From Greg's Head

As you know, I make several presentations a year to many different audiences. I just read a great article on Accountingweb from Jack Downton, an entrepreneur in the U.K. about making a good presentation.

I wanted to share the article with you because no matter how many you do there’s always room to tweak your style. We all have to make presentations, whether it is to a room of 200 or 2. It’s always good to see what others are doing, to stay relevant and fresh.

Highlights take into account include:

• PowerPoint – how it dramatically reduces your impact
• What does your audience need to hear?
• It ain't what you say, it's the way that you say it

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The annual Fortune 500 list is out. Texas pulled ahead of New York this year for the state with the most corporate headquarters with 58. 

Houston’s number of companies grew from 22 to 25 (26 including the 10 county area) this year. It’s good to see that businesses recognize that Houston’s business community is worth joining. We’re second only to New York City. Dallas follows us in the #3 spot jumping up from #5 last year. 

Not surprisingly, the majority of headquarters located in Houston are related to the energy and oil and gas industries. That said Continental and Waste Management are right up there.

What did you think of this year’s list? Any surprises?

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I’d like to share with you an article our Practice Growth team wrote about our International Connections speaker series. It appeared last Thursday on Accountingweb. 

“PKF Texas’ strong relationship with the international community in Houston begins with our 150 team members. They hail from 13 countries and speak 28 different languages. We are members of two international networks providing resources in 120 countries. To enhance our international ties we partner with the Greater Houston Partnership to present the monthly International Connections series. 

Featuring a different country each month, the series provides the Houston business community the opportunity to better understand Houston’s top international trade partners and interact with key officials who can help businesses expand into those markets. Consuls general, bilateral chambers of commerce and government trade officers present business opportunities and available resources. Featured countries have included Mexico, Pakistan and the United Kingdom. With 86 consulate offices, related chambers and trade offices located in Houston, there is a wealth of countries eager to present.

Spun off from the Greater Houston Partnership’s 2006 International Distinguished Speaker Series, of which PKF Texas was one of several sponsors, International Connections continues to emphasize Houston’s relationship with the international business community. 

International Connections has proven successful as a relationship builder for all involved. The UK event, for example, continued PKF Texas’ association with the UK Trade and Investment office at the British Consulate-General. We were invited to be a part of their Next Generational Biofuels conference and have encouraged clients and friends of our firm who are looking to do business in the UK to use the office as a resource.

For more information about International Connections and to view the schedule for upcoming events, visit www.pkftexas.com/intlconnections.”

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Going green in your business is a topic of conversation everywhere I go. 

In the upcoming issue of the Leading Edge Magazine, hitting mailboxes and online in April features an article by PKF Texas Practice Growth Senior Manager, Raissa Evans, discussing ways your business can go green. We’ll also be recording one or two PKF Texas – The Entrepreneur’s Playbook tips based on Raissa’s article. 

The Houston Business Journal, as a member of American Business Journals, Inc. has recently introduced the Green bizjournal. To quote from the website:

“Greenbizjournal.com covers sustainability from a strictly-business point of view. We track the deals, people and innovations that are making the green industry the phenomenon of our age. We aim to help entrepreneurs, growth-company executives and the business community in general understand green trends, identify up-and-coming companies and, ultimately, be more successful.”

I’ll definitely be making a point to put that website on my list of regulars to read.

What green initiatives has your company put into place? Does your business have a “Going Green” champion?

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The talk of recession has a lot of entrepreneurs I know taking a hard look at their companies to make sure they can weather the storm if or when there is one. I’ve read several good articles lately that give advice to business owners about ways they can prepare.

The consensus seems to be that you need to complete a thorough analysis of all areas of your business. Look at ways to become more efficient, solicit feedback from your customers, what are you doing well? Where can you improve? Which divisions are most susceptible to a downturn in the economy? Finally, maintaining cash flow is key to survival. 

This might seem a bit like a PKF Texas – The Entrepreneur’s Playbook and in fact, this week’s topic will highlight the need to continue to invest in interactive marketing during a recession. 

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Which day of the week are you most productive? For me it’s Tuesday. 

According to a recent study, Tuesday is the day we are most productive. It had a 57% productivity rating. Monday, Wednesday and Thursday all rated 12%. Looks like I'm right in line with the rest of the country.

Not surprisingly, Friday is the least productive day of the week. How many of us dread the 3:30pm Friday afternoon meetings? Maybe it should’ve been scheduled for a Tuesday. Just think about all the things you’ll get done tomorrow.

These types of studies may seem superfluous, but they tap into the truth of our habits. It’s good to keep this in mind when you’re planning out your week. Take care of your important business on a Tuesday and you’ll have time for any action points on Wednesday and Thursday. 

Do you pay attention to these kinds of studies? Do you think they carry any real weight, or are they just fluff?

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Reed Wotiz, a reader of the blog and entrepreneur, recently asked me to take a look at his website, www.HoustonTexasRealEstate.com. It has all kinds of information about the Houston real estate market.

There is an interactive Q&A section where local professionals (agents, mortgage brokers, appraisers, etc.) answer your questions. Everything from home inspections to school districts is covered.

Another section details Houston’s neighborhoods. Each description provides general information about the area, average home price and commute time. 

They also have a blog where professionals contribute on a regular basis. Topics range from 10 things you should know when buying a home to where to find a home inspections school if you want to become a home inspector. 

All in all, if you’re looking to move to or within Houston, this site is a good resource to check out when you’re doing your research. 

Thanks for alerting me to your site Reed!

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Inc. Magazine is now accepting applications for the annual Inc. 5000 list. 

To be considered companies must have been founded and generating revenue by the first week of 2004, and be able to show four full calendar years of sales. Additionally, they must be U.S.-based, privately held, for profit, and independent—not subsidiaries or divisions of other companies—as of December 31, 2007. Revenue in 2004 must have been at least $200,000, and revenue in 2007 must be at least $2 million.

