Friday, December 26, 2014

Merry Xmas and a Happy New Year

Wishing You Continued Success in 2015




The 10 talents of successful entrepreneurs are:
  • Business Focus: You make decisions based on observed or anticipated effect on profit.
  • Confidence: You accurately know yourself and understand others.
  • Creative Thinker: You exhibit creativity in taking an existing idea or product and turning it into something better.
  • Delegator: You recognize that you cannot do everything and are willing to contemplate a shift in style and control.
  • Determination: You persevere through difficult, even seemingly insurmountable, obstacles.
  • Independent: You are prepared to do whatever needs to be done to build a successful venture.
  • Knowledge-Seeker: You constantly search for information that is relevant to growing your business.
  • Promoter: You are the best spokesperson for the business.
  • Relationship-Builder: You have high social awareness and an ability to build relationships that are beneficial for the firm's survival and growth.
  • Risk-Taker: You instinctively know how to manage high-risk situations
See You at the Top

Friday, November 28, 2014

Impotence from Knowledge

"I never learned anything while I was talking." --Larry King


Practically every retail Big Data and analytics case study over the past decade explicitly referenced Tesco as "best practice." With the notable exception of Amazon, no global chain was thought to have demonstrably keener data-driven insight into customer loyalty and behavior.

Tesco was transformed into the market leader in the UK—with more than 30pc market share—by being able to respond to the demands of its customers

Tesco’s decline present a clear and unambiguous warning that analytics capabilities can not ward off the competitive advantage of lower prices and a simpler shopping experience.

There’s nothing new or unusual in a one-time business strength turning into an organizational weakness or an industrial irrelevance. But Big Data, predictive analytics, and customer insight aren’t a substitute for business competitiveness.

Sometimes we all have to go back to the fundamentals...........

See You at the Top

Monday, October 27, 2014

Sales Beyond Meetings



Business is a performance art and not just about good ideas, the biggest impact is aligning actual selling behaviors with the required sales tasks. Value is created or destroyed in the marketplace with customers and not in meetings.

Many companies do not have a sales strategy. They confuse their vision or mission statement with a strategy. Strategy involves explicit choices about where, who and how to play in a market, And this must be explicit because it is difficult for your team to execute a strategy that they do not understand.

Here is a sales strategy

To sell high-quality cell phones at low price, Xiaomi keeps each model on the market far longer than other phone companies. On average, a new version of a phone is launched every 265 days in the industry. But Xiaomi does not renew its product for 830days. Then, rather than charge high prices to cover the high cost of components, Xiaomi prices the phone just a little higher than the total cost of all its components.

As component costs drop over the two-year period by more than 90%, Xiaomi maintains its original price, and pockets the difference.

Essentially its profit formula is opposite to most companies, who collects their highest profits with the introduction of each model and needs to come up with new model every few months to keep those margins up.

With a healthy profit and market share, Xiaomi is a success story.

See You at the Top

Monday, September 29, 2014

Espoinage on Business Trips

He who has never learned to obey cannot be a good commander. —Aristotle

While traveling for business, a professional carries a set of goals to expand to new markets, close out promising sales, or open up new opportunity with foreign partners. To obtain the data needed to support such efforts, a business professional typically travels with a device that includes contacts, presentations, and data sheets. While such information is valuable to the business professional and his or her organization, it is much more valuable to a competing organization, or authoritarian government, that would like to close the gap on research and development.
Case Studies

  • Consider the customer of a security products company on a trip Abroad. The traveler brought with him his Android smartphone and, as a precaution, noted the version of the operating system that the device was running before leaving. When he woke up in his accommodations on site, he noticed that the version of the operating system had been changed due to an unauthorized update that had been pushed over the air. Such an unauthorized update could allow the device to be used as a microphone, listening in on conversations in any room the device was located. Such a compromised device could also siphon off data including emails, texts, and stored files.

