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Network: July 1992

Network questions and answers.

How do you bring a son into the business? License designs to a manufacturer? Manage an office move? We sought the experts' advice on those questions and more. See if you agree; then add your two cents by mailing, faxing, or calling in your advice.

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Royalty Treatment
I want to license my sportswear designs to a manufacturer for a royalty. Where do I find the right company, and what can I ask for in such a business arrangement?

Name Withheld

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Start at the library. Prospect in Thomas Register of American Manufacturers, which indexes products, trademark names, and company contacts. Check a prospective company's net worth, sales volume, production capabilities, market share, and general reputation in Moody's Manuals or Hoover's Handbooks. (See "License to Steal," No. 12881411, December 1988.)

Next, query your best prospects. An effective query letter, according to Waltham, Mass., patent lawyer Joe Iandiorio, should contain a quick description of your property and estimates of production materials, equipment, and costs. Point out how you'll complement a company's product line, create a niche, and boost market share and profitability. Protect yourself with a confidential disclosure agreement (Hot Seat, August 1991 Network). Iandiorio's series of brochures, "New Ideas, Methods and Products: An Intellectual Property Primer," details contract options, international safeguards, and technology transfer ($14.95 for five brochures; call 617-890-5678).

If manufacturers respond favorably, talk to a lawyer about pricing. The length of the license will determine a payment scheme, so build around it. Valuations should reflect all the costs that went into realizing the design: research and development, legal, accounting, and engineering are a few. Try to put a price tag on any benefit to the licensee's bottom line. Royalties run higher for exclusive licenses than for nonexclusive, because of the risk that your partner won't fulfill promises. For a discussion of fee negotiation, check out Licensing: A Strategy for Profits (KEW Licensing Press, 1990, $30; 919-929-7283). It walks novices through real-world experiences -- good and bad -- in a variety of industries and lists books, seminars, and professional groups.

Also, the Inventor Consultation Service of the American Intellectual Property Law Association (703-415-0780) publishes How to Protect and Benefit from Your Ideas ($9.95 for the book plus a half-hour consultation).

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Smooth Move
I am moving my business to new offices less than a mile away, and I want to do it as smoothly as possible. Are there any resources that would help me plan a move? What should I think about?

Roger Jantio

Managing Director

Sterling International Group

Washington, D.C.

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To avoid problems on moving day, Dorothy Erwin, president of Facility Options Group, a consultant in Minneapolis, suggests clearing up details beforehand:

* Does your building have any rules governing when you can move? Weekend and evening moves are expensive.

* Are the doors big enough? Erwin recalls a $10,000 conference table so big the company had to get approval from its building's insurance company to put it on top of the elevator.

* Are there adequate dock sites to load and unload furniture and equipment at both your old and your new buildings? Will moving trucks fit into the garages?

* Make sure you have latitude in your contracts with the movers, so you can reschedule without penalty if the space isn't ready on time.

A professional consultant can help with all those details. Facilities managers at larger corporations can advise you, too. Call one directly, or call the International Facility Management Association (IFMA) at 800-359-4362; it can refer you to one. The IFMA research library will suggest articles and books concerning moving, space planning, and more, all for a research fee of $35 to $50. Also, check Inc.'s back issues for "Movers, Not Shakers" (In the Office, No. 06911432, June 1991) and "Is Your Move Covered?" (In the Office, No. 12911701, December 1991).

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Serves You Right
Our medical-electronics company employs outside contract agents for about half of our service calls. I want to maximize customer satisfaction and minimize callbacks. I've tied our full-time in-house service engineers' compensation to renewals of service agreements. Is there a similar way to motivate contractors?

Joe Melcher

Regional-Support Manager

Read more:

What You're Not Doing to Maximize Profit (But Should Be)

Redbox's Smart Move: What You Can Learn

What Makes a Company Resilient?

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