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How to Take a Vacation as a Small Business Owner

Posted: 09 Aug 2019 10:00 AM PDT

One of the upsides of running your own business is that you are the boss. You can set a schedule that works best for you and your business, and adjust it as needed whenever you want.

But being the boss is also one of the downsides of running your own business. Even though you can set your own work schedule, it's not always easy to take vacation time. Taking a vacation as a small business owner requires diligent planning and forethought, but it is possible.

And, not only is it possible – it is important for your health and that of your employees. As their leader, your team will look to you to set an example of how important it is to periodically recharge your morale and refresh your priorities. If they don't sense that you value rest and rejuvenation time, they may get the message that it's not okay for them to take time away, either.

Here are my six tips for how to take a worry-free vacation as a small business owner.

1. When possible, plan vacations around slow periods.

As a small business owner, you should be aware of the times of the year when your business slows. However, those slow periods might not always align with the best times to vacation at your destination of choice. For example, your slow period at work could fall during hurricane season in the Caribbean or bomb-cyclone season in the Northeast.

Slow periods for your small business also might not coincide with your children's school vacation schedules. The busiest times for many vacation spots are during popular school vacation periods in the winter, spring and summer seasons. Then you are faced with a decision between pulling your kids out of school to take a break while work is slow or vacationing during their breaks when work might be busy. Building a capable, trustworthy team will simplify this decision come vacation time. 

2. Set vacation boundaries for yourself.

Once you decide the best time to take your trip, you'll want to set boundaries and rules for yourself to adhere to while you are on vacation.

First, decide how connected you want to be. Do you want to completely disconnect from all work for the week or two you will be gone? Some small business owners might have more of a choice in this decision based on the number of managers and support staff they employ.

If it is not possible to completely unplug, decide how much contact you will want to have while you are away. Is a once-daily check-in on Slack enough? Will you only respond to emails or texts designated as emergencies? Or is it more feasible to be available for an hour every other day, similar to a professor keeping office hours? Regardless of your choice, clearly communicate your expectations and boundaries before you leave so everyone on your team understands the terms of your time away.

Beyond your accessibility to your staff, what kinds of rules do you need to set for yourself? Will you allow yourself one hour a day to check messages and handle any urgent matters? Or would you rather check-in at the beginning and end of each day to reassure yourself that everything is holding steady in your absence? Make these decisions ahead of time so you have the best possible chance to truly relax and rejuvenate. 

3. Delegate your work.

As far in advance of your vacation as you can, put a plan in place for how and to whom you will delegate tasks. Is there one person who should handle all your usual daily tasks and to-dos, or can tasks be divided between several people, so as to not overload one person?

Beyond delegating, are there any responsibilities you have that can be put on hold until your return? No one likes to come back to piles of work, but if items are not time-sensitive, it's worth thinking about whether they can wait until your vacation ends.

4. Prepare employees for any foreseeable issues.

When planning your vacation as a business owner, it helps to hypothesize any potential issues that could arise so you can prepare your staff as much as possible. Even if there is a slim chance something could become an urgent matter, it is better to put it on their radar than allow your team to be surprised by the issue while you are gone, and then not know how to handle it.

Whether you decide to loop all department heads in on potential issues or notify one trusted manager, it is important for both you and your team to have the peace of mind of knowing how issues should be handled during your vacation. Even if you trust your team to problem-solve situations as they develop, it will be reassuring for all parties to formally address matters and outline escalation procedures before you take time away from work. 

5. Let important clients know you will be on vacation.

If your business keeps you in regular contact with clients and networking with fellow entrepreneurs, give them advance notice that you have planned an upcoming vacation. This proactive approach will not only give you time to work out any potential issues together before you go, but also makes your clients and contacts feel valued and important to your business – which, of course, they are.

When connecting with your clients before vacation, you can discuss any projects you are working on together, any issues that still need to be resolved, whether or not those issues can be adequately addressed before you go or if they can wait until you return, and finally, whom their main point of contact will be while you are unavailable. 

Most importantly, make sure your clients know they will be taken care of while you are away and that they have a go-to team member available to handle anything that needs attention during your absence.

6. Establish a second-in-command for urgent matters.

In order to give yourself the best possible break, consider identifying someone on your staff as your second-in-command, or temporary replacement, while you are gone. You are more likely to get a real break from work if you have someone acting on your behalf and handling anything that you would normally handle.

