Looking ahead



Does your company need some fine-tuning or a complete overhaul?

By Fred Koury


February 2008

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Change is what business is all about.

Those that do it well and do it quickly reap the profits, while those that don’t become stagnant and, in some cases, fail.

The challenge is, how much change is enough? Is a few minor tweaks here and there enough to keep you competitive, or do you need to look at changing the way you do business or even changing what you sell in order to survive?

General Electric is a company that has always embraced change. It started out focused on lighting, but now is involved in markets including finance, industrial automation, medical imaging, motors, railway locomotives, jet engines, aviation materials and abrasives. It also co-founded and is majority owner of media company NBC Universal.

Let’s look at another example: The American Tobacco Co. It was founded in 1890 and was one of the original members of the Dow Jones Industrial Average. While antitrust action eventually broke up the company, American Tobacco survived. In the 1970s and 1980s, it started acquiring a lot of nontobacco-related companies and renamed itself American Brands, which later was changed to today’s name of Fortune Brands.

Fortune Brands owns some of the most well-known brands in the country, including Jim Beam, Titleist, FootJoy, Moen and Master Lock. Ironically, the company shed its tobacco holdings altogether.

The successful companies were able to stay on top because they invested in research and development. When you do that, you are constantly testing new ideas.

Some of the ideas might be new products that you can pilot, while others might be diversification opportunities. Maybe you can acquire a business that would complement what you are already doing, or maybe you can develop it. But the end result is a stronger enterprise that is under the same umbrella that you have now.

With continual reinvestment into R&D, you may also start to realize that maybe your core idea is flawed or just no longer applicable to the market.

But no matter what the change, reinvesting in your company is what will help show you the way. It might be a minor tweak to an existing product to keep you ahead of the competition or it might be the revelation that you are about to become extinct, but at least you will have time to react.

In today’s economy, you not only have to be willing to make a change, but you also have to actively seek it out. If you don’t, the market will change without you, leaving you either behind the times, or worse, out on the curb.

Our new look

As you probably have noticed already, this month marks a significant change for Smart Business. With this issue we are introducing an all-new look to our publication, from the “flag” — our logo across the top of the cover — right down to the page numbers.

We continually refine our product, adding new features here, tweaking the appearance there. But every few years we like to take a major step back and revisit the overall design of the publication.

As part of this latest effort, we commissioned a design critique by one of the nation’s top design firms for business-to-business media. Using feedback from that critique as well as from readers, advertisers and staff, we set Design Director Jim Mericsko to work on updating our design with a fresher, more engaging look. And that is what you will find this month — from our updated logo, which presents a more sophisticated, business-like image, to our use of different column widths and justification styles.

While most of these changes are subtle, the result is an overall cleaner look employing elements that have been proven over the years to create a more engaging, readable product. And as you know by now, our goal is to make Smart Business a valuable, quick-reading resource for busy executives like you. Please let us know how we are doing.

FRED KOURY is president and CEO of Smart Business Network Inc. Reach him with your comments at (800) 988-4726 or fkoury@sbnonline.com.

More Fred Koury




The value of relationships
Are you focused on what really matters in business and life?


Staying focused
Overcommitting yourself can hurt more than just your business


Prospering in tough times
Are you looking up when things are down?




Leading the way
Do you have a clear path to success to motivate yourself and your employees?


Over ambition
Slow and steady wins the race.


Gadgets, gizmos and profits
Are you chasing your own tail with technology?


Keep it short
Smart ideas don't always come in big packages


Moving on
The best way to get out of a hole is to cut your losses and climb out.


Direct involvement
Are you spending too much time with your direct reports?


Trust but verify
How much trust is too much?


Crisis control
Keep a reserve of time and money to deal with the unexpected.


Beating the competition
What are you doing to differentiate your business?


The power of conviction
Don’t let detractors steer you away from your vision.


The gold standard
Is it a higher level of service, or just a higher price?


Driving change
Do you see the value of long-term planning?


Think, don’t react
Overreacting to a situation can turn your staff into roadkill.


Friends in need
Giving a little help to a struggling business can go a long way.


The importance of image
What first impression do you give?


Developing talent
Mentoring your top performers will help your company grow.


Keep it short
Smart ideas don’t always come in big packages.


Appreciating others
Recognize not only your strengths but the talents of those around you, as well.


Avoiding the blind spots
Assemble the right advisers to maximize your chances of success.


The search for wisdom
If you are not wise, then by default, you are foolish.


Destination unknown
If you don’t know where you are going, you will never get there.


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