff.
Presented by WILL RYAN, a seasoned sales and technology consultant with over 40 years' business experience. He has a proven track record developing sales organizations and the systems that support them. Ryan's understanding of sales, marketing and technology spans many industries including manufacturing, banking, insurance, real estate, health care and software development. In 1992, Ryan established The Systems Sales Support Company to help clients increase sales and build customer relationships through the effective use of computer technology. Ryan's prior experience includes senior executive positions as both a vendor and a purchaser of large-scale hardware and software technology. Ryan held sales, sales management and marketing positions with major vendors: IBM, ITT and Amdahl. He also served as a senior systems executive at American Express and CBS. Ryan's consulting work with Systems Sales Support has included CRM execution from initial concept to final implementation. Ryan's business career began with IBM where he held a variety of technical, sales, management and management development positions with the company over 17 years. After IBM, Ryan held Vice President of Systems positions at both American Express and CBS, where he established effective management structures and delivered quality systems on time and within budget. Ryan holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Brown University where he majored in Economics. He also earned an MBA from the University of Rhode Island.
Out With The Old, In With The New: How To Accomplish Difficult (Even Painful) Change, Despite Stubbornness, Vested Interests, and Fear
Darwin said "It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change." He was not specifically observing family businesses, but had he been, he may have observed that tradition and legacy are double-edged swords. The very survival of many companies rests on their ability to overcome resistance to change, especially if “the way it’s always been done” seems good enough to those at the very top, or “the way it could be” threatens those in the ranks, or throughout. Many times the best shot is to bring in an outsider who can serve as the “change agent” or “change catalyst.” This panel discussion will feature four such catalysts, who have nudged companies along their evolutionary path. This discussion, moderated by FBC director Ira Bryck, will feature the wisdom and experience of: PAUL LIPKE of Sustainable Step New England, who helps businesses to thrive in a changing marketplace by identifying and implementing solutions benefiting your bottom line, your staff, community and our shared environment. Paul will discuss how to bring in new allies and stronger forces for those times when change is needed, and you feel as if there are land mines everywhere. INGRID BREDENBERG of Human Resource Innovations, who has worked with leaders and teams since 1988, helping them work together better using leading edge approaches and tools. Serving as a strategic coach and creativity catalyst, Ingrid helps teams recognize their pain, critical issues, envision new possibilities, and chart a course that engages all stakeholders in developing communities of accountability and trust. PETER ZIMMER is a family business consultant from Enfield, CT. His experience tells him that businesses often like the idea of change better than the process of it. He will help you take a look at what you currently do well in your business and compare that to the repetitive problems that hold you back. LAURIE BREITNER of Breitner and Associates, who, since 1991, has helped organizations work more effectively and successfully, enjoy harmony and energy and manage significant change. Laurie will wrap up our discussion by offering six key steps to managing organizational change. This session will hopefully inspire and/or instruct you how to sprout new wings, climb higher, or hunt and gather better, faster and cheaper.
Thursday, April 7, 2005 7:00 - 9:00 AM
Clarion Hotel & Conference Center, 1 Atwood Drive, Northampton, MA
Business Advisors: The Role They Can Play In Your Organization's Success
Decisions, decisions, decisions. A CEO’s success hinges on his or her ability to make the right ones, day in and day out. Smart CEOs don’t go it alone. They look to a network of trusted advisors to help them sort through their options.
- How do you assemble a network of advisors?
- Should you have a structured, formal advisory board, or rely on informal relationships?
- Whom should you select as your advisors?
- How should you compensate your business advisors?
Does your business need an advisory board, as well as a board of directors?
In this fast-paced breakfast session, we’ll offer some answers to these questions. We’ll also help you maximize the value you receive from your business advisors.
We’ll begin the program drawing participants into a discussion of how they currently use advisors. A seasoned entrepreneur will then talk about advisory challenges he’s faced, why he turned to an advisory board, and how it benefited his company. Finally, we’ll consider alternative models for leveraging advisors and the resources available to those interested in establishing an advisor network.
This program is targeted at owners and executives of small- and mid-sized organizations, including family-controlled firms and not-for-profits.
About Our Speakers
Tom Sherwin, the president of the New England Chapter of the National Association of Corporate Directors, is founder and president of CEO Resources Inc, a management consulting firm that serves the CEOs of companies with annual sales between $5 million and $50 million. Tom’s firm specializes in CEO driven Board of Director Development, CEO Coaching, Strategic Planning and Succession Management. He is the creator and moderator of the Smaller Business Association of New England’s highly successful CEO Roundtable Series and sits on the Board of Enefco, Inc.
Paul Baudisch is a co-founder of two start ups. His most-recent launch was an e-mail marketing company that was acquired by a large interactive agency. The venture was self-funded and profitable, success which Paul attributes in part to his network of business advisors. He is now helping to lead the growth of Creative With Direction, Inc., a direct-response marketing services agency. Paul has also been an executive with Bolt, Beranek and Newman and Interactive Data, while it was a unit of the Chase Manhattan Bank. Paul is a member of the Operating Committee of the National Association of Corporate Directors.
March 10, 2005 • Thursday, 5:00-8:30pm
Log Cabin Banquet & Meeting House, Holyoke, Mass
How Can You "Be All That You Can Be" When You're "Still Crazy After All These Years"?