The person you designate as your backup should be someone you trust implicitly to make decisions on your behalf. But that person should also be someone who is not afraid to say no – and someone who can act as your gatekeeper, helping to protect your precious time off.

Then, communicate to the rest of your team who will be acting on your behalf while you are on vacation. Otherwise, you might have team members contacting you about issues that could have been handled without interrupting your vacation.

7. Enjoy yourself.

As a successful business owner, you care a great deal about the businesses you created and the teams you have nurtured, but nurturing yourself is just as pivotal to your success. You deserve some time off!

Indeed, business owners can work a seemingly endless number of hours to ensure they are doing everything they can to contribute to the prosperity of their companies. Working that hard can lead to burnout if you aren't getting the relaxation and playtime you need as well. "Work hard, play hard," as they say.

All the work it takes for any small business owner to go on vacation can exhaust you even before you arrive at your destination. The planning, packing, putting mail on hold, making sure the pets are taken care of and other preparations can be overwhelming. But just as much care and planning need to go into your business when you want to take a vacation.

The more you can look ahead and put plans into place for how the work will be taken care of while you are gone – and who will be responsible – the more you can rest assured that everything will run smoothly in your absence, and the more you will be able to properly relax and enjoy yourself during your well-deserved vacation.

How Do Functional Resumes Compare to Chronological Resumes?

Posted: 09 Aug 2019 09:55 AM PDT

Writing a good resume isn't easy, and there's often limited feedback available. It's hard to tell if employers enjoy reading your resume. If you're a new to the workforce and lack previous work experience, creating an ideal resume can be a massive undertaking. Luckily, experimenting with your resume format and style can help you land interviews.

On a typical resume, you'll usually find a person's work experience as the primary focus, with employers and positions listed in reverse chronological order. This format may be the standard, but it isn't ideal for everyone.

If you have employment gaps or a lot of short-term positions, a chronological resume calls attention to your employment history, which may be a red flag to some employers. A traditional layout might also hurt entry-level candidates and career-changers with little to no experience in their new fields or, conversely, those with extensive work experience that covers a lot of the same skills and responsibilities in each job.

One way around these issues is to use an alternative format: a functional (or skills-based) resume. The idea is to group your skills together under themes rather than present a chronological work history, said Mary Ellen Slayter, CEO of Rep Cap.

"Coupled with a good cover-letter narrative, it can help you get interviews that you otherwise would have been passed over for," Slayter said. [Got resume gaps? Here are a few smart ways to address them.]

What is a functional resume?

A skill-based resume emphasizes characteristics and qualities rather than previous experience. This type of resume isn't as common as a traditional resume, but it can have tremendous results. Some companies may respond well to the creative resume style.

Functional resumes also work well for college students looking for internships or anyone with minimal experience. Focusing on your skills makes for a stronger resume than one that only lists your minimal experience. A functional resume needs to emphasize skills and abilities with concrete examples, though. A vague skill-based resume will not impress a hiring manager.

"When done correctly, a skills-based resume can definitely find the same success as a resume focused on experience, especially when you do your research on the job you're considering," said Soulman Bushera, senior director technology project and contract staffing at HireStrategy. "You can easily tailor your resume to fit the job description, clearly showing how you meet the qualifications." 

Bushera also recommended including examples under each of your skills. Saying that you have leadership skills won't excite a hiring manager. You need to include an example of being a leader to make your functional resume stand out. For example, if you served as the president of your sorority in college, draw from that experience and include an example of how you helped lead the organization. While it's not the same as job experience, businesses will be impressed if you've led social organizations and shown the ability to collaborate well with others.

A functional resume is an opportunity to be creative and emphasize the skills you would bring to an organization. Each skill listed needs to include an example of that skill in practice. When done well, this resume format quickly and efficiently explains how you can help an organization. There's value to functional resumes, and it's important that you tailor your functional resume to each employer.

Who should use functional resumes?

Functional resumes work best for people with minimal work experience looking to earn an entry-level position. If you're switching careers and don't have much experience in an industry, you may also benefit from a functional resume. This resume style allows you to share transferable skills that carry over from one industry to another.

If you're looking to switch jobs in the same industry, a functional resume probably isn't the best option. Focusing on work history might better serve you in your search.

It's also worth noting that the hiring process is about much more than resumes. If you want to switch careers within an industry, you should reach out to people within that new industry and ask for advice. Consider using a platform like LinkedIn to reach out to people in the field and to follow their accounts to stay informed about the latest trends and dialogue in that industry.

