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The case against monthly board meetings
Robert C. Harris Association ManagementAssociation executives often ask, "How frequently should the board meet?" The best answer is, "When there is a reason to convene for the purpose of governance." The majority of boards meet quarterly. It is ironic that some of America’s largest associations get the job done by convening only three times a year. Inversely, smaller associations and chambers find a need to meet monthly or bimonthly. Why do organizations with small budgets, fewer members or less programs need to meet more frequently?
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7 tips to help your ministry team prevent burnout
Deborah Ike Religious CommunityAs leaders, sometimes we need to protect our team members from themselves. The individuals who regularly stay late to wrap up a few tasks, who take on the toughest assignments, and practically live at the church need your help. While their dedication and work ethic is admirable, ministry is a marathon…not a sprint. Running at a sprinter’s pace will keep team members from being able to stay healthy and strong over the long haul. Here are seven tips to help your staff avoid burnout.
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Let go, and live your best life in the new year
Simma Lieberman Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementAs the year comes to an end, many of us are thinking about what we’ve accomplished during the last 12 months and setting goals for next year. Organizations are looking at bottom- and top-line profits and measuring success and milestones. A recent conversation with the CEO of a midsized company reinforced how crucial it is for leaders to take care of themselves and encourage their employees to do the same. When Andre contacted me for my advice, he was feeling overwhelmed and anxious about the future of his organization.
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A stock market survival course: Part 5
Patrick Gleeson Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementThis is the final article of a five-part investor’s survival course designed to give you essential information you need to succeed as an investor in the stock market. None of it is mere opinion. The previous articles summarized the research indicating that while individual investors underperform the market by more than 60 percent, only about 5 percent of professional investors beat the market in a given year. In this last article I’ll summarize current research on the relationship between risk and return and, finally, will suggest a slight modification of the investment program advocated here that takes advantage of the market cycle.
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Are you a workaholic? Easier ways to get more accomplished
Lisa Mulcahy Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementIf you're a workaholic — meaning you're on the job 50 or more hours per week — your physical and emotional health can easily suffer without you even realizing it. Poor sleep, weight gain, stress at home, and multiplying mistakes as you start to burn out won't lead to a good outcome for you or your company. No worries, though: science has several easy and effective solutions to help you treat yourself better — and do your best work. Try these tips.
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How to improve Instagram Story ads in 2019
Emma Fitzpatrick MarketingAs a social media marketer, you must be adaptable. Think back to last year at about this time. No doubt, you had carefully pinpointed all the tactics that worked best for your brand on social media that year. This year, you hoped to do more of the same! But the leaders of social media platforms had a different idea. Facebook rolled out one of its most substantial algorithm updates in January, which completely derailed brands’ social media plans. With each algorithm update, we find ourselves scrambling to keep up and discover the new "secret sauce." In 2019, don’t let the hunt drive you crazy. Instead, go with the constant.
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Infographic: Why succession planning is key to the survival of your business
Zack Painter Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementIf you’re a business owner, you know how much planning goes into launching your business: You need to secure funding to cover startup costs and think about how to balance your profits and expenses so you have sufficient cash flow in the years to come. One thing you probably haven’t thought about, though, is developing a succession plan for your business. What would happen to your business if something happened to you?
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What do your written words say about your brand?
Anne Rose MarketingBusinesses frequently invest a lot of energy and many resources into ensuring that their brand identity accurately reflects what they’re about. Misspellings, bad grammar, invented words, misplaced apostrophes can all detract from that carefully crafted identity. I recently passed by a boutique chocolate shop that advertised custom, specialty chocolate desserts, handmade with attention to detail. But glaring at me from the store window was a big sign advertising that they sold chocolate carmels. You read that right: chocolate "carmels."
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A stock market survival course: Part 4
Patrick Gleeson Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementThis is the fourth of a five-article survival course designed to give you essential information you need to succeed as an investor in the stock market. The first three articles established that individual investors underperform the market by over 60 percent, and market professionals generally underperform the market as well. A better approach is to give up the attempt to beat the market. This article discusses easy ways of diversifying your investments to lower risk and improve returns.
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Report: Managers overestimate their coaching, mentoring abilities
Terri Williams Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementMost people agree that the manager-direct report relationship is vitally important to an organization’s success. And managers who can effectively coach and mentor their employees can increase performance and engagement levels. However, a new survey reveals that managers may be overestimating their coaching and mentoring abilities. According to a report by Betterworks, a continuous performance management platform, HR professionals and managers don’t agree on the coaching abilities of the latter.
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