SmallBusinessExecutiveInforming, Inspiring and Connecting Businesses
Lillian Bjorseth: Why women leaders need to speak up to be heard
By Lillian Bjorseth Guest Columnist Women, it’s not enough to know what you know. You have to sound as if you know what you know. Have you ever been in a meeting and made a really good point, yet people keep right on talking? Shortly thereafter, a man makes the same point and he is [...]
Esquire picks Chicago’s Drawing Room as best in America
Esquire magazine has selected The Drawing Room, 937 N. Rush St., as one of the best bars in America. The magazine describes the establishment as “functional, not fancy,” with comfortable chairs and low tables in a modern basement setting. It highlights the bar’s Old Man, the Monk and the Sea cocktail. To read more, see the magazine’s [...]
Workers’ comp reform fails in the House
A workers’ compensation reform bill that would have saved Illinois employers $500 million to $700 million a year failed in the Illinois House Sunday evening, after sweeping the Illinois Senate Saturday, the Chicago Tribune reported. Strong opposition from the Illinois State Medical Society pressured House Republicans to kill the bill, which would have cut fees to doctors [...]
Lillian Bjorseth: How to be a better listener
Lillian Bjorseth offers tips for improving listening skills in business; Photo courtesy of Duoforce Enterprises. By Lillian D. Bjorseth Guest columnist You tell others how much you care by how well you listen. Why wouldn’t everyone try to do it well? That’s why I am raising the question, Is listening a lost art? I find [...]
Winning Workplaces recognizes four Chicago-area businesses
Evanston-based Winning Workplaces and Inc. magazine have named four Chicago-area small businesses top workplaces as part of a national contest, which honored 50 companies for their exemplary people practices and outstanding workplace cultures. The Chicago-area winners include Applications Software Technology, a Naperville IT firm specializing in Oracle applications; Gold Eagle, a manufacturer of HEET and other automotive products; LaSalle [...]
Templeton launches OhSoWe to help neighbors help themselves
By Ann Meyer Serial entrepreneur Chuck Templeton is out to counter conspicuous consumption and build community with the launch of OhSoWe.com, a website designed to match neighbors’ needs with nearby resources. Templeton recently used the site to borrow a neighbor’s cooler and camp stove for the weekend. The site also could be used to find [...]
GlobalBiz: Michael Muth interviews local tech exec about opportunities in Iraq
By Michael Muth, GlobalBiz columnist Increasingly, small businesses are targeting a global market. In this GlobalBiz c0lumn, Michael Muth interviewed technology project manager and Wilmette resident Terry Tierney, who spent12 months in Iraq during 2007 and 2008 as part of a Computer Sciences Corp. team charged with evaluating Iraqi factories owned by the central government and determining [...]
Jenny Schade: Everyday ethics develop reputations
By Jenny Schade Guest Columnist – Arnold Schwarzenegger decided not to tell his wife or top aides until last week about the child he fathered 13 years ago with a member of his household staff. Former Berkshire Hathaway executive David Sokol traded shares in Lubrizol Corp. while pitching the company to boss Warren Buffet as [...]
Beverage entrepreneurs jump on functional bandwagon
By Ann Meyer After tiring of wasting time trying to fall asleep, Chuck Hamman created his own liquid solution, a new functional beverage called Sleepyhead. The beverage, which comes in a 5.5-ounce can and retails for abougt $2.39, has a milk-based consistency and contains melatonin, gamma amino butyric acid, calcium, magnesium and valerian root to [...]
Former Pepsico exec bootstraps national launch of innovative beverage
By Ann Meyer Scott Lerner is proving you don’t need big bucks to muscle a new beverage onto the crowded natural-foods shelves. Lerner, a former new product executive at Pepsico who worked on Naked Juice after the giant acquired the niche natural beverage company, is banking on his management background and entrepreneurial spirit as he [...]