Switching industries may also require additional training in your spare time to develop the skills necessary to enter a new industry. In short, there's a lot more to a career change than the type of resume you're using. Functional resumes have their place in the job search, but there's more to the job search process than a different style of resume.

Are functional resumes worse than traditional resumes?

The short answer is no. Functional resumes aren't worse than traditional resumes, they're just different. It is worth noting, though, that functional resumes can be a turn-off to some hiring managers. Including work experience is an important part of a resume, and if your focus on skills doesn't adequately explain how those skills can help the organization, it's unlikely that you will land an interview.

One challenge of using a functional resume is the time recruiters or hiring managers spend looking at each individual resume. Often, recruiters spend less than a minute looking at each resume. This puts those using a functional resume at a disadvantage. It's easier for a recruiter to scan a traditional resume and see position titles, years of experience, and previous organizations worked for than it is to look through a functional resume and assign value to the skills listed.

Functional resumes might get lost in the crowd for job openings with hundreds of applicants. For openings with fewer applicants, the hiring manager might spend more time on each application. That's an instance when a functional resume can be most effective.

Why functional resumes can work

There are several advantages to listing your work experience by skill category rather than by employer. If you've been out of the workforce for a while, a functional resume will help you sell yourself based on the knowledge you gained while you were working. For career-changers, there's no better way to highlight your transferable job skills than by putting them front and center.

"As a business leader, I appreciate a functional resume that outlines clearly and succinctly exactly what you will bring to the table," said Phil Shawe, president and CEO of translation technology company TransPerfect. "Communicating these clearly and accurately is also the best way to make sure your career move is a win-win – you are able to bring value in your new role and for your new company."

In addition to helping you zero in on the specific skills an employer wants, this resume format can reduce redundancy when describing similar positions.

"[If] someone has worked as a desktop technician for several small clients ... it's better for that person to list their skills [under] 'desktop technician' versus listing multiple short-term contracts," said Josh Ridgeway, director of MSP delivery for staffing firm Kavaliro. "It cuts down [on] repeating [the description] for each role and shortens the overall length of the resume." 

"With a lot of experience under your belt, don't be afraid to connect the dots as to [how] your experience fits … with the job, the company, and the industry – both for the audiences who will be screening your resume and conducting your interviews," added Shawe.

Writing a functional resume

The plan of attack for writing a functional resume varies person by person. If you focus the resume on your skills and examples of how you've demonstrated those skills, the resume should have its desired effect.

"It's a different way of thinking, so take your time and be thoughtful," said Bushera. "I recommend starting by identifying the skills you want to highlight and then [drafting] statements that describe your experience with each skill."

Hiring managers love examples and data. If you list leadership as a quality, be sure to include examples and data that back that up. For example, saying you helped implement new training procedures for new hires at your previous organization, that shows that you're able to take initiative and help lead new endeavors within an organization. Examples and statistics boost your resume and make it more meaningful in the eyes of hiring managers.

Regardless of how you choose to write a resume, there are two key questions it should answer: Can you do the job, and can the hiring manager work with you?

There are many ways you can show this when writing a skills-based resume. Arthur Jordan, vice president of engineering at education technology company 2U, advised finding a way to discuss successful work and personal projects that could show off your unique abilities to an employer. For instance, you could mention your contributions to an open-source project, or that you wrote a blog post about a work problem you solved.

"Skills help you do the job, but [industry-related] projects demonstrate your ability to work toward business goals," Jordan said. "Your personal projects and passions count in determining if your new co-workers will want to work with you, and if they are even tangentially relevant to the job, they count toward skills, too."

You may even decide to work on a hypothetical project for the company you're applying for to help complement your skills-based resume. If you're applying for a marketing position, try crafting a few blog posts for that company and sharing them as examples. If you list writing as a skill, those examples will help back up your functional resume and lend credibility to the resume.

Joel Klein, founder of BizTank, which provides capital to minority entrepreneurs, said that your resume should not only describe your background and experience, but also give insight into who you are as a person.

"Are you a hard worker? Are you eager to please? How do you get along with others? All of these should be reflected so the potential employer will go for your brand," Klein said. "It's always who you are, what you can provide, what you want – all of which are the cornerstones of a good resume. You're selling your experience, your strengths and why you should be selected."

