Archive By Section - Business Columns
Consider your business' performance
The current economic situation and the time of year may call into question the performance of business owners. Was it a good year? Was it a bad year? Why? How could it have been better? Why didn't the objectives get achieved? What problems surfaced that the organization was unprepared for?
Organize your organization
Vacations and long weekends are behind us, the economy remains a challenge and now is an excellent time to get refocused and reenergized, regardless of company size, industry or success to date.
A few tips for framing your retirement
A lot has changed since you were a kid. Retirement has changed as well. The way you picture yourself in retirement is probably different from your parents' retirement. It's no longer about a few years of rest and relaxation. It's about pursuing your lifelong dreams or discovering new ones.
Survival tips for small businesses
You may be in Mail Order, Direct Mail, or you may be a local merchant with 150 employees; whichever, however or whatever - you've got to know how to keep your business alive during economic recessions.
Is it time for a second career?
If you're among the casualties of recent cutbacks in the corporate world, you might be looking for a job in another field.
It’s time to talk to your kids about money
Communicating with teenagers is hard enough for most parents, and talking about money is no exception. In fact, research shows that only 36 percent of adults are teaching their children how to become financially responsible. In general, parents are uncomfortable speaking with their children about finances because a lot of people hold the widespread view that personal finances is a taboo topic.
‘Title’ can ruin your whole day
A recent study indicates that most Americans over the age of 55 have less than $25,000 in savings. For some, any inheritance they may receive is critical to their future.
Understanding Cal-OSHA citations
It's a safe bet that any business whose employees are engaged in construction, manufacturing, or other commercial production activities is probably familiar with the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health, or Cal-OSHA. This is the state agency which regulates and enforces California workplace safety and health standards, and which issues citations for any violations of those standards.
Micromanagers are less than stellar bosses
Being a supervisor of people in a work environment is a very difficult job. On one hand there is a responsibility to get things done using those that report to you, quickly and efficiently as possible. On the other hand, there is a desire for those that report to you to have the ability to grow and assume accountability while accepting the fact that people, inevitably, make mistakes while they develop. Mistakes can be expensive. ...
Defining events can make or break a company
I did some re-reading of the best selling book "Good to Great" by Jim Collins. This was triggered by a recent interview I read of former president Jimmy Carter in the press.
More common IRA mistakes
Last week my column addressed three common IRA mistakes. This column will address another three by addressing beneficiary designations (or the lack thereof) that can have drastic effects on your IRA and protecting those assets for heirs. n Failing to review and update beneficiary designation forms. Whoever is named on an IRA beneficiary form is entitled to receive the assets. IRA owners should review their beneficiary designations at least annually or upon any ...
How to weather the recession
As your supermarket receipts sadly show, the price of many food items keeps escalating. Dairy products have jumped nearly 11 percent over the past year, coffee costs almost 9 percent more, and a dozen eggs are up 43 cents.
Don’t dilute trademarks
If you are thinking of starting a business, choosing your business name or brand name could have significant ramifications if you chose a name similar to a famous trademark because it could dilute the famous trademark.
Estate planning: Does it offer creditor protection?
One of the most common questions I am asked when meeting with a client to discuss estate planning is whether or not the estate plan will offer protection from creditors.
When someone at the top gets it wrong
Years ago, I happened to be in the warehouse of the company where I worked. As the president of the company walked from his office to the offices on the other side of the building, I observed a low-level employee approach the president, and ask him if he could get a paycheck instead of taking the week's vacation he was scheduled to start in a couple of weeks. The employee said he needed the money more than he wanted the time off.
Articles by Section - Business Columns
Ken Keller: Here are ten mistakes that business owners make
A former leader of a large Fortune 500 company was quoted in an interview that "People who do things make mistakes. The biggest mistake is doing nothing."
Ken Keller: Front line makes bottom line
Once a month, like clockwork, a gentleman comes to my house in the early morning and sprays for insects and bugs. We've spoken a few times and he always hands me his card, telling me to let him know if he needs to come back between visits. I think I have called him once in the last decade.
Bob Khalsa: Rising prices lift sinking homeowners
Local home resale prices last month hit the highest level in five years, with each leap up in prices rescuing legions of underwater owners, in effect, throwing them a life preserver and pulling them to dry land.
Ken Keller: Lessons learned in college apply to business
Thirty-six years ago this month I graduated from college. I didn't study a major that paid immediate dividends, meaning a job, and I wasn't ready for graduate school.
Ken Keller: Permission to argue is granted
Peggy Noonan wrote a column in the Wall Street Journal on April 20 about her attendance at Margaret Thatcher's London funeral service. She commented that Mrs. Thatcher was often frustrated with her staff. Thatcher once said to her aides, "I don't need to be told what, I need to be told how."
Bob Khalsa: Statewide median home price at five-year high
Heated market conditions fueled by a tight inventory and strong sales in higher-cost coastal regions drove California's median home price in March to its highest level since May 2008. Local prices, right here in the Santa Clarita Valley are headed higher, too.
Ken Keller: How one company turned it around
This week I'd like to introduce a company in a far different place compared to just a year ago. The organization has gone from despair to celebrating success. At the end of the first quarter of 2013, the owner said his company had "…Increased sales, reduced costs and improved our overall financial position in terms of positive cash flow and profitability, as well as reduced debt."
Steven Tannehill: What do businesses want, anyway?
This is part two of a two-part column.
Bob Khalsa: Feds ease loan modification rules
Some homeowners who are still struggling to avoid foreclosure may soon benefit from streamlined rules that offer an easy way to lower monthly payments and modify their mortgage without requiring financial or hardship documentation.
Ken Keller: Here are the vitamins a leader must distribute
Looking back on those individuals who were my bosses, a clear distinction comes to mind.
Holly Schroeder: New homes benefit more than just buyers and builder
The only people who benefit when a house is built are the family members who get to live there, and the builder who constructed and sold the home, right?
Steven Tannehill: What do businesses want anyway? Part I
This column is part one of a two-part column.
Ken Keller: Lessons to be learned from lack of feedback
In 1970 I started my first official job. I worked nine hours a week at a small grocery store. For the next two years I grossed $11.25 a week.
Bob Khalsa: Prices, sales rise as SCV’s housing market continues its recovery
The residential housing resale market in the Santa Clarita Valley continued to recover during February, with sales and prices up to their highest levels in years.
Ken Keller: Getting crystal clear about your business
There is a terrific exchange in the courtroom drama "A Few Good Men." Colonel Jessup, played by Jack Nicolson, turns from being a witness in a court martial to being the prosecutor when he asks Lieutenant Kaffee, played by Tom Cruise: "Have you ever spent time in an infantry unit, son?"
