The High School Education Reform an Example by

The Need for American Public High School Education Reform Partners in the United States instruction framework keep on being worried about the apparent low nature of open secondary school training and the failure of schools to create understudies who are solid and steady to satisfy the needs of higher work principles and a progressively serious, persistently changing, worldwide work advertise. Hanson sees how the United States trails behind Japan and Germany regarding instructing the normal understudy, the individual who will be the foundation of things to come workforce (27). In reality, gigantic changes in the worldwide economy, and the changing idea of expertise, work, and employments, fashioned to a great extent by the effect of innovation and by elite work associations, (Lewis 13) have pointed out the deficiences and shortcomings of the United States open secondary school training framework in providing the countrys expanding requirement for an increasingly serious workforce that is essential in keeping up or in any event, advancing the United States financial preferred position and worldwide serious edge. (Hanson 26) Need exposition test on The Need for American Public High School Education Reform theme? We will compose a custom exposition test explicitly for you Continue Accordingly, the United States government has tried to initiate changes in the instruction division through approach changes, for example, the authorization of the No Child Left Behind Act in 2002 which underlined gauges based K-12 training and commanded the yearly appraisal of childrens progress in learning. (Gaddy, Dean, and Kendall 1) Accordingly, States were urged to build up their own benchmarks and the way to quantify school accomplishment of evaluation level desires. In like manner, the No Child Left Behind Act likewise urged endeavors to actualize innovation mix in educational plans and in the study halls in the point of creating higher request thinking aptitudes among understudies. (Gaddy, Dean, and Kendall 6) In spite of such endeavors at improving understudy learning results, a ton of work obviously should be done to change both the essential and auxiliary training frameworks. Weller contends, for example, that the quickly changing face of the worldwide economy and the fast advancement of innovation requires schools that accentuate basic and top notch thinking aptitudes, the utilization of and guidance in the most recent innovation, the utilization of groups and helpful learning methodologies to take care of issues and decide, and the capacity to adjust and work in liquid, evolving situations. (251) In secondary school instruction, this involves adjusting educational programs and learning desires with the changing requests of the work showcase so as to furnish understudies with significant information and aptitudes suitable for genuine business. Thusly, the most significant change that the legislature must foundation in open secondary school instruction is educational program rebuilding especially in vocation and specialized training courses to sufficiently get ready understudies for work after graduation. Lynch sees that while the legislature has started an incomplete change in professional course instructing and approach in open secondary school training, there stays a need to rethink the idea of vocation and specialized training in American secondary schools to address contending desires from people in general and private divisions. (4) specifically, the change of profession and specialized training must fulfill the understudies requirement for significant, contemporary vocation data, information, and aptitudes. (7) To this end, Lynch proposes the execution of a vocation and specialized instruction program that empowers understudies to participate in profession arranging, underpins scholarly just as specialized preparing and readiness, and underlines logical and work-based guidance and learning procedures. (8-10) Plainly, there is a requirement for instructive changes that would improve the capacity of American secondary schools in creating graduates that would be an advantage for the countrys workforce and economy. In this viewpoint, changes in the nature of the profession and specialized training courses being offered in open secondary schools is vital in instruction change. Such changes have address cultural desires in expanding workforce abilities while simultaneously receptive to the learning and preparing needs and desires for understudies. Work Cited: Gaddy, Barbara D., Dean, Ceri B., and Kendall, John S. Maintaining the Focus on Learning. Aurora, CO: McREL, 2002. Hanson, Lee. K-12 Education for Empowerment: Beyond the Mental/Manual Divide to a U.S. Expert Class? Strengthening in Organizations 3.4(1995): 26-35. Lewis, T. Close to the 21st Century: Retrospect, Prospect for American Vocationalism (Information Series No. 373). Columbus: The Ohio State University, ERIC Clearinghouse on Adult, Career, and Vocational Education, 1998. Lynch, Richard L. Secondary School Career and Technical Education for the First Decade of the 21st Century. The Journal of Vocational Education Research 25.2 (2000) Weller, L. David. Opening the Culture for Quality Schools: Reengineering. Global Journal of Educational Management 12.6(1998):250-259.

Looking Out For The State Of The Publics Satisfaction In The Es

Paying special mind to the condition of the publics fulfillment in the plan of capital condemning doesn't establish serving equity. Todays arrangement of the death penalty is frought with imbalances and shameful acts. The ordinarily offered contentions for capital punishment are loaded up with openings. It was an obstacle. It evacuated executioners. It was the extreme discipline. It is scriptural. It fulfilled the publics need for revenge. It diminished the anguish of the people in question family.(Grisham 120) Realistically, forcing capital punishment is costly and tedious. Retroactively, it presently can't seem to be demonstrated as an obstruction. Ethically, it is a continuation of the pattern of savagery furthermore, ...corrupts all who are engaged with its authorization, just as its victim.(Stewart 1) Maybe the most regular contention for the death penalty is that of discouragement. The overall idea is that inconvenience of the capital punishment will act to prevent different hoodlums from submitting savage acts. Various examinations have been made endeavoring to demonstrate this conviction; in any case, [a]ll the proof taken together makes it hard to be certain that death penalty discourages more than long jail terms do.(Cavanagh 4) Going ever farther, Bryan Stevenson, the official executive of the Montgomery based Equal Justice Initiative, has expressed that individuals are progressively understanding that the more we resort to executing as an authentic reaction to our disappointment and outrage with viciousness, the more savage our general public becomesWe could execute each of the 3,000 individuals waiting for capital punishment, and the vast majority would not feel any more secure tomorrow.(Frame 51) moreover, with the developing compassion of present day society, the quantity of detainees really put to death is generously lower than 50 years prior. This decay makes a circumstance wherein capital punishment stops to be a impediment when the masses starts to believe that one can pull off a wrongdoing and go unpunished. Additionally, the less that capital punishment is utilized, the more it gets abnormal, consequently coming in struggle with the eighth amendment. This is basically a Catch 22, in which the less the capital punishment is utilized, the less society can lawfully utilize it. The end result is a discipline that stops to dissuade any wrongdoing whatsoever. The key piece of capital punishment is that it includes passing - something which is fairly changeless for people, because of the idea of mortality. This makes a significant issue when there keep on being numerous cases of guiltless individuals being condemned to death.