This doesn't mean listing "good work ethic" on your resume, though. A hiring manager wants to see examples of your skills. Saying you have a strong work ethic doesn't mean anything if there's no way to verify that. Include examples of those skills in practice to impress during the hiring process. 

A word of caution to those writing a functional resume – don't think you can get away with not listing your work history at all. Hiring managers still want to see your track record of previous employers, even though it may not be the central point of your resume. However, you can place this section below your skills.

"The goal of this type of resume is to highlight your skills first," Ridgeway told Business News Daily. "That way, you attract the attention of the manager before they see your actual chronological information."

Slayter acknowledged, however, that an experienced recruiter will likely see through this strategy. While it's not necessarily perceived as dishonest, you should be prepared to answer questions that a hiring manager may ask about your work history.

Functional resume template

When it comes to finding a resume template, there are thousands of different offerings on the internet. Admittedly, the sheer number of potential templates can be overwhelming. When it comes to seeking out the best resume template for your application, keep it simple. Look for resume templates that are sleek and don't distract the reader. Remember that hiring managers may only spend 10-15 seconds reviewing each resume during the initial screening process.

We've copied and pasted a functional resume template from Microsoft Word below. We like this template for a few reasons. First, it's simple and easy to read. While it might be a little bit boring, there's nothing on the page that will distract the reader. Second, skills and abilities are listed toward the top. If you want to make a successful functional resume, put your skills toward the top of the page. Third, the resume still includes work history. It's important to keep work history.

Your Name

Address, City, State and ZIP Code | Telephone | Email

Objective

Skills & Abilities

Management

  • Example

Sales

  • Example

Communication

  • Example

Leadership

  • Example

Experience

Job Title 1 | Company | Dates From - To

  • This is the place for a brief summary of your key responsibilities and most stellar accomplishments.

Job Title 2 | Company | Dates From - To

  • This is the place for a brief summary of your key responsibilities and most stellar accomplishments.

Education

Degree 1 | Date Earned | School

  • Major:
  • Minor:
  • Related coursework:

Degree 2 | Date Earned | School

  • Major:
  • Minor:
  • Related coursework:

For college students or recent graduates, adding detail related to your education is likely beneficial. If you've been out of school for a few years, include your college degree, but you don't need to include related coursework. Current students don't even need to include coursework, although there are some instances when it could be helpful.

It's also not completely necessary to include an objective, as that often gets overlooked by hiring managers. A cover letter can dive deeper into your career goals and how you feel you fit into the company. A skill-based resume should focus on skills, so removing an objective is a good way to free up more room to discuss your skills and abilities.

The template included above isn't perfect, but it's a basic resume that serves as a good starting point. You can be more creative with your functional resume format as long as it doesn't become too complicated for a prospective employer to quickly peruse.

Looking at a functional resume example is a good way to decide what you do and don't like about certain templates. It can be helpful to use a resume template that makes good use of white space. Some resume templates also fit more text onto one page than other templates. That's worth considering when going through the resume writing process.

It's a good idea to look through resume samples and other templates when putting your functional resume together. Find a design that works for you and go from there. Sometimes it can benefit you to experiment with different designs and wordings to see which options help you land the most interviews. You may want to create a resume sample and send it to peers to have them take a look and offer feedback.

Take advantage of your peers and the free resume templates available online and through platforms like Microsoft Word. Using a template can give you an idea of a functional resume format and how you might want to design your resume to engage hiring mangers looking at your resume during the initial screening process.

For the most part, the functional format features skills listed above work history. You may also include information on your education and previous honors and achievements. Be sure to include at least some professional experience in addition to your skills and abilities.

The bottom line

Functional resumes can be a good way for job seekers with minimal work experience to stand out in a crowded stack of resumes. They can also be useful for career changers. If you do elect to use a functional resume, be sure to explain your skills clearly and give examples of your skills being put to use.

A functional resume isn't a free pass to exclude your previous work history, though. Hiring managers want to know about your past employment, even if it's minimal. Include your work history on your resume, even if skills are the focal point.

Much like with a chronological resume, tailor each resume to the job you want. Your resume should vary slightly for most job applications regardless of whether you're using a chronological format or a skill-based resume.

"Regardless of the type of resume, it should always tell a story and paint a picture of what type of employee they may hire," said Bushera.

Additional reporting by Nicole Fallon. Some source interviews were conducted for a previous version of this article.

