Author: Alan Shaw

In many business sectors there is a significant growth in the number of suppliers being required to “partner” with their customers nowadays, which means committing to the common goals set by the customer - and this growth is set to continue.
This alters the usual customer-supplier relationship in that the supplier is now expected to become a team player. This in turn means that more and more suppliers (especially the smaller ones) need to find out more about how to apply teamwork in a customer-supplier relationship.
In this presentation, Alan Shaw pointed out the essential elements that all teams need and some of the other optional but desirable elements that would contribute towards having a highly effective team. He related these to the situation regarding the nearest team, our very own Club committee, and some significant weaknesses were discovered. The presentation went on to explore the stages of team development - the well-known forming, norming, storming and performing stages - and the influence of appropriate leadership in these.
The whole session was very light-hearted with a great deal of discussion and interaction between those present.

Marketing meeting
Following the open meetings in August, we plan to hold another open meeting with members on 22nd September to progress what we feel is the best way forward in raising the profile (visibility) of the Club to attract new members. All members are encouraged to attend to contribute their views. The meeting is 6.30-8.30pm in the usual place at SULC. If you cannot be there but you would like your views to be considered, please call or e-mail Warren Bradley (wbradley@hrps.fsnet.co.uk)
Annual General Meeting
The AGM is upon us yet again in November. All committee members resign and are subject to re-election by vote. The following positions need to be filled:
Chair
Vice-chair
Hon Treasurer
Hon Secretary
Membership Secretary
Programme Secretary
Social Secretary
Newsletter Editor
If you know of anyone who would like to fill any of the se positions, contact a current committee member.
Your Committee
Chair & Membership Secretary - Debbie Baker- Thomas 01543 308621
Vice Chair and Treasurer –Chris Edwards - 01543 263915
Newsletter and Club Programme –Alan Shaw - 01889 584147
Social Secretary – Sandra Booth - 01785 353808
Member – Andy Laverick – 08707 456280
Secretary – Warren Bradley – 01543 472747

September Meeting…

Other Information

Despatches

2004 Club Programme
6th October - Business Accounting and Taxation with Chris Edwards
3rd November - AGM plus a presentation about the Lichfield Festival
1st December - Social - Xmas Party (venue TBA)
2005
5th January - Business Topic
2nd February - Personal Development
2nd March - Local Interest
6th April - Social
4th May - Business Topic
1st June - Personal Development

Lichfield District Business Club Newsletter

Sept 2004

This story can fit 150-200 words.
One benefit of using your newsletter as a promotional tool is that you can reuse content from other marketing materials, such as press releases, market studies, and reports.
While your main goal of distributing a newsletter might be to sell your product or service, the key to a successful newsletter is making it useful to your readers.
A great way to add useful content to your newsletter is to develop and write your own articles, or include a calendar of upcoming events or a special offer that promotes a new product.
You can also research articles or find “filler” articles by accessing the World Wide Web. You can write about a variety of topics but try to keep your articles short.
Much of the content you put in your newsletter can also be used for your Web site. Microsoft Publisher offers a simple way to convert your newsletter to a Web publication. So, when you’re finished writing your newsletter, convert it to a Web site and post it.

This story can fit 75-125 words.
Selecting pictures or graphics is an important part of adding content to your newsletter.
Think about your article and ask yourself if the picture supports or enhances the message you’re trying to convey. Avoid selecting images that appear to be out of context.
Microsoft Publisher includes thousands of clip art images from which you can choose and import into your newsletter. There are also several tools you can use to draw shapes and symbols.
Once you have chosen an image, place it close to the article. Be sure to place the caption of the image near the image.

This story can fit 100-150 words.
The subject matter that appears in newsletters is virtually endless. You can include stories that focus on current technologies or innovations in your field.
You may also want to note business or economic trends, or make predictions for your customers or clients.
If the newsletter is distributed internally, you might comment upon new procedures or improvements to the business. Sales figures or earnings will show how your business is growing.
Some newsletters include a column that is updated every issue, for instance, an advice column, a book review, a letter from the president, or an editorial. You can also profile new employees or top customers or vendors.

This story can fit 150-200 words.
One benefit of using your newsletter as a promotional tool is that you can reuse content from other marketing materials, such as press releases, market studies, and reports.
While your main goal of distributing a newsletter might be to sell your product or service, the key to a successful newsletter is making it useful to your readers.
A great way to add useful content to your newsletter is to develop and write your own articles, or include a calendar of upcoming events or a special offer that promotes a new product.
You can also research articles or find “filler” articles by accessing the World Wide Web. You can write about a variety of topics but try to keep your articles short.
Much of the content you put in your newsletter can also be used for your Web site. Microsoft Publisher offers a simple way to convert your newsletter to a Web publication. So, when you’re finished writing your newsletter, convert it to a Web site and post it.

