According to Robert Lawton, the best retirement plans have seven common attributes of success. Based on these characteristics, is your plan a winner?
Monday, June 13, 2011
Seven common attributes of retirement plans
Employee Benefit News
According to Robert Lawton, the best retirement plans have seven common attributes of success. Based on these characteristics, is your plan a winner?
According to Robert Lawton, the best retirement plans have seven common attributes of success. Based on these characteristics, is your plan a winner?
Giving Clients What They Need
Advisor One
Are there ways to prevent clients from acting on self-defeating impulses and faulty thinking? Look to the fascinating findings of behavioral finance.
In his new book, What Investors Really Want (McGraw-Hill), Meir Statman, Santa Clara University professor of finance and behavioral finance researcher, provides deep insight into just what drives investor decisions.
Are there ways to prevent clients from acting on self-defeating impulses and faulty thinking? Look to the fascinating findings of behavioral finance.
In his new book, What Investors Really Want (McGraw-Hill), Meir Statman, Santa Clara University professor of finance and behavioral finance researcher, provides deep insight into just what drives investor decisions.
Friday, June 10, 2011
System Failure: Cleaning up Waste's Dirty Deals
Waste Management World
20 May 2011
A new report on illegal e-waste trafficking will once again spark debate over developed countries' cavalier attitudes when it comes to shipping off broken computers to Third World countries, says WMW chief editor Tom Freyberg.
… However, the scandal of illegal e-waste dumping, or waste trafficking as it's known, is not new. Over the years newspapers and environmental groups from around the world continue to publicise horrifying pictures of African and Asian children in developing countries putting their health and lives at risk.
Image via WikipediaSmall amounts of valuable metals, such as gold and copper are the target and obtaining these materials by hand is a dangerous task. … Copper wires are bundled and set on fire to remove flame-resistant coatings. CRT monitors are smashed with hammers. Any leftovers are often dumped in landfills, rivers or again, burnt. During this manual process toxic dioxins and plumes of cadmium dust are released.
… In 2009, a joint investigation found e-waste deposited at a council civil amenity site in Hampshire, England ended up in an electronics market in Lagos, Nigeria. … Many nations may point the finger of blame towards developed European countries but a new report from the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) has found that the U.S. also joins the list of 'e-waste usual suspects', including the UK, Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands.
Image via WikipediaCurrent regulations mean it is illegal to trade hazardous waste across national borders, if the receiving country does not consent to receive the goods. It's also prohibited for the EU to send hazardous waste to non-OECD countries. …
… Traders knowingly sell on e-waste for illegal export to developing countries, in the process breaking 'duty of care' responsibilities.
So what can be done? … The EIA recommends all electronic goods leaving civic amenity sites should be quantified and audited before being taken away.
Increased enforcement and funding will help with the issue but it ultimately comes down to one factor: companies should find profit elsewhere and take full global responsibility for their actions.
- Tom Freyberg is the chief editor of Waste Management World magazine.
EIA undercover investigations have revealed the extent to which illegal e-waste smugglers have penetrated the waste stream at every level. The full report can be read HERE
20 May 2011 A new report on illegal e-waste trafficking will once again spark debate over developed countries' cavalier attitudes when it comes to shipping off broken computers to Third World countries, says WMW chief editor Tom Freyberg.
… However, the scandal of illegal e-waste dumping, or waste trafficking as it's known, is not new. Over the years newspapers and environmental groups from around the world continue to publicise horrifying pictures of African and Asian children in developing countries putting their health and lives at risk.
Image via WikipediaSmall amounts of valuable metals, such as gold and copper are the target and obtaining these materials by hand is a dangerous task. … Copper wires are bundled and set on fire to remove flame-resistant coatings. CRT monitors are smashed with hammers. Any leftovers are often dumped in landfills, rivers or again, burnt. During this manual process toxic dioxins and plumes of cadmium dust are released. 
Image via WikipediaCurrent regulations mean it is illegal to trade hazardous waste across national borders, if the receiving country does not consent to receive the goods. It's also prohibited for the EU to send hazardous waste to non-OECD countries. … So what can be done? … The EIA recommends all electronic goods leaving civic amenity sites should be quantified and audited before being taken away.