With 13 FastTech 50 and 4 Aggie 100 companies on the 2007 list, the readers of the blog have a successful track record. Last year the Houston area had 75 companies on the list. Hopefully this year the number will be higher. I would encourage any entrepreneur who meets the criteria to submit themselves for consideration.

The entrepreneurs of Houston are an innovative bunch and you deserve as much recognition as possible! Last year’s #5000 had 20% growth and the 2006 revenue was $2.4 million. It proves that you don’t have to be a mega-corporation to be a player in the global marketplace.

If you choose to enter, good luck and let us know if you are included on the 2008 list!

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Welcome back! I hope you had a safe and happy New Year! To ease you back into work and to get you thinking about where your business is headed this year, here are a few more nuggets of wisdom from the Aggie 100 class of 2007.

Organization and persistence are essential for success; be consistent and never slow down. -Kurt Lobpries

Never stop learning! -Douglas Frey

If you fail to plan you should plan to fail. -Robert J. Albers

Trust your luck and always remember "the harder you work the luckier you get." -Gene R. Birdwell

Speak the truth. Provide great service and value for your customers. Don't be afraid to try and fail because your mistakes will lead to your successes. -Scott Moscrip

Listen to your customers and your employees. Your success depends on the satisfaction of both. -Steve Berry

To read the rest of the nuggets of wisdom click here.

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New Year’s Eve offers a period of both reflection on the year behind us and a look ahead to the year to come. 

How did this last year go? What are you going to change in the new year? What do you want to accomplish? These are questions you can apply to both your personal and professional life. 

Good things are coming in 2008 for the blog. The publishing platform we use now allows us to post images, so keep an eye out for pictures from events I attend like the Aggie 100 and FastTech 50.

The guest spotlight column with become a more regular feature. There has been a positive reaction each time a guest author blogs for us. Let me know if there are topics you would like to see featured.

Thanks to everyone who read and commented on the blog this year, it’s been a great year and I’m looking forward to 2008. Happy New Year!

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Merry Christmas to all of my readers! I hope today finds you healthy, happy and with loved ones. 

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This year Inc. Magazine named Elon Musk, co-founder of PayPal, its Entrepreneur of the Year.

Musk has also founded several other companies including SpaceX, an aerospace start-up that planes to take astronauts to the International Space Station by 2010. That’s pretty cool!

To look at these two companies, they seem miles apart in purpose and function. How can the same guy be responsible for such different companies? The answer is simple. Vision.

All of the entrepreneurs I meet through the Rice Business Plan Competition, Aggie 100 and the FastTech 50 share that trait. They have a vision and work hard to see that vision become a reality. Sure there are bumps along the way, but as the article says, small ideas can grow into Google.

What small ideas do you have? How can your small idea grow into Google? What advice to you have for other entrepreneurs who are trying to make their vision a reality?

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One of my colleagues, Mark Daugherty passed along this interesting article from CIOInsight.com about how the different generations perceive technology.

The reporter, Eric Chabrow, made an interesting point that the younger generation rarely notices the technology in the devices they use and that they use technology differently than my generation of Baby Boomers.

I definitely see this everyday, both in the office working with the twentysomethings, and at home with my kids. To them technology just is. It’s always been there. They don’t remember computers that took up whole rooms and had less memory than the smallest iPod. They’ve always known a world with the internet and they are constantly connected and plugged in. From texting on their cell phone, to instant messaging and postig on facebook/myspace, they are in constant communication. 

To an extent, my generation is too. We are glued to our cell phones and Crackberries, but there isn’t necessarily the constant need to put our whole life out there all the time. The way we communicate is different. Texting still is not a primary form of communication for me and my peers. I do text people other than my children, but it’s not with any great frequency.

It makes me wonder if the next generation is losing the personal touch by using the newest technologies. They communicate more, but whereas 20 years ago parents would have been concerned with their teenagers tying up the phone line after school, they are concerned with how much time their children are spending online and how much texting they are doing. 

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In last week’s PKF Texas – The Entrepreneur’s Playbook, we ran the first of our series of New Year’s resolution for your business. They are excerpted from an article written by Maggie Fleming, CPA, a senior manager in our Entrepreneurial Advisory Services department. 

Here are a few more resolutions for you to think about for your business in 2008. 

1. Analyze your competition. Prepare a listing of competitors, the products they sell, and note their strengths and weaknesses. Compare this information with your own company’s data. This step should enable you to develop ways to maximize your competitive advantage in the marketplace.
2. Update your marketing plan. Where would any company be without customers? Success comes from being able to attract and retain satisfied customers. It’s important to evaluate products and services, and determine which are the most profitable. Is a change in your product mix warranted? Should one product be promoted more than another? Be sure to evaluate your current customers: Consider weeding out those that are unprofitable or disruptive to your business. Remember: “Profitable sales” add dollars to the bottom line.
3. Plan for capital expenditures. Consider the future capital needs of the company. Prepare a statement of capital needs, including a projected timeframe for implementation, and incorporate these costs into your budget. Schedule a meeting with your banker to discuss your business and obtain the criteria that will be used to evaluate financing needs.
4. Schedule a tax planning appointment with your accountant. Inquire about tax law changes that could affect your business, and tax strategies to minimize taxes, such as establishing a Section 125 Plan for you and your employees. Set strategies in place early in the year in order to maximize your tax savings.
5. Evaluate your employees. Consider the strengths and weaknesses of each, and use each employee’s skills to develop a strong team. Consider a New Year planning workshop for key employees: develop strategies, set goals and hold your team members accountable.
6. Read at least one management book. Check the Internet or go to your favorite bookstore to search for a topic of interest. Don’t overlook books on leadership; being a strong leader is one of the keys to building a profitable business and one of the most effective ways to influence people. Read trade magazines and industry-related data to keep abreast on trends within your industry. Attempt to identify synergies that could help you expand your business.
7. Develop an exit strategy. It’s never too early to start planning. Whether considering a liquidation, passing your business to the next generation, selling or being part of an acquisition, the better your plan, the more profitable the outcome.

