“We hate keeping track of time,” the business owner told me, shaking her head. “We really suck at it. But I want to how efficiently our employees are working. I’d also like to see how our billable hours stack up against our competitors. Isn’t there another way than tracking time and labor dollars?” What I …
Read moreWe’ve all been in situations where we thought we made a clear request. “How much did we have in sales last month?” “What did we spend in overtime on that project?” “How do our profits look so far this year compared with last year?” When the information comes back, we know it doesn’t look right—but …
Read moreThe owner of a marketing communications business—let’s call her Christine—was sitting across from me. She cradled her head in her left hand and sighed. Then she looked over at me with large, pleading eyes and said, “My people have never been busier. But in the 10 years I’ve led this company, never have I struggled …
Read moreAn accountant walks into a bar . . . No, it’s not the beginning of a corny joke. It describes a visit I once made to a client. Her books were in shambles. She was bouncing checks right and left. She never had as much money in the bank as she thought she should. And …
Read moreContinuing the saga of “time is money…” Last month I wrote about how important it is for the small business owner to know exactly how his/her time gets spent – billable or non-billable, sales development or staff development and list goes on. This month I want to dive into tracking time at the company level. …
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