County shocked by treasurer's arrest - Offical Contest Rules

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Five steps toward recovery for small business owners (ARA) - Small business owners have been hearing about the economic recovery for months. Yet for many entrepreneurs, the improving macro-economic data has yet to reveal itself in their daily lives and businesses - and many are wondering when they’ll see it in their corner of the economy. Nonetheless, as a small business owner you can take steps to prepare for improving conditions and ensure your business recovers quickly. “Small business owners are essential players in the economy’s overall recovery,” says Raj Seshadri, head of small business banking at Citibank. “Fortunately, there is a lot that they can do to help their own businesses recover sooner, and to be poised to take advantage of emerging opportunities as the economy improves.” Seshadri offers five tips for 6 POWELL PLUMBING INC. If water runs through it, we know how to do it PROFILE HISTORY small business owners looking to take recovery into their own hands: 1. Keep track of all funds that come into or go out of your business on a daily, weekly and monthly basis. “It’s surprising how much value business owners find when they focus on their expenditures and revenues,” Seshadri says. Tracking expenses, sales, inventory and revenue is vital to good cash flow management and helps you grow your business. Knowing how much your business spends and how much it brings in each month gives you a true picture of just how well the company is performing. 2. Make the most of marketing, from advertising and public relations to special promotions, Powell Plumbing, Inc. is a local family owned business, operating since 1986. We are a class- A business contractor with a master plumbing and gas license. Our goal is to provide customers with knowledgeable and quality service that we would expect to get from a company. discounts and social media. When the economy suffers, it’s more important than ever to continue marketing efforts, experts say. And marketing isn’t always about spending money. Consider connecting with referrals using low-cost channels and experimenting in new areas - have your tried YouTube? Have you tried Social Networking? If you cut back on marketing but your competitors do not, you leave a void they can easily step into. Continuing marketing efforts through a downturn can help ensure your business is frontof-mind when the economy improves and customers start spending more money. Address: 2895 Johnsonway Terrace Powhatan, Virginia 23139 Phone: (804) 378-8252 Fax: (804) 378-8258 Website: powellplumbinginc.com Hours: 24 hrs/7 days emergency calls | Thursday, February 10, 2011 | Business Guide: A Specialty Publication of The Goochland Gazette 3. Find a great financial advisor. Many small business owners turn to their accountants or their peers for advice. Some consult professionals, or network at their local chamber of commerce. Others rely on their small business banker. “Every community has advisors for small businesses,” says Seshadri. “It’s important to find an experienced, qualified advisor you can trust.” 4. Find a great bank that will work with you. Business banking is about building relationships. A small business owner with a longstanding relationship with a bank can take full advantage of its products and services as well as bring a proven track record to help the bank make credit decisions. 5. Stand out with customer service. It’s a complaint you hear from all quarters these days - no one seems to care about customer service anymore. Caring about customers and treat- ing them with respect can help ensure they keep coming back to your business. Teach employees how to provide excellent customer service, and make sure you lead by example. In addition to courteous, prompt service, consider showing customers your appreciation through special promotions and loyalty rewards programs. Thinkstock “Small business owners don’t have to wait for the recovery to arrive; they can create their own recovery by taking the right steps toward improving their business operations,” Seshadri says. To learn more about how banking products and services can help improve your small business, visit www.citibank. com. Management/Owners: Brian Powell Nature of the Business: Whole house plumbing & gas piping. Kitchen & bath renovations and additions from start to fi nish. Certifi ed Rinnai tankless water heater installer. Home backup gas generators. Well & sewage pumps service or replacement. Water purifi cation systems. Commercial plumbing service. Fixture repair and replacement. We provide all service and installation for your plumbing and gas. If gas fi res it, we pipe it!
Employer advice: How to work with colleges to fi nd dream employees (ARA) - Class is always in session if you’re a company looking to gain a strategic edge in hiring entry-level college graduates. The pool of work-ready college graduates is as high as ever, but current financial conditions have forced the bar even higher for companies looking to hire. One way to make sure that job candidates are ready to produce when they graduate is to bring your company to the classroom. There’s no need for CEOs to hit the white erase board, but it is a good idea for your company to reach out to various local colleges and begin to work on tailoring a curriculum that meets your business needs. “Public, private and proprietary colleges have been working with industry professionals for years,” says Robert Pope, president of Brown Mackie College - San Antonio. “But if you’re a company that has never worked with a higher education institution on programs meant to meet your organizations’ human resources needs, here are three tips to get you started.” Determine what educational need you want to address Establishing your needs beforehand will help you better understand the type of employee you need. Employers should consider the type of skill sets their employees need to have, the type of equipment or software programs they will be using on a day-to-day basis and any types of certifications they may need to prepare them for onthe-job tasks. By conducting and documenting an audit of the types of tasks you will expect your employees to complete, you will know exactly the type of experience and educational background you are seeking in potential employees. Join a program advisory committee Now that you’ve established the skill set your employees will need, seek out colleges that offer program advisory committees on their campuses. These committees invite local business owners to provide feedback about the curriculum, supplies and the key areas of focus students interested in particular industries should have before entering the workforce and potentially applying for a job with your company. Partnering with local colleges to assist in planning a curriculum creates efficiency in the education system and ensures that students are learning the exact skills they need to work in highdemand, sometimes technical industries. Start an externship program A key component of many college courses is the externship, or supervised practice performed in a real-world work setting, outside the classroom. Business owners should consider establishing an externship program that would provide students with a first-hand look at the expectations of the job they’d like to have upon graduation. You would also provide students with a network of contacts that they may not otherwise have. Externships benefit the employer through lower-than- standard labor costs. In addition, you might spot a future employee with whom you want to maintain contact and potentially hire. Think of the externship as a trial run that can help you avert a costly hiring mistake. Upon completion of a degree program, career counselors, and students can leverage the partnerships created with you and other employers to place students into a job that caters to the interests and educational background of the student. At the current crossroads in the U.S. economy, many employers, students and edu- PASS TIME IN LINE. READ THE NEWSPAPER. Get News Alerts Delivered to your Facebook account by becoming a Fan of The Goochland Gazette at www.facebook.com/goochlandgazette ARA cators are re-thinking higher education and arriving at the conclusion that now is the time for an approach that is more practical and less theoretical. Active partnerships between industry and education are an obvious way for the “customer” (the employer) to a get a “product” (the college graduate) that is better suited to the employer’s specific needs. If you are an employer who needs a pool of well-prepared graduates from which to hire, take a positive step forward by contacting a college near you and starting a dialog about your human resources needs. Business Guide: A Specialty Publication of The Goochland Gazette | Thursday, February 10, 2011 | 7
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