How to Do a Cybersecurity Risk Assessment

Posted: 09 Aug 2019 06:30 AM PDT

  • Approximately 43% of cyberattacks target small businesses.
  • Experts estimate cybercrime around the world will cost upwards of $6 trillion by 2021.
  • According to a study from the University of Maryland, a cyberattack against a computer with internet access happens every 39 seconds.

Data breaches in today's highly connected world have become commonplace. Headlines regularly tell of major retail chains, consumer credit reporting agencies and even government entities falling prey to intrusions from outside attackers.

As a small business, it may seem like a daunting task to keep bad actors away from your data and, by extension, your customers' data. Yet by performing a cybersecurity risk assessment, you're taking the first steps to better understanding your network's security flaws and what you need to do to patch them.

Cybersecurity risk assessments are used to identify your most important data and devices, how a hacker could gain access, what risks could crop up if your data fell into the wrong hands and how vulnerable you are as a target. Although you can perform your own comprehensive analysis, there are plenty of companies out there willing to guide you through the entire process and provide a monitoring service for a fee.

It should be noted that depending on your industry, you may already be subjected to mandatory cybersecurity risk assessments from a certified entity. In such cases, you may need to use a third-party system to comply with regulations.

According to the Verizon 2019 Data Breach Investigations Report, 43% of intrusions targeted small businesses. That should come as no surprise since there are nearly 30 million American small businesses, and most of them are soft targets for hackers. Since the Information Systems Audit and Control Association suggests that a cybersecurity risk assessment should take place at least once every two years, here are some actions and tips you can use today to get started.

1. Gather information

The most important reason for performing a cybersecurity risk assessment is to gather information on your network's cybersecurity framework, its security controls and its vulnerabilities. If you don't know what you're doing or what you're looking for, a poorly conducted assessment could still leave you vulnerable to attack.

"If businesses don't have the experience, the tools or the team to conduct a thorough and accurate risk assessment, and are just trying to save costs by doing it themselves, they can experience increased costs in the future when a hack or data breach that could have otherwise been prevented occurs," said Keri Lindenmuth, marketing manager for Kyle David Group. "Many small businesses don't recover from a data breach because of the financial implications and end up closing their doors forever."

To that end, if your small business has IT professionals on hand with in-depth knowledge of your systems, you should work with them to come up with a plan for your risk assessment.

If you don't employ or contract with IT specialists, but you are familiar with your system and how it operates, you can still conduct your own assessment if you remain objective throughout the entire process.

Often, companies overlook certain aspects of security because changing those things would cause too much of a disruption, or it would cost too much to fix. You need to be willing to make big changes if your results point to major holes in your network.

2. Map out your system

Once you've considered how you're going to go about collecting information, it's time to get started on the actual assessment. To start, you're going to want to determine how your system works, what function it serves and who uses the system, among other things.

Your goal is to determine any risks and vulnerabilities that exist in your network. Once identified, you will need to rate how big a risk those problem areas are, what you're currently doing to mitigate those issues and calculate what your overall risk is.

Consider everything connected to your network. Printers, laptops, cell phones and smart devices are all entry points for malicious code to enter your network. You can find vulnerabilities with the help of some automated programs, such as the paid application Nessus Professional and the free tool OpenVAS, that run vulnerability scans on several aspects of your network to detect risks.

In the office, it's important to make sure your physical devices are secured as well. Attackers often gain access through internet-enabled devices and access your network through unpatched exploits. Devices such as wireless printers, Wi-Fi routers and mobile devices can be exploited to give hackers access to the rest of your network.

An easy way to avoid problems is to make sure your devices' firmware are all up to date. Microsoft has a free tool to help you detect if your Microsoft products on your network are all up to date.

3. Countering the human factor

Human error can also cause network vulnerabilities. One of the biggest causes of data breaches is unintentionally caused by employees who haphazardly click on suspicious links or download attachments from phishing emails. Vulnerability testing on employees' responses and online practices can be useful before initiating specialized cybersecurity training.

You can run a phishing vulnerability test using an online phishing simulator. It allows you to set up emails disguised as those from work colleagues with the goal of convincing employees to download an attachment or submit credentials. Negative results shouldn't result in any punitive action. Instead, you can use that information to set up additional training on cybersecurity best practices and provide your employees with tips for avoiding phishing attacks. The results can also help you determine if you should implement two-factor authentication on network access.