According to the American Psychological Association, Albert Ellis is the second-most influential psychotherapist of the last century (Carl Rogers was first; they both beat out Freud and Erickson). Now 90 years old, he still lectures most days at his namesake Institute in Manhattan. His therapeutic theory and practice -Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy- helps people live more happily and rationally by questioning their own self-defeating beliefs and attitudes that are the actual sources of negative emotions such as depression, anxiety, guilt, and anger. You might recognize in yourself the beliefs, for instance, that your self respect is tied to winning approval from others; or that your poorly chosen behaviors make you a totally rotten person; or that you should be thoroughly competent, intelligent, and achieving in all possible respects, rather than accepting yourself as a quite imperfect creature, with human limitations and fallibilities. There are many ways you can upset yourself as well as sabotage your relationships and goals. Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy addresses them all.
This presentation, by Psychologist, DR. MICHAEL BRODER, Executive Director of the Albert Ellis Institute, will describe a way out of these common quandaries, with a special focus on the special issues of family business, where family dynamics meet business practices. Dr. Broder is author of Positive Attitude Training: The Power Of Cognitive Behavior Psychology, Self Actualization: Achieving Your Full Potential, How to Develop Self-confidence and a Positive Self-image Permanently and Forever, and Can Your Relationship Be Saved? How to Know Whether to Stay or Go. His presentation will give you ways that you can replace your self-defeating thoughts, feelings and actions with new and more effective ones, to achieve success and optimally enjoy life.
What You Don't Know Can Hurt You: An Interactive Dialogue About Buy Sell Agreements and Beyond
There are so many good reasons to avoid the discussion about and implementation of a solid buy sell agreement: you don't believe that business owner relationships fail at a higher rate than do marriages; even thinking about being a partner with your deceased brother's wife gives you such a violent headache that you can't talk about it long enough to plan to avoid it; you'd rather slog through with that so-and-so than give him the satisfaction of leaving; you dislike discussions involving death and conflict more than you fear death and conflict; or you dislike lawyers and insurance salesmen so much that you will run any risk to avoid dealing with them. FBC sponsors CHARLES EPSTEIN of Epstein Financial Services and RON WEISS of Bulkley, Richardson and Gelinas, LLP will try to make it painless for you.
Thursday, January 20, 2005; 8:30am-11:30am
STCC Scibelli Enterprise Center
Why Salespeople Fail…And What You Can Do About It!
IF YOUR COMPANY BROKE ALL SALES RECORDS LAST YEAR or if your sales force is the best money can buy and can't be improved, CONGRATULATIONS! THIS EVENT IS NOT FOR YOU. BUT...IF YOUR SALES TEAM IS SAYING: We can't get in front of enough qualified prospects We don't close enough of the prospects we do get to see We wind up chasing too many "think-it-overs" We can't effectively get through the gatekeeper to get an appointment We do too many quotes that don't turn into business We waste time chasing prospects who can't or won't buy We don't get enough referrals. You might register and improve your odds of success.
December 8, 2004 • Wednesday, 5:00-8:30pm
Clarion Hotel & Conference Center, Northampton, Mass
How To Select Employees Who Perform 600% Better Than Average (Or Improve The Ones You Have)
What hiring choices would a business owner make if s/he could predict the dollar value of a potential employee's contribution? Say you're hiring a new sales account representative. Given a choice between one who'll bring in ten times the cost of his or her salary and benefits or one who will earn 88 times his or her cost, which one would you want to hire? The best employees may perform 600% better than average, according to tonight’s presenter, Lyle Spencer,Jr., Ph.D.. Dr. Spencer has good news for managers: it is possible both to predict and-perhaps even more importantly-to train for extreme success. Research and teaching in 55 countries has demonstrated how to increase Achievement Motivation, and create a climate that rewards innovation. This session will tell you how to achieve staggering increases in your workforce’s interpersonal understanding, collaborativeness, ability to develop and empower others, concern for order and quality, initiative and innovation, analytic and conceptual thinking, self-confidence, flexibility, accurate self-assessment, and more! Whether or not you are personally high in Achievement Motivation, it will be impossible to not be motivated by this important presentation.
DR. LYLE M. SPENCER, JR., President of Spencer Research & Technology, is an author and independent consultant on competency development, reengineering human resources, and HR return-on-investment analysis. Dr. Spencer developed Hay/McBer's competency assessment methodology with Harvard Prof. David McClelland, and methods for calculating the costs and benefits of human resource programs. His current research concerns reengineering human resources and the development of expert system Integrated Human Resources Management Information Systems. As HayGroup Vice President, Research & Technology, and President and CEO of McBer and Company, a HayGroup subsidiary, Dr. Spencer developed HayGroup's worldwide Hay/McBer practice, training four hundred consultants in HayGroup offices in twenty-four countries. In twenty-five years with McBer, Dr. Spencer conducted organizational diagnosis, training, and development programs for industry leaders such as AT&T, General Electric, General Motors, IBM, and Merck Pharmaceutical. Dr. Spencer has managed major leadership and organizational development contracts with the U.S. Army and Navy, AID, OPM, and United Nations Industrial Development (UNIDO) and Labor (ILO) Organizations. He has taught at the business schools of the University of Chicago and University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Dr. Spencer 's books and software include Reengineering Human Resources (Wiley, 1995), Competence at Work (Wiley, 1993), and Calculating Human Resource Costs and Benefits (Wiley, 1986). He has published more than fifty chapters and papers in such references as the American Management Association's Handbooks of Selection, Human Resources Management and Development, Compensation, Business Strategy and Change Management; Training; and Human Resource Planning.
