|
Below, you'll find extensive information on leading
forensic investigation articles and products to help you on your way
to success.
The Business Autopsy
By Tim Knox, Wed Dec 7th
Last time we discussed the importance of performing an autopsyon a dead business. No, I haven't been watching too many ofthose wonderfully graphic, TV investigation shows. Thereason I recommend you do a business autopsy is to uncover theexact reasons why the business died. This is valuableinformation that can not only heal feelings of personal failure,but also better prepare you for the pitfalls of business shouldyou ever take the plunge again. Starting a business is never easy and the odds of your successor failure are about even money. The fact is, approximately halfof all small businesses fail within the first four years. And alarge percentage of those failures occur within the first year.These are the statistics that keep many entrepreneurs awake atnight. Like Sisyphus, always pushing that boulder to the top ofthe hill only to have it tumble back to the bottom each time,you never know when you're going to lose your grip on yourbusiness and have it tumble back over you. OK, so far in this column I have managed to squeeze inreferences to modern American television and ancient Greekmythology. Enough highbrow beating around the bush. Perform theautopsy and learn from it. Only by knowing the real reasons yourbusiness died can you identify and hopefully stave off thosemaladies before they take you down next time, if there is a nexttime. And if you're a true entrepreneur there will be a nexttime, trust me on this.
There are many reasons why businesses fail, but according to arecent survey by U.S. Bank, the majority of business failurescan be attributed to three reasons: bad management, badfinancial planning, and bad marketing. Bad management comes in many forms. The survey showed thatseventy-eight percent of the business failures examined were duein part to the lack of a well-developed business plan and abusiness owner who had no business being in the business he wasin. In other words, the business owner did not have an adequateknowledge or a thorough understanding of the business he hadchosen to start. This is why software entrepreneurs like medon't start shoe stores. I have feet, I wear shoes. That's notenough to qualify me to go into the shoe business. Next, seventy-three percent of the business failures in thesurvey were also manned by owners with rose colored calculators.These business owners over-estimated revenue projections (thenumber of expected sales) and under-estimated the burn rate (theamount of money required to sustain the business per month). It gets better. Seventy percent of the failed businesses in thestudy were led by entrepreneurs who were in denial regardingtheir own competence, or more to the point, their ownincompetence. These business owners either didn't recognize orchose to ignore their own entrepreneurial shortcomings. Theseentrepreneurs also did not seek assistance from others who mighthave made up for their inadequacies. It's sometimes hard to askfor help when you are supposed to be the one with all theanswers. Believe
Spears in Hospital; Mom Says She's OKAuburn Citizen, NY - 28 minutes agoGhalib has been seen escorting Spears on shopping excursions, restaurant outings and to court during her ongoing child-custody battle with Federline. ...Spears back
Niagara Falls Review, Canada -Ghalib has been seen escorting Spears on shopping excursions, restaurant outings and to court during her ongoing child-custody battle with Federline. ...<br/><br/>::
Spears committed again to hospital to 'get help'Brantford Expositor, Canada - 40 minutes agoGhalib has been seen escorting Spears on shopping excursions, restaurant outings and to court during her ongoing child-custody battle with Federl
Medical News Today (press release), UK -He is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in both general and child psychiatry as well as by the American Psychoanalytic Association ...<br/><br/>::
Mental health efforts failingFort Wayne Journal Gazette, IN - 6 minutes agoElspeth Ritchie, psychiatry consultant to the Army surgeon general. Those efforts include more training and education programs, the hiring of more mental ...Globa
San Francisco Chronicle, USA -Elspeth Ritchie, psychiatry consultant to the Army surgeon general. Those efforts include more training and education programs, the hiring of more mental ...<br/><br/>::
Spears in Hospital; Mom Says She's OKTimes Daily (subscription), AL - 16 minutes ago... unless there appears to be grave danger, said Dr. Bruce Spring, assistant professor of clinical psychiatry at the University of Southern California.
St. Catharines Standard, Canada -... unless there appears to be grave danger, said Dr. Bruce Spring, assistant professor of clinical psychiatry at the University of Southern California. ...<br/><br/>::
Spears in Hospital; Mom Says She's OKAuburn Citizen, NY - 28 minutes ago... unless there appears to be grave danger, said Dr. Bruce Spring, assistant professor of clinical psychiatry at the University of Southern California. ...Spears b
Medical News Today (press release), UK -... psychiatry as well as by the American Psychoanalytic Association. He is an Associate Clinical Professor at the University of California Medical School. ...<br/><br/>::
Shrinks: Pop tart needs someone who caresBoston Herald, United States - 5 hours agoAblow, the forensic psychologist and author of the book A
Living the Truth,A
said stars often use attention like a drug. A
Having worked with celebrities ..