  • An executive at a security technology company cleared the data on his phone before heading overseas, and used the clean phone for voice calls only. Upon returning home, the device would not boot properly and needed the firmware loaded from scratch. Forensics were performed on the device to determine the root cause- which could only come from an unlikely, invisible update from the device manufacturer- or an attack against the device aimed at compromising it.

Many different types of devices can be the target of such attacks. Think of all the different devices you might take with you when you travel, whether for business or vacation:

·         Laptop
·         Smartphone
·         Tablet
·         Digital camera
·         Camcorder
·         Audio player
·         Flash drives
·         Memory cards

Each of the above devices contains some form of data or code that runs on the device. If the device has WiFi, mobile access, or active Bluetooth, there is a possibility of it being compromised through one of those wireless interfaces. If a device is left behind in a hotel room or other unsecured location, it could be tampered with, duplicated, or stolen.


There are several methods to secure, minimize, or even hide data. These methods include using encryption, making backups, traveling with reduced information- or “clean device” that has no data.
Other solutions include data that is only sent or made available remotely once the traveler has arrived and then revoked when returning. While these methods are geared toward border crossings that may subject the travel to additional scrutiny, they work equally well against espionage performed by competitors or authoritarian governments.
See You at the Top

Monday, August 25, 2014

Habits of Business Tycoons

Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly. –-Robert F. Kennedy




Any idea what they ALL have in common?

Barry Diller - owner of Ask.com

David Geffen - co-founder of DreamWorks

Henry Ford - founder of Ford Motor Company

John D. Rockefeller Sr., - founder of Standard Oil

Kirk Kerkorian - owner of MGM movie studio

Larry Ellison - co-founder of Oracle software company.

Richard Branson, founder of Virgin

Steve Wozniak - co-founder of Apple


Successful tycoons, or business magnates, often share certain habits and traits 
that have contributed to their achievements. While individual approaches may vary, 
here are some common habits of tycoons:

Visionary Thinking: Tycoons tend to have a clear vision of what they want to achieve 
and where they want their businesses to go. They set ambitious long-term goals and 
work consistently toward them.

Resilience: They are resilient in the face of challenges and setbacks. Tycoons 
understand that failures are part of the entrepreneurial journey and use them as 
learning opportunities.

Continuous Learning: Successful tycoons are avid learners. They stay informed about 
industry trends, emerging technologies, and market dynamics. They read extensively 
and often seek out mentors and advisors.


Answer the following questions, use the knowledge and you will be the next Business Tycoon


It's important to note that not all tycoons exhibit these habits in the same way, and there 
are exceptions. Success is influenced by a combination of factors, including individual 
personality, circumstances, and opportunities. However, adopting some of these habits and 
principles can be valuable for anyone looking to achieve success in business and beyond.

See You at the Top

Wednesday, July 23, 2014

The Intel Trinity

The Intel Trinity must be considered one of the most successful teams in business history, yet it seems to violate all the laws of successful teams.


The founders of Intel were just such a diverse, volatile team, composed of three of the greatest business and scientific talents of the century.

It was a machine that just moved forward, slowly grinding away to gain market share and ever-greater dominance over the semiconductor industry, the electronics industry, the U.S. economy, and eventually the global economy. Intel microprocessor business, enjoyed the highest market value of any manufacturing company in the world, and Andy Grove was declared Time’s "Man of the Year".

In the late 1970s, Intel Corp along with a very young Apple Computer were one of the hottest companies on the planet. Not very liked, Intel then: too arrogant, too confidant of its engineering prowess and both humorless and relentless. The place was a pressure cooker, accompanied with stress and occasional heart attacks at the required Sunday morning meetings.

The three founders:

Gordon Moore, soft-spoken, affable but distant, the most empirical human being imaginable — and, thanks to his " Moore’s Law ", a man who likely would be remembered for centuries after Silicon Valley is gone.

