by: Maxine Goulding, California Special Occasions Any event you host or endorse is a direct reflection of your business or company. Before you start planning an event and sending out invitations, you need to know a few things about the meeting industry in general. What exactly is the effort needed and guidelines surrounding the production of a successful event? Why hold an event? What is your objective? To build brand [...]
by Roberta Kiphuth, Detati Digital Marketing Is newsletter marketing is worth the time and effort? Do people even read them anymore? The answer is YES!...but...they need to provide value.An e-newsletter can be a great tool for building trust and expertise. But make them educational, funny, interesting, and not sales-y. Build Your List Ensure that you only send to contacts who have proactively requested (signed up for) the newsletter. Not only [...]
Before investing on the latest on-demand training to comply with Gov. Code 12950.1, take a few minutes to reflect what you would like to accomplish. For some firms, checking a completion box is sufficient. However, this may be a prime opportunity to open critical dialogue to influence how your employees interact with each other and reduce potential problems. And there is nothing like sharing live face time to get them [...]
Professional development is known to be one of the top markers for employee retention. When bringing a superb program to your diverse workforce, how can you ensure that the learning goes beyond the classroom? Oftentimes attendees will nod in agreement, mainly out of being polite to the enthusiastic presenter. But if your learners come from varied backgrounds - diverse countries, races, ethnicity - they may not be getting the knowledge [...]
Randi Ross co-founded holding company Lucross Holdings in 2017 with the theory of using diversification for financial security. It's a strategy that comes from a very personal place. Having immigrated to the United States from Saigon as a 6-year-old, Ross withstood the childhood trauma of witnessing a father who was abusive to a mother who refused to leave the marriage. "I have been very determined to ensure that I am independent and [...]
Are you setting up a home-based office and feel overwhelmed by the unlimited tools available to get your basic business technology in place? Are you concerned about staying within a budget? If the answer is "YES," this course is for you! Led by an expert in teaching workplace technology, Eugenia Lunden will show you the steps and tools you necessary to be functional. Learn the secrets of controlling your initial costs [...]
February is the month of love and passion, whether it's for the ones we hold dear to our hearts or for the pursuit of goals that make us excited for living a full life. My recent trip to Scottsdale, Arizona for the NAWBO Leadership Development Training (LDT) made me realize how passionate I am about NAWBO's mission and the importance of our sisterhood. NAWBO is driven to empower and propel [...]
Submitted by: Maxine Goulding, CSO - California Special Occasions Event Planner/Owner Understanding the differences in generations and the value they add will become a key competitive advantage in any organization. For business success, we will have to learn to shift our marketing,leadership styles and approach to recruiting to stay relevant in this new marketplace. Here's a quick overview of the five generations and key factors for each generation by birth [...]
Submitted by: Jennifer Dizon, CPA, Hood & Strong LLP Final IRS regulations on the qualified business income deduction are out. How will they affect your 2018 taxes? The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) includes a generous deduction for smaller businesses that operate as pass-through entities, with income that is "passed through" to owners and taxed as individual income. The IRS has released final regulations and additional guidance for the [...]
Submitted by: Jennifer Dizon, CPA, Hood & Strong LLP Before the The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) generally prohibited deductions for expenses related to entertainment, amusement or recreation (commonly referred to as entertainment expenses). It provided exceptions for entertainment expenses "directly related" to or "associated" with conducting business. The IRC further limited deductions for food and beverage expenses that satisfied one of the exceptions. [...]