What do you think about these resolutions? What are we missing? What are your resolutions for your business?

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Flipping through my latest issue of Inc. over the Labor Day holiday, an article interviewing Scott Cook, the founder of Intuit, caught my eye. He had commissioned a study on how the small business economy is evolving, from the Institute for the Future.

He provides many great insights. He mentions the entrepreneurial aspirations of the Next Generation.

The idea that stands out most to me is “You must find something you just love doing and find through that passion a way to change a customer’s life, to change the world for the better. That’s where your entrepreneurial destiny will lie.”

This is great advice to entrepreneur’s of all levels. I think most of the entrepreneurs I meet through the Aggie 100 and FastTech 50 would agree.

I also see that passion from the students who compete in the Rice Business Plan Competition. They have the drive and passion to compete at the highest level and to see their businesses succeed. It’s great to see this spirit in the Next Generation.

Let me know what you think of Cook’s article. Do you agree with his ideas?

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I hope everyone had a fun and safe Labor Day holiday!

It seems that lately everywhere I turn there is another news story about social networking. CNN.com, Business 2.0, Inc. and many others have run stories in recent weeks. 

The latest hot site for the business executive is a site called LinkedIn.

I want to pose the question to my readers, what are your thoughts on social networking? Are you members of any sites other than the big two of Facebook and Myspace, which right now are predominately dedicated to my kid’s generation?

Do you see any advantages to joining a site like LinkedIn or multiple sites for that matter?

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This year the annual Inc. 500 list has given way to the Inc. 5000. 

Congratulations to all the FastTech 50 and Aggie 100 companies who are on this year’s Inc. 500/5000 list. I’m glad to see Inc. likes our choices!

By my quick count, 13 FastTech 50 companies and 4 Aggie 100 companies are on the list this year. 

The Houston area has 7 companies in the top 500 and 75 on the overall list. Texas has a whopping 326 companies on the list! This reinforces how the entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well in Houston and Texas. 

Take the time to look at the Inc. 500 web page, as there is lot of great information, including podcasts, articles and in-depth top 100 lists.

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Yesterday evening I had the pleasure of attending my Eighth Rice Alliance Kick off Celebration over at the Jones School at Rice University. Each year Brad Burke and the staff of Rice Alliance do a wonderful job with these emerging business community collaboration events. Brad, you and your staff deserve a well round of thanks for such a fantastic evening! Over 450 people attended this event including several of my colleagues from PKF Texas.

The keynote speaker for the evening was the Honorable Michael G. Oxley (the former congressman from Ohio) who co-authored the Sarbanes-Oxley Act while he was Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee.   It’s not often we get the opportunity to meet and ask questions of such an important person that has influence on the capital markets and the confidence of public investing. When you do, you want to take advantage of them to gain their perspective on the US and World Economy.

Mr. Oxley is currently the Vice Chair of The NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. In this capacity he serves as an advisor to the Executive Management Team and Board.  Thanks to the Rice Alliance and the NASDAQ for co-hosting the event. I also want to say thanks to Locke Liddell & Sapp for being the co-event sponsor with PKF Texas.

Mr. Oxley opened his remarks with several kudos and recognition of the Rice Alliance and its impact on emerging business, start-up companies, and the Rice Business Plan Competition. A strong proponent of seeing emerging businesses grow into successful companies, Mr. Oxley gave due recognition to the Rice University and the Houston business community.

Some facts that he shared with the audience:

• Texas is the 5^th largest state of with companies on the NASDAQ. (OK that’s something we need to work on for sure! Texas should be 1, 2, or 3)
• The 161 Texas companies on the NASDAQ have a $144 billion market capitalization.
• A little over a 1/3 of the Texas companies are Houston based.

As he continued his remarks he made mention of some interesting points or his keys to success for public companies in today’s world.   Those included companies that are have attributes towards:

• Public Awareness working out in the open, and seeking public support.
• Transparency in the business, their model
• Competatitive in the nature of the business
• Global in their thinking

Some US companies today compete against foreign entities that are supported wholly or in some partial way by their own governments. Even though many global entities outside the US are attractive investment opportunities, Mr. Oxley commented that the US still has the largest pool of private equity capital in the world. Mr. Oxley presented his views on the local economy, the impact of the Sarbanes-Oxley legislation in the US capital markets, and what he sees coming in the future with more globalized business opportunities. After his prepared remarks, he took questions from the audience for about 25 minutes.    Some of the questions where pretty direct on the impact of government regulation and he did a good job of expressing his thoughts on these areas.

Thanks again to the Rice Alliance and thank you Mr. Oxley for sharing your evening with us! By the way you look great it that Cowboy Hat. I hope you wear it often and think of us here in Houston at the Rice Alliance.

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"Globalizing is risky. Entrepreneurs embrace risk. Therefore entrepreneurs embrace globalization." - Leigh Buchanan | Editor-at-large | Inc. Gone Global, April 2007

I ran across this quote the other day and thing there is a lot of truth to it. Entrepreneurs these days almost can’t even dream about their next venture with out thinking globally.

Houston, for example, is one of the most international cities in the US, with more than 80 foreign consulates and a port that ranks first in the US for foreign waterborne tonnage.

The number of resources we have here for entrepreneurs thinking globally is seemingly endless, from the Greater Houston Partnership to the District Export Council to foreign chambers of commerce. 

What advice would you give to entrepreneur’s thinking globally? If you’re an entrepreneur who does business globally what are some tricks of the trade you have learned?

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Last Monday I posted PKF Texas’ invitation to the Rice Alliance Kick-Off event featuring Michael Oxley on August 23^rd.

I’ll be attending and will post my thoughts on the 24^th. The impact of the Sarbanes-Oxley legislation has been huge in our industry and is still a hot topic, especially in light of the current December 15, 2007 deadline for non-accelerated filers (small public companies for my non-accounting readers) to start complying with Section 404 of the legislation.