Robert Noyce, warm and engaging, the most charismatic figure in Valley history (including Steve Jobs) — a man with one of history’s greatest inventions (the integrated circuit) on his resume and one of the greatest entrepreneurs of his time.

Andy Grove, fiery and relentless, a small man with a gigantic personality, who could never endure losing, and who may have been the greatest CEO of the second half of the twentieth century.

They filled in each other’s blanks. Noyce, for example, wanted to be loved and couldn’t bear to fire even the worst employee. Grove by comparison did it with relish. Grove the made sure Intel operated at peak performance, but it was Noyce the risk-taker who propelled it forward. Moore kept the company grounded to the harsh reality of the numbers.

Intel, probably made more mistakes than any company in tech history and that is because it took more risks than any other company. It’s also because – the source of its success – Intel is better than any company in high-tech history at learning from its mistakes; at picking itself up, dusting itself off, and diving back into the fight.

Excerpt from Michael S. Malone

See You at the Top

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

The Lottery of Greed

Face famous, money rich, inspiring powerful entrepreneur is a selfish flatter coated in greed......Emmanuel Sodipo




The grandest goal seems to acquire and to own as much as you can and sit on it;


  • To own Patents that turn ideas into property, Even though the idea has been around for a long time in a different form.
  • To own Real estate location that converts fresh air into property
  • To own copyright to many books, when the books are really store houses of borrowed ideas
These Properties are, acquired, hoarded and seldom shared but often displayed in a museum for the greedy to attest to their power of purchase.

If you play the lottery then you must win .........but the odds are against you, only 2% chance of winning.

What is new?

Partnerships by large and successful companies/enterprenuer with start-ups for joint incubation of innovative business ideas.

Despite all their resources in patents and real estate, large companies realize they can not tackle the challenges of the eco system alone.

They need to tap into young, entrepreneurial companies filled with restless minds, and passionate innovators.

These start-ups in return benefit from their resources, customer relationships, expertise, and scale of the established companies.
GE has created GE Ventures, a group in Silicon Valley that spends their time not just investing ($150 million annually), but also forming technical and commercial collaborations with startups in energy, health, software, and advanced manufacturing


Win/Win............No losers

Tuesday, May 27, 2014

We Love to Hate Big Business

Love or Hate Big; we are desperate for Entrepreneur's



"It is possible to start a business in almost any industry without capital. It would be really useful to have £500, but not essential. A phone and a brain are pretty much the only pre-requisites."– Jeremy Harbour

The customer comes first. Having a pile of orders to fulfill is a lovely problem to have. 61 percent of small business owners surveyed reported that more than half of their annual revenue came from repeat customers rather than new customers, and that a repeat customer spends 67 percent more than a new customer

Go get some clients first, then start your business

Whatever the reason, older and larger businesses are doing better relative to younger and smaller ones and for most venture-backed companies, the ultimate exit plan is for sale of the firm to an existing behemoth, not continued independent operations.

In pharmaceuticals, the largest company, Pfizer, is the result of decades of mergers. The current corporate entity is comprised of firms that used to be called: King Pharmaceuticals, Wyeth, American Cyanamid, Lederle, Pharmacia, Upjohn, Searle, SUGEN, Warner-Lambert, Parke-Davis and others

More than half of Britain’s online retail spend goes to Amazon, working out at £70 for every man, woman, and child in the country

It really does not matter anymore if you are a large or small business, as long as you can develop an eco system of competitive pricing and happy customers you are game for massive success.

Monday, April 28, 2014

Be the CEO

As sure as taxes, the CEO pays less.........

"Just taught my kids about taxes by eating 38% of their ice cream." - Conan O'Brien


If the Top Players pay less, the question is how do we get to the top and fast?

 "FastWorks."

  • It’s a framework for entrepreneurs, building on "The Lean Startup" by Eric Ries. The Lean Startup is an approach to developing new products that came out of "Agile" software development, with "sprints" (quick deliverables) and fast learning.