How We Were Able To Move From Point 'A' To Point 'B', Once We Discovered Where Point 'A' Was
It has been said that everyone wants to be different, but nobody wants to change. But to complicate matters, how can we change, when we don't know enough about ourselves to begin with? This session will be a panel of several owners and managers who have been through the Performance Dynamics assessment developed by Giombetti Associates; and with the increased self awareness provided by that process, have been able to make an important impact on themselves. Moderated by Rick Giombetti and Paul Alves, sponsors of the UMass Amherst Family Business Center. Panelists include Jeb Balise, Owner and President of Balise Motors, and his CFO Steve Mitus; Tyler Young, Owner and President of W.F. Young, and his COO/GM Adam Raczkowski; and Ken Fontaine, President of Amgraph, and his sister Michelle Fontaine, head of Continuous Systemic Improvement. This presentation will be an instructive and captivating look at how people improve their behaviors, leadership and ability to grow.
October 21, 2004 • Thursday, 5:00-9:00pm
Log Cabin Banquet & Meeting House, Holyoke, Mass
TENTH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION OF THE UMass Amherst Family Business Center!!
A perfect occasion to enjoy the company of our companies, and bask in the glow of ten years of UMass Amherst Family Business Center success. Come stuff yourself with a wonderful buffet feast, and hear what the Family Business Center has meant to our members. You will benefit, as always, from great conversations with a great variety of movers and shakers from Western Massachusetts.
It will also be an evening with great entertainment: We are proud to celebrate our ten years of success by presenting cultural icon FLOYD VIVINO, AKA "Uncle Floyd." Floyd began his career in show business as a child performer, dancing at the 1964 World's Fair in New York and at the Steel Pier in Atlantic City. In high school he found the sound of laughter more fulfilling than applause, finding employment in circuses, nightclubs, amusement parks, and as a comedian in some remaining few burlesque shows. His varied experiences in the performing arts finally led him to television, where he began the Uncle Floyd Show in New Jersey in 1974. The show developed a following in the New York-New Jersey area in the 1970's, and on New Jersey Cablevision for 25 years. In the late 80's Floyd started his own Italian radio program. The Italian-American Serenade broadcast on WRTN-FM out of New Rochelle, NY. Vivino claims to have the largest private collection of Italian records outside of Italy, some 250,000. He has acted or performed in Good Morning Vietnam, Mr. Wonderful, Law and Order, Loving, Bill Boggs' Comedy Tonight, USA-TV's Up All Night, and the Dr. Demento Show. Performing live however, has always remained his first love. He has played many Catskill and Pocono resorts, including Caesars, Fernwood, and Nevele; and opened for Melba Moore, Jerry Vale, Pat Cooper, Al Martino, Pete Seeger, Julius LaRosa, Tom Chapin, and many others. Currently living in New Jersey, Floyd appears live about 300 nights a year in clubs and on-stage. It is also worth noting that Uncle Floyd holds a Guinness certified world record for playing the piano continuously for 24 hours, 15 minutes.
September 22, 2004 • Wednesday 5:00-8:30pm
Clarion Hotel & Conference Center, Northampton, Mass
Competitive Intelligence: Playing To Win Isn't Just For The Big Boys (And Girls)
While most Fortune 1000 companies have at least some formalized competitive intelligence function in place, few small and mid-tier companies have embraced this valuable tool to support their business objectives. Many companies claim they know their markets and customers, and keep an eye on their competitors. But, unless they rigorously monitor and analyze industry trends, emerging technologies, and existing and new competitors, they may miss important early warning signals about the future developments and unexpected competitor activities. Using proven (and legal) collection and analysis techniques Competitive Intelligence can help answer important questions like:
- Who is winning in our market and why?
- What do we know about our competitors' strengths and weaknesses?
- Will our strategy transform the nature of competition?
- What might our competitors do next?
CI can also help answer the critical question, "What if…?" The future-oriented perspective of competitive analysis enables Executives to evaluate their current and future investments, manage risks, provide new ideas on business operations, and improve their reaction time to industry developments.
FRED WERGELES is the founder and Principal of Fred Wergeles & Associates LLC, a consulting practice that specializes in Strategic Planning and Competitive Intelligence process improvement. He has over 20 years experience managing intelligence collection and analysis in support of strategic decision making. Fred has developed innovative methods and tools to quickly and effectively improve Strategic Planning, Product Development and Market Assessment capabilities for clients in both large and small firms, and in a variety of industries. Fred is an 18-year veteran of the Central Intelligence Agency analyzing worldwide science and technology developments and managing collection and analysis programs. He also had tours of duty in The White House Situation Room and the Pentagon. Fred is the Connecticut Chapter Coordinator of the Society of Competitive Intelligence Professionals, and Adjunct Professor at the University of Hartford Barney School of Management where he teaches a graduate-level course in Competitive Intelligence. Fred is the Executive Director of the Simsbury Education Enhancement Foundation, a member of the World Affairs Council, and the President of the Simsbury Youth Hockey Association.
HOW TO BENEFIT YOUR KEY EMPLOYEES (IN THE MOST TAX EFFICIENT MANNER) WITHOUT BEING REQUIRED TO GIVE THEM TO THE RANK AND FILE a short educational talk by FBC sponsor Meyers Brothers Kalicka, PC.
KEYS TO CONTROL PROPERTY AND CASUALTY INSURANCE COSTS A short educational talk by FBC sponsor Axia Insurance Services.