This will definitely be an interesting speech and I’m curious to see what he has to say about it 4 years removed from the signing of the legislation. If you will also be attending, let me know your thoughts, so those who can’t attend will get the benefit of multiple perspectives. 

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Over the weekend I was checking out Business 2.0 online and discovered a great, relatively new feature. They now have a blog called “Ask Business 2.0.” You can ask business related questions and CEOs and other entrepreneurs and experts will answer. 

Definitely a great concept and service from the magazine. Let me know if you read any posts you think would be valuable here and I’ll link to them. 

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I ran across a recent study this weekend that said almost 90% of Smartphone users skim email on their phone, then wait to really read the full email later. 

Count me in that 90%. If there’s a non-urgent email, especially one with links, I’ll wait to get back to the office or home where I can view the information full screen. While I appreciate the ability to view an e-newsletter for example on my phone, there’s something to be said for not squinting to read the information.

That said, I do enjoy being able to read, edit and send Word and Excel documents from my phone. It’s convenient and good for getting things turned around quickly. 

How much do you use the “other” features on your phone? Do you actually spend a significant amount of time accessing the internet or is it simply too much of a hassle? What changes do you think the iPhone will have on the features for other smartphones?

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Can you explain what your company does in 30 seconds? More importantly can you explain what you do in 30 seconds? What’s your elevator pitch for your company and yourself?

The elevator pitch is an important skill in the business world that many overlook. The trick is to say enough to pique the listener’s interest without droning on about how great your company is.

As part of the Rice Business Plan Competition, teams have to give and are judged on their elevator pitch for their company and product. I’m glad to see Rice includes this in the competition as it allows the students to hone their networking skills.

You never know when you might use your pitch, everywhere from standing around at a soccer game to a formal networking event. How often has your elevator pitch resulted in business for you or your company?

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I know I question the need to be connected and plugged in, on a regular basis, but there are times when it’s great to have the internet and email a button push away.

My son recently got back from his study abroad program where he spent four weeks in Italy. We were texting back and forth the whole time. He’d let me know all the cool things he was doing and I’d fill him in on what the family was up to.

Fifteen years ago, we wouldn’t have been able to do that. It was great to be able to keep up with him without spending $100 on a ten minute phone call. It also made me accept that texting isn’t just for the next generation. 

What technologies are your kids making you learn how to use? Is your life really easier because of it?

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I was out of town last week and had some time to catch up on my reading. The current issue of Business 2.0 has published their second annual “The 50 Who Matter Now” list. 

Taking a page from Time Magazine’s Person of the Year, Business 2.0 has included “us” on the list. “We” have the capability to continue to change the media landscape. As bloggers and blog readers, we play a huge part in that change. It’s going to be interesting to see what the next big phenomena is.

Other individuals of note:

Tim O'Reilly - Founder and CEO, O'Reilly Media
“Why he matters: The man who coined the term "Web 2.0" has a talent for planting himself in the heart of the action.”

Nicholas Negroponte - Chairman, One Laptop Per Child
“Why he matters: The MIT Media Lab co-founder's nonprofit group, One Laptop Per Child, has created an inexpensive notebook computer for children in developing nations. The goal is to make a machine that sells for $100.”

Janus Friis and Niklas Zennstrom - Co-founders, Skype and Joost
“Why they matter: Call them the Disruptive Duo. First they undermined the music industry by unleashing the Kazaa file-sharing network. Then they rattled the telephone industry by creating Skype, a free Internet phone network.”

Of course there are many more, but you’ll just have to check out the list. Thoughts? Anyone missing from the list? 

Since Wednesday is the 4^th of July, the next entry will be Thursday. Have a happy and safe 4^th!

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With Terry Semel’s resignation from Yahoo! on Monday, will Yahoo! be able become more competitive with Google?

Jerry Yang, incoming CEO, has said that “motivating, developing and attracting talent” will be a priority. 

This is exactly what the accounting industry is facing right now. The need for top talent and the retention of that talent. This is a problem more industries are facing now that the Baby Boomers are retiring and the Next Gen’ers, who are looking to the Google model of effective life/work balance, are filling their shoes. 

Will Yahoo! be able to jump in and compete with Google for talent? Time will tell, but unless all of our industries, not just technology and accounting, take a step back and look at the bigger picture and address this issue, we will all be trailing the Googles of the world.

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Ran across an interesting blog by Jon Hansen the other day. http://procureinsights.wordpress.com/

It’s a new blog for procurement professionals, and has good information about supply chain management. We’ve covered supply chain management several times in PKF Texas – The Entrepreneur’s Playbook.

Let me know what you think of Jon’s blog and feel free to pass on any interesting blogs you may run across. I’m always on the look out for interesting reads.

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Continuing from my last post about entrepreneurial periods in the U.S. history has shown that our economy is stronger during periods of entrepreneurialism.

One interesting thing to look at is Taiwan’s economic rise. They were one of the poorest countries in the world following World War II and are now one of the wealthiest per capita. 

The reason for this is that the Taiwanese government nurtures the entrepreneur. They create as many opportunities for people as they can. Taiwan plays a very important role in the global marketplace and other countries can use them as a model for how to turn an economy around in two generations.

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I read a great article in The Conference Board Review Magazine by Larry Farrell, author of several books on entrepreneurialism and host of www.TheSpiritofEnterprise.com, and it got me thinking.

The gist of the article is that entrepreneurship is an integral part of our country’s history and our economy. The entrepreneurial spirit is what drove the founding of the country, and the expansion to our west coast. We really hit our entrepreneurial stride during Reconstruction after the Civil War, and again during the 1920’s following World War I and before the stock market crash in 1929.

Right now we’re in another period of increased entrepreneurialism. Like I mentioned in Monday’s post, the Next Generation is driving this wave. We can look to the late ‘90s .com boom. 