(Tabak 38) In our legitimate framework, there exist various manners by which equity may be inadequately served for a beneficiary of capital punishment. Chief is in the treatment of his own protection counsel. If a respondent is without counsel, a legal counselor will be given. Lawyers named to speak to poor capital litigants as often as possible come up short on the characteristics important to give a skillful safeguard and now and again have shown such poor character that they have in this manner been disbarred.(Tabak 37). With installment tops or court decided wholes of, for instance, $5 an hour, there isn't a lot of motivation for a legal advisor to spend a lot of time speaking to a capital litigant. At the point when you contrast this with the indictment, supported by the police, other law authorization offices, investigative labs, state mental emergency clinics, different other logical assets, investigators experienced in effectively taking care of capital cases, obligatory procedure, and fabulous juries(Tabak 37), the resistance that the court selected advice can offer is weak. On the off chance that, actually, a litigant has a substantial case to offer, what chance has he to offer it and have it appropriately perceived. Moreover, for what reason should he be rebuffed for a misjustice that was made by the court itself when it designated the unfit legal counselor. Regardless of whether a respondent has appropriate legitimate advice, there is still the matter of fairness of judges. The Supreme Court has consistently diminished the accessibility of habeas corpus survey of capital feelings, setting its trust in the thought that state judges, who make a similar vow of office as government judges to maintain the Constitution, can be trusted to uphold it.(Bright 768) This makes for the one-sided attempting of a litigants requests, given the overpowering weight on chose state judges to notice, and maybe indeed, even lead to, the well known sobs for the demise of criminal defendants.(Bright 769) Thirty two of the states that force the capital punishment likewise utilize the well known appointment of judges, and a few of these even have passes judgment on run with party affiliations. This makes a profoundly political equity framework - the words alone are a mystery. Can society just forget about mixed up execution as a coincidental expense in the more noteworthy plan of killing a lawbreaker? Retribution is an shameful

What Is the Difference Between Being Educated and Being Trained Free Essays

This Month’s QA Technology Tips What is the distinction between being taught and being prepared? What is so significant about training? The thing that matters is gigantic, and instruction is immensely significant. TRiO is tied in with setting the establishment to get the best instruction you can get. Let us take a gander at only a few focuses. We will compose a custom exposition test on What Is the Difference Between Being Educated and Being Trained? or on the other hand any comparable theme just for you Request Now One clear point is that training is the entryway to circumstance. It is said that achievement occurs at the bury area of training and opportunity. An individual who has qualifications (I. e. an advanced education) can hold onto the second at whatever point an open door introduces itself. This really permits extra chances to prosper. Besides, with a degree, a wide range of chances by one way or another become accessible. The world sees an informed individual as being finished; along these lines, the person in question is viewed as substantially more prone to be a decent worker or accomplice in some random undertaking. Two: Education advises everything else an individual does throughout everyday life. The nature of crafted by an informed individual consistently gets took note. That individual is hence significantly more liable to excel in all parts of life and profession. Take for instance a painter or an artist, two callings ordinarily not thought of as being attached to higher educations. Numerous individuals can draw or paint, and many like to communicate profound contemplations through verse. Without training, a craftsman won't have the option to accomplish the validity of any piece announcing to speak to certain political, or verifiable, or philosophical facts. Such a craftsman will probably not make a lot of regard or progress regardless of whether his work shows ability. America is the place where there is fresh chances to succeed, however you need to take advantage of that lucky break. TRiO, as well, is a program of instructive open door in training, however you need to grasp the TRiO strategic your fantasies. You can be prepared at any number of aptitudes like doing hair, and that will win you a living, yet you should need more. Make it your regular goals that you will be an informed individual regardless of the stuff, and afterward hold onto each chance to be that understudy. The most ideal approach to win is to complete what you start. Champs start an undertaking and afterward continue working until the errand is finished, regardless of whether the assignment gets troublesome. They start, they work, they recognize botches and praise little triumphs, and they finish. At the point when you consider it, getting to the end goal is the main thing that truly checks. It is beyond the realm of imagination to expect to go anyplace in the event that we reliably permit each snag that introduces itself to permit us to neglect to complete what we start. A contemptible exertion once in a while prepares to the winner’s circle. At the point when a champ begins a task, the individual in question oversees it to finish. Hi understudies! I am Rubina Khan, and I am enchanted to be your new College Success Coordinator. I will connect with all understudies to offer my best help and support so every last one of you can remain in school and gain your degrees. TRIO is a basic and direct guide for suffering achievement. Houston Community College, assumes a basic job in changing the lives of its understudies and making our locale work. With TRIO programs, understudies are given the assets, readiness, and backing to succeed both expertly and actually in their scholastic objectives. Gaining a higher education is a test, however it doesn’t must be a battle. I am here to prepare every one of you to beat any difficulties and snags of a scholarly or social-that may pull you off the way to graduation. As the acclaimed saying of Benjamin Franklin goes â€Å"An interest in information consistently pays the best interest†. At the point when understudies seek after and experience a post-auxiliary training, they have the chance to understand books and tune in to the talks of top specialists in their fields. School graduates unquestionably have an edge in the activity advertise over the individuals who have not encountered an advanced education. Without question, an advanced education fills in as the entryway for better choices throughout everyday life. I praise all understudies who are seeking after their objectives to become graduates and envision them being remunerated for all their commitment and difficult work. My all the best to all understudies. Rumi, the Sufi Poet of affection and the incomparable Persian Philosopher and Mystic, stated, â€Å"Let the excellence you love be your main event, [so when] you get things done from your spirit, you feel a waterway moving in you, a delight. † I accept everybody has a reason throughout everyday life and discovering what that object is perhaps the best accomplishment on the grounds that at exactly that point can you genuinely begin carrying on with your own life and accomplish the internal harmony. As an individual from the TRiO Program who’s appreciate filling in as a science mentor, I have a few hints for my TRiO understudies to remain persuaded in school, school, life, and so on. I have examined and delighted in different societies and ways of thinking, and I have consistently valued the refined and astute ones. Numerous years back, it got obvious to me that in addition to the fact that I found what was significant in my life, yet additionally what reason my life holds. At that point, I became aced the psyche over issue theory and chose to investigate a greater amount of the world. It’s a much needed refresher to see individuals such as myself accomplishing the fantasy â€Å"In the Land Of Free,† and it is an incredible ameliorating. I accept that staying roused and centered are two of the most impressive resources