How We Found Our Niche: A Panel Of Business Owners Tell Their Tales
If you own your own business, it helps if you have talent and interest in whatever product or service you offer. But that’s not the key to success, since many of your competitors are scrambling for the same piece of pie with the same implements. So what is your unique advantage, your genius, your "je ne sais quoi", your niche? What have you discovered about your ability to deliver that special something, even beyond Better! Faster! Cheaper!? These panelists are not bragging, but they are explaining how they discovered their company's Sweet Spot, and how you can, too! (thanks to David Topor, of Topor Dodge, for this topic)
June 15, 2004 • Tuesday 5-8:30pm
Log Cabin Banquet & Meeting House, Holyoke, MA
Behind Every Great Woman Is Nothing Compared To What Lies Ahead
You've come a long way, baby! But some days it seems you're on the road to nowhere!! Even if you've figured out how to stand your ground without being called a shrew, finally earning more than 76 cents for each dollar made by men, and your CEO status in family businesses is predicted to triple in the years ahead (now 9.5% of family businesses are headed by women, expected to soon be 34%), there is no end of frustration in getting to where you want to be. We will hear some very honest and frank discussion from a panel of women in business, which will be instructive to you, no matter what your genetic predisposition.
The panel will be moderated by Dr. Linda Peters, Program Director for the Harold Grinspoon Charitable Foundation's Entrepreneurship Initiatives, uniting colleges and universities throughout Western Massachusetts for the purpose of promoting entrepreneurship as a respected profession. Dr. Peters teaches in the on-line MBA program at UMass as well as conducts research related to entrepreneurship and the concept of virtuality (virtual organizations, virtual teams, and virtual employees). Linda earned her MBA from Western New England College during her fifteen years as a Junior Partner and National Director of Property Management at Aspen Square Management, a national real estate investment firm based out of West Springfield, Massachusetts; and a Ph.D in Management from UMass, with an emphasis in Organization Studies.
And Now A Message From UMass Chancellor John V. Lombardi
The UMass Amherst Family Business Center is proud to present JOHN V. LOMBARDI, Chancellor and Professor of History at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. He also serves as co-editor of The Center, a research enterprise focused on the competitive national context for major research universities. Dr. Lombardi served as dean of international programs and dean of arts and sciences at Indiana University, provost at The Johns Hopkins University, and president of the University of Florida. He is a specialist in Latin America with a special interest in Venezuelan history and the author of a variety of books and articles, one of which is coauthored with his wife, Cathryn. He received his Ph.D. and MA from Columbia University and his bachelor's degree from Pomona College.
BANKING...A LOOK INTO THE FUTURE An educational, non-commercial presentation from one of our sponsors, DAVID HOBERT,
Sovereign Bank's Senior Vice President for Connecticut and Western Massachusetts.
May 18, 2004 • Tuesday 5-8:30pm
Clarion Hotel and Conference Center, Northampton, Mass
Get Your Customers To Say Wow
From its humble beginnings as a small dairy store founded in 1969 with seven employees, Stew Leonard's has grown to become - according to Ripley's Believe It or Not- the World's Largest Dairy Store, with grocery stores in Norwalk and Danbury, CT and Yonkers, NY (and a fourth store planned for 2004). Weekly shoppers number 250,000 - coming from as far as 50 miles away- creating a sales volume of nearly $300 million. Born out of Stew Sr.'s father's dairy farm/milk delivery business founded in the 1920's, Stew Leonard's dream was to build a retail dairy store where children could watch milk being bottled, while mothers did their shopping in a farmer's market atmosphere. In December 1969, Stew Leonard's opened its doors - a 17,000 square foot store carrying just eight items, but after 30 store additions now also carries meat, fish, produce, bakery, cheese and wine. Unlike traditional grocery stores that sell an average 30,000 items, each Stew Leonard's store carries only 2,000 items, chosen specifically for their freshness, quality and value.
Tonight we will hear from STEW LEONARD, JR., President and CEO since 1991, after a lifetime of cleaning out day old cream cans, stocking shelves, making ice cream and working the cash register. He will describe how the success of this family-owned business is largely due to their passionate approach to customer service: "Rule #1 - The Customer is Always Right"; Rule #2 - If the Customer is Ever Wrong, Re-Read Rule #1." This principle is so essential to the foundation of the company that it is etched in a three-ton granite rock at each store's entrance. In order to create happy customers, Stew Leonard's is also recognized for their management philosophy: "Take good care of your people and they in turn will take good care of your customers." It is this philosophy that has helped earn Stew Leonard's a No. 22 debut ranking on FORTUNE Magazine's "100 Best Companies to Work For in America" list for 2002. Stew Leonard's was dubbed the "Disneyland of Dairy Stores" by the New York Times, because of its own milk processing plant, costumed characters, scheduled entertainment, petting zoo and animatronics throughout the stores. The company has received worldwide acclaim for excellence in customer service and quality and is featured in two of management expert Tom Peter's books: A Passion for Excellence and Thriving on Chaos. In 1992, Stew Leonard's earned an entry into The Guinness Book of World Records for having "the greatest sales per unit area of any single food store in the United States." Stew Leonard, Jr.'s management style is built around an acronym for S.T.E.W.: Satisfy the customer; work together as a Team; strive for Excellence at everything you do; and get the customer to say WOW.
Stew Jr. will also discuss the history, implications, and lessons learned from the tax fraud conviction that landed Stew Sr. in federal prison for five years (he is now happily back at work).
