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Blog2017-09-18T16:11:44+00:00

Spring and the Tornado

As the long, gray winter throws in the towel, at last, we’re treated to one of Nature’s finest shows – the arrival of spring – as the cycle of the seasons turns in its predictable and expected way. It’s always a thrill to see the flowers bursting up out of the ground along with the reappearance of butterflies as they come out of their chrysalises  – even though we know that winter will inevitably be [...]

By |April 27th, 2017|Uncategorized|

Business Cycles? They’re All Around Us

Cycle Theory is an idea that’s been around for a very long time. It’s a pretty straightforward concept that applies to many aspects of life, and a way that humans have made sense of the universe for millennia. In fact, we’ve been talking about cycles for thousands of years. The pre-Columbian Mayan calendar was based on cycles, the Hindu belief in reincarnation is a cycle that extends beyond this world, and the ancient Chinese believed [...]

By |April 17th, 2017|Business Storm Cycle|

Getting Back On Track

If you have a company that’s had two massive transition points—first a Tornado and then an Avalanche—you have two options. First, you may have to sell. Even worse, of course, you could simply go under, with nothing to show for all of your hard work. Your best alternative, though, is to follow the path of Devon Energy. In a previous blog, I told the story of Devon Energy: Having survived their Avalanche, merged with a [...]

By |April 11th, 2017|Business, Business Storm Cycle, Information Technology | IT|

Springing Back From a Downturn

When your company’s been through the punishing rounds of the Business Storm Cycle – from the high-growth Tornado where sales are climbing so fast you can’t keep up, to the Avalanche of high inventory and shrinking margins that follow – how you deal with the consolidation phase that follows can mean life or death for your enterprise. Make the wrong choices, and you may not survive the next cycle. Make the right ones, and you’ll [...]

By |April 6th, 2017|Business Consolidation, Business Storm Cycle|

Bouncing Back

Business owner, do these complaints sound familiar to you? Why is productivity down? Why are margins falling when revenue is soaring? My back office just can't keep up or give me good data It seems like my technology team is always fighting fires If so, it’s likely that you are going through one of the transitional phases of the Business Storm Cycle. Whether that’s the rapid growth phase of the Tornado, where sales are suddenly [...]

Surviving the Tornado: Can You Ride It Out?

Tornados – those hypergrowth phases of high sales revenues and low cash flow – can sneak up on you. You don’t realize one is there until your company is whirling around your ears, and you’re right in the midst of it. That drastic percentage of increase in revenue is what causes a Tornado. The front office goes crazy, while the back office gets more and more lost, trying to figure out what to do with [...]

By |March 21st, 2017|Business Storm Cycle, Hypergrowth Tornado|

The View From Inside the Tornado

I’ve talked about surviving the Tornado; that wild hypergrowth phase that blasts your company up to the sky, then just as rapidly drops it back to earth. But what does a Tornado phase look like when you’re in it? Let’s follow one company’s wild ride. Wind-farm company, Headwind Energy, had tripled in revenue size in a matter of months. The company doubled in size in people and quadrupled expected profit. During these months, their people [...]

By |March 16th, 2017|Business Storm Cycle|

The Forward-Looking Leader

Who’s more likely to survive a powerful storm: The person who prepares for what’s coming, and has a plan in place to deal with the likely outcome or the one who didn’t bother to check the weather report that day? The answer’s pretty obvious, but it’s amazing how many otherwise smart and forward-thinking individuals in leadership fail to prepare (and thus prepare to fail) for the predictable phases of the Business Storm Cycle ahead of [...]

Don’t Panic!

You’re caught up in the Business Storm Cycle – and though you may not have heard its name, you’re certainly aware of its impact. Maybe you’re caught up in the Tornado, that hypergrowth phase where sales are exploding and you’re running as fast as you can to keep up. Or perhaps you’re stuck in the Avalanche, watching your margins shrink as your growth declines. Or you might be in the doldrums of the consolidation phase, [...]

When It’s Time To Call An Expert…

How often have you tried to economize by fixing something yourself, only to be forced to call in an expert to fix not only what was broken, but your subsequent “repair” as well? Let’s face it; experts in nearly any field are in demand for a reason – and the reason is they know what they’re doing, and they do it much better and faster than non-experts can. I wouldn’t hire the guy who cuts [...]

By |February 23rd, 2017|Business Storm Cycle|

This Is A Custom Widget

This Sliding Bar can be switched on or off in theme options, and can take any widget you throw at it or even fill it with your custom HTML Code. Its perfect for grabbing the attention of your viewers. Choose between 1, 2, 3 or 4 columns, set the background color, widget divider color, activate transparency, a top border or fully disable it on desktop and mobile.

This Is A Custom Widget

This Sliding Bar can be switched on or off in theme options, and can take any widget you throw at it or even fill it with your custom HTML Code. Its perfect for grabbing the attention of your viewers. Choose between 1, 2, 3 or 4 columns, set the background color, widget divider color, activate transparency, a top border or fully disable it on desktop and mobile.
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