Here’s a great article by Roberta Matuson with five easy ideas/strategies for boosting profitability in 2010. (I’m especially a fan of ideas 1, 3, and 5. Let me know if we can help you!)

Five Ways to Boost Profitability in 2010

#1. Pick One Idea to Move Forward

If you are like most executives, there are at least 20 ideas on your 2010 ”to-do” list. Picking the perfect place to begin can take weeks or in some cases months. That’s just time wasted. Pick one idea from your list and move forward. Don’t second guess yourself for even a minute or you will be right back where you started.

Put the majority of your resources behind this idea so that you move one thing forward a mile, rather than move ten things a quarter of an inch. At first you may feel uncomfortable abandoning everything else on your list. This discomfort will dissipate as you see how quickly you are able to achieve results by remaining focused on the task at hand.

#2. Drop the dead weight

I’m not talking about the few pounds you might have put on during the holiday season. I’m talking about your non-performers whom you’ve been hanging onto because you didn’t want to fire them at Christmas time. Then, of course, you didn’t want to let them go for a myriad of other reasons throughout the year.

This is the year to be lean and trim. Excess weight slows down the organization and in some cases can be the death of companies. Don’t let this happen to you. Identify the people or positions that must be shed and then make it happen. You will be surprised at how easily you can outrun the competition now that you are in shape.

#3. Increase communication

One of the most common complaints that employee surveys keep bringing to light is the lack of communication between employers and their employees. Employees want to do a good job for their employers, yet they feel like they are operating without a roadmap. They no longer know which direction the company is headed, and are having a difficult time figuring it out on their own.

The price to increase communication has dropped substantially over the years. You no longer need to hire a PR firm to craft messages, nor are company intranets only reserved for Fortune 500 companies. Companies of all sizes are using technology to get their messages out to their employees. Some are using webcasts or weekly teleconferences. Others are using a company blog on their intranet that allows executives to immediately post messages to ensure employees stay connected. Finally, do not discount the importance of face-to-face meetings, which are affordable for organizations of all sizes.

#4. Connect with a trusted resource

It is no secret that 2009 was a tough year for most, and it looks like 2010 will be starting off the same way. As you probably have figured out by now, it can be very stressful trying to work through challenging times without a trusted resource or a peer group with whom you can share your thoughts and ideas. Why go it alone when resources are available?

Find a CEO group, an executive group, or whatever group will have like-minded people in attendance. Ask a trusted colleague for a referral to an executive coach or a mentor. Just do something so that you have access to a trusted resource to help push your thinking to a whole new level.

#5. Be the leader everyone wants to follow

How liberating it must be to be a company like Google or Apple. You are so far ahead of the competition that you don’t even have to look in your rearview mirror before changing lanes. Few companies ever reach this position because they are so busy trying to catch up with the competition. These companies move slowly, analyze everything to death, and kill innovation before it even has a chance to germinate into something big.

Imagine what your organization could accomplish if you charged ahead with little regard for others in your industry, took calculated risks, encouraged innovation, and rewarded employees who joined you on this ride. You might create a product others have only dreamed about or build a brand as strong as Coke. You could accomplish some amazing things, which sounds a lot more exciting than breathing the exhaust fumes from your competitors as they zip by you.

A new year is a gift. We have a chance to begin again and to do things differently. How will you proceed? Here’s to a great 2010!

2009 is coming to a close. End your year on the right note – by saying “thank you” to your team!

General kinds of appreciation are good; but specific acknowledgments are even better. Why?  Because it tells people you are really paying attention…to them. Here are some ideas…

• “This is what you did that really mattered to me, to our company, to our customers…” Give examples.
• “Look at what we accomplished this year. We could not have done it without you…” And then list what they did or provided or how they approached things that made THE difference.
• Share a memorable story that demonstrates who your employees are and what they do or did that you appreciate.

People want to know that they matter. Take this year-end opportunity to make your “thank yous” really count!

(For your reflection: Can you think of a “thank you” that stayed with you long after the message was delivered?  What made the difference for you?)

A recent survey from Adecco Group North America highlights the increased dissatisfaction workers in America have with their employers. According to the survey: 

Fact Company recently published a great article on Employee Engagement by CEO Roberta Matuson in which she listed five ways you can really tick off your employees and secure a Human Resource catastrophe in your near future.

1. Provide daily reminders - Remind employees how lucky they are to have a job. Do this on a daily basis. Tell them how fortunate they are to be receiving a paycheck. Never mind their check is 10% less than what they originally signed up for. Remember to include this reminder at your weekly meetings, when you take them out to lunch to thank them for their efforts, and at this year’s office party.
2. Freeze raises and bonuses – Jump on the bandwagon. Everyone else is doing it, so why shouldn’t you? Doesn’t matter if your profits are soaring or if your employees know you’ve had your best year ever. This is a great time to rein in costs, even if your costs are already in line.
3. Renege on your promises – You told people their reduction in pay would be temporary. However, you now view these changes as permanent. Of course you’ve decided not to tell anyone, until they ask.
4. Put a moratorium on promotions – Ask people to do the work of those who have been let go, and insist on holding back a title change and pay increase. Call this “self-development,” since you are giving people a wonderful opportunity to increase their skills. Something few employers seem to be doing.
5. Send mixed messages – Tell your employees they are your most valuable asset. Then remind them that everyone is replaceable. Just to prove your point, be sure to replace a highly respected member of your team, with someone who is less experienced and less expensive.

In case you missed it – those are meant to be funny! But don’t miss this -- it’s time to get back to team-building basics. First, admit you have a problem. Then you can begin the lengthy process of rebuilding trust in your organization. Or, you can continue with business as usual and watch your employees flee the minute the economy shows signs of recovery.

During challenging times, business leaders start running around looking for new marketing wonder-gigits and social media miracles, believing that, with the RIGHT tool, their marketing needs will be solved and a steady stream of qualified customers will come flooding in the door. But, as much as we wish it otherwise, there are no "shortcuts" to building trust – and trust is the key component to effective branding and marketing.

In the book Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace…One School at a Time, Greg Mortenson tells about the process required to build trust in Baltistan (northern Pakistan). He relates a Baltistani proverb: "The first time you share tea with a Balti, you are a stranger. The second time, you are an honored guest. The third time you become family." Whether your trust building efforts require more or less than three “touches,” the idea is right on. If you want to be welcomed and trusted, you have to be willing to invest the time to be invited and known.

Take a few moments to consider how you could improve your “trust-building.” Once you have a few ideas, give yourself a deadline to put something into practice.

To paraphrase Winston Churchill, “Never in the field of commercial business has so much been damaged, for so many, by so few.” The failure of expectations has been widespread, severe, and rapid. Clearly, our previous approach to leadership will be discredited—but what will replace it?

A return to principled leadership. The kind we admire. The kind we tell stories about. People have been thinking and writing about this kind of leadership for 3,000 years. Deep in our cultural cellars there is a forgotten vintage of thinking that must be resurrected to lubricate the rebuilding of our economy.

The old truths, and important ones, suggest that to lead, leaders must have foresight, and they must lead by example. They must motivate and inspire on a moral basis, through aspiration as well as rewards and punishments. It is precisely this calm, considered, and ethical leadership, required to lead and inspire large numbers of people when the economics are tough, that seems in such short supply today.

Take a few moments to read Richard Raulson’s complete article, “Leadership Lessons and the Economic Crisis: Where We’ve Come From and Where We’re Headed.”