for have, particularly for one in school, for example, me. It is gullible to state that dental school is a finished breeze and that each progression en route represents no trouble. As an understudy I might want to share what I feel keeps me generally engaged, decided, and roused. I am a firm adherent that on the off chance that you have something to live for, for example, reason, want, or a lifetime dream, your inspiration and assurance will perpetually open new entryways for you. So if there is one thing I need to impart to all my TRiO understudies today, it is discover your motivation, your craving, your fantasy and push ahead. Don’t think back. Don’t lose your core interest. You can and will accomplish what you set your psyche on. Have confidence in yourself, and stand solidly for your convictions. What's more, recollect that â€Å"there are two incredible days throughout our life first the day we are conceived and the day we find why. † We picked the Phoenix as the name of this Newsletter due to unbelievable winged creature is said to have had the ability to emerge from cinders and live once more. Emblematically understudy bolster administration needs to be that power that causes you flourish in any event, when you to feel like a fallen Phoenix Houston Community College looks to give equivalent instructive open doors regardless of race, shading, religion, national starting point, sex, sexual direction, age, veteran status or incapacity. This arrangement stretches out to business, affirmations, and all projects and exercises upheld by the College. The data in this distribution will be made accessible in enormous print, taped or PC put together arrangement with respect to ask for Step by step instructions to refer to What Is the Difference Between Being Educated and Being Trained?, Papers

Institution Based View of Business Strategy | Case Study

Foundation Based View of Business Strategy | Case Study An industry-based view, showed by Porter (1980), chooses firm methodology and execution. Practical upper hands can be found by industry investigation and by choosing from the nonexclusive methodologies. The serious quality and the organizations capacity can keep up positional favorable circumstances through the productive and viable usage of serious system. (Morgan et al, 2004) Besides, an asset based view (RBV), was exhibited by Barney (1991), advocates that firm-explicit contrasts decide technique and execution. RBV accentuations inward assets and abilities of associations (Peng et al, 2009). RBV representations organizations as particular groups of assets and capacities that are accessible for appropriation by the associations specialty units. Heterogeneity in the assets and abilities is the explanation of varieties in association execution. Practical upper hand isn't the consequence of right situation in the outer condition yet is gotten from the associations inside assets, which are important, matchless, uncommon, and nonsubstitutable. Industry-based view and asset based view are correlative since they settle the connection between an associations assets and capacities and its positional bit of leeway by orchestrating how assets and abilities are facilitated with showcase circumstances, the appropriateness of arranged asset and ability and the nature of methodology execution. (Morgan et al, 2004) Rising economies foundations are to a great extent not quite the same as those in created economies. Formal and casual establishments are usually perceived as the guidelines of the game that critically plot the methodology and execution of both residential and outside firms in these economies. (Peng et al, 2008). Organization is the humanly made requirements that structure human association (Peng et al,2009). It is regulative, standardizing, and psychological structures and exercises that give significant and stable social conduct (Scott,1995). Establishments can be commonly named formal and casual. Establishments rule cultural issues in the territories of legislative issues (e.g., defilement, straightforwardness), law (e.g., monetary advancement, administrative system), and society (e.g., moral standards, perspectives toward business). The way of life can be seen as a piece of casual establishments in the condition that help formal organizations (Redding, 2005). Formal organizations, (for example, laws and guidelines) and casual establishments, (for example, standards and discernments) have for quite some time been assumed as foundation. Nonetheless, Institution-based view is significant for better comprehend the development of rising economies by examination the muddled and quick changing connections among associations and organizations. (Ache et al, 2008) Institution-based view help internationalizing rising economies organizations to improve their seriousness, information on the game standards of abroad. To put it plainly, the industry-based view doesn't give adequate consideration to settings. In like manner, the asset based view has been condemned for its little effort to build up appropriate settings (Priem Butler, 2001). Barney (2001, p. 52) conceded the estimation of an organizations assets must be comprehended in the specific market setting inside which an association is running. The disappointment has required the new point of view that can overcome these issues. The outcome is the ascent of the foundation based view (Peng et al., 2008). A foundation put together view centers with respect to the dynamic relations of establishments and associations, and thinks about vital decisions as the consequence of such a cooperation (Peng et al,2009). Key decisions are not just dictated by industry circumstances and friends capacities, yet additionally the formal and casual requirements of a specific institutional circumstance. (Jarzabkowski, 2008) Therefore, IB technique can't simply concentrate on industry conditions and abilities. A foundation based view, in blend with the business and asset based perspectives, accordingly puts the procedure tripod on firmer ground. Establishments are significantly more than foundation conditions and it decides the plan and execution of technique and formation of upper hand. Rising economies is would in general have progressively fundamental and coordinated changes to the formal and casual principles of the game which are viewed as institutional advances (Peng et al, 2009). There are two center recommendations rising out of the establishment based view to lessen vulnerability in developing business sector (Peng et al, 2008). The principal suggestion is that administrators and organizations reasonably chase for what they intrigue and settle on vital decisions inside the formal and casual institutional circumstance. The subsequent one is while formal and casual foundations join to control the association conduct, if formal requirements are questionable or fizzled, casual organization will assume a bigger job in diminishing vulnerability by giving direction and authenticity. For instance, the foundation based view recommends that if a firm can't be an expense or a separation chief in the business sectors, it can in any case beat the rivals in nonmarket poli tical region where casual connections has enormous impact. (Oliver Holzinger, 2008) There are three significant inquiries in methodology that establishment based view brings new perspectives past the viewpoints of the business based and asset based perspectives. (Peng et al, 2009) The main inquiry is the reason do firms vary? A significant presumption in methodology, particularly from the asset based view, is firm heterogeneity. (Barney, 1991) It is for some time perceived that monetary development can scarcely occur in poorly controlled economies. In any case, given Chinas solid monetary development and its immature formal institutional structures, there is constantly an inquiry that by what means can Chinese economy become quick development with such an institutional circumstance. An answer recommends that relational systems (known as guanxi) which are utilized by supervisors may fill in as casual substitutes for formal institutional help (Peng Heath, 1996). As such, relational connections among chiefs are considered as an interfirm system of systems and collusions to develop the organization that help to