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Michael Feuer, Founder of OfficeMax and newest venture Max-Wellness to provide Keynote Address to attendees of BizCamp at The Taylor Institute

By Kelly Brown | Filed in Blog
OfficeMax Founder Michael Feuer Keynote Speaker BizCamp

OfficeMax Founder Michael Feuer Keynote Speaker BizCamp

BizCamp at the Taylor Institute is proud to welcome Founder of OfficeMax and Max-Wellness, Michael Feuer as our Keynote speaker August 19-20 at the Taylor Institute for Direct Marketing in Akron, Ohio.

Michael Feuer is a highly sought after speaker, national monthly business columnist and soon to be published author of his upcoming book The Benevolent Dictator’s Play Book. Mr. Feuer has inspired thousands of entrepreneurs over the years with his story, practical advice and inventive approach to business success.

Mr. Feuer is co-founder of OfficeMax, which he started in 1988 with one store and $20,000 of his own money. During 16 years as CEO, he grew the company to almost 1,000 stores with sales approximating $5 billion before selling it for almost $1.5 billion in 2003 to Boise Cascade Corp.  In 2004, Mr. Feuer launched another start-up, Max-Ventures, a venture capital operating firm that focuses on buying control and /or making substantial investments in retail oriented business and business that serve retail.

Mr. Feuer’s most recent entrepreneurial launch is Max-Wellness, a one-stop store featuring over 7,000 products for head-to-toe health and wellness for every age and every stage of life.  This first of its kind concept in the world is set to benefit from the burgeoning Baby Boomer markets that wants to enhance their life, prevent illness and treat health issues. Max-Wellness which opened its first stores in Cleveland and Florida is now preparing a national roll out patterned after Feuer’s OfficeMax expansion strategy.

Register Now

What is BizCamp?

BizCamp is co-hosted by Office Space Coworking and the Taylor Institute for Direct Marketing.

BizCamp is an ad-hoc gathering born from the desire for people to share and learn in an open environment. It is an intense event with discussions, demos and interaction from participants.

Sometimes referred to as an un-conference it is a break from the expensive,  pitch-driven, cattle-herding events that have become

all too common in the business world.

Rather BizCamp is a participatory event. Attendees help determine what presentations will be given and even have the opportunity to present themselves.

The presentations themselves are intimate affairs small groups of 30-40 people.

The sessions feature an open dialogue of questions, answers and -yes- even the occasional I don’t know.

Our goal: 18 sessions in 2 days. Topics will run on three tracks:

1) The Entrepreneurial Experience

2) Marketing for Small Business

3) Business Technology

Event Details:

Early-Bird Registration is only $79.

Visit http://bizcamp.eventbright.com to secure your seat at this year’s BizCamp in Akron.

Location:

The Taylor Institute

225 South Main Street

The Polsky Building, 5th Floor

Akron, OH 44325-4807

 

Parking FREE - included in your registration fee.

Thursday, August 19th

8am – 9am – Registration – Coffee & Continental Breakfast

9am – 12:30 – Scheduled Speakers & Workshops

12:30-1:30pm – Catered Lunch (included with registration fee).

1:30 – 5pm – Scheduled Speakers

Friday, August 20th

8am – 9am – Registration – Coffee & Continental Breakfast

9am – 12:00 Scheduled Speakers & Workshops

12:30-1:30pm – Catered Lunch (included with registration fee).

1:30 – 5pm – Scheduled Speakers

5:pm – 7pm – Happy Hour & Networking

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Keen Insight: 3 Tips for Seeing What Isn’t There

By Kelly Brown | Filed in Blog

As business managers, we are trained to provide feedback to employees, partners and customers. In our business culture, many have taken the polite way to praise others be it regarding elements of a relationship, a product, a piece of work or even a meeting. These are beneficial skills that many of us have mastered.While it’s important to understand what IS there — one of the key skills you should master is assessing what ISN’T there. What questions aren’t being answered? What did you expect that you aren’t getting? Being able to articulate what isn’t there is as important as assessing the quality of what you DO see.

As business owners and leaders, we are always looking to be more successful – however you define success. By growing out side of your comfort zone and essentially flipping things upside down you will be providing feedback to others that is truly more than just reinforcing praise it is constructive input that will continue to build your relationship and their output.
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Call for Speakers – BizCamp 2010 Announced

By Kelly Brown | Filed in Blog

August 19-20, 2010 in Akron, Ohio — Office Space Coworking will be hosting our next BizCamp! If you have a topic idea or are interested in being a speaker, please send me your ideas.

Submit your ideas here:
BizCamp 2010 Speaker Application

Last time we had 18 speakers present over the course of 2 days.

