Episode 201: Handling the Challenging Times

Episode 201 originally broadcast on April 11, 2009

We never shrink from the tough issues. This week’s topic: Handling the Challenging Times. On this week’s show, Russ visits with Carl Kleimann, president of Odyssey One Source, a professional employer organization. Kleimann discusses legislative changes in play that will affect virtually every employer— you need to hear this interview! Then, flash back to January 2009 and an interview with Don Minnick, a principal of Interpersonal Skills Lab. Minnick provides tips to help you make yourself indispensable to your organization and increase your chances of surviving a layoff.

School of Business 04/11/09

Russ and John present the show that fills in the gaps left by “the other” business schools. Includes: BusinessMakers Quote of the Week—a pithy comment from the eloquent Winston Churchill; This Week in Business History includes a panoply of events from our common past with Abraham Lincoln, Ivory Soap, JCPenney, Albert Einstein, the sinking of the Titanic, Annie Oakley, Babe Ruth, Gen. Douglas MacArthur and Hugo Chavez; and Navigating Business Jargon—acronyms, technospeak and trendy terms.

Brad Burke, 2009 Rice Business Plan Competition

The Rice Alliance supports entrepreneurs and early-stage technology ventures in Houston and Texas through education, collaboration, and research. In this segment, Brad Burke, managing director of the Rice Alliance, reminds us of the upcoming Rice University Business Plan Competition to be held April 16-18, 2009. The biggest competition yet will boast 42 teams from around the world competing in front of 200 judges for more than $800,000 in cash and prizes. These young entrepreneurs are all university graduate students competing for seed money to launch their companies. The “elevator pitch” portion of the competition, to be held on Thursday, April 16, will once again be standing room only. And with The BusinessMakers you’ll have a front row seat!

Carl Kleimann, Odyssey One Source

Russ visits with the president of Odyssey One Source, a professional employer organization, similar to a human resources department for small businesses. Kleimann began his career in the employer services industry in 1986. He is active in regulatory and legislative affairs at both the state and national level and, as such, is at the forefront of change and is an expert in employer issues. With the new administration in Washington, D.C., big changes are coming. New legislation is in play in the areas of employee benefits, discrimination, union practices, unemployment benefits, even pension investments and expenses. In this segment, Kleimann discusses some surprising new regulations and requirements that can be a nightmare for uninformed small business owners.

Flashback - Don Minnick

Russ flashes back to January 2009 and an interview with Don Minnick, a principal of Interpersonal Skills Lab, an affiliation of organizational consultants that specializes in personal and organizational performance. For 30 years, Dr. Minnick has researched “survivor” behavior during all economic cycles, studying who survives the layoffs, reorganization and downsizing, and why. We once assumed that, if you kept your head down and did your job, that would be enough; but it’s not. Over time, certain skills, capabilities and behaviors have consistently been present among company survivors. In this segment, Minnick discusses the model he created based on his research over time and provides tips to help you make yourself indispensable to your organization and increase your chances of surviving a layoff.

PKF Texas: The Entrepreneur’s Playbook® - Balancing Near Term Concerns

Turmoil in the markets creates problems and uncertainty, but these shifts in the economic landscape can also offer unique opportunities. Greg Price believes that organizations that are able to maintain long-range focus while addressing near-term difficulties will be better poised to succeed as the markets calm