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I’m a frequent reader of David Maister’s blog, Passion, People and Principles. A couple of weeks ago he pointed readers to an interesting blog, The Brazen Careerist.

It’s a very interesting blog targeted at Generation X and the Next Generation. There are many great posts and a lot of great advice for young professionals.

One section of the blog I particularly noted and liked was dedicated to entrepreneurship. Generation X and the Next Generation are both huge entrepreneurial generations. Just look at the .com boom and the success of university sponsored business competitions. 

For example, the Rice Business Plan Competition (RBPC) is one of the largest in the world, awarding over $120K in cash and $200K total. The entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well in young people across the globe. I wish the mainstream media would publicize and feature competitions like the RBPC more often. 

The fact that the RBPC is such a large and successful competition and draws participants from all over the globe is a testament to the entrepreneurial spirit of this generation. In this vein, I read an interesting article about entrepreneurship across the generations. Look for my comments on it on Wednesday.

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Have you perfected the art of checking your email during a meeting? 

A recent survey of executives showed that 86% said that it is common for colleagues to read and respond to email during meetings. 

86%! That figure is way too high. The disturbing thing is only 31% disapprove of the practice!

Why do the other 69% find acceptable or at least tolerable to check email during a meeting? 

Presumably the meeting is important, or it would not warrant the face to face time. Why should it be acceptable to not give it the full attention it deserves?  It’s inconsiderate to the meeting organizer and other participants, not to mention critical information might be missed.

Recently I was interviewed via telephone about the blog. Though it was a phone interview and the journalist couldn’t see me, I turned off my pocket PC so my entire focus was on the interview. Had there been some kind of emergency my assistant would’ve been notified and I would have been alerted.

AccountingWeb has an article here where they offer some tips if you must check your email during a meeting. The most important of which is to excuse yourself quietly from the room and check it outside. 

Is it just me, or is this one of your pet peeves too? How many of your colleagues check email or their Crackberries during meetings?

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Last week’s Crackberry shutdown got me thinking once again about how reliant we are on mobile technology. How many important emails were lost or delayed because the system shut down?

What did everyone do for the 24 hours the network was unavailable? Compulsively keep checking to see if it was back up? Simply put it in a drawer and ignore it until the next morning?

Research In Motion’s shutdown might have been the push many Crackberry addicts needed to start their “rehab.”  So maybe it was a good thing. Maybe it made people pause and reevaluate their dependence on their Crackberry. Maybe not…

If you’re one of my many readers with a Blackberry, how did the shutdown affect you?

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The annual Fortune 500 list is out. Once again, Houston is home to 22 corporate headquarters. We’re second only to New York City. Dallas follows us in the #5 spot. Not surprisingly, the majority of headquarters located in Houston are related to the energy and oil and gas industries. 

What are your thoughts on the list? Were you surprised that Wal-Mart overtook ExxonMobil?

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Guess what? Thanks to you, my great readers, I’ve been nominated for Best Corporate Blog and Best Blog About Stuff for the Bloggers Choice Awards!

This award is voted on by the public, so you can help the blog win! Here’s what you need to do:

• Go to www.bloggerschoiceawards.com. 
• Click on ‘Best Corporate Blog’ or “Best Blog About Stuff” and look for fromgregshead.com. It will move up as more people vote. 
• Click on the ‘vote’ button – they’ll ask you to create an account for voting purposes because you can only once per blog, per category .

That’s it!  Voting at BloggersChoiceAwards.com closes on May 22 @ 11:59pm.

Thanks to everyone who has supported the blog. If we win, this award is for you!

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I ran across an interesting website last week: http://crackberry.com. It’s dedicated to all things Crackberry. The website is intended to be a humorous look at the Crackberry culture, but also has a lot of useful information as well.

There are pages for everything from a “Rehab” message forum to the features and functionality of the latest Blackberry models.

One of my favorites is the Crackberry rehab page, detailing thirteen steps to breaking the addiction. It goes along with my post about email addiction.

Take a look at the site. Do you see yourself reflected in any of the posts? I know I do, though I’ll refrain from elaborating on which ones!

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After learning about Microsoft’s “Myspace” for accountants at Convergence, and then seeing articles about it popping up in the last week all over the web, I decided to check it out for myself. 

http://community.microsoftdynamicslive.com/

While it is a “community,” it’s more of a message board type environment. The networking function is coming soon and could be like Myspace, but the rest of the site really isn’t.

Microsoft may have miss-labeled it as a “Myspace for financial professionals,” when in reality only a portion of the site could potentially resemble Myspace. By labeling it as a “Myspace” they conjure up certain expectations that the current site does not fulfill. (A quick note of full disclosure, I am not a Myspace user, but my kids and many of the young professionals at my firm do use it, so I’m aware of how it’s used and its functionality.)

This seems to be an example of corporate America trying to piggy back on a trend that grew from a cult following to mainstream in a short time. Is Microsoft trying to hard to be trendy and trying to force something that really should be an evolvement? My advice is to take the concept to the next level by improving it and then don’t label it something it’s not.

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Hello from Rice University!

The 2007 Rice Business Plan Competition is underway and the first two presentations were very good.

The weather is cooperating so all of our out of town visitors have a flavor for the weather...Sorry about the pollen guys.

Flight 5 Update 1

Cateko Diagnostics from Rice University with some technology from UTMB went first.

Heather Borden, Robert Norsworth and Mike Lowe lead off our flight with the presentation on Cateko. Cateko will offer two medical tests that diagnose a woman's risk of preterm labor.  One test prior to pregnancy and another near delivery.

I liked the presentation and I understood the concepts.  Unfortunately, the team didn't get to finish their presentation.  I am guessing that they had 2-3 minutes left to go.  Everyone can see the benefit of extend term pregnancy and the impact to the child and the insurance/hospitals, not to mention good mom and dad.