By aligning more with customers you will reduce the risk of building something you can’t sell.

Here is a good Tip; Apply "fastworks" to the following scenario:

Graphene: The strongest material on earth
  • A Korean research lab have made the leap from theoretical to practical with the development of a new way to synthesize graphene on a commercial scale.
  • The perfect atomic lattice with attractive properties, meaning it has the potential to be used in several industries for a huge range of purposes.
  • Super-strong, 20 times stronger than diamond, 200 stronger than steel and six times lighter

  • Remarkably conductive, both electrically and thermally, perfectly transparent and impermeable to gas with alterable properties
See You at the Top.......

Tuesday, March 25, 2014

The Winning Spirit

"Look up, laugh loud, talk big, keep the color in your cheek and the fire in your eye, adorn your person, maintain your health, your beauty and your animal spirits."
— William Hazlitt





Winners keep winning for several reasons the "Matthew effect" as described by the sociologist Robert K. Merton;

They may just be better on quality
Those with a reputation for past success tend to get disproportionate credit for future wins
Winners from the past tend to be in the right place to make things happen in the future
They have the connections and resources to make good on those opportunities.

Some people tend to be unrealistically optimistic, a view that sometimes makes itself come true in business leadership:

1. The economy is recovering and the future looks brighter for start-ups than the past

2. If price, quality & service are similar, social impact will decide customer loyalty

3. Collaboration, not competition is the key to lasting success

You may also appreciate Free Entrepreneurial Training from MIT   EdX


See You at the Top

Thursday, February 27, 2014

The Era of Start-Ups

A billion dollars in revenue for 30 startups around USA, China and UK is not shabby by any standard while a 19 billion dollar acquisition of whatsapp by facebook signifies a commanding era for startups.


Apple took five years to become largest music retailer, Google in 18months became the dominant search engine while Alibaba in 7 months became the largest in money market lending out 16billion dollars.

Alliances, joint ventures and acquisitions are effective strategies across all industries, but the secret is to develope solutions that enhances the social and commercial lives of customers.

For instance; a quarter of traditional banking revenue comes from payment transactions and has been highly contested by non banking sectors, paypal is domininant with online payment, it is no suprise that Tmobile, Google and Walmart are encroaching into that space by introducing plastice debit card to their customers.

The banking sector much like other industries needs disruptive technology around the social and commercial lives of their customer base.

See You at the Top
 

Thursday, February 20, 2014

Conception of the Mind


Thoughts are nothing more than signals of energy.

Your thoughts extend beyond your physical body, they affect everything you do and the results you get.



Warren Buffett was for a time the richest man in America, not by working hard, but by investing smart. Starting with very little capital, he compounded his investment over many years at yearly rates far above stock market averages. He achieved this with a limited degree of analysis but consistently applying a few insightful thoughts.


William Levitt, was the master builder of Levittown, In the 1950s, he was the king. No detail was too small for his attention. He would personally pick stray nails and extra chips of wood from construction sites to make sure his construction team maximised all available resources. He sold his company in 1956 to ITT for $100 million, which is equivalent to a few billions today.

Then he was distracted.
He retired.
He married the wrong woman.
He moved to the south of France and lived on his new boat with his new wife.


William Levitt, went back into business. And he proceeded to go bankrupt. He was out of the business for twenty years, he came back, and he was not the same.

No matter how accomplished you are as a leader,
No matter how successful you are in business,


You have to remain vigilant about the details of your industry. You can not be competent based on experience alone. To stay ahead of the game you need to be retrained regularly, to apply the current technology and the latest research procedures.

Your Thoughts is something you have to work at to maintain your lead.

 
The Excerpt is from the book "Believe the Dream" by Emmanuel Sodipo:

"The only thing that separates any one of us from excellence is fear, and the opposite of fear is faith.  I am careful not to confuse excellence with perfection. Excellence I can reach for, perfection is God´s business." -- Michael J. Fox

See You at the Top
 

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

2014 Business Opportunities


Learn Investment and Business Skills, within the next decade 50% of all current jobs will be lost to the Cloud and Automation.