How To Create Simplicity, Focus and Balance In Your Financial Life
Like busy entrepreneurs today you're probably finding it harder and harder to keep up with the complexities of your financial life. You've accumulated a lot of "financial stuff" and have fallen into what we call The Fragmented Financial Trap. This session will show you how to achieve greater financial peace of mind and an evolutionary system called The Family CFO Process, which provides solutions for achieving financial independence with reduced financial anxiety. Don't believe it's possible? Be prepared to participate in an engaging session with CHARLIE EPSTEIN, CLU ChFC. Charlie is a registered investment advisor and certified family business specialist with 24 years experience working with busy entrepreneurs. He is also one of the founder sponsors of the UMass Amherst Family Business Center.
April 13, 2004 • Tuesday, 5:00-8:30 pm
Log Cabin Meeting and Banquet House, Holyoke, MA
Ideas Are Free (And Closer And More Plentiful Than You Imagine!)
- A worker in one of Europe's largest wireless communication companies stumbled across an error in his company's billing software that was costing some $30 million per year in lost revenues. He pointed out a simple way to fix it.
- A secretary at Grapevine Canyon Ranch realized that, when potential customers searched on the internet for guest ranches in the Southwestern United States, the major search engines were returning her company's website well down the list. She proposed a simple change that made it appear at the top.
- A prison guard at the Massachusetts Dept. of Correction sent in an idea to use digital cameras instead of film cameras to process new inmates. Across the Department's sixteen correctional facilities, his suggestion saved $56,000 per year.
Front-line employees see a great many problems and opportunities that their managers don't. Because they are the ones doing the day-to-day work, they are in the best positions to come up with many kinds of ideas - from simple ones on how to save time, effort, and money, to entirely new ways of doing business. Yet most people work in organizations that are far more effective at suppressing their ideas than promoting them. Every day, all over the world, front-line employees watch helplessly as their organizations waste incredible sums of money, needlessly disappoint and lose customers, and miss opportunity after opportunity that to them are all too apparent. Companies that recognize the huge potential in the front-line ideas, and know how to tap it, gain significant competitive advantage, and become much more pleasant places to work. It is increasingly harder to attain performance excellence without the ability to listen to, and act on employee ideas. For front-line employees, management's responsiveness to their ideas gives them a real chance to address many of the problems and opportunities they see on a daily basis, and to have a personal impact on the performance of their organizations. Managers soon realize that front-line ideas can have a huge impact on the performance of their units, and free them from time-consuming "fire-fighting". They can then focus on what they should be focusing on. There is a lot to know about how to manage ideas. Oddly enough, much of it is counterintuitive. Today, there is a huge gap between the state of the practice and the state of the art. The average company in the United States gets one idea from every employee every two years, of which more than half are not used. At the same time, current best practice companies average fifty, or even a hundred ideas per person per year, and implement over ninety percent of them. This talk will show you how they do it.
Tonight's keynote presenter is ALAN G. ROBINSON, whose 1998 book Corporate Creativity: How Innovation and Improvement Actually Happen, co-authored with Sam Stern, was a main selection of the Executive Program Book Club, an Amazon.com Business and Investment Editor's Pick, a finalist in the Financial Times/Booz Allen & Hamilton Global Best Business Book Awards, and was named "Book of the Year" by the Academy of Human Resource Management. It has been translated into twelve foreign languages. Alan has been a consultant to more than a hundred companies in eleven countries. His recent clients have included Lucent Technologies, Heineken, the Federal Reserve Bank, Bose, Standard and Poors, Volkswagen, Toyota, Blue Shield, Hardigg Industries, the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (the largest financial services organization in the world), Lunt Silversmiths, Interbrew (the second largest brewer in the world), Fanuc (the Japanese robotics company), DCM (one of the largest conglomerates in India), Bemis, Leninetz (one of the largest companies in Russia), the Japan Industrial Training Association (responsible for the national training program required for millions of middle and upper managers in the country), Alcan, and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). He has served on the Board of Examiners of the United States' Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. In the course of his research on managing ideas he has worked in several hundred companies in countries including the United States, Japan, Canada, Mexico, Great Britain, Denmark, China, India, Poland, Brazil, Germany, Greece, Sweden, Jamaica, United Arab Emirates, France, Belgium and Russia. He is a frequent public speaker, who has given hundreds of executive seminars around the world, including twice at the UMass Amherst Family Business Center. Dr. Robinson is on the faculty of the Isenberg School of Management at the University of Massachusetts. He received his Ph.D. in applied mathematics from the Whiting School of Engineering at Johns Hopkins University, and a B.A./M.A. in mathematics from Cambridge University.
STRATEGIC QUESTIONING CAN MAKE MINCEMEAT OF THE COMPETITION
Energize your staff, break up outdated assumptions, evaluate ideas, and uncover key customer needs. It can help clarify succession issues, improve relations with family members, non-family managers and --dare we say it-- your teenage children. You'll learn when, why and how to ask strategic questions, how to increase their impact, map strategies for answering them, and take part in a powerful process called the Search for Insight™. The confidential Search for Insight™ will channel thousands of years of combined business experience to help a Family Business Center colleague solve a current business challenge.