the development of the economy (Peng Luo, 2000). There is a pervasive conviction that guanxi and the related system based techniques are wares of the novel Chinese culture that favors community (Peng et al, 2009). The utilization of casual systems during institutional advances is referenced in the subsequent recommendation, which focuses on the more grounded reliance on casual requirements to deal with potential advantage and exchanges when formal market-supporting establishments are youthful. From the primary suggestion, chiefs and associations act reasonably under these conditions. In institutional circumstances, industry-based and asset based perspectives alone won't give a solid explanation of the contrasts between firms (Khanna Yafeh, 2007). In general, in circumstances that proper establishments are feeble, casual foundations, for example, standards administering relational connections, will assume a bigger job in association methodologies and execution (Peng Heath, 1996). It is essential to take note of that remote contestants have likewise emphatically encouraged their system and connections while going worldwide, as appeared by the rich universal vital coalitions with nearby associations (Peng et al, 2009). For instance, the UK retailer Boots opened another shop in Japan. Despite the fact that the Japanese market has opened to outside organization as of late, the guideline, social standards and arcane strategic policies are as yet hard for remote firms. By being fruitful in adjusting its style of retailing to the Japanese market, Boots found the most ideal approach to beat the hindrances that all outsiders face by receiving the procedure tripod. (Monetary Times, 2000) As referenced, key decisions are not just determined by industry circumstances and firm capacities, yet additionally the formal and casual limitations of a specific institutional system. For instance, the organization has reformulated more than 2,000 of its items to increase a Japanese permit, regardless of they meet the UK and US principles. Additionally, Boots has overhauled the bundling of its items to meet the Japanese inclination and culture. Organization based view assists with understanding the effect of institutional change (Peng, 2003). For instance, toward the start, Boots couldn't carry a considerable lot of its items to Japan because of its guidelines. However, the circumstances changed and there are new guidelines that ease limitations on imports of fixings utilized in makeup. This aided in the definition procedure and coordinations procedure of Boots. Plus, Boots has understood the uncommon principle of the game in Japan. The purchase two, get one free crusade were flopped in Japan. It is on the grounds that a considerable lot of its clients are single or have little families and they don't have to purchase a lot of items. Moreover, to fathom the guideline, social standards and arcane challenges, Boots has embraced the establishment based methodology to increase nearby help. It along these lines framed joint endeavor with Mitsubishi. It is a decent answer for entangled government contacts since Boots is managing coordinations, contacts in the legitimate calling, human services experts and guidance on limiting the business are significant for Boots. Aside from the establishment based view, Boots has received another two legs of perspectives to contend in the market, for example, the presentation of seating at its beauty care products counters and this is a typical game plan in Japanese stores. Also, it has changed the bundling of its items to meet the Japanese inclination for sumptuous introduction and the idea of lipstick absolutions that clients return old lipstick and get a free substitution. Despite the fact that the business based view is significant for picking up the economy of scale and c

5 Ways to Build Hot Customer Relationships - The Fire-Building Process that Sparks Profits and Long-Term Value

5 Ways to Build Hot Customer Relationships - The Fire-Building Process that Sparks Profits and Long-Term Value Before you build, know what you’re building.Whether you’re building a business that requires serious investments for serious returns or you’re a solopreneur venturing off on your own, you have to learn how to build a fire for your customers to keep them warm.Once your customers trust you, or at least find you irresistible, the relationship will catch on fire.WHAT IS A HOT CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP?   A hot customer relationship is when you and your customers are so satisfied that you become lifelong advocates for each other.You feed each other.There’s some joy. There’s some pain.And there are many questions. But by tending the fire, the relationship keeps growing.If you stop feeding the fire, competitors will swoop in and smother your profitable relationship.Amazon and Netflix have kept the fires burning with their customers by continuously adding to the relationship and making sure to stay ahead of the competition.The two behemoth companies entered their customers lives slowly .They watched how their customers lived their lives. They watched consumers consume.Then the future billionaire companies anticipated unmet, unknown customer needs.They kept a keen eye on the competition and kept the competitive advantage while tending to customer relationships first and putting the customer on a pedestal.Amazon: $9+ Billion in Subscription Services, $177+ billion in net sales (SEC 2017 10-K Report)“We seek to be Earth’s most customer-centric company.“Amazon to Customer: I’m going to give you everything you want at the best possible price.Customer to Amazon: We will have a Prime relationship.Amazon to Customer:   Invite your family members. Since you’re here, let me show you some personalized recommendations and ordering methods that are so easy, you don’t have to think. We’ll stock your entire home for you and alleviate holiday stress.Customer to Amazon: I will let you into my home.Netflix: 117+ million subscribers, $11 billion in revenue (SEC 2017 10 -K Report)“Our core strategy is to grow our streaming membership…with a focus on a programming mix of content that delights our members.”Netflix to Customer: You can watch all the movies you want, whenever you want, for less than the cost of a movie ticket and a small drink. We’ll even mail them to you.Customer: So many movies! Our family members can’t agree on what to watch.Netflix: You can have separate profiles for family members. We’ll even give each person recommendations based on their personal movie viewing habits. You’ll see more “Action Sci-Fi Fantasy Featuring a Strong Female Lead” and your sibling can watch more “Absurd British Comedies.”Customer:   I’m telling all my friends on social media about my Netflix binge habits and sharing my recommendations.Netflix: Now that we know what you like, look at these trailers for new movies we created.Customer:   I will fall asleep with you every night.These relationships didn’t happen overnight. Amazon’s website sprang up in 1995, but you can bet a whole lot of sweat equity went into the company before then.The year Amazon filed its corporate papers (1994) Viacom bought Blockbuster for $8.4 billion dollars.Blockbuster was doing well before then, but then its stock didn’t do so well.In 1997, while Blockbuster was tending to its spiral demise and DVD players were just starting to infiltrate neighborhood homes, two software geeks, March Randolph and Reed Hastings started Netflix and began delivering DVDs to neighborhood mailboxes.The fifty-cent rentals were popular, a subscription rate was offered, and millions were delivered.It wasn’t until 2007 that Netflix movie streaming was announcedâ€"and that was after Amazon and Blockbuster started streaming. (Don’t be afraid to learn from others.)Fast forward to 2018. Blockbuster has been snuffed out. Netflix and Amazon have disrupted industries while successfully building some hot customer relationships.How?They had a vision.They prepa red themselves to create the vision. They knew the value of a customer. They tended to the customer. They kept the fire going. Customer relationships were the priority.What are five ways you can build hot customer relationships?1. BE PREPARED FOR CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIPSYou have a great business idea. You will need customers.You want to keep those customers and you want them to grow with your businesses.How are you going to keep track of them?Configure company systems and operations to manage customer relationships.When you start a fire, you plan where to have the fire. You plan for potential.You have to be sure you’re not going to burn the house down (hopefully), and you’re not going to start the fire outside during a tsunami.Bonfires on the beach are great, but you can’t start the fire where the waves are rolling in.Amazon and Netflix didn’t say “hey, come out to the beach,” they said “you’re busy, let me bring this food and these movies to your home.”Netflix knew from research that customers planned their DVD rentals a week in advance. The Netflix founders spent hundreds of hours inside post offices watching how the U.S. postal system worked.They were confident in their crazy business venture because they were prepared. ($2 million in seed money didn’t hurt either.) They expected 10 rental requests the first day. They received 500.When customers flooded in, Amazon and Netflix made sure the customers weren’t just a name and address on a computer to be shuffled away for a year-end analysis.The companies studied customer preferences, pulled data and built algorithms.They maintained social media contact. They resolved complaints. They didn’t forget their customers. They sent offers and reminders.They had a system to manage customer relationships.You need a system to keep the fire in customer relationships growing.You’ll need to gather supplies to start the fire and gather supplies to keep it going. You’ll need to light the fire and kee p it under control.Where are you going to keep your potential customers and future customers?What systems are you going to use?Lack of customers and out of control customer demand will snuff out your profits, and likely your business.Manage your customers.Basic Customer Relationship Management (CRM) SystemsYou have to manage your customers and the knowledge you gain from your customers.You may use one system or a multi-faceted system.A customer relationship management system may be as simple as a free spreadsheet template or as complicated as managing the algorithmic preferences for Netflix movie-viewing customers.Customer relationship management is the parent of customer relationship marketing. Managed customer potential is the base for customer relationship marketing tactics.When you create your list, you’re putting into place kindling that’s going to light the path on which sustainable customer relationships will grow.Basic choices for a Customer Relationship Management syste m:CRM software or cloud programsAppsSpreadsheetsOutsourcingMedium and large sized businesses will undoubtedly be better served using the advantages of CRM software or cloud-based programs, or outsourcing.Three big players in CRM software and cloud programming are:Salesforce (Plans start at $25 per month) â€" Clients include T-Mobile, Yeti, Adidas and Aston MartinMicrosoft Dynamics (Plans start at $40 per month) â€" Clients include Aston Martin, Dell, DeltaZoho (Plans start at $25 per month) â€" Clients include Amazon.It’s worth noting Aston Martin uses Salesforce for sales operations, but Microsoft Dynamics for accounting purposes together with other Microsoft products. Find the right mix for your business. Three notable players in Customer Relationship Management systems are:Hubspot (Free for solopreneurs, plans start at $50 per month for others)Apptivo (Free plan, Premium plans start at $10 per month)Insightly (Free plan, Plus plans start at $29 per month)Think about your custom er acquisition journey. Ask yourself “why” at every step. When it’s time to sit down and test out CRM free trials, ask yourself the following questions:Can I afford it?What parts of the customer relationship do I need to manage?Will using this software service grow with my business?Can I import the data I have now into the system?Can data be integrated at all customer touchpoints?What are the import/export options and compatibilities with current and future systems?Can I incorporate the reminders and schedulers with my current system of managing time?What team sharing capabilities and privacy options exist?Will a sales employee with limited tech knowledge feel comfortable using this?What are my limits?How do I manage customers and contacts?How do I manage segmentation?How do I mange conversations?What types of conversations can be managed?What options are available for sorting and filtering?How do I track leads and progress in the sales and marketing funnels?What automation op tions are available for integration with current operations?How do I mark a follow-up on leads?Is it easy to manipulate changes and priorities?How fast can I get a quick status view?How long will it take to learn the software?What will be the cost of training team members on the software?How many people will be actively using the system?Is it convenient or cumbersome?Will employees be negligent with data entry because it’s a pain to use?What makes me hate this program?How long does it take to enter one full customer entry?What analytics are provided?Can I determine why customers are staying?Can I determine why customers are leaving?How easily can I track, measure and adjust my key performance indicators?What tech and help support system is available and what are the limits and cost?What backup options are available?Is it secure?Is it flexible?You will also need to protect your customers.If you do business in the United States, keep abreast of the rules and regulations from the Fed eral Trade Commission.If you’re doing business in the European Union, use a checklist to stay up-to-date with GDPR rules and regulations. Legal battles will burn a hole in the company pocket and dim customer trust.Fortunately, the legal gods work a little slower than the tech world.Tech moves fast.All the major CRM companies are vested in artificial intelligence. Salesforce uses “Einstein” to make recommendations based on collected data.For instance, a pattern in customer engagement may prompt Einstein to tell you it’s a good time to contact the local fire department to see if they want to purchase that fire hydrant you have for sale.Interestingly enough, Amazon’s first book sold to a non-employee back in 1995 was about artificial intelligence (“Fluid Concepts And Creative Analogies: Computer Models Of The Fundamental Mechanisms Of Thought” by Douglas Hofstadter).Be prepared for the future. Amazon was.Doing the DataDespite over $220 billion dollars being poured into CR M programs from organizations, more than half of business owners referenced in a MIT report did not see expected returns.Executives run into an endless pit of analytical data. Data is just a pile of ashes slipping through fingers unless its applied.Frame your data. Don’t let it get out of control.Define the improvements you want to make.Define the decisions you need to make in relation to those improvements.Use your data broadly.Create decision-making models you can scale.Continuously improve your decision-making models, and apply them to new business ideas.Map your key relationships.Outsourcing Customer Relationship ManagementHave you thought about outsourcing?A company has the option to outsource the management and implementation of customer relationship software and cloud programs, the IT and staffing needs for customer relationship management, emails, chats, phone calls, order-taking, and any individual segment of the customer relationship spectrum.Many businesses utilize call centers to deal with customer complaints and CRM data collection.Outsourcing is a useful tactic to prepare for an unusually heavy response to a new product or marketing initiative, and it can save on infrastructure and operational costs.When you outsource, you’re not spending your money on the training required for data entry, customer service and sales.A cost-benefit analysis will tell you if outsourcing makes sense.The downside is often lack of security, lack of control, and lack of personalization.As anyone who has ever called a call center knows, customers don’t always receive a high-level of service from call centers, despite praised employee practices and training programs that might