Speakers included Anita Campbell of Small Business Trends, Ivana Taylor of DIY Marketers, Jim Kukral, Nathan Kievman and many other great speakers. You can download our original program guide here to get an idea of what went on:

2009 BizCamp Program of Events

What is BizCamp?
 BizCamp is an ad-hoc gathering born from the desire for people to share and learn in an open environment. It’s an intense event with discussions, demos and interaction from participants.

Sometimes referred to as an ‘un-conference’ it’s a break from the expensive, ‘pitch’-driven, cattle-herding events that have become all too common in the business world.

Rather – BizCamp is a participatory event. Attendees help determine what presentations will be given — and even have the opportunity to present themselves.

The presentations themselves are intimate affairs – small groups of 20-30 people.
The sessions feature an open dialogue of questions, answers and -yes- even the occasional ‘I don’t know.’

Why would you want to present?

For one – you’d get free access to rest of the event.

AND you’d be in a forum that establishes you as an expert to a group of small business owners and entrepreneurs.

Our goal is to have 18 sessions in 2 days. Topics would run on three ‘tracks’

1) The Entrepreneurial Experience
2) Marketing for Small Business
3) Business Technology

We can’t offer you an audience of 1,000 people.

BUT we can offer you an audience of hyper-local, highly motivated small business owners who would LOVE the opportunity to engage you in your field of expertise.

Over the next few days we’re releasing select videos of our last BizCamp on our site.
So hopefully you’ll follow along and see some of the great presentations and consider participating in the July 29-30 event.

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How To Make Goals Actionable

By Kelly Brown | Filed in Blog

The other day I was talking with a member of our Office Space Coworking in Akron.

He wanted examples of short, intermediate, and long term goals. He wanted strategies used to support these goals as well as some tactics he could use to implement those strategies.

This is a need felt by many small business owners, entrepreneurs, executives generally any of your ambitious types wanting to do big things in the world.

My short answer? See the master, David Allen (www.davidco.com).

Now, the long answer.

I’m a HUGE GTD’r and have been for the past 3-4 years now. While Allen’s the first to admit he’s basically ‘packaging common sense.’ His system was the first to really ‘click’ with me. Simply put, GTD works because it’s simple.

Know your outcome, state your next step.

However, for a lot of people it falls a bit short when planning for the long term. GTD does address the importance of clarifying your desired outcome across multiple ‘horizons’:

  • 10k – current projects
  • 20k – roles / responsibliities
  • 30k – 1-3 year goals
  • 40k – 3-5 year visions
  • 50k – your reason for being on the planet

But most people spend so much time at the 10k level, they rarely get the opportunity to step back enough to reflect on the bigger picture. Or if they do, they just don’t have the tools to turn their long term goals into tangible next actions they can be working on today.
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Tapping Young Minds: The New Resource for Entrepreneurs

By Kelly Brown | Filed in Blog

As an entrepreneur, you are likely running your own show or have a couple of good employees to rely on. What you have probably learned is that good people are in short supply. Whatever your situation, you likely need more resources, but might be strapped by finances to invest in full-time help.

But knowledgeable, motivated and affordable resources may not be as far off as you think. In every business college whether in undergraduate or graduate programs there is always a class on entrepreneurship. Most likely, you have even taken that class! Now it is time to tap into these bright young minds.

Business students can actually serve as an extension of your company through an ongoing assignment that meets your business need. Not only are they willing, they are more than able. Their idealism may help inspire you to see what is possible and similarly, you can share your real-world experience to help them learn.

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The Importance of Defining A Successful Outcome

By Kelly Brown | Filed in Blog

Ours is a world where people don’t know what they want and are willing to go through hell to get it.
-Donald Marquis

I’m what Marcus Buckingham would call an ‘Achiever’.

What gets me jazzed more than anything? Getting stuff done. Ticking stuff off my list. That’s what gives me a sense of accomplishment.

It’s not uncommon. It’s almost a part of the American work ethic. In fact, I’m willing to bet you’re exactly the same way.

I’d wager you have the ability to throw herculean efforts at any given mountain of ‘stuff’ and grind through it. Hell or high water — you’ll knock it down to size. Heck, it’s probably a huge reason why you’ve been as successful as you have already.

But have you ever stopped yourself knee deep in drudgery only to as the question…Why? What am I doing here again?

It’s like having an epiphany.

Here’s the thing. You feel compelled to finish it. But have you defined what ‘finished’ means?

Defining the end result you want for every project you’re working on not only improves the end result but makes the process more enjoyable.

If you aren’t articulating the successful outcome of everything you pick up to work on, you’re at risk of wasting the most valuable asset you have — your TIME.

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Spacing Out: A Common Dilemma

By Kelly Brown | Filed in Blog

As a purveyor of shared office space, we definitely hope that anyone reading this will consider the services of Office Space Coworking with offices in Akron, Cuyahoga Falls & Canton. But our vested interest aside, we are committed to helping small business owners & entrepreneurs find the right office solution to meet their needs.

