Purpose is a deliberate choice. The method of achieving the purpose is emergent. Once discovered, the method ought to become deliberate, too. At Little Engine Ventures, our guiding purpose is to help others climb. How we go about accomplishing our purpose has been evolving. Our basic principles remain in place. But, we have refined our Read more about Purpose is a Deliberate Choice[…]
Does everything in business come down to units per hour? Time is our most precious resource and therefore, productivity can be boiled down to the value-added per unit of time, right? We have been tracking our Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for each company weekly for over a year now. We recently stepped up to a Read more about Units per Hour[…]
For years I have said, “Strategy is systematically saying no.” But, while saying no is a discipline that establishes a habit of operational excellence, there is more that must be proactively pursued. You must say yes to something of greater value than your competitors. So, what is that strategy which is worthy of your focus? Read more about Strategy is Saying Yes to Lasting Margin Increases[…]
There is a debate among small business owners regarding building your own custom software to run sales or operations versus buying or subscribing to existing tools. Well respected friends of mine argue that it’s wiser to simply buy the SaaS tool that is built for your industry or problem. They’re successful and the proof is Read more about Succumbing to Customized Software in a SMB[…]
Do you set annual goals for your business? Update them quarterly? What about seizing opportunity in the moment? Most owner-operators develop a cadence for goal setting. As an entrepreneur turned investor I operated under a continuous flow approach. If they goals needed to change, they changed. Unfortunately, this approach only works in very small teams Read more about When Revenue Outpaces Talent[…]
The professional service firm is the classic engineer-to-order service business. Consultants, legal, accounting and technical consultants are people-heavy. Mikel calls these companies, “smart people who can type.” Selling these companies is often quite difficult and rarely produces a large, single payday. The reason? Lack of repeatable processes. However, rather than belabor the problems with the Read more about How to Sell Your Engineer-to-Order Service Business to an Employee[…]
If a group of people want to achieve something special they require a boss who sets the pace, enforces standards, and demands focus. Let’s break this down a bit. A company is a group of people gathered around an idea. I like this definition because it reminds me of the old saying, “We are having Read more about Management’s Critical Functions[…]
I have habit of sending long emails from my iPhone. There is a joke that goes, “I didn’t have time to write a short message.” I have started placing in BOLD, the main points. My justification for the barrage is that I want people to be able to plumb the depths of my thinking as Read more about Whitepapers at Little Engine Ventures[…]
There is tension in business. One of those subtle challenges is determining when to stay the course in the face of opposition and when to change. Also, when do you stay the course when it’s working well, and not change faster (even when it’s really tempting!) I once described myself as an “addict of change.” Read more about Consistency Versus Change[…]
Written by Daryl Starr. Inspired by @JoshSchultz All profitable businesses have a handful of Key Processes. These processes involve coordinating multiple people in various roles, each doing their own specialized procedures. Years ago –prior to Little Engine Ventures– I documented decision trees, printed and laminated them for my field technicians. This was extremely useful for Read more about What are your Key Processes?[…]