Good presentation guys and good luck.

Next up, Certo Labs from the University of Toronto.  Certo is a scientific instrumentation company aiming to commercialize a novel lab instrument known as the Automated Sample Extractor to be used by the Pharmaceutical and Food Industries. 

The two presenters were very personable young men and I really enjoyed their passion and humor.  Their product and its potential value was not as clear as I would have liked to see.  The young men have done a great job of getting larger and well established companies in their sector to back their sweat equity.   I think their plans needs a bit more work before making a run at a competition of this type.

Good presentation and good luck to you as well.

I have to break now....UCLA with EyeLight is up next.

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Where do you find your technology/web developers or designers? Do you seek out referrals or hire a recruiter?

A recent survey conducted by the American Marketing Association and Triple Dog Dare Media in Austin, found that over 52% of respondents relied on referrals or word of mouth and another 8% hire family members, friends or neighbors. 

Those responses bring to mind the old adage, “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.”

Have you found with our increasing connectivity that it’s easier to network and seek out referrals for finding both employees and clients? If not, what roadblocks have you found? 

Have you hired employees or had potential clients who found you via word of mouth?

There doesn’t seem to be one standard answer to these questions, but I’d like to hear your thoughts on what’s worked best for you and your company.

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My colleague, Jen Lemanski, in the Practice Growth department, sent me an email this morning about the Texas Public Relations Association (TPRA) awards banquet Saturday night, at which we won a Bronze Best of Texas Award.  Since I am at Convergence, I couldn't attend the banquet.  She and Raissa Evans, the Marketing Manager, attended on my behalf.  Here’s what she had to say:

Greg,
Hope you’re having a good time at Convergence.  San Diego would be great right now!  The awards ceremony went well.  In our category (website) we were up against Half Price Books, Shell Oil, The Woodlands, the City of McKinney and the Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau.  The order was as follows:

Silver – Half Price Books –  www.deletecensorship.org
Bronze – PKF Texas – www.fromgregshead.com
Bronze – The Woodlands –  www.thewoodlands.com
Merit – Greater Houston Convention & Visitors Bureau – www.visithoustontexas.com
Merit – Shell Oil Company – www.shell.com/us/energizeyourfuture/
Merit – City of McKinney – www.mckinneytexas.org

They don’t award a gold level, so we were the 2nd tier!

Jen

Once again, I would like to say thank you to everyone who reads and comments on the blog, our guest columnists, and everyone who works behind the scenes to make everything run smoothly.  The blog wouldn’t win any of these awards if it wasn’t for all of you, so congratulations! 

I am off to my next session.
 
Before that I am going to meet with Dennis Smith, one of my fellow NAV partners from Dallas.
He has a prospect that its interested in NAV and I am going to answer any questions the prospect has about the product.
 
BTW.....the weather is sunny, 75 and beautiful.  And if I didn't tell you sunny and beautiful.

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Chris Devonshire-Ellis, who wrote a guest blog for us a couple of weeks ago, has a blog of his own, www.2point6billion.com. The blog is “specifically dedicated to comment and dialogue on matters of China & India trade, development, investment opportunities, politics, and the impact these two huge emerging markets are having on the international business community.”

The link to his blog will remain in the links section so you can access it on a regular basis.

Chris has a lot of great information that many of you may be interested in. From time to time I’ll highlight entries of particular interest. If you see something you’d like me to comment on, let me know! 

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For regular readers, you know my thoughts about our increasing connectivity and our need to be constantly “plugged in.”

There is now a 12-step program developed by executive coach Marsha Egan to aid in the fight against email addiction.

Seems a little much doesn’t it? Needing a 12-step program to cure email addiction? This is definitely not a problem for our parents’ generation. The need to be constantly connected has ingrained itself in our society and I think it’s only going to get worse before it gets better.

I’m glad people who recognize they have a problem are getting help. I think it’s time we all took a step back to evaluate our own technology dependence. Does John really need an answer via email in the next two minutes? Probably not, and if he does he should make a phone call or if you’re in the same office, walk down the hall. 

Person to person contact, remember that? Email is convenient and has its place in business, but our reliance on it as the main form of communication is getting to be too much if it requires a 12-step program to “get back on the wagon.”

For the curious, here’s the link to the 12-steps.

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Who knew that August 8, 2005 would cause another mini-Y2K in 2007? The US government decided in 2005 to extend Daylight Saving Time. We will now “Spring Forward” the 2^nd Sunday in March (March 11^th this year) and “Fall Back” the first Sunday in November (November 4^th this year).

Anyone running a Windows Operating System other than Vista, will need to make sure their computers at home and work are prepared. Microsoft has created a patch for the issue. Click here for the Microsoft Daylight Saving Time Help and Support Center. Also, they have provided a list of products that will be affected. Click here to see the list.

How, if at all, will the extra month of Daylight Saving Time affect your business? Have you already applied the necessary patches to any software you use?

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I received some great news last week. The blog has won another award!

The Texas Public Relations Association has honored us the Bronze Best of Texas award in the Website category. I say “us” because without all the great people who read and comment on the blog it wouldn’t work.

The Best of Texas award recognizes outstanding achievement using communications tools. I’ll let you know who else won after the awards ceremony on March 10^th. 

So once again, thanks to all of you who jump in inside my head and take the time to comment!

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I want to take this opportunity to recognize my friend, Paul Frison. He recently stepped down as CEO and President of the Houston Technology Center to spend more time with his family. 

Paul has been with the HTC since its inception in 1999 and has been instrumental in the evolvement of the HTC. The creation of the FastTech 50, the move to the new space in Midtown, and guiding us through the beginning years of the HTC have all come under Paul’s watch. 

Though spending more time with his family tops his list of post-HTC CEO to-dos, he’s not leaving the HTC entirely. He’ll continue as the Executive Vice Chairman, which includes attracting tech companies to become tenants in the new facility as well as directing and promoting major HTC events.