You can't afford to miss this session! Paul Lipke is Director of Programs and Training for the non-profit Sustainable Step New England (SSNE) based here in the Valley, and has gotten rave evaluations from our group. He's known nationally for his pioneering work with strategic questioning, and with making learning fast and fun. Paul guarantees you'll come away with new insights about your business. Paul co-founded SSNE to help organizations flourish while addressing the world's unprecedented social, environmental and economic challenges. He's an expert at analyzing the multitude of problems you face to help you generate innovative, smarter approaches that deliver measurable benefits for your organization and your community. Think you've got a great business challenge for Paul and the Family Business Center community to help you solve? Want to be the focus of the Search for Insight™? Give Ira a call. He'll explain how it works.
March 9, 2004 • Tuesday, 5:00-8:30 pm
Delaney House, Holyoke, MA
End Your Workplace Wars By Using Conflict As An Opportunity For Growth & Change
Every business in the world has its share of conflict among employees, or between divisions, or with customers, suppliers, and governments. Who needs to add family conflict? Most of us try to avoid conflict, most of the time. It's uncomfortable, and the financial as well as emotional costs can be enormous. In fact, almost all the reasons one frequently hears for not bringing family members into firms center on the fear of conflict. However, conflict is part of life. Stepping around it doesn't make it go away. The more we avoid conflict in business relationships, the more destructive it becomes. Business owners need to become so comfortable with their skills for addressing interpersonal problems productively, that they actually welcome the opportunity conflict offers for change. With a good conflict-resolving system, family business relationships become assets rather than liabilities, because they provide additional motivation for shared problem-solving. Conflict well resolved is the life blood of growth and adaptation to change, in organizations of all kinds. The family business, however, has unique features that make conflict resolution more challenging:
Tonight's presenter, KEN KAYE, will show you • how to bring together all involved in a conflict into a constructive, focused discussion • practical tools to clear up misunderstandings and gain perspective • how to get conflicted parties to take responsibility and make commitments to change behaviors • improve communication even when others do their worst to obstruct it • build mutual trust even when people have acted dishonestly, incompetently or with bad intentions • how to build conflict resolution into your organization's culture • what to do when one or more parties feel the conflicts are unresolveable and • how to end chronic conflict without destroying the family.
Ken Kaye earned his bachelor's and doctoral degrees from Harvard University) and was a Knox Fellow at the University of Cambridge, England. Later he trained in family therapy at the Family Institute of Chicago, where he served as clinic team leader and continues as a faculty member. Kaye has published dozens of articles and books for professional advisors as well as family business members about resolving the disputes, rifts, and intergenerational tensions that threaten to hobble their enterprises including Workplace Wars and How to End Them: Turning Personal Conflicts into Productive Teamwork. As a researcher, Dr. Kaye authored The Mental and Social Life of Babies: How Parents Create Persons. For parents, he has published Family Rules: Raising Responsible Children (without slapping, yelling or nagging), as well as articles for Psychology Today, Redbook, The Sciences, Family Business, Corporate Board, Nation's Business, and many other magazines. A faculty member at Northwestern University's Institute of Psychiatry, Dr. Kaye participates regularly in the Dispute Resolution group at the university's Kellogg School of Management. A member of the Family Firm Institute since its founding, he received that organization's Contribution to the Field award, helped organize several of its programs and founded the annual conference of leading psychologists who specialize in family business problems. An instrument-rated commercial pilot, Ken's work reflects diverse experiences including acting, sailing, mountain climbing and environmental conservation.
How To Collect From Delinquent Customers (Including Those You Suspect Are On The Verge Of Bankruptcy)
MARK CRESS will make you better prepared to deal with this inevitable, bothersome eventuality. Mark is a partner with the law firm of Bulkley, Richardson & Gelinas, LLP, and his practice is concentrated in the areas of corporate finance, creditors' rights, bankruptcy and other insolvency related matters. He has substantial experience in advising small and large businesses on how to minimize and effectively deal with issues related to collections from delinquent customers. He regularly represents both creditors and debtors in the context of matters related to collection of accounts receivable both pre and post-bankruptcy.
March 10, 2004 •Wednesday, 8:00-11:00 am
Delaney House, Holyoke, Mass
Special Breakfast Presentation For Business Consultants and Expert Advisors
Building Trust & Increasing Coordination Across Consulting Disciplines: A Discussion / Workshop For Frustrated Expert Advisors
A unique and valuable opportunity for business consultants and expert advisors to increase their skills and understanding in working with business clients, especially when so much good work can be hindered by the non-coordination with other experts also working with the same company. This will be in part hearing from family business author and advisor Ken Kaye (see bio, above) and part super - roundtable moderated by him, but also hearing the collective wisdom of a large circle of very capab e consultants, who are helping and being helped. $30 includes continental breakfast. Open to all interested business consultants, mental health professionals, expert advisors from banking, law, finance, HR, etc.
January 9, 2004 • Friday, 8:30am-12:00 noon
Delaney House, Holyoke, Mass
The Delicate China Situation
(co-produced with NTMA- the National Tooling and Machining Association)
If you're a manufacturer of any sort of product, whether it ends up in a bigger machine or on the shelves of WalMart, you know that your very existence is threatened by Chinese factories that pay their workers next to nothing. You can be better / faster / cheaper all day long, but until you can attract free labor, you better sit down and think things through with the group of people we're presenting to you at this event. Manufacturers JEFF GLAZE, ERIC HAGOPIAN and MICHAEL SCHAEFER have all been going through it; visiting China, setting up operations there, or trying to side step that scenario. You will also meet FRED TEDESCO, owner of Pa-Ted Spring Company in Bristol, Connecticut, co-founder of MAD IN USA, a coalition of individuals, companies and associations dedicated to the preservation of American manufacturing. (If you're in a service industry, come, too. Call for technical support, you may reach a call center in India!).