Increased enforcement and funding will help with the issue but it ultimately comes down to one factor: companies should find profit elsewhere and take full global responsibility for their actions.
- Tom Freyberg is the chief editor of Waste Management World magazine.
EIA undercover investigations have revealed the extent to which illegal e-waste smugglers have penetrated the waste stream at every level. The full report can be read HERE
Friday, June 3, 2011
This Month, a New Financing Crisis for Small Businesses
Smallbiztrends blog
June 3, 2011
By Dawn R. Rivers
Since a lot of folks (primarily policymakers) seem to think that small businesses don’t need anything at all but access to debt financing in order to thrive, it’s interesting that we have a couple of highly relevant bits of nongovernmental research on the subject this month….
Financing, From a Slightly Different Angle
MultiFunding’s National Lending Snapshot for the first quarter of this year finds what it calls a “national collateral crisis” underway. According to its findings, MultiFunding divided small businesses into three groups: A) Asset-Rich Borrowers (31 percent of small businesses, in this survey), B) Moderate Borrowers (47 percent), and C) Non-Lendable Borrowers (15 percent).
The A borrowers should have no trouble getting bank financing and getting great rates, because they not only have the credit rating and the cash flow, they also have assets with which to secure loans.
The B borrowers have the credit and the cash flow, but they lack collateral and would have to turn to alternative lenders (factoring, unsecured loans with higher rates, friends and family, etc.).
The non-lendable borrowers, or C borrowers, are just what they sound like. Their only option would be microlenders and, even then, the amount they could borrow would be severely limited (most microlenders cap loans at $35,000 to $50,000).
Image via CrunchBaseMicroFunding concludes that we are facing a collateral crisis among small business owners. The challenge is particularly acute among small businesses earning less than $1 million in annual income but, no matter how you slice it, this survey suggests that a whopping 62 percent of small business owners would be unable to qualify for a bank loan right now (and only 20 percent would qualify for an SBA loan).
Image via WikipediaA new study by the Pew Charitable Trusts has found that American households receive more than 10 million offers per month for business credit cards, and the majority of those cards have “potentially harmful terms that would not be legal on those labeled for consumer use.” That’s because consumer credit cards fall under the jurisdiction of the Credit CARD Act of 2009, while business credit cards (the primary form of financing available to most microbusinesses) remain unprotected….
Dawn R. Rivers, an award-winning small business journalist, regularly reports and analyzes small business policy and research as the publisher of the MicroEnterprise Journal. She also publishes research at the Microbusiness Research Institute and she blogs at The MicroEnterprise Journal Blog.
June 3, 2011
By Dawn R. Rivers
Since a lot of folks (primarily policymakers) seem to think that small businesses don’t need anything at all but access to debt financing in order to thrive, it’s interesting that we have a couple of highly relevant bits of nongovernmental research on the subject this month….
Financing, From a Slightly Different Angle
MultiFunding’s National Lending Snapshot for the first quarter of this year finds what it calls a “national collateral crisis” underway. According to its findings, MultiFunding divided small businesses into three groups: A) Asset-Rich Borrowers (31 percent of small businesses, in this survey), B) Moderate Borrowers (47 percent), and C) Non-Lendable Borrowers (15 percent).
The A borrowers should have no trouble getting bank financing and getting great rates, because they not only have the credit rating and the cash flow, they also have assets with which to secure loans.
The B borrowers have the credit and the cash flow, but they lack collateral and would have to turn to alternative lenders (factoring, unsecured loans with higher rates, friends and family, etc.).
The non-lendable borrowers, or C borrowers, are just what they sound like. Their only option would be microlenders and, even then, the amount they could borrow would be severely limited (most microlenders cap loans at $35,000 to $50,000).
