INSIGHTS & ARTICLES

An initial public offering (IPO) is the process by which a private company sells unissued securities to raise capital from the public. This can be and usually is a very long process and should be approached with much thought. This two-part blog is written to assist...

Diversification – A Background In the wake of the 1960’s efficient-market hypothesis, Harry Markowitz introduced the term “diversification” to the American business world. Since then, diversification has become a watercooler maxim surpassed in usage only by the call...

Most burgeoning entrepreneurs, and even casual Shark Tank viewers, will likely understand the process of taking investment capital, but the actual process is a little more complicated than a five-minute TV show segment might reveal. A less publicized but no less...

Entrepreneurs, especially those bootstrapping their own business and trying to squeeze 11 cents out of every dime, know the struggle of choosing how to best spend their company money. Sometimes, when every penny counts, some entrepreneurs choose to work from home;...

Technology solutions can streamline your business processes tremendously. From billing solutions to bill-paying solutions, choosing the right tech is critical  for several reasons. You don’t want to just go for the lowest bidder. Although it’s important to keep costs...

The Importance of a Scalable Business Model Going from idea to product to company is one of the biggest challenges to an entrepreneur. Many businesses start with a great idea but are soon gobbled up by competition or lack of financing. Business models should be built...

The current minimum wage in Utah as of Jan. 1 2014 is $7.25, which is equal to the Federal level. Several other states have higher minimum wages, but Utah’s lower cost of living compensates for the difference. Whether you pay your employees $7.25/hr, $50/hr., or...

As a means of attracting top talent, management will often grant stock options as additional compensation. It is also a great way to align the interests of management with employees. As everyone works together to improve the company, the value of the stock price...

Daily Habits for Success Jim Citrin of Yahoo Finance compiled research on 17 highly successful CEO’s to study their daily habits in an effort to pinpoint which ones lead to success. After gathering his findings, he wrote about the three most important ones. Start...

It could be argued that revenue is the single most important aspect of your business. Many asset managers and analysts of all kinds spend most of their time modeling out revenue drivers, which illustrates how important it is for management to understand them. And...

Hopefully you’ve read the first blog of this series about stock options. This article will address stock options from an employer’s perspective. Benefits of Using Stock Options The biggest reason companies use stock options is to incentivize their key employees. Stock...

  I’ve decided to write a mini, 3 blog series on stock options and stock-based compensation. From my experience in Utah as an outsourced CFO,I have observed a degree of confusion on this topic. I hope to shed some light on options from both the perspective of...

From competition to leadership, many lessons can be learned from participating in sports. March Madness is a particularly unique time where teams are pushed to their limits with stakes get higher and higher. Coaches spend hours reviewing film and strategizing new and...

Recognizing synergies can make a remarkable difference for your business. The idea behind synergy is that one plus one no longer equals two, but now equals three or more. You’ll also hear the economic term “economies of scale,” which happens when potential output...

The Oracle of Omaha and CEO of holding company Berkshire Hathaway has been observed and idolized perhaps more than anyone in the finance community. With an average annual return of 19% over the Treasury rate and a personal sharpe ratio that is higher than all U.S....

About a year ago I asked the founder of a very successful start-up in Utah how he had positioned his company in comparison to the competition. His response was instructive; he said that they hadn’t focused on the competition much at all, but on the value their...

A recent Stanford Business School journal article points out the importance of a good management team to investors, “Venture capitalists consistently emphasize the importance of the management team in an entrepreneurial venture and focus much of their due diligence on...

Google’s Policies Google’s business model has hinged on their ability to constantly innovate. When Larry Page and Sergey Brin founded the tech company, they noticed that their best ideas didn’t come as they worked hours and hours alone at the desks, but as they talked...

A mission statement is a formal summary of the aims and values of a company, organization, or individual. Think of your mission statement as your business model, summarized into a few sentences. Anyone can write something down and title it their mission statement, but...

How you manage your growth is a vital ingredient to your company’s future success. A balance needs to be struck between keeping the engine going and too much growth; and yes, there is such a thing as too much growth. In this post I'm going to explain three ways to...

The leverage decision is an important one that can have far-reaching consequences. The most basic leverage ratio is debt/equity and measures what percentage of your assets is financed with debt. The most fundamental advantage of using leverage is that it boosts...