December 11, 2003 • Thursday, 5:00-9:00 pm
Clarion Hotel and Conference Center, Northampton, MA
Primal Leadership: Realizing the Power of Emotional Intelligence
Daniel Goleman, author of Primal Leadership, and this evening's presenter, says "Great leaders move us by creating a resonance with others. Mayor Guiliani did not win widespread acclaim because he broadcast the financial impact of the September 11th disaster. He spoke to our hearts and our need to believe in each other and he struck a resonant chord in many all over the world. Each person's emotional intelligence feeds this resonance like banging on a drum louder and louder and setting off vibrations in other drums nearby. Neural circuitry drives the actions known as emotional intelligence and their link to outstanding performance, but people can develop these competencies. Leaders can use these steps and their own emotional intelligence to create this resonance in teams and organizational cultures. The effect is that others get excited and do things they had not thought possible previously; and can lead others in discovering how people can use their collective talent to build effective and meaningful teams, organizations, and families. "
Tonight we are thrilled to present DANIEL GOLEMAN, author of the New York Times best sellers Emotional Intelligence and Working With Emotional Intelligence, and the book he co-authored with the Dalai Lama, Destructive Emotions. His article What Makes a Leader?, is most requested reprint in the history of the Harvard Business Review . Dr. Goleman reported on the brain and behavioral sciences for The New York Times for 12 years and was a recipient of the American Psychological Association's Lifetime Achievement Award. His other books include Mind Body Medicine, The Creative Spirit and Vital Lies, Simple Truths.
Plus a short educational talk: CHECK FRAUD...YOU COULD SHARE THE LOSS presented by one of our corporate sponsors, Tip Simons, VP, Global Solutions Group, Sovereign Bank
AND A UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY to better know our community of business owners who benefit from the thousands of years of wisdom and experience that is the UMass Amherst Family Business Center!
November 18, 2003 • Tuesday, 8:00am - 12:00 noon
Delaney House, Holyoke, Mass
"Knowledge Based Breakfast"
How Your Company Can Rise To The Next Level; And Not Fall Through The Cracks
- Are you the kind of company that is satisfied with all that you have achieved; spending hours each day resting on your laurels?
- Do you believe that you must succeed to survive, so the fact that you are surviving means you must be a success?
- Are you on a continuous mission to be all you can be, always striving for that proverbial "next level"?
If you only relate to #3, you're in the right group, and that group will be meeting for some very practical investigation. This event will feature the combined wisdom and experience of the six corporate partners of the UMass Amherst Family Business Center, representing the worlds of law, accounting, banking, finance, sales and marketing, and effective leadership. You will hear their perspective on what are the identifying traits of the business that is going places. And how they can tell when a company is going nowhere.
They will engage in strategic conversations with three brave business owners who have every intention of getting from Here to There, exploring their thinking, what they may have not considered, what hurdles need to be leaped, what alligators need to be slain. Whether you are one of those brave volunteers (contact Ira Bryck if interested) or an audience member, you will come away much more aware and prepared.
October 22, 2003 • Wednesday, 5:00-9:00 pm at the
Log Cabin Banquet House, Holyoke, MA
Beating the Odds, and Hiring Right the First Time
If you've ever hired the wrong person for the wrong job, you are not alone. Mis-hits happen more than great matches. More often than not, the mismatch is costly both in dollars and disarray. And even bringing in Mr. or Ms. Right into your family business can shake up the apple cart, if they are not family, are giving or taking orders, or expect to get paid what they should get paid when family members are under or over paid. Add to this: will the hire have the authority to do their job, have opportunities to persuade and advance, and inspire you to bring in even more non family professionals for continued growth and professionalization? And how can you grow, within your company, the ability to identify and attract talent, creating a self-perpetuating great place to work?
Our presenter, HARVEY WIGDER specializes in a variety of organizational and human resource issues. His focus is on finding executives and managing compensation in privately held and family businesses. Before starting his consulting career, Mr.. Wigder was Vice President for Human Resources at Cahners Publishing Company in Boston. Prior positions included Vice President of Management Development for American Express International Banking Corporation, Director of Personnel for Colonial Penn Insurance Company and Manager of Organizational Development for Chase Manhattan Bank. Mr..Wigder earned an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago. Mr.Wigder has been consulting to family businesses for the last eighteen years. He is Principal of CCR Executive Search & Consulting LLC. He is also a columnist for the MetroWest Daily News, active in many professional organizations and a popular speaker on management issues in privately held businesses.
Hire Right, But Also Duly Diligent A legal perspective on employment issues, more particularly on the pre-employment due diligence necessary to make a good hire. A presentation by the lawfirm of Bulkley Richardson & Gelinas, covering the legal steps to take as you are hiring someone, and the legal steps to take when it just doesn't work out. The presentation will explain several vital components of employment law as well as protecting trade secrets and other confidential information.
China: An Opportunity Or Aberation?
Jeff Glaze, owner of FBC member company Decorated Products is threatened- like many U.S. manufacturers- by imports, mainly from China. In response to this, Jeff has spent the last 6 months investigating this situation including 3 weeks in China this summer. Listen to his comments regarding the China situation, before you make your next move in this direction.