We’ve talked a lot about the pros and cons about working from home. As a small business owner, you either started out at home and/or you’re still there. But for some, it might be time to consider making a move out of the extra bedroom to their own office space even if it is only a one-person show.

This question is a fairly common one for many small business owners. Some need to move because of growth, others because of loneliness or a need for stimulation. Regardless, the cost of office space is a variable that can have a big impact on a business bottom line, so it’s not surprising that it ranks near the top of the list of owners concerns. If the time is right, the key is to find a space that meets your business needs without breaking the bank. Location is important (especially for retail), but so are issues such as usability, cost and condition.

Decisions, Decisions

The advantages of moving out of your home office boil down to increased professionalism, more space to work and unlimited growth potential. Of course, with any advantage come a few disadvantages, but nothing that can’t be overcome:

  • Your daily commute will be longer, but if your office is located near your home, the lost time and frustration should be minimal.
  • You may need to furnish your office professionally (unless you go with a shared office solution like Office Space Coworking)
  • Your overhead may increase, but your revenues could grow proportionately as you attract larger or more clients.

Here are few points of thought we’ve compiled to help guide you through your decision-making process:

Luxury or necessity: First, it’s important to determine whether or not your business is at a stage where finding an office is a luxury or a necessity. If it is just you, and you have very few interruptions, you may be fit to stay. However, if you are overseeing four employees who are working out of their homes, you have a communications disaster waiting to happen. Moving to a central location will most likely improve communication and create new energy in the business.

Assess your space needs: If you’ve made the decision to rent of lease space, the next step is to assess your company’s needs. If you’re business is not retail, you do not need a high-end space. But at the same time, you don’t want the space to be so inexpensive that it is depressing for your employees and potential buyers. One alternative might be to find less expensive space that can be transformed into an environment that stimulates creativity. Or, if you’re looking for a more formal environment consider choosing a reasonably priced office space that can be broken up into different areas. Invest more resources in meeting rooms that will be used by potential buyers, and less in rooms that will be used by employees.

Consider alternative options: If the budget is just not going to work, but you still need an outside space, consider some other options. Business centers, for example, are temporary offices that provide traditional office space for you to work in and usually come with amenities like Internet access, videoconferencing, conference space, copiers and sometimes, receptionists.

And then, there is always the option of spicing up what you have. Reinvent your present office by hiring a professional organizer to help you make the best use of your space. Or, think about outsourcing work to other free agents instead of trying to squeeze employees into your already packed space. The options are limitless it just takes a bit of time and vision to do what’s right for your business.

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Monday Motivation – February 15, 2010

By Kelly Brown | Filed in Blog

To get what you want; stop doing what isn’t working.
–Dennis Weaver

You have your To Do list.

Do you have a Not To Do List?

Jim Collins’ book Good To Great was the first time I was introduced to this concept and I found it fascinating.

The basic concept is we all have idiosyncrasies which sap our productivity day by day. Usually these are seemingly little things but they add up quickly.

If you can identify where some of the holes are in your productivity, you can set yourself up for success by avoiding these items altogether.

Do you frequently get sucked into email strings that have no bearing on your original work plan for the day?

Do you find yourself obsessing about little gaffs you may or may have not made in the last to call to a customer?

Have you ever caught yourself whiling away the hours surfing YouTube for the latest Britney embarrassment?

Simply put: If they aren’t helping you accomplish your goals, stop doing them.

Some Additional Take Aways:

*A great Not To Do List can be found at 52 Projects

*Try to identify distractions that take away from your focus for the day.

*Reference and add to your list on days where you feel didn’t get as much accomplished as you would have liked.

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Project Management – Part 3: Alternative Tools

By Kelly Brown | Filed in Blog

Beyond Microsoft Project: Alternative Project Management Tools

When we think about project management, we often go straight to images of Gantt charts and Microsoft Project. While these are extremely useful tools and ways of thinking about project management, there are alternatives to these approaches that may approve more useful for you, depending on your learning and doing styles as well as your clients approaches to communication and project management. In this report, we’ve outlined various tools and processes that we encourage you to explore. Also, feel free to customize your own project management approach by borrowing elements of each remember, it’s most important that the project is completed effectively, and it’s your job to make that happen in a way that works for you and your clients.

David Allen: Getting Things Done (GTD)

In previous articles, we’ve lauded the ways of David Allen and his Getting Things Done approach. While some of his approaches can be geared toward individual productivity, many can also be applied to project management.