Along with unintended points of access, your cybersecurity can be put at risk through the use of unencrypted USB flash drives, poor document retention and destruction practices, using unsecured channels to transmit personal information, and unintentionally sending sensitive data to the wrong person.

While accidents may happen, malicious attacks are the most commonly feared cyberattacks. In those instances, malicious software (malware), internal hacking threats or tactics like distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks can hit your network hard.

Lots of tools exist online to help you determine if attackers can easily strongarm their way into your network through your website. For instance, Pentest Tools is a paid service that scans your websites, web applications and network to determine if vulnerabilities exist. Penetration testing software helps you see where hackers can gain ingress to your data through the web. Common problems with websites are a lack of SSL/TLS certificates and HTTPS, which are factors in securing a domain.

4. Consider the potential risks, their likelihood and impact

Along with considering the technical and human side of cybersecurity, consider which threats may hit your network and how likely that is to happen. During a cybersecurity risk assessment, you're going to want to list every possible point of attack that hackers can exploit to access your network and data, regardless of whether they're malicious or benign in nature.

One way to prepare is to follow the National Institute of Standards and Technology's Guide for Conducting Risk Assessments. This document has sample tables that you can use to assess each potential security risk.

Once the potential threats are identified, you want to determine how they would impact the actual network's infrastructure and defenses.

You're also going to want to determine how likely it is that these threats will actually take place. According to Sage Data Security, you can split this up into "likelihood ratings," such as:

  • The threat source is highly motivated and sufficiently capable, and controls to prevent the vulnerability from being exercised are ineffective.
  • The threat source is motivated and capable, but controls are in place that may impede successful exercise of the vulnerability.
  • The threat source lacks motivation or capability, or controls are in place to prevent, or at least significantly impede, the vulnerability from being exercised.

After determining potential threats, how they would impact your network and how likely it is that they'd take place, you're going to need to imagine what would happen if these attacks on your business are successful. I know that can be scary, but if these things did happen, it's important to know how bad things can get and devise a course of action to deal with the fallout. After all, most SMBs have been known to go under once affected by a data breach.

At the end of the day, your small business's network security is paramount. Your data, as well as your customers' data, are incredibly valuable and important – which, of course, is why hackers want to get it.

If you decide to do your own cybersecurity risk assessment, you may find glaring security problems while familiarizing yourself with the network and how it works. While that's always a good thing, a professional cybersecurity consultant or firm can conduct an even more quantitative risk assessment that can help you avoid massive data breaches caused by some of the newest and most subtle exploits.

Additional reporting by Andreas Rivera

How To Become a Turnaround CEO

Posted: 09 Aug 2019 05:00 AM PDT

Turnarounds are inspiring. The ability to rebound after a poor-performing day or decade shows the power of resilience and the determination to find success even when it seems unreachable. Every CEO should seek to become a Turnaround CEO.

It's challenging to know where to turn when a company is declining, but by following a turnaround playbook, you can get your company back on track. The playbook includes a set of strategies that will help the leader determine what decisions must be made and when to make them. CEOs are wise to use the turnaround playbook as a resource that will help them to succeed.

One such CEO who was able to turnaround his company was Chris Lamontagne, who leads TeeSpring, a social-commerce platform used to create and sell products online. Chris started his first business at age 20, is a growth-focused leader and has played vital roles in many fast-moving tech companies.

Using the playbook he designed, Chris was able to take a company that was losing money and grow it to gain profitability. During that time, he was also able to enhance the company's social commerce, engage a new audience and build products to create awareness through its platform. Following the strategies in his playbook, Chris was able to lead his team to recategorize their business and bring clarity to their customers, supporters and funders. Chris worked to build a new partnerships eco-system (with the likes of YouTube, Amazon, Twitch and eBay) and develop a new fast-growing user base of content creators who create merchandise for their fans.

Here are the five plays that should be in every CEO's playbook.

1. The profitability play

Many businesses can start bleeding cash when they are launching a new product or idea. It is crucial for the CEO who leads the charge of changing the direction of an organization to move the company to profitability – and do so as quickly as possible. This play consists of educating the entire organization about the business's cash standing and helping everyone in the organization to take responsibility to get to profitability. The CEO will know that the team takes ownership when the team takes responsibility to watch costs and reduce unnecessary expenses.

It is essential for every CEO who wishes to lead a turnaround to focus on the numbers every day. Turnaround CEOs recognized that every penny counts and every penny must be counted. When a turnaround CEO focuses the team on profitability, the team understands the value of taking care of the customer.

