Two very differing business succession plans
It's true: Real life is stranger than fiction. Here are two true client tax stories with almost identical facts involving transferring a family business...
Drafting confidentiality, non-compete pacts
Unless you are a one-man operation, your company has to consider the consequences of having an employee leave the firm. The more valuable the employee...
Yet another reason to leave it to the pros
The Call: The contractor on the phone wanted to be very careful with this boiler replacement because it was located near where he lived. People talk,...
Websites are modern marketing tools
Only about half of the small businesses in the United States with less than 10 employees have Websites. With eight out of 10 Americans spending as much...
Boiler to indirect water heater union, Part 2
At the end of last month's column (p. 30), I detailed the options available to a retired couple interested in replacing their boiler. OK, let's review...
Hydronic radiant heating options, Part 4
At the end of last month's column, I promised to tell you more about radiant glass windows. As I stated in the last column, this device seems to defy normal logic in more ways than one....
Make sure you get invited back
Everybody has his own definition of marketing it seems. To me, marketing means to ethically acquire and keep paying customers. is lead generation. is...
The new paradigm of coopetition
Many subcontractors will do almost anything if they think there's another nickel's profit or another month's company survival in it for them. General...
Buy-sell agreements: how to do them correctly
Do you have a buy-sell agreement or are you thinking of signing one? Most buy-sell agreements (B/S/A) happen like this: You meet with a lawyer and have...
Do you know your insurance requirements?
A contractor who promises in a contract to obtain insurance that he can't get (or chooses not to buy for cost reasons) can be in breach of contract, but this area is so complicated that who ends up being the loser can turn on some pretty technical points....
Let's get hitched: boiler to indirect water heater union
Wayne and Jean are like most of our retired customers: They are concerned about rising fuel costs, are on a fixed income and they want some ideas about...
Solutions simplify boiler checks, protect PCs
A new software program, Versentia for Boiler Inspection, enables efficient and accurate gathering and managing of documentation required of contractors...
Hydronic radiant heating options, Part 3
At the end of last month's column, I mentioned a product that was recently introduced to me as a “potential threat” to my business as a hydronic heating contractor. Sure, I said, bring it on. I always want to know what the enemy has up its sleeve. That's the work of a wise warrior....
Problem solving for performance issues
What are the most common yet challenging problems for managers to address? It's not material shortages, as-built discrepancies or even weld defects. It's...
It's all about me: marketing in a slow economy
Mildly out of breath, I take my place on the back row in exercise class among a couple dozen health seekers. The first four words should give you a clue...
Just the facts about those pesky headhunters
Over the years I've gotten many emails asking about dealing with professional executive employment recruiters or They all boil down to two general questions:...
Your IRA just got better much better
Three cheers! Now you can, under new rules, use your IRA and other retirement plans to make your children and grandchildren very rich. Later, I will explain...
New contract docs: do they make a difference?
The American Institute of Architects updates its form documents on a regular basis, and the A201 General Conditions (1997 Ed.) were slated for review...
If it's flushable, it sells, even if it's not
Move over tampons, you've got competition! The term certainly is a catchy phrase. Add safe for sewer and septic systems and you've got a very powerful...
Alternatives to hydronic radiant heating, Part 2
We ended last month's column (p. 36) having looked at the individual wire core circuit type of electric radiant heating system. I failed to mention that...
Mobile tracking offers decrease downtime
Here are two mobile solutions that can help HVAC contractors substantially improve worker productivity and minimize lost downtime. The first is a well-executed...
Why this branding thing is driving me crazy
Branding, schmanding. The next person who tells me they want to their plumbing business may actually get a hot iron e-mailed to them. Somebody out there...
A 30-second lesson on project management
My wife and I were lounging about on the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday just being more or less quiet and happy and talking gently about the things the...
Water jetting sewer and drain lines
One of our first introductions to water-jetting sewer drain-line cleaning machines took place while a commercial high-pressure jetter was on site cleaning the downstream side of a parking lot grease trap. The building’s food court PVC drain line left the building to enter a large 1,500-gallon grease trap and returned to rejoin the building’s......
Cleaning out my New year’s closet
It’s that time of year when I take a deep breath and pray upon the past year, throw darts at a dartboard to get my net profit goal for next year and roll a single die to determine what percent of salary ...
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