be in place.How many times have you received a call from a call center and immediately recognized the background noise of telemarketers busy at work? Are you glad they called?The data between your company and the outsourced vendor may not be easily integrated or exchanged. According to CRM ma gazine, it will cost you around $27 an hour to run an in-house call center.Is that feasible?Will you lose more than that with an inefficient call center?You will still have to establish the metrics to measure the success or failure of outsourced operations, and the end results need to be measured.If you don’t have the means to handle customer relationships, you either need to build up your company to handle relationships, or outsource. The choice is yours.The only other option is to ignore your customer relationships, and that’s not an option for business success.A survey of 70,000 Americans published in the Journal of the Academy of Marketing Sciences demonstrated that senior managers grossly overestimate customer satisfaction.Make sure you have a feedback loop for customer complaints and compliments.Solopreneurs, Micro-Businesses, and Small Rural FirmsIf you are a solopreneur or a small professional practice in a rural area, you may be able to get by using Google contact advan ced features and spreadsheets for customer relationship management.If you don’t expect more than 100 customers per year and you don’t work with tech savvy employees or clients, then these methods may work for you.If you’re just starting to manage customer relationships, you should, at the very least, develop a benchmark for the expected net contribution of a new customer and an existing customer to company profits.Tweak as needed when youre developing your customer relationship management system, and apply what you learn from using your developed CRM analytics.Here’s a video demonstrating the steps to access a customer relationship management template from Google Drive. (The template was kindly provided by the CRM G Suite company Prosperworks. Great way to build a customer fire. Create a template to share.) Having a CRM program is not enough.   The data and activities have to be actively applied to other customer relationship strategies.You need some tinder to get the fire g oing.2. FIND THE TINDER CHOOSE THE RIGHT CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIPS FOR EARLY ADOPTERSYou are attracting strangers.   Find strangers that share your values.Amazon starts its Leadership Principles with customer obsession. The earth has its iron core, Amazon has customer obsession running through its veins.   Given a choice between competitor focus or customer obsession, Amazon chooses customer obsession.Amazon sold its first book to a computer engineer friend, John Wainright, interested in artificial intelligence. John ordered the book online from Amazon in 1995 at the request of Amazon’s first employee, Shel Kaphan, a former coworker (who is now very rich). It was ordered using a dial-up connection.The story told is that unknown to John, the book he ordered was out of stock.   Jeff Bezos ran from store to store to find the book to mail to his first non-employee customer. It was delivered. The credit card was processed. Amazon just gave birth.That same friend also bought some of the f irst iPhones on the market. Clearly an early adopter, his contribution as a customer helped build Amazon. (John remains a Prime Amazon customer.) Amazon named a building after John Wainright.Despite a dial-up connection and an out-of-stock book, John remained an Amazon customer for over twenty years. What would have happened if Bezos just told Wainright “sorry, the book is out of stock?”When you start a fire, you need some easy burning tinder to get the flame hot.   John Wainright was a friend of an employee. He was the ideal first customer. Do you choose your first customers as carefully?Answer these three questions to help you find your early adopters.What are three company values?_________________________________________________What interests do you share with your ideal customers?_________________________________________________Who do you know that can influence early adopters?_________________________________________________Shared Values Build Customer RelationshipsShared v alues merge societal improvement with economic benefit.   Problems your customers experience contribute to the cost of doing business.What social problems affect your business, suppliers and customers?What social problems, if solved, would help you do more business, improve procurement, and build lifetime customers?How can you change your business operations to address these social problems?What innovative products and services can you introduce to address these social problems?Does your company support any of the following social values?EducationHealthcareWellnessTransportationTechnologySTEMSpace ExplorationAccessibilityDisabilitiesAcceptanceInclusionPovertyReading LiteracyDiversityCivil LibertiesCivil RightsGender EqualityFair Trade Farming PracticesFair Labor PracticesConsumer ProtectionAnimal ProtectionSafety SecurityIntellectual Property ProtectionOpen SourceTransparencySharing EconomyEnvironmentYou probably have customers (and potential customers) that support the same social values.A 2013 report by Professor Michael Porter at Harvard Business School gives some examples of shared value applications:Beckton Dickson is a healthcare company that redesigned needles to prevent accidental injuries which helped slow the spread of AIDS. The product was their largest source of company growth. What clients care about the prevention of AIDS?Regions bank wasn’t reaching 25% of their customers because they were “under-banked” customers. (Living paycheck-to-paycheck.) The bank reached out to the customers with prepaid cards, billpay services, and lower checking account fees.   What products and services do you have to meet an unsolved need?Hotels that “go green” reduce energy costs and help the environment. What potential customers care about the environment?Now imagine everyone in your circle of business shares the same value.What do you stand for?Nike once stood for shoes, now they stand for health and wellness. Starbucks wants to “inspire and nurture t he human spirit.”   Dove used to be about soap and skin, now they sell confidence and real beauty.Shared values inspire emotions. Emotions inspire communication and sales.When you find a shared value between your business and your customers, you’ll get the customer flame rising to new heights.3.   LIGHT THE FLAME â€" SPARK THE CUSTOMER CONVERSATIONOnce you get the early adopters, you need to spark the conversations.Will you be meeting your customers in person or online?Will you be pushing them in, pulling them in, or will your early adopters do the pushing and pulling for you?Sam Horn, not the baseball player but the “Intrigue Expert” and business coach who will be a speaker at the Women in Defense National Conference, believes intrigue is the answer to sparking a conversation and landing a sale.“If we want to succeed, we must intrigue!” â€" Sam Horn, Business CoachSam has an eight-step intrigue process which involves “did you know” questions.A mini-version of sparki ng a conversation could go like this:First: State an interesting fact about a problem that your product or service solves.(Example: Did you know that NASA did a study to identify the types of plants are best to reduce indoor air pollution?)Then: Ask the potential customer to “just imagine” how all their problems will be solved.(Example: Can you imagine if we could just find the right plants to get rid of all air pollution?)After that: Relate the trivia and imagination to real-life examples of your product or service with hard numbers.