September 16, 2003 ‚Tuesday, 5:00-9:00 pm at the
Clarion Hotel and Conference Center, Northampton, Mass
An Evening With Six Sigma Black Belt Rob Lindner, Rated by Rick Giombetti as "Best of the Best"
Members of the UMass Amherst Family Business Center have heard from Giombetti Associates that high performance people are powered by very specific personality traits. According to Rick Giombetti, among the general population, approximately 16% fall into the "high performance" category, 16% fall in the "low performing" category, and the remaining 68% fall into the "average performing" category in general. Four key personality traits power and drive high performance people: energy, dominance, discipline, and competitiveness. People who score high in these traits are the best of the best, having strong personalities and the internal motivational drive, intensity, aggressiveness, proactivity, and burning passion that comes from within. They can deliver results and get the job done.
Tonight we will have an opportunity to hear from such an individual, Rob Lindner. Rob, a Six Sigma Black Belt (a management philosophy of achieving less than 3.4 defects or mistakes per million opportunities) is Vice President of Quality and Continuous Improvement with American Household Products (which includes Sunbeam, Oster, and Coleman brands) in Boca Raton, Florida. In his work with Giombetti Associates, he has impressed Rick Giombetti as a stellar example of high performance qualities. Hear from Rob Lindner about his management style, his experience with Sunbeam after the departure of "Chainsaw Al" Dunlap, and his perspective on professional self- improvement. This two hour session will be half a presentation by Mr. Lindner, and half a conversation between Rob and Rick Giombetti on the qualities of the high performance people.
How You Can Achieve Principled Profits By "Putting People First"
When the business pages are full of stories about corporate corruption, is there a place for the honest, ethical business? SHEL HOROWITZ says not only can honest business people succeed, they can prosper. In fact, businesses that combine honesty, integrity, and quality with a long-term strategy will do very well. You won't see their executives on the front pages, being led away in handcuffs - but you WILL see a very healthy bottom line. These are companies that understand the very best thing they can do for their business is to make customers, employees, suppliers, and even competitors feel like partners. The author of the new book, Principled Profit: Marketing That Puts People First, Horowitz demonstrates that: • Market share is irrelevant • the world is abundant and there's room for everyone to succeed • You can actively profit from your competitors' success • Honesty, integrity, and quality are far more important than quick profits • the Golden Rule actually WORKS in business • As you create value for others, you build value in your own business • The most important sales skill isn't even about selling.
June 24, 2003 • Tuesday, 5-9 pm
The Log Cabin Banquet & Meeting House, Holyoke, Mass
Sustaining The Family Business: An Insiders Guide To Managing Across The Generations
Business owning families make the effort, take the risks, and have the smarts to succeed. Yet there is still a low rate of success when it comes to succession to the next generation. We are pleased to have you meet and hear from MARSHALL PAISNER, founder / Chairman of ScrubaDub Autowash Centers, Inc, and author of Sustaining the Family Business, which has received outstanding reviews and a five star rating by amazon.com. You and your family will benefit from hearing from the man chronicled by the Wall Street Journal in an article entitled "Retiring Entrepreneur chose to Leave Legacy Instead of Inheritance".
Mr. Paisner, both student and teacher on the topic of family business succession, conducted a multitude of interviews, to reveal five cultural patterns that all family businesses had in common that made it through 3 generations.
He will show you exactly how to create a "family business plan", an essential element in long term planning, as well as : • How to develop a business culture to withstand "offers too good to refuse" • How to bring children into the business • Why you have to change your management style for the next generation • How to pass stock onto your family • How to plan for estate taxes • How to deal with family conflict
Mr. Paisner founded ScrubaDub in 1968. It currently is a chain of 10 units washing over one million cars a year, managed by his two sons, Bob and Dan. The company has a national reputation for its innovation in the car wash industry. He is past president of both the New England and International Car Wash Associations. He also was one of the founding advisors at Northeastern University's Center for Family Business. ScrubaDub was the first national winner of the Inc. and MCI Positive Performance Award in recognition of superior customer focus in 1994, the Blue Chip Initiative Award for the State of Massachusetts in 1998, and just recently won 1st place In the Cisco Growing with Technology Award. The success of ScrubaDub as a "multi-generational" business has been described in Inc. Magazine, CNBC and CNN.
Secrets Of Success You Can Use To Boost Your Sales This Year
Two sales coaches with Momentum give savvy advice every business owner can use. Hear from KEN FURST and SCOTT FARLAND on: • How to get more revenue-generating time from your sales staff. • What a business owner can and should expect from the sales department and each sales person. • Scott's famous Fifty Point Day--; and how you can use it to set standards for daily achievement. • Hear from these down-to-earth, experienced sales gurus who coach CEOs, sales managers and sales reps. Quiz the experts. Bring your thorniest questions
May 21, 2003 • Wednesday, 5:00-9:00 pm
Delaney House, Holyoke, MA
The 9 Relationship Principles That Power Your Career & Business
How many times have you heard "business is business" or "don't take it personally"? How can this be so, if business success is so dependent on human relationships? At best, these relationships build trust and loyalty; at worst, companies suffer and fail from the destructive climate of office politics, low morale, and betrayal. Whether you are trying to lead so others will follow, recruit or retain the best and the brightest, or build a cohesive and effective team, unless you and your people succeed in relationships with colleagues, customers, suppliers, even competitors, you will not achieve your goals, be they financial success, personal satisfaction, or the sustainability of your company or career.
You will come to understand how to successfully invest in your business relationships from tonight's presenter, Ronna Lichtenberg, President of Clear Peak Communications, in NYC. Ronna is a nation