"...keeping you great"
HEADLINES:
Valentine's Day Story -- see below, but first...
Teleconference with Tim Keenan, CEO of $70 million HPTi, Tuesday, Feb 17, 11:58am -- 12:30pm EST -- listen instead of having to read my stuff. Click here to register and get dial in info.
200 Interview Update -- the good news continues to pour in so starting next Tuesday, I'm going to host a weekly 30 minute teleconference featuring a CEO explaining how they are growing in this crazy economy -- 20 minute interview and 10 minutes Q&A -- fast paced, specific actionable ideas to help you grow as well -- and to "pump you up." We have to lead the world out of this mess -- no time for whining, only time for implementing! Dial in while on the run -- simple phone call -- learn from a peer.
Revenue up 23%, Profit up 22.6% in 2008 for 300 employee, Virginia-based $70 million HPTi -- Tim Keenan, CEO of HPTi, will be my first guest. I reported on his success a few weeks ago -- and he just addressed a group of 250 CEOs on how he's growing HPTi, so he's had some practice -- here's a link to my blog that featured Tim's lessons.
Cynthia Kaye Tripled Profitability in 2008 -- founder of $65 million Logical Choice Technologies, Cynthia used a gain sharing program to get her team focused on profitability. If you get Fortune Small Business magazine, check out page 51 in the February issue where she shares the details. She just paid out $2800 to each of her 170 employees across 9 states -- I'll be getting her on a teleconference call and when the article is posted on CNN, I'll send you a link. And check out her latest YouTube video -- great marketing piece for the company -- the 21st Century Classroom experts.
Thomas Friedman's Tuesday Column -- best article on what we should do to get our economy jump-started -- and wouldn't cost us a penny. My favorite factoid from the column "According to research by Vivek Wadhwa, a senior research associate at the Labor and Worklife Program at Harvard Law School, more than half of Silicon Valley start-ups were founded by immigrants over the last decade. These immigrant-founded tech companies employed 450,000 workers and had sales of $52 billion in 2005." Take 3 minutes to read this article -- I sent it to my Senators
Slept With a Dictionary -- Valentine's Success Story -- this is what it's all about -- several of our best clients just received a small box of the best chocolates on the planet courtesy of a barter with Katrina Merrem, Chocolatier and Owner of NOKA Chocolate. How could I resist when Katrina wrote me a couple weeks ago and said "I have had a thirst for knowledge since taking the dictionary to bed at a very young age (true story). This is my first entrepreneurial venture and we are the new buzz-word Co-preneurs (couples that start a business together). We are a two person executive team. I know you have a session coming up in Dallas (March 3-4). We have heard great things about your program and feel we could both greatly learn from your seminar. Have you or would you consider a trade for the training? We could send out decadent chocolate gifts to your top clients/friends/family, whomever you choose in exchange for training." Wow, how could I resist. Anyone that hungry to learn I'm happy to cut a deal with. She went on to say that their "theme" for the year is "get scrappy." She's doing just that.
Get Scrappy!