MyFox Utah, Ut -Forensic psychiatrist Professor Jeremy Coid said: "You can make an estimation of risk of whether someone will do it or not but you cannot always get it ...<br/><br/>::
Spears taken from home under escort to 'get help'St. Catharines Standard, Canada - 27 minutes ago... unless there appears to be grave danger, said Dr. Bruce Spring, assistant professor of clinical psychiatry at the University of Southern
Sarnia Observer, Canada -Earlier this week, Barbara Walters said on ABC's ''The View'' that Lutfi had contacted the veteran newswoman and told her that Spears saw a psychiatrist and ...<br/><br/>::
Accelerated Head Growth Can Predict Autism Before Behavioral ...Science Daily (press release) - 41 minutes agoIt occurs before the onset of behavioral symptoms at 12 months of age such as a child's failure to respond to their name, a preoccupatio
ABC News -Illegal steroids are still mostly used by men in their late teens and 20s, said Dr. Harrison Pope, director of McLean Hospital's Biological Psychiatry ...<br/><br/>::
Q&amp;A with author of controversial Cruise biographySeattle Times, United States - 1 hour agoShe was always seen as somewhat of a problem because her father is a psychiatrist and Scientologists loathe psychiatry. Q: Does Katie Holme
Republic of Botswana, Botswana -The slight drop in new infections among the youth and a significant fall in the transmission of HIV from mother to child leave the nation with some hope. ...<br/><br/>::
Lungs' Mast Cells Could Provide New Treatment Target For Asthma ...Medical News Today (press release), UK - 1 hour agoIn its commitment to global health and education, the Medical College has a strong presence in places such as Qatar, Ta
Nanowerk LLC, HI -In its commitment to global health and education, the Medical College has a strong presence in places such as Qatar, Tanzania, Haiti, Brazil, ...<br/><br/>::
Jewell Receives Certificate of PlanningMemphis Daily News, USA - 3 hours agoDrs. James A. Greene and Kenneth M. Sakauye have been appointed chair and co-chair, respectively, of the Department of Psychiatry in the College of Medicine ...
Duke Chronicle, NC -Dr. Daniel Gianturco, professor emeritus of geriatric psychiatry and former chief psychiatry resident at Duke University Medical Center, died Jan. ...<br/><br/>::
Lungs' Mast Cells Could Provide New Treatment Target For Asthma ...Medical News Today (press release), UK - 1 hour ago... genetics and gene therapy, geriatrics, neuroscience, structural biology, cardiovascular medicine, infectious diseas
Eurweb.com, CA -Not to worry, geriatric Rambo, AARP poster boy, still saves the day! Rated R profanity, sexual assaults, grisly images and graphic violence. ...<br/><br/>::
Teens suffer when their sleep schedule is out of syncPittsburgh Post Gazette, PA - 1 hour ago&quot;In both adolescents and young adults, sleep deprivation is rampant,&quot; said Peter Franzen, an assistant professor of psychiatry
News-Medical.net, Australia -... neuroscience, structural biology, cardiovascular medicine, infectious disease, obesity, cancer, psychiatry and public health -- and continue to delve ...<br/><br/>::
Nanomedicine Research for Prostate Cancer Supported By $5 Million ...Cornell Chronicle, NY - 1 hour agoThe lead antibody, J591, has been a focus of clinical trials at Weill Cornell, involving the Departments of Urology, Medicine (hemat
PR Newswire (press release), NY -Clinical and psychopharmacologic factors influencing family burden in refractory schizophrenia. J Clin Psychiatry. 2000;61:671-676. (v) Wu EQ, Birnbaum HG, ...<br/><br/>::
Nanomedicine Research for Prostate Cancer Supported By $5 Million ...Cornell Chronicle, NY - 1 hour ago... genetics and gene therapy, geriatrics, neuroscience, structural biology, cardiovascular medicine, infectious disease, obesity, can
KMEG 14, IA -The center will house the geriatric medicine and geriatric psychiatry departments, and will have research space for the study of Alzheimer's disease and ...<br/><br/>::
Ex-prof Gianturco, 73, diesDuke Chronicle, NC - 7 hours agoDr. Daniel Gianturco, professor emeritus of geriatric psychiatry and former chief psychiatry resident at Duke University Medical Center, died Jan. ...Pain Is Inevitable But Suff
WebMD -The American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry and the American Academy of Neurology support considering halting driving for all Alzheimer's patients, ...<br/><br/>::
Doctor shortage 'silent crisis'Allied News, PA - 4 hours agoThe widest statewide gaps are in primary care, emergency medicine, anesthesiology, hematology/oncology, thoracic surgery and vascular surgery, psychiatry ...State paying $25M mo
Daily Post, UK -Previously its head of European clinical psychiatry, Dr Alastair Benbow, has said it was a A
well-tolerated medicine... used extensively around the world ...<br/><br/>::
Special training to strengthen mental health sectorCeylon Daily News, Sri Lanka - Jan 27, 2008The training programme was conducted by the academic and clinical staff of McGill University, Montreal, Canada in association with local psychi
Sunday Observer, Sri Lanka -... a week-long program held at the Institute of Psychiatry, Angoda Teaching Hospital. It was conducted by academic and clinical staff of McGill University, ...<br/><br/>::
Psychiatrist Told to Get Help; Says It's Because She Links SSRIs ...ShortNews.com, Germany - 12 hours agoAustralia: Dr. Yolande Lucire, a forensic psychiatrist with over three decades of experience in the field, has been reprimanded and
SouthCoastToday.com, MA -He brought them to fiber analysts at the Tulsa Police Department's forensic lab. The red and blue fibers did not match any of some 900 commercially ...<br/><br/>::