(Example: By the way, did you know the Gerber Daisy removed 107, 653 micrograms of Benzene per plant? Benzene is found in heating and cooking systems and building materials. What’s your favorite color? Blue? How about that! We have blue Gerber Daisies on sale this week! You can treat yourself and keep your home healthy! Would you like to see one?)Create the same question flow for your products and services.You can watch Sam Horn’s video for tips on sparking a conversation with potential customers: Online Customer CommunicationNot everyone likes to talk to a person. Psychology Today estimates between 16% and 50% of people are introverts.The act of making a phone call cuts into our personal time and is dependent upon the environment.You’re not going to have the customer’s full attention with a train or city street in the background, or kids screaming and dogs barking.People also like to keep their shopping and personal needs private from their surroundings.Millennials, (the new Baby Boomers), see the internet as normal as a toilet, and the Internet Generation (Generation Z) has grown up communicating online.Conversations with Siri, Alexa, and now Google are a part of everyday life. When a Millennial or Z’er wants something, they expect to be able to click a few buttons and get it.They expect information at their fingertips with questions answered instantaneously. They want self-service.Talking to people to make a purch ase or lodge a complaint is a bother. Ask a Millennial.Enter Artificial Intelligence.Chatty ChatbotsChatbots can funnel sales, algorithms sweep customers along their journey, and automated data collection and management define steps for future visits.Chatbots have the conversation so you don’t have to.Do you know Amelia? The Next Web has introduced us to some friendly chatbots.Amelia is a chatbot that combines customer natural language with previous interactions and company knowledge to answer customer questions. If she’s wrong, the customer gets transferred to a human. (She must have a soul.)Soul Machines is a chatbot that works with emotions. Do robots need two to tango?Nadia is the first offspring of Soul Machines. She likes to watch human facial expressions and the tone of a voice.   Despite all of these emotions, even banks are using chatbots.Bank of America has Erica, a chatbot working the bank’s mobile app. Wells Fargo uses chatbots with, er, Facebook. (Maybe 2018 isn†™t a good year to mention that.)“First there were websites, then there were apps, now there are chatbots.” KiK (mobile chat application) in The Guardian, April 6, 2016, “What is a chat bot, and should I be using one?” by Julia Carrie WongChatbots aren’t ready to take over the world, but they can be integrated into a system to spark conversation.Welcome â€" You have mail.Email isn’t dead either.A study of 1.5 billion emails lightened us up to the fact that Welcome messages and abandoned cart messages are the emails most likely to be opened. Hubspot reports over 80% of professionals prefer email for business.Are you in B2B sales?A welcoming email may be just what your company needs.Constant Contact was nice enough to share a 2017 chart of open and click through rates for email marketing campaigns. Emails have an overall open rate of about 18%, but it varies between industries and devices.The highest open rate was in the education industry, and the lowest open rate (no sur prise here) was in marketing, advertising and public relations.Have you welcomed a teacher lately?Social Media Communication SparksSocial media communication is the match that sets the tinder on fire.Communities are formed on social media. Companies are praised, pranked and pummeled on social media. Customers reach out for help and share their joys and sorrows.“The more connected you are with your customers, the more loyal they will be to your brand.” â€" Social Media Today,   Using Social Media For Customer Relationship Management, by Benny Coen, January 28, 2016You can use Sam Horn’s tips (listed above) in social media conversations.You can communicate your shared values and engage with commenters. You can build a community with hashtag events or Facebook groups. You can go live on YouTube, Facebook or Periscope and showcase your product, service or company, or do something good for the people you want to meet.Go where your customers are.Find out what their interests are and start engaging your business in the social media conversations and sharing opportunities.As you likely know, customers are more apt to interact with you if you have something to offer.However, it is not necessary to have something to offer to interact with customers.Even when you aren’t interacting with customers, the silent customers are slowly stalking you. Will they like what they see?To build your presence social media, you can start with friends, family, coworkers, employees, business partners, suppliers, industry leaders and community ambassadors.To reach your customers, do a hashtag or keyword search for terms that represent company interests.Do you sell matches?Search for keywords like camping, candles, and pyro. Engage with people who have an active presence and a non-threatening stream.Sparking Social Media ConversationsName ten keywords related to your company.Name five activities your ideal customer would participate in.Find influencers related to those keywords and a ctivities.Find potential customers using those keywords and participating in those activities.Name a shared value you and your customers might have.Engage in company-appropriate conversation with people that share those values.Create a channel on YouTube. Provide your customers with knowledge or entertainment, or both.Tweet something funny on a trending Twitter hashtag.Post unique images on Instagram. Add a traditional hashtag and a unique hashtag.Interact and promote community events.Create intriguing Pinterest boards and comment on customer pins.Answer questions on Quora and Reddit.Remember, it’s not about your brand, it’s about the customer. (But always maintain your brand during customer engagement.)Does your customer management relationship program integrate with your social media management programs?If you don’t have a social media management program, start using one.4. TEND TO THE FLAME OF THE CUSTOMER’S HEART AT EVERY OPPORTUNITYFlames die if they are not tended to. When you have the customer’s interest, you must continue to keep them interested in you.Customers are not bits and bytes of data.They are complex and unique human beings.Help customers determine their needsCaptial One uses microsegmentation.When a call comes through, a customer’s entire history is pulled up and the call is transferred accordingly. Employees are empowered to be customer advocates, and upsell a choice of financial services to qualified customers, based on individual customer preferences.Upselling opportunities for financial services aren’t wasted on customers closing their accounts.Are you using microsegmentation in your marketing strategies?General Motors worked with a website to offer a tool to help customers figure out which car is best for them.The tool simply asks questions, then provides the customer with eight suggestions.Similarly, QWEST Communications has a tool that helps customers determine which plan is tailored for their needs.How do you help custom ers determine their needs? What tools can you create to help your customer?When you help your customers get what they need when they need it, you are advocating for the customers.Help customers explore during the journeyHold the customers hand and let them explore. While they’re exploring, glean information on their preferences. Take a look at your pipelines and funnels.Does everything go in one direction? Flames are crazy. Customers are crazy.You never know what they’re thinking.This is how I presell to customers:   _________________________My most profitable product to upsell is: ___________________________ _______________________ _________________________These are opportunities I offer customers to downsell: _________________ _____________________ ____________________I offer this new product: ___________________ when customers _______________________.Customers see my reviews on ___________ (insert number) pages when not looking for reviews.Can your customers explore without g etting lost in a maze of webpages?Will your customer explore just products, or will they also see emotions and knowledge?Can you microsegment a customer’s exploration journey based on intent?Can your customers always find their way home?Don’t just say “do you want fries with that,” tempt them with the fries without being intrusive and make sure they get a glimpse of dessert right around the corner.Maybe they came in for a salad, but they left with a salad and 1000 extra calories. Great sale! Unfortunately, regret may lead to abandonment.Did the customer see your “please only offer me healthy choices” or “I’m on a diet” personalized option? Will they remember it?Customers need airLay off the commitments. Customers need air.   