Government, Politics and the Economy
Obama Supports Bank Fees for Risk and Wealth Surtax for Healthcare
President Obama signaled his support for a proposal to impose fees on some of the nation’s largest financial firms to cover losses from risky transactions and avert another market meltdown. He also said that a surtax on the wealthy fits with his ideas on paying for healthcare. Bloomberg.com
GOP Financial Services Overhaul
Republicans have developed their own version of legislation aimed at overhauling regulations of the financial-services industry. The GOP version relies more on free-market principles than on additional regulation to achieve results. FoxBusiness.com
Management and Operations
Leadership Lessons: How You Can Make a Difference
In his new book, “Hit the Ground Running”, Jason Jennings identifies tactics that top-performing CEOs use to make a positive impact on their companies as quickly as possible. Entrepreneurs can follow their example by thinking long-term, asking for help, and more. BusinessWeek.com PodCast
The Seven Deadly Sins of Business
Ranging from sloppy accounting to poor hiring practices, these are the seven business-killing traps that every entrepreneur must avoid. CNNMoney.com
Legal Issues
Make Sure All Reference Inquiries Are Properly Routed
It’s important to let your supervisors know they should be careful about handling job reference queries involving poorly performing employees, referring all inquiries about ex-employees to you or HR. BusinessManagementDaily.com
Taxes and Financial Issues
IRS Halts Tax Shelter Fines
The IRS is going to suspend collection of the huge penalties—$100,000 and higher—that often fall on small businesses taking part in shaky tax shelters, while Congress works to change law. WSJ.com
Ignorance is Not Bliss
There are many small companies going out of business needlessly. This is because they simply do not know what they do not know, assuming that the problem is one thing when, in fact, it is entirely different and fixable. NYTimes.com
CIT May Still File Chapter 11 Under Bondholder Plan
Accoring to people on the inside, the bondholders that rescued CIT Group Inc. with a $3 billion loan say creditors may still push the small business lender into Chapter 11 bankruptcy after a debt swap next month. Bloomberg.com
Technology Issues
Shrinking Budgets Stunt Small Business IT
According to a recent survey, many small companies can’t keep up with their technology needs and best practices in the face of the recession. InternetNews.com
Health, Benefits and Labor Issues
Biometrics May be Added to E-Verify
Senate leaders from both parties are supporting changes to the e-Verify employment verification system that would include a biometric mechanism to combat identity fraud. Workforce.com
Pelosi: I Have the Votes to Pass Healthcare
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi claims that she has the votes she needs to pass her wide-ranging legislative overhaul of the US healthcare system. Bloomberg.com
Branding, Sales and Marketing
Online Marketing: Connecting with People
All marketing boils down to connecting properly with your target audience. Here are three tips on proper social networking etiquette to help you do just that. ClickZ.com
Baby Boomers: Still a Growth Opportunity
A recent report finds that the baby-boom generation is still spending strong, while the private-label product segment continues to grow in popularity. ManageSmarter.com
Prepare for Your Holiday Email Campaign Now
A good campaign takes preparation. Following this checklist will help you prepare now for the all-important end-of-year holiday season. ClickZ.com
Word-of-Mouth: 16 Things You Can do to Create a Buzz
Word-of-mouth is great and you can create it yourself. In fact, you should do it yourself. Here are 16 things you can do today to get the buzz started. SmallBizTrends.com
