Risk Management Lessons: The horse meat scandal in Europe illustrates the risks of blindly trusting what your suppliers tell you. European businesses are currently going through a massive scandal that has affected millions of people, billions of dollars and thousands of companies. It turns out that some meat packers have been saving money by buying horse meat and mixing it with beef. Schools, hospitals, institutions, cafeterias across the continent are suffering the consequences. This type … [Read more...]
10 tips to make filing your taxes a breeze
It’s that time of year again. Time to filing your taxes. Here are 10 tips he provides to make tax time a bit more enjoyable: 1. Before you assume you need to go to an accountant, evaluate if you need one. The majority of people fill out a 1040EZ which doesn’t require an accounting degree. It’s very simple and can be filled out in 10 to 15 minutes. By filling out your own taxes, you can save an average of $150. Just because you fill it out on your own, however, doesn’t mean you don’t have … [Read more...]
Do We Have What It Takes For A Free Trade Deal With Europe?
The President set a bold goal of Free Trade Deal With Europe in his SOTU. Is it doable? During his State of the Union, President Obama mentioned his interest in securing a Free Trade Deal With Europe. With approximately $4.5 trillion in trade taking place between the U.S. and the EU annually, a free trade agreement could have a significant impact on U.S. exports. A modest 10 percent boost in trade would yield nearly half a trillion dollars in additional goods and services being traded. That’s … [Read more...]
Employment is Up, Revenues Down at Small Businesses
Good news and bad news: small-business employment is up, revenues are down and one industry continues to grow in spite of it all. Using aggregate data from Quickbooks online and online payroll processing, software maker Intuit can provide a broad snapshot into small-business performance. The results are in from the latest Intuit Small Business Revenue and Employment Indexes based on this data. Revenues at small business decreased 0.4 percent on average in December compared to the previous … [Read more...]
Over 100 Billion Dollars Disappears from U.S. Banks in One Week
Over 100 Billion Dollars Disappears from U.S. Banks in One Week from U.S. Banks in One Week from banks during the first week of January. Why? Where did it go? The 25 largest banks in the country had a rather exciting first week of January. According to data released by the Federal Reserve, depositors withdrew an astounding $114.1 billion during the week ending January 9. A significant portion of this withdrawal can be attributed to the expiration of the Transaction Account Guarantee (TAG) … [Read more...]
Don’t Hoard Old Financial Documents
When it comes to storing old financial documents, I’ll admit that I do have a hoarding problem. Despite “knowing better,” I’m hesitant to eliminate even old receipts in case one day I’m subject to an audit and the only thing keeping the IRS from confiscating my business is an $8 gas receipt from 1993. All kidding aside, financial documents do have an expiration date, and it's important to know what they are so you don’t burden your mind (and your office) with mountains of needless … [Read more...]
Venture Capital Industry Grows Into “New Normal”
The Venture Capital Industry raised over $20 billion last year, a sign that the industry is rebounding, albeit with a new structure. 2012 was a spectacular year for fundraising by venture capital firms. According to the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA), firms raised nearly $21 billion, a significant increase over the $13.7 billion raised in 2010. Mark Heesen, president of the NVCA, believes that the industry has reached an optimal size for deploying capital and achieving returns by … [Read more...]
Free Online Course on Small-Business Growth Explodes
More than 60,000 people have registered for this Free Online Course on how to grow your small business. Businessman, author and University of Virginia professor Edward T. Hess is creating quite a buzz among small-business owners with his new course “Grow to Greatness: Smart Growth for Private Business.” To date, more than 60,000 people have enrolled in his Coursera-powered course. The course is divided into five modules: The truth about growth, which will dispel many popular myths about … [Read more...]
How Survival Is Becoming Good Business
A post-apocalyptic emergency? The demand is so high. Survival Is Becoming Good Business. Would you buy a year's worth of freeze-dried food for $1,500 to survive a post-apocalyptic emergency? The demand is so high, that Walmart and Costco now offer it for sale. This is just one example of the products that are part of a growing billion-dollar survival industry. Other items such as weather radios, kerosene heaters, D batteries, candles, generators, industrial fans for drying soggy homes and gas … [Read more...]
How Fiscal Cliff Negotiations May Impact Housing
Finance expert Mike Periu on the potential for big changes to the housing marketing. Cliff Negotiations May Impact Housing. If Congress and the President can agree to a fiscal cliff compromise, it is almost certain that changes impacting the housing market will be a part of the deal. It's likely that the Mortgage Interest Deduction will be scaled back significantly or even eliminated entirely, making homeownership more expensive and less attractive compared to renting. However, it could also … [Read more...]