Congratulations Paul for all you have achieved with the HTC. There is only going to be one start up time for the HTC and the leadership you have shown during this fun and challenging period has assured the everlasting success of the community's investment in the HTC! It could not have been done without you! 

Congratulations Walter Ulrich for your election to CEO and President. I believe the HTC will continue to flourish under your leadership and I’m looking forward to seeing what’s next.

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It’s been roughly a year since I first entered the blogosphere. I want thank all of my readers and everyone who has commented on the blog. It wouldn’t work without you!

Some of the things to come out of the blog, have taken on a life of their own, namely the PKF Texas Entrepreneur’s Playbook. Our stats show that more of you log on to read the blog Fridays when we post the PKF Texas Entrepreneur’s Playbook than any other day of the week. Hopefully you are finding these tips useful in your business. If there are specific topics you would like me to address, just let me know. I’ll work them in. 

Like I said in Monday’s post, Houston is a great place to live and work. The Houston business community is important both to Texas and nationwide. I am proud to be a member of such a dynamic community. With events like the FastTech 50 and the Aggie 100, we are showing that we are unique and have positioned ourselves as a force in the marketplace.

We’ve got some interesting things planned for the blog this year that I’m really looking forward to. Keep those thoughts and comments coming and thanks for jumping inside my head every week!

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Yesterday at the annual Macworld expo Steve Jobs unveiled the iPhone, a slick looking phone that incorporates an iPod and web capabilities. 

I’ll be curious to see how the iPhone stacks up against my Cingular 8525. Coincidentally, Apple has reached a deal with Cingular to be the exclusive provider of the phones through 2009.

In the coming weeks it will be interesting to read the reviews and see if it lives up to the hype. 

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Happy New Year to all my readers! I hope everyone had a safe and happy holiday season.

While catching up on some reading over the holidays, Business 2.0’s “15 Surprises Ahead in 2007” piqued my interest. Chris Taylor’s list includes such innovations as India and China’s race to the moon, Big City WiFi (something I’ve discussed in previous posts) and wireless USB “cables”.

The concept of wireless USB is particularly appealing on a practical level. Can you imagine your computer and desk free of cords?

No longer will you have to deal with the rat’s nest of cords connecting your computer to your printer, mouse, keyboard, monitor, etc. The mind reels just thinking about all the extra desk space. And think of all the time saved not having to think about which cord connects where. 

This is definitely something I’m looking forward to this year.

As business people and entrepreneurs, we celebrate and encourage innovation. What have you heard or read about that you’re looking forward to this year? If you could develop something to make your life easier and less cluttered what would it be?

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Looks like I’m ahead of the curve again. The December 11, 2006 issue of Information Week  has an article  on “intelligent phones” capable of allowing the user to read and edit Excel, Word and PowerPoint files. The scheduled roll out for this business intelligence software from Cognos, designed for Blackberries is “early next year.”

Sound familiar?

If the author of the article had read my December 4^th blog, she would know that Cingular already offers a phone that does pretty much everything she listed.

We already have cameras, internet, and email built into our phones. So, what’s in your phone? 

With Christmas rapidly approaching, did you ask “Santa” for the latest and greatest phone or pocket pc? Is that even something you would want for Christmas?

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I’m proud to let everyone know that PKF Texas has been recognized as one of the fastest growing accounting firms by CPA Practice Management Forum. 

Ranked 19 out of 100 companies, PKF Texas reported a 29.1 percent growth in net fees for the 2005 calendar year. 

The list is compiled by Public Accounting Report, and published in CPA Practice Management Forum. It includes a variety of distinguished firms from across the U.S. with growth in net fees ranging from 11.7 percent to 131 percent.

Our inclusion on the list is the result of the hard work and dedication by our great team and the great clients we serve.

Congratulations to everyone!

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Every year Inc. Magazine names the entrepreneur of the year. This year it is Ken Hendricks of ABC Supply, the nation’s larges wholesale distributor of roofing, siding and gutters. Click here to read the whole article. 

In the article he offers some great advice. The point that resonated with me is, “Whatever you do, do the best you can and never set a limit on how far you can go.”

This advice can be applied to both your professional and personal lives. The entrepreneurs I meet through the Aggie 100, FastTech 50 and various other events, all have followed similar advice. 

If you don’t take pride in your business and believe you can succeed no matter the obstacles in your way, you aren’t setting yourself up for success. 

Ken Hendricks is like many “serial entrepreneurs” I’ve met, taking the lessons learned and the successes from one business and using that knowledge in another business venture.

How have you overcome obstacles to run a successful business? Were obstacles easier to overcome when you were 100% dedicated to the venture? What advice can you give to other entrepreneurs?

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I think I may have found and answer to the Crackberry, at least capability wise. The Cingular 8525 pocket PC. It does pretty much everything but wash my car. Click here to read about the full capabilities of the phone.  

One of the best features is the ability to access and edit Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents. You can’t do that on the Crackberry! 

When you access the internet, the quality is great and you can actually read the information you need to read.

The phone itself is fairly streamlined. It’s not as clunky as the Crackberry and similar devices.

Now that I have one, I can just hear my sons now when they come home from school for Christmas break, “Dad, that’s really cool. When are you getting me one?!”

It still doesn’t solve the connectivity problem that comes with being a Crackberry owner, but it definitely makes things more fun.

Have you found a viable alternative for your Crackberry? If you don’t have Cingular, does your phone company offer something similar?

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Your life flashes before your eyes the instant you realize your “Crackberry” is missing. Trying to recall all of the information you have stored for convenience. Account numbers, passwords, birthdays… The list goes on.

My friend Richard Scruggs at the CNVE recently left his Crackberry on the roof of his car and drove through a stop light and three turns before it fell off in a CVS parking lot. 

He details his saga in the latest CNVE newsletter. Click here to read the whole article. In the article he brings up some valid points. 