This story can fit 75-125 words.
Selecting pictures or graphics is an important part of adding content to your newsletter.
Think about your article and ask yourself if the picture supports or enhances the message you’re trying to convey. Avoid selecting images that appear to be out of context.
Microsoft Publisher includes thousands of clip art images from which you can choose and import into your newsletter. There are also several tools you can use to draw shapes and symbols.
Once you have chosen an image, place it close to the article. Be sure to place the caption of the image near the image.

This story can fit 100-150 words.
The subject matter that appears in newsletters is virtually endless. You can include stories that focus on current technologies or innovations in your field.
You may also want to note business or economic trends, or make predictions for your customers or clients.
If the newsletter is distributed internally, you might comment upon new procedures or improvements to the business. Sales figures or earnings will show how your business is growing.
Some newsletters include a column that is updated every issue, for instance, an advice column, a book review, a letter from the president, or an editorial. You can also profile new employees or top customers or vendors.

Productivity improvement, in the sense of making better use of the resources employed in meeting the needs of the customer, is – or should be - a continuing preoccupation of the managers of all commercial operations. In spite of all the ongoing attempts to improve productivity in many organisations, most well-developed industrial countries still only manage to achieve an *average productivity of around 60% - and it is spread across all sectors. The reasons for this poor productivity are well known, and they include (in order of importance):
Insufficient management planning and control
Inadequate supervision
Poor working morale
Inappropriately qualified workforce
IT-related problems
Ineffective organisational communications
What this means in simple terms is that employees (including management) are simply continuing to not do enough of what they are paid to do – and there can be many underlying reasons for this.
Often small business managers are simply unaware of how poor their productivity is, (because it does not get measured?) so nothing gets done to improve it. Yet it is so important because even small improvements in productivity can have a big impact upon profitability. For many small organizations, improvements of between 10% and 20% are realistically achievable but a strategic approach is required.
* Comprehensive research on this is freely available; using the Google search engine, type in pdf:“missing millions” and follow the links.

Lichfield Business Village
The Friary
Lichfield WS13 6QG

Lichfield District Business Club Newsletter

Phone: 01543 308620
Fax: 01543 308622
Email: hawthornes@lichfield.biz

Promoting interaction in local business

In a nutshell … Club members’ businesses

Chris Edwards is a Certified Accountant and Registered Auditor operating his practice (C.T. Edwards Ltd) from his home in Boley Park, Lichfield.
The Practice currently serves some 70 business and 50 personal tax clients, covering a wide range of trades and professions from Agriculture to Shiatsu; sole-traders to multinationals, and Charities and Churches.
The Practice provides accounting, auditing, taxation, payroll, company secretarial services on a regular basis, as well as financial advice on an ad hoc basis as required. All services are tailored to meet clients’ specific requirements and can be carried out at client’s premises or the Practice office.
Tel: 01543 263915
Peter B. Jackson MLIA(dip) is a trained Financial Services Consultant and a Member of the Life Insurance Association by Diploma. He is currently operating his business from his home in Shenstone. The business currently operates in two spheres.
Debt management for private individuals who have incurred a level of debt that they can no longer service on their own.
Financial and Business Protection for both individuals and businesses i.e. sole traders, partnerships and limited companies. The areas covered are comprehensive and include life assurance, director and share protection, Pension Planning, Investments & will writing. The business is usually conducted on client’s premises or in the home as appropriate and convenient.
Tel: 07802 987202
20-minute attack warning
The SANS Institute believes unpatched computers will, on average, come under attack within 20 minutes of connecting to the Internet. This alarming warning is particularly relevant for businesses with high-speed connections, and compares to a ‘survival time’ of 40 minutes recorded this time last year.
Worms are becoming more ingenious, so the SANS advice is well timed. Instant messaging is being used to spread a new worm, similar to the Download.Ject bug , which records keyboard use and sends Internet users to malicious websites.
For more information, go to:
http://www.out-law.com

The Club is sponsored by Lloyds TSB, Barclays, SULC and Lichfield District Council

Despatches

Business Topic of the Month - Productivity Improvement

Visit your Club web-site at
www.lichfieldbusinessclub.com - it exists to help you

www.lichfieldbusinessclub.com

Did you know…