Customers are decisions makers, and decision makers ask questions.They get scared.They will evaluate the cost of making the wrong choice.They may run.Give customers time to think and time to test before they commit. Amazon and Netflix have won with no-commitment strategies.Countless software companies offer free trials. Warby Parker sells eyeglasses with a 30-day exchange policy. Ikea and REI have one-year return policies. Car sales professionals offer free test drives.What confidence do you offer your customers?Do you make it easy for customers to delete an item from their shopping cart?Can they save an item in their shopping cart for later?Do you have an easy no-stress return policy?Do you offer a free Trial?Customers feel safe to buy when they feel it’s safe to make a mistake.Lay off the intrusive pop-ups. Nobody wants to see a pop-up with every click, and popups that can’t be easily closed are not clever, they are intrusive and rude.You are interrupting a customer that is concentrating on your website, and you are wasting the customer’s time. Do you think that will be appreciated?Give your customers room to breathe in everything your magnificent website has to offer.Don’t be a bully. Be a guide.Review your web site. How many times do you interrupt the customer? Now ask someone to interrupt you that many times when you’re doing something you enjoy.Lessen the Guessin’Simplicity is the most important factor in decision making.Make purchasing easy.Harvard Business Review reported the results of an interview and survey mix involving 7,000 consumers. The study found the most important factor in decision making is simplicity.The business magazine gave an example of two websites selling cameras. One website (let’s call it SPECS) had tons of technical specifications and views for each product. Another website (we’ll call it GUIDER) guided customers on a segmented journey.Serious camera buffs were directed one way, newcomers just browsing or looking for gifts were guided in another direction, and then further segmented into hobby categories. On the way, guests were shown reviews and given explanations in non-technical terms.The GUIDER website actually made the buying decision simpler.A busi ness has to create many things to make things simple for the customer.5. MAINTAIN THE BEST FLAMEWhen you tend to the flame, your happy customers will spark up new business for you. (Old folks call that word-of-mouth advertising.)The old Pareto Principle says to concentrate on the 20% of your most profitable customers that bring in 80% of the revenue. It’s considered sage advice to “fire your customers” when they run you down.Even Tony Robbins agrees. Sprint has fired customers who call customer service too much.In many industries, more profitable customers are given a higher class of service than the peasant customers. Continental Airlines only emails highly profitable customers frequent flyer miles with an accompanying apology when flights are delayed.Financial agencies may send wealthy customers to a private consultant and a low-value customer to a call center.Thousands of articles from reputable sources will tell you that your business is wasting resources on low-value cust omers. Not everyone agrees.A couple Wharton professors will tell you to keep your low-value customers, because if you don’t, competitors will poach your more profitable customers.The professors advise you to instead improve the quality of service to high-value customers and manage the costs related to low-value customers.   Their philosophy implies a shift from money management to customer relationship management is needed to retain a competitive advantage.I can improve the quality of service to high-value customers by: _________________________________.I can better manage the costs related to low-value customers by: ________________________________.Loyalty SecretsSometimes loyalty programs are a secret, but they don’t stay secret for long.A posh hotel had a secret loyalty program which gave personal ambassadors to high-tier guests.Those guests couldn’t help but proclaim their satisfaction and stature. The Marriott’s loyal members had the opportunity to release baby sea turt les into the sea.I can create this unique experience for my loyal members: _________________________.I can create this experience that showcases my unique community: _______________________.Loyalty programs should provide social benefit and special treatment.In return, your business receives higher purchasing frequency, lower customer churn, and savings in your customer acquisition budget. You should also receive plenty of free advertising.To build loyalty, you have to reduce churn drivers. Why do people leave and what is it costing you? Find out before you lose a lifetime customer.Lifetime Value of Customer RelationshipsCustomer lifetime values based on mathematical formulas are a useful metric for developing strategies, focus and budgets.They range from the easy to the complex. The metric does not represent the full value of the customer. You cannot see all of your customers’ interactions outside your company.Your low-value customer could have been the person that told your high -value customer to check out your website.Even if you had the access to pull all the analytics from every customer’s social media platform, you won’t have their family dinner discussions, professional interactions at work, and interactions while traveling.What if you could help all of your customers be successful? Lifetime value would increase.Innovation is the key.Harvard Business Review points out innovation investments increases a customer’s health and wealth. When you help customers be successful (Apple) your business is successful.Let building customer relationships be your guide. Use innovation to thrive.Customer lifetime value metrics are a tool to help you maintain a strong fire with customers while keeping your business profitable.To find your customer lifetime value, you will need to look at purchasing frequency, revenue streams, acquisition costs, servicing costs, a discount rate, and the length of customer retention expectancy.Not an easy task.A University of Sydne y Professor, Geoff Fripp, was kind enough to provide a free CLV calculator and free Excel spreadsheets on his throwback to the 1990s website.Harvard Business Review has a classy slide calculator to help you calculate customer lifetime value.If you have a few million to spare you could just follow Nike’s lead and acquire a consumer data analytics company.   Nike’s primary focus working with Zodiac’s data will be NikePlus members.   Thanks to Nike’s new analytics, revenues have increased since Zodiac joined the team.Can’t afford to acquire an analytics company? The April 2017 issue of Business and Management Review, Volume 8 Number 4, in the article “The importance of customer lifetime value in determining their profitability” by Grzegorz Lew, has a general formula and a more complex formula for determining customer lifetime value:Entrepreneur.com has one of the easiest customer lifetime value formulas around:The simplest way to estimate lifetime value: Plug actual or es timated (if you’re in the planning stages or just starting out) numbers into the following equation:(Average Value of a Sale) X (Number of Repeat Transactions) X (Average Retention Time in Months or Years for a Typical Customer)An easy example would be the lifetime value of a gym member who spends $20 every month for 3 years. The value of that customer would be:$20 X 12 months X 3 years = $720 in total revenue (or $240 per year)Now go plug in your numbers or ask your analytics team to do the math.The lifetime value of one of my customers is: $__________________.Use your results to implement and test customer acquisition and retention strategies. Rinse and Repeat.Fire up your customers for a lifetime. Get them excited about your unique loyalty programs. Gear them up for success in their personal and professional lives.Keep your business focused on building hot customer relationships and your company will see the light to a profitable future.