With Allen’s “Getting Things Done’ approach, you make your work/life/responsibilities into real, actionable items or things you can just get rid of. Everything you keep has a clear reason for being in your life at any given moment both now and well into the future. This gives you an kind of confidence that a) nothing gets lost and b) you always understand what’s on or off your plate

Also built-in to the system are an ongoing series of reviews, in which you periodically re-examine your now-organized stuff from various levels of specifics to make sure your focus is on track. Similarly, Allen has put together a project planning checklist to help individuals consider the various ideas to be considered when creating and managing projects. These can be helpful triggers to help you create a customizable project management process. His project planning checklist includes thinking about:

Resources

  • Whose input do we need?
  • Whose input could we use?
  • Has anything like this been done before?
  • What mistakes can we learn from?
  • What successes can we learn from?
  • What resources do we have?
  • What resources might we need?

Executive issues

  • How does this relate to the strategic plan?
  • How does it relate to other priorities, directions, goals?
  • How will this affect our competitive position?

Administration

  • Who’s accountable for this project’s success?
  • Communication and reporting methods and processes
  • What structures do we need?
  • What planning is still likely to be required?
  • What people do we need?
  • What skills are required?
  • What training do we need?
  • How do we get it?
  • What other communication do we need?
  • Who needs to be informed as we go along?
  • What policies/procedures affected? What needed?
  • What about morale? Fun?

Finance

  • What will this cost?
  • How do we get it?
  • What might affect the cost?
  • Might we need additional $?
  • What are the potential payoffs ($)?
  • Who signs the checks?

Operations

  • What is the timing?
  • Hard deadlines?
  • What might affect timing?
  • Who’s going to do the work?
  • How do we ensure complete delivery?

Quality

  • How will we monitor our progress?
  • How will we know if we’re on course?
  • What data do we need, when?
  • What reports, to whom, when?

Politics

  • Whose buy-in do you need?
  • How can you get it?

Stakeholders – Considerations?

  • Board
  • Stockholders
  • Employees
  • Suppliers
  • Customers
  • Community

Legal

  • Issues?
  • Regulations?

Research

  • What might you need to know?

Public Relations

  • Is there value in others knowing about this?
  • How do we do that?

Risks

  • What could happen?
  • Could we handle it?

Creative thinking

  • Who would have concern about the success of this project?
  • What would they say, ask, or input, that you haven’t yet?
  • What’s the worst idea you can imagine, about doing this project?
  • What is the most outrageous thing you can think of, about this project?
  • How would a 12-year-old kid relate to this project?
  • What would make this project particularly unique?

Online Project Management Tools

There are also a number of Web-based project management tools that may prove better aligned to your ways of work. Clarizen is an example of on-demand solution that allows you to effectively manage all your projects and resources with a dynamic, collaborative solution that incorporates the user-centric, interactive nature of the Internet with powerful project management tools.

Clarizen’s web-based project management solutions can help to manage the complete project life cycle from inception through to completion, to capture templates and best practices for future replication, and to connect team members across departments, functions, geographies and organizations.

For more information, and to participate in their free beta trials, visit www.clarizen.com.

Professional Project Managers

You also have the option to hire a professional project manager as an adjunct to you and your staff. There are likely significant costs associated with this option, but if you are strapped for time or resources, or if your project requires intense project management skills, this could be your best option. Visit http://www.pmi.org/info/default.asp to connect with a professionally certified project manager. Whatever your method, make sure it works for you. Nothing can compare to effectively manage projects. Remember, doing it well means more business from the same client referrals to others. It’s not a skill or process that can be overlooked, so make sure you invest the time into creating the process whether traditional or alternative that works for you.

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Swipe Files: Your Marketing Toolbox

By Kelly Brown | Filed in Blog

Simply put, the best way to learn about marketing is to watch and learn from what others do. This is where a swipe file can play a huge role in getting your creative juices flowing. A swipe file is a file or collection of marketing messages, headlines, techniques, etc. Essentially, whenever you see an example of great marketing you add it to your marketing collection. Anyone who has been involved in marketing, online or off, for any length of time knows that creating a swipe file is a huge help when it comes to designing your own marketing campaigns.

Before the Internet, a swipe file would contain a bunch of direct mail marketing pieces, newspaper ads and postcards. Today you can still have a file folder full of those kinds of things, but you should also consider starting a digital collection where you can put great examples of email marketing, headlines, digital sales letters, etc. Some of the best marketing messages that I’ve seen were only presented in an online format.

Leafing through a collection of marketing materials will likely bring on a deluge of ideas for how you can position, write about, or promote your own product — and that’s why you should create your own collection. Remember, you’re just looking for inspiration. Some find it useful to have a digital swipe file as well where they save email messages, article resource boxes, sales letters, great headlines, and other promotional materials that they find good and effective. Remember, a great marketing piece doesn’t have to relate directly to your chosen market to be useful to you… so save any marketing piece that works, regardless of the product.

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