Study finds that children in the welfare system have stable health ...News from Washington University in St. Louis, MO - 2 hours agoRamesh Raghavan, MD, Ph.D., assistant professor of social work and psychiatry at Washington University in
Adweek, NY -Drew Westen, Ph.D., is a professor in the departments of psychology and psychiatry at Emory University; the founder of Westen Strategies, a political and ...<br/><br/>::
The Art of the MessageAdweek, NY - 4 hours agoDrew Westen, Ph.D., is a professor in the departments of psychology and psychiatry at Emory University; the founder of Westen Strategies, a political and ...How to teach children without puni
Barre Montpelier Times Argus, VT -Psychiatry is, I believe, a soft science which deserves to be more closely critiqued and analyzed, and does not deserve the near blanket credibility that ...<br/><br/>::
ONLINE ONLY: Tom Cruise biographer defends Scientology claimsBeaumont Enterprise, TX - Jan 26, 2008She was always seen as somewhat of a problem because her father is a psychiatrist and Scientologists loathe psychiatry. Q: Does Katie Holm
Bradenton Herald, United States -"Don't drown him in praise, and make sure your words are genuine and honest," said Stanley Greenspan, a clinical professor of psychiatry and pediatrics at ...<br/><br/>::
Psychiatrist Told to Get Help; Says It's Because She Links SSRIs ...ShortNews.com, Germany - 3 hours agoAustralia: Dr. Yolande Lucire, a forensic psychiatrist with over three decades of experience in the field, has been reprimanded and
SouthCoastToday.com, MA -He brought them to fiber analysts at the Tulsa Police Department's forensic lab. The red and blue fibers did not match any of some 900 commercially ...<br/><br/>::
New UNMC center to be named after Omaha businessKMEG 14, IA - 8 hours agoThe center will house the geriatric medicine and geriatric psychiatry departments, and will have research space for the study of Alzheimer's disease and ...New UNMC
PharmaLive.com (press release), PA -Other specialties noted for excellence at Cleveland Clinic include ophthalmology, gynecology, cancer, and psychiatry. Cleveland Clinic has approximately ...<br/><br/>::
Katharine Applegarth and Matthew SimonsNew York Times, United States - 15 hours agoHer mother is an associate professor of psychology in the departments of psychiatry, obstetrics and gynecology and reproductive medicine at Weill Medical
PR-Inside.com (Pressemitteilung), Austria -Delirium, stupor and coma are common clinical states that confront clinicians in almost every medical specialty. With appropriate diagnosis and treatment, ...<br/><br/>::
me, I know. The final contributing factor to the death of sixty-threepercent of the businesses who died from bad management was thatthe owners had no relevant or applicable business experience. Bad financial planning was the second reason sited by the surveyas to why most businesses fail. In business, it's always aboutmoney. According to the U.S. Bank study, eighty-two percent ofthe business failures studied reported poor cash flow managementas a contributing factor to the death of the business. Seventy-nine percent of the businesses were inadequately funded,and seventy-seven percent miscalculated the cost of doingbusiness. In other words, they failed to take into account allof the costs involved when setting the price for their products. Let's move on to my favorite subject: bad marketing. You'veheard me preach this sermon before. You can have the greatestproduct in the world, but if your marketing efforts areinadequate or ineffective you will end up with a warehouse fullof the greatest product that no one in the world has ever heardof. The study showed that bad marketing was a contributing factor inthe death of sixty-four percent of the businesses surveyed. Manyof these misguided entrepreneurs either minimized the importanceof marketing and promotion or ignored it totally. A vital part of marketing is knowing who your competition is andalways knowing what they are up to. The entrepreneur who ignoreshis competition is a fool (gee, was that too harsh?) and isalways destined to fail, as proven by the fifty-five percent ofthe dead businesses in the survey who either didn't even knowwho their competition was or simply chose to ignore thecompetition altogether. Here's a nice hole in the sand for you, sir. Please insert your head… Another mistake made by forty-seven percent of the deceasedbusinesses was that they relied on just one or two customers forthe bulk of revenues. This is a common mistake made by manybusiness owners who devote all their energy to one huge client.What they don't seem to understand is that if that one customergoes away, so does most of their revenue. When performing your business autopsy you might identify othercontributing factors that were beyond your control, such as adown economy, the lack of qualified employees, new governmentregulations that negatively affect the way you must do business,the failure of a strategic partner, etc.. There will always be things you can't control. The key tobusiness success is to keep control of those things you can anddo everything you can to prepare for those things you can't. Next time we'll discuss a few things you should and should notdo to help ensure your business success. Here's to your success. Tim Knox About the author:Tim serves as the president and CEO of three successfultechnology companies and is the founder ofDropshipWholesale.net, an online organization dedicated to thesuccess of online and eBay entrepreneurs. http://www.prosperityandprofits.com - http://www.smallbusinessqa.com
|
