Ideas

Why did you lose the sale? Really?

Seventy four percent of salespeople complain about losing a sale because their price was too high. And 74 percent of them are wrong.

Personnel File

Accounting

Vrakas/Blum, S.C., based in Brookfield, has promoted James Broughton and Scott Syrjala to managers within the firm's tax department. Broughton will focus on tax planning and compliance for closely-held businesses, and Syrjala will focus on providing tax planning, compliance and research support to clients in manufacturing, service, construction and retail. Syrjala also serves as co-manager of the firm's personal property tax group and will help develop and train new department staff members.

Take a trip: Journeys abroad teach us about opportunities and threats

As businesspeople, we need to know the potential impact of our world's variations in currency values, emerging markets, international politics and shrinking margins.

Take these steps to seize new opportunities

The sole purpose of a business is to grow. This can take on many dimensions – acquisitions, grabbing more market share, or new product or service, just to name a few. Many people get stuck and never grow because they think, “This is how we have always done it!” Or, when they want to grow and make changes, they do not understand the steps needed for a smart calculated risk.

Pursue your own dream

University of California-Berkeley psychologist Dacher Keltner and his team conducted a study on awe. They had a group of people complete 20 sentences beginning with “I am...”

Avoid the pitfalls of failed leaders

Question:

"I wonder if you can address the topic of leadership flaws. What are some common mistakes or traps that leaders fall into? I'm the HR manager at my company, and we're exploring the idea of offering some focused leadership development but want to be sure we address the right things. Any suggestions?"

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Fast Five Award Winners

Meet the five fastest growing companies in Kenosha County.

Kopper is Kenosha County Entrepreneur of the Year

Michael Kopper

Title: Founder and CEO

Company: Centrisys Corp.

Industry: Centrifuge manufacturing

Address: 9586 58th Place, Kenosha

What makes a great workplace?

Kahler Slater, a Milwaukee-based interdisciplinary design enterprise, recently published a whitepaper titled, "What Makes a Great Workplace?" The whitepaper...