Image via CrunchBaseMicroFunding concludes that we are facing a collateral crisis among small business owners. The challenge is particularly acute among small businesses earning less than $1 million in annual income but, no matter how you slice it, this survey suggests that a whopping 62 percent of small business owners would be unable to qualify for a bank loan right now (and only 20 percent would qualify for an SBA loan).“Research showed that, in today’s economy, collateral is a key factor in determining interest rates. Credit and cash flow, previously important in assessing a small businesses’ credibility, have taken a backseat to equity in their balance sheet.”Buyer Beware
Image via WikipediaA new study by the Pew Charitable Trusts has found that American households receive more than 10 million offers per month for business credit cards, and the majority of those cards have “potentially harmful terms that would not be legal on those labeled for consumer use.” That’s because consumer credit cards fall under the jurisdiction of the Credit CARD Act of 2009, while business credit cards (the primary form of financing available to most microbusinesses) remain unprotected….About the Author
Dawn R. Rivers, an award-winning small business journalist, regularly reports and analyzes small business policy and research as the publisher of the MicroEnterprise Journal. She also publishes research at the Microbusiness Research Institute and she blogs at The MicroEnterprise Journal Blog.3 Common Reasons Businesses Fail–and How to Avoid Them
BNET
By Margaret Heffernan | June 2, 2011
![Cover of]()
Cover via AmazonMargaret Heffernan worked for 13 years as a producer for BBC Radio and Television before running her first company. She has since been CEO of five businesses in the United States and United Kingdom, including InfoMation Corporation, ZineZone Corporation and iCAST Corporation. She has been named one of the Internet's Top 100 by Silicon Alley Reporter and one of the Top 100 Media Executives by The Hollywood Reporter. Her books include The Naked Truth, How She Does It: How Female Entrepreneurs are Changing the Rules for Business Success , and the upcoming Willful Blindness. She has appeared on NPR, CNN, CNBC, and the BBC, and writes for Real Business,The Huffington Post, and Fast Company.
… After every disaster - Lehman Brothers, Deepwater Horizon, WaMu, Fukishima and 50 - 80 percent of M&A deals - participants look back and see all the warning signs they missed at the time. What made them so blind?
Multiple psychological, neurological and social causes explain willful blindness. But some of the biggest causes of disaster are among the simplest to avoid. Here are three:
1. Too little sleep … Just because we can keep turning up to work, we assume that we’re still competent. The brain science says otherwise. When tired, most of our energy goes to keeping awake; what we lose is our capacity for critical thinking. … But critical thinking is what we most need when doing deals and making crucial decisions.
2. Too much money
Lots of companies … pay ridiculous salaries. … But there’s a mounting body of evidence that shows that, the more money you have, the less socially engaged you are. You simply stop caring about other people. This is not a great mindset with which to do business.
3. An aversion to conflict
Image via Wikipedia… Conflict is a vital way to test new ideas and forge new thinking. The challenge isn’t to avoid conflict - but to learn to do it well. The National Transportation Safety Board estimated that 25 percent of all aircrashes could have been prevented if the pilot had been challenged when making an error. …
More sleep, less pay and a little more debate: that can’t be that hard — can it?
Watch my interview on the BNET Live show on this topic here:
By Margaret Heffernan | June 2, 2011
Margaret Heffernan
Biography
Margaret Heffernan
… After every disaster - Lehman Brothers, Deepwater Horizon, WaMu, Fukishima and 50 - 80 percent of M&A deals - participants look back and see all the warning signs they missed at the time. What made them so blind?
Multiple psychological, neurological and social causes explain willful blindness. But some of the biggest causes of disaster are among the simplest to avoid. Here are three:
1. Too little sleep … Just because we can keep turning up to work, we assume that we’re still competent. The brain science says otherwise. When tired, most of our energy goes to keeping awake; what we lose is our capacity for critical thinking. … But critical thinking is what we most need when doing deals and making crucial decisions.
2. Too much money
Lots of companies … pay ridiculous salaries. … But there’s a mounting body of evidence that shows that, the more money you have, the less socially engaged you are. You simply stop caring about other people. This is not a great mindset with which to do business.
3. An aversion to conflict
Image via Wikipedia… Conflict is a vital way to test new ideas and forge new thinking. The challenge isn’t to avoid conflict - but to learn to do it well. The National Transportation Safety Board estimated that 25 percent of all aircrashes could have been prevented if the pilot had been challenged when making an error. …More sleep, less pay and a little more debate: that can’t be that hard — can it?
Watch my interview on the BNET Live show on this topic here:
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