Here are the Top Opportunities for 2014:
  • 3D Printing
  • 3D Virtual Reality
  • Croud Funding
  • Digital Currencies
  • Tech Companies with Real Solutions
  • Software as a Service
  • Gold
Ways to Optimize these Opportunities.

Mindfulness and Meditation:
Practice mindfulness and meditation to calm the mind, reduce distractions, 
and allow creative ideas to emerge naturally.

Collaborate and Brainstorm:
Engage in brainstorming sessions with others. Collaboration can lead to a synergy 
of ideas and fresh perspectives.

Take Breaks:
Give your mind periodic breaks to rest and recharge. Sometimes, stepping away 
from a problem or project can lead to breakthrough insights when you return.

Explore Different Perspectives:
Try to see problems or situations from multiple angles and viewpoints. This can 
help you come up with creative solutions that consider various factors.

See You at The Top

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

Free Online Training -MIT

Online courses, also known as e-learning or distance learning, have become 
increasingly popular for acquiring new knowledge and skills. They offer flexibility,
accessibility, and a wide range of topics to choose from. 

All MIT Courses for Free;




Here's a guide to help you make the most of online courses:

1. Identify Your Goals:
Determine why you want to take an online course. Are you looking to acquire a new skill, 
earn a certification, advance in your career, or simply pursue a personal interest? 
Having clear goals will help you choose the right courses.

2. Choose a Reputable Platform:
There are numerous online course platforms available, each offering a variety of courses. 
Some well-known platforms include Coursera, edX, Udemy, LinkedIn Learning, Khan Academy, 
and many universities and colleges also offer online courses. Research and choose a 
platform that aligns with your goals and offers high-quality content.

3. Select the Right Course:
Browse the course catalog and select courses that match your interests and goals. Pay 
attention to course descriptions, prerequisites, and reviews from other learners.

4. Consider Course Format:
Online courses come in various formats, including video lectures, text-based modules, quizzes,
 assignments, and discussion forums. Choose a format that suits your learning style and preferences.

Online courses can be a valuable resource for personal and professional development. By 
approaching them with dedication, organization, and an active learning mindset, you can make 
the most of your online learning journey and achieve your goals.
http://ocw.mit.edu/index.htm

The list of courses is here
http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/index.htm

 Something every one should know and use.

See You at the Top


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Monday, January 13, 2014

The Creative Obtacle

Creativity is the ability to generate novel and valuable ideas, solutions, or 
expressions. It's a fundamental human trait that can be cultivated and harnessed 
in various aspects of life, from artistic endeavors to problem-solving in 
business and everyday situations. 




Here are some tips for enhancing and nurturing creativity:

1. Embrace Curiosity:
Cultivate a curious mindset. Ask questions, seek new information, and explore 
unfamiliar topics or experiences. Curiosity is the foundation of creativity.

2. Divergent Thinking:
Practice divergent thinking, which involves generating multiple ideas or solutions, 
even if they initially seem unrelated or unconventional.

3. Create a Creative Environment:
Surround yourself with inspiration. Arrange your workspace or living area in a way 
that encourages creativity, whether it's through colors, artwork, or natural elements.

4 Keep a Journal:
Maintain a journal or notebook to jot down ideas, thoughts, sketches, or observations.
Reviewing past entries can spark new creative insights.

Remember that creativity is a skill that can be developed and refined over time. 
It's not limited to artists or innovators but can be harnessed by anyone willing 
to explore and nurture their creative potential. Stay patient and persistent in your 
creative pursuits, and you'll continue to grow as a creative thinker.
  • Accept the things you can't and change the things you can
  • Surround yourself with creative minds
  • Always move forward strategically
  • Never miss anything
See You at the Top