2. The clarity play

I teach every CEO that I work with a simple phrase that states, "When the leader is clear, everything becomes clear." CEOs who wish to turn around their companies must push for clarity about who they are and what they are trying to accomplish. The leader must help everyone in the organization embrace the true identity of the organization.

One tool that Chris used with his team to push for clarity was going through the exercise of asking each person to explain the company so that their mom could understand what they do. This simple question is a fantastic exercise for any CEO of any company. Can you, and every member of your team, explain your company and what you do so well that your mother could understand it? A company that does not know who they are or what they are about will not succeed in the marketplace.

3. The awareness play

Leaders are visionaries. Leaders have the ability to see into the future and develop a company or organization around the possibilities of what could happen or what could make life better for others. However, the vision can sometimes become blurry. Blurry companies are often buried by their competition. 

Chris made an unusual decision when he assumed the CEO role at Teespring. He decided to spend the first three to four months meeting with people in similar businesses to hear what they were doing and what they believed was coming in the future for their industry.  When asked about why he would make such a decision, he responded, "I had to find out what success looks like for our company. I knew that the answers were not in Teespring. That was today's business, not tomorrow's business."

CEOs who wish to turn around their companies must lead with a vision of what the business could be. They must look ahead of the competition and make bold decisions that others in their industry are afraid to make. They must get out ahead of the pack if they are going to get out from being behind.

4. The team play

It takes a team to make a turnaround. After a leader knows where they want to go, they must focus on getting their team to go along with them. Part of the team play is instilling in the team the belief that the organization can be successful again. The CEO must embrace the role of Chief Belief Officer. They must inspire and call others to believe in the vision. The CEO must communicate the value of what the company is working to accomplish and that all the hard work is worth the effort.

Turnaround CEOs understand the value of having the right people doing the right things in the right ways. People will either bring energy into the company or cause the company to expand energy in an ineffective way. This might be the most crucial play a turnaround CEO makes as they gather people who have high energy that will help to energize the company.

5. The execution play

The execution play happens by putting the strategy to work. Companies that are in free-fall mode often have a difficult time making decisions. These companies paralyze themselves because they are afraid that they will make the wrong decision. They analyze numbers and data and never move to work the strategy that will lead to success. When people know what to do and how to do it, they are empowered to execute. During a turnaround, the CEO must focus on encouraging and inspiring the team to act with intention.

Turnarounds are not easy. However, every business will have periods when they start to decline. When a company does not know how to recover after a setback, they are doomed to continue a downward spiral until they close. These five plays that Chris Lamontagne used to help turn his company around should be embraced by every CEO who wishes to guide their company through a downturn back to a positive future.

Are Digital Payments Really Killing Cash?

Posted: 09 Aug 2019 04:30 AM PDT

Sweden is making headlines as the first country to officially go cashless, and plenty of articles are speculating that Australia will be next, but what does a cashless society look like, and how cash free will the future be?

Small business owners are accustomed to reading headlines urging SMBs to adopt new technology immediately or else get eaten alive by giant competitors like Amazon, and yet real-world change is much more gradual. In fact, even Sweden isn't 100% cash-free yet; it's simply less reliant on cash transactions and more accepting of cash-free businesses than other countries.  

Here's a balanced look at the role digital payments will play in the small business world, the pros and cons of offering cashless payment methods, and what SMB owners need to know to stay relevant and competitive in what may be an increasingly cashless society.

Types of cashless payments

Alternatives to both cash and credit cards are becoming increasingly popular, especially in certain regions and industries, so even if you aren't planning on accepting digital transactions, it's good to stay informed about what's out there.

These are the most popular digital and alternative transaction services with businesses (and customers) in the United States now:

Store Apps: National chains have led the way with digital payments in the U.S. Stores like Starbucks and McDonalds incentivize customers to use their mobile apps (with mobile payment built-in) by offering easier online ordering and, in the case of Starbucks, rewards points for using their apps. Most store apps work by either allowing users to add money to their app account or by linking their app with the user's credit card.

While store apps aren't universal, and are primarily the purview of large corporations, they are an important steppingstone in acclimating customers to digital payments. Half the battle with tech adoption isn't deploying technology that works, it's getting people to use it. Starbucks has thus far been more successful than any other digital transaction app; more people use the Starbucks payment app than any other digital payment app, with the latest number of users topping 23.4 million people.