It’s difficult to not keep our most sensitive information on our PDA’s, but many of us hesitate in keeping “minor” account information like our Amazon.com account number and password easily accessible. If someone accessed your account and decided they needed to purchase a rare first edition of Crime and Punishment, with one-click purchasing, your wallet would be significantly lighter.

In this era of convenience and the need to have everything at our fingertips right now, how do we solve our dependence on the Crackberry? Where should we keep our sensitive and not so sensitive information? At home buried in a box in the backyard? Is it even safer at home? Maybe we should just play Russian Roulette and hope we don’t lose.

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I’ve detailed several human capital best practice tips for the Entrepreneur’s Playbook here in my blog. The topic of the shortage of talent in the marketplace is being discussed in boardrooms across the country. 

I received an e-newsletter the other day detailing some interesting human capital software.

The ProfileXT software, from The Leadership Edge, Inc., is an assessment tool developed to “put the right person in the right job, reducing employee turn over.”

How does this software play into the human capital discussion? If the software can place the right employees with the right job the employees will be more productive and less likely to leave. This is all well and good, but what about the person-to-person aspect? 

Are computers better at determining whether a potential employee is a good fit for a company or not? Shouldn’t we trust the interview process? 

One interesting thing to note, the newsletter called the loss of a talented employee “brain drain.” They define it as:

“…each time one of your key employees resigns, you risk the loss of customers or even the loss of proprietary information to your competition…”

Does your company have policies and procedures in place to help reduce the “brain drain”? Do you think utilizing this type of software would help retain talent? If you did use this type of software, how much weight would you give to the software report vs. the interview with the candidate?

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A few weeks ago I wrote about Katy Tanner in London and how she was dismissed from her job via text message. It seems like bad taste has hopped the pond and is in our own backyard. 

RadioShack, based in Fort Worth, recently decided to let almost 400 employees know they were dismissed, as part of planned job cuts, by e-mail.

Where is the personal touch? What has happened to the proverbial pink slip on your desk?

The spokeswoman for RadioShack, Kay Johnson, said the employees were told prior to the dismissals that they would be carried out electronically. She went on to say, “It was important to notify people as quickly as possible.”

Click here to see the original story from abc13.com.

Are we so concerned with speed and efficiency that we lose sight of how important it is to communicate on a personal level? 

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I’m not going to rehash the hundreds of stories in the media this week about the first anniversary of Katrina. The Houston Chronicle is full of survival stories, articles about what happened and many other related stories.

What I’d like to concentrate on is disaster preparedness – are we really ready if another disaster like Hurricane Katrina – or even Rita – occurs? Think about it. If a hurricane or other natural/man-made disaster were to happen right now, is your business prepared for a loss in productivity, revenues and personnel? Do you have adequate software and hardware backups or even a hard listing with a phone tree that all employees have on their PDAs and at home?

An interesting phenomenon that is springing up in Houston, and most likely around the country, are businesses that focus on helping companies survive disasters, but more than that, give them the tools to put themselves in a disaster-ready position.

For example, Employee OUTPOST is a Houston-based company specializing in building Web-based communication “outposts” for businesses that are in trouble through a natural of man-made disaster. This site comes from Easterly & Company, the same people who brought us KatrinaPeopleSearch.com (and incidentally, Easterly offers communications and marketing services).

A press release in PDF describes what Employee OUTPOST offers. Especially interesting to me are two of their services: “Employers have the ability to contact employees using blast e-mail by text messaging (SMS)” and Graphical Mapping of employee contacts using Google maps.”

Hmm. Proactive rather than Reactive. Who would have thought this possible? 

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You would have to be living under a rock not to have heard about Dell’s recall of its laptop batteries. I did a quick Google News search and hundreds of stories popped up – literally extolling and scolding Dell for this problem that, in actuality, is a Sony problem – not Dell.

The pundits are already out. ABC news recently ran a story, “Has Dell Lost its Way?” in which the writer says:

‘Dell as poster child did a remarkably good job of getting in front of the problem, with open talk about where and how they think the Lithium Ion batteries failed and a Web site that made it dead simple to figure out if you had a conflagration-prone battery.”

“Yet questions persist. Why did Dell tell the media last month that the Japanese businessman's exploding Dell laptop was an isolated incident? Why did it take two solid years of laptop sales for Dell to identify the problem and do something about it?”

Regardless who takes the blame, I think Dell has a unique opportunity to improve its reputation. The ABC news story begins to talk about how Dell did a good job of facing the problem head-on, but what Dell can do with the immense task of receiving the goods, replacing batteries and shipping them back out, a timely basis, can be a huge PR fete for them.

I think this speaks to customer service in a different way than we usually see it – in that Dell can atone for its mistakes, but also can seize the opportunity to come out shining. I know Dell’s dollar per share price dropped dramatically at the end of last week, but we know these things are cyclical.

Dell can improve its image, don’t you think?

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The July issue of Business 2.0 had a really good article, “The 50 People Who Matter Now” that I think everyone should read.

Interesting mix of personalities – from politicians to business “name” to entertainers. Here are a few of my favorites:

·         Ben Bernanke – chairman, Federal Reserve Board. Stepping into Alan Greenspan’s shoes can’t be an easy task.

·         Bill Gates – what’s most interesting about his entry in the aricle is that it lists him (accurately) as “Benefactor of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.” He’s already started the transition process … let’s see how high profile he continues to be this time next year.

·         Steve Jobs of Apple – I guess any list with Bill Gates wouldn’t be complete without a mention of Steve Jobs. Business 2.0 calls him, “Easily the greatest marketer since P.T. Barnum.”

·         Janus Friis and Niklas Zennström – co-founders of Skype. With the recent news about security issues surrounding VoIP, the future of this still-new technology to most of us should be even more in the news this coming year.

Who are your favorites? Business 2.0 already received some reader feedback. One person, for example, indicated the absence of Thomas Friedman on the list, while another thought Comcast CEO Brian Roberts should h