Other chains are jumping on the app payment bandwagon, most notably Dunkin' Donuts, Chick-fil-A, Panera and Chipotle.

Apple Pay: Apple's cashless payment app, Apple Pay, is becoming increasingly accepted at national chains like Whole Foods, Target, and even Walt Disney World. Apple Pay works on mobile devices like Apple phones, Apple watches (it does not work on Android devices), and it is accepted at select independent retailers, as well as these chains. Apple Pay works with existing banks and credit card companies to process payments.

Google Pay: Google Pay is available on Android and Apple devices, and works the same way as Apple Pay. Vendors online and in real life can accept Google Pay transactions, and many of the same chains that accept Apple Pay also accept Google Pay. Stores like Bloomingdales, Stop & Shop and Trader Joes accept Google Pay, as well as many others. Google Pay works with existing banks to process payments, plus services like PayPal and Visa Checkout.

Samsung Pay: Another digital wallet, Samsung Pay, allows users to link credit cards, bank accounts, and credit unions to the app and pay online or in-person via Samsung Pay. While Samsung Pay does not boast a long list of vendors who accept their payments, unlike the competition, they claim to be accepted in most places that accept other forms of digital transactions.

PayPal: Tap and pay is available for in-store purchases via the PayPal app, and it works the same way as the other digital wallets on our list. PayPal is available on Apple and Android devices, but PayPal does not provide a full list of retailers that accept in-store payment.

Bans and backlash against cash-free businesses

Most establishments that accept digital payment methods also accept cash. There is relatively little backlash against offering digital payments in general; the opposition that's popping up is related to businesses that only offer digital payment methods (and credit cards) and no longer accept cash at all.

Many people feel that businesses that don't accept cash are discriminatory against people with lower incomes, recent immigrants, or those who, for other reasons, may not have access to credit and traditional banking.

Backlash is so strong that legislation is taking shape against cash-free businesses. Philadelphia recently became the first U.S. city to ban cash-free businesses, and others (including New York City) may soon follow.

Even if your city doesn't pass an outright ban on cash-free establishments, as a business owner, consider the ramifications of taking part in what is becoming an increasingly fraught practice, and consider continuing to accept both cash and credit.

Benefits of accepting digital payments  

Accepting digital payments, in addition to cash, offers real benefits to business owners, workers and customers. For one, tap-and-go app payments are fast to process for both customers and employees, meaning quicker service.

Digital payments also make it harder for employees to steal from your business, which is no small feat considering that up to 30% of inventory loss may be attributable to employee theft.

Offering digital payment options also presents the image of being a forward-thinking business; it shows customers that you're ahead of the curve and not behind it.

In certain regions of the country, especially those with dense populations of high-income tech workers (where digital transactions are most common), offering tap-and-go payments may help you stay competitive with other local businesses.

Take note when you see small businesses and chains in your area offering cash- and credit-free payment options.

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Cash-free society

The concept of a cashless society isn't new, but the path to digital-only payments is a long one. It took decades for store credit systems to be replaced by charge cards and finally credit cards, and cash survived all that.

It wasn't until 1979 that the first national department store (J.C. Penney) accepted Visa or Mastercard, and it was years longer before accepting credit became common at small businesses.

The long history of the evolution from barter to credit is chronicled in Borrow: The American Way of Debt, by Louis Hyman, and makes for excellent reading for entrepreneurs who want more context on how payments (and consumer debt) have changed over the years. 

While it may be true that cash will eventually be phased out in favor of digital payments, if credit cards haven't been able to kill off cash since their advent, it's highly unlikely that digital transactions will become ubiquitous or exclusive anytime soon, at least not in the United States.

Cash-free businesses are trending primarily in areas that are not financially diverse; wealthy regions where people are highly trusting of technology and digital security, and are likely to be early adopters. Businesses that serve a diverse clientele, in terms of age, class and resident status, are less likely to go cash-free, as doing so would hurt their bottom line.

Additionally, research tells us that small businesses are more slow to adopt new technology than news headlines might lead one to believe. Many thriving small businesses still don't have websites and don't accept credit cards, and a massive number of successful restaurants don't even use point of sale systems yet.

When it comes to small business tech adoption, cautiousness and skepticism still reign supreme. Most small business owners resist new technology until not adopting it is clearly hurting their bottom line, making it difficult to maintain quality workers, or otherwise causing more inconvenience than the time and expense of adopting it.
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