April 1, 2001
- Letters
- Readers respond to articles from the January and February issues of Inc., including Mike Hofman's "An American Start-Up", Norm Brodsky's "Your Good Name" and Leigh Buchanan's "The Idealist".
- Valley Legend's Biggest Road Show Ever
- Venture capital icon Gib Myers is rallying support for an audacious new project: getting start-ups to give time and equity to non-profits -- before those start-ups have even made a dime themselves.
- Hot Tip: Payroll Taxes
- The new way the IRS collects payroll taxes could affect millions of small businesses.
- The Right Price
- Too many new entrepreneurs harm their own prospects by underpricing their goods and services. But if those company owners just take the time to think, they can set their prices closer to fair market value.
- Obits: Plan to Make T-Shirts in USA Unravels
- A series of setbacks led to Port Barre Apparel's rapid unraveling.
- Hot Tip: Board Meetings
- Get the maximum value from your board of directors.
- I Might Just Take You Up On That
- Andrew Raskin, Inc.'s intrepid young entrepreneur, explores some interesting offers from that have come his way.
- Trust but Verify
- Aaron Kennedy, president of Noodles & Co., uses "secret shoppers" to keep tabs on each of his 20 restaurants.
- Ace Distribution Takes Legwork
- Here's how playing detective helped this education-products vendor to revamp his distribution strategy.
- Fanatics!
- During these soft economic times, small businesses are uniquely positioned to offer something that many lumbering giants can't: peerless customer service. Here are four ways that small companies are delivering cutting-edge customer service -- on a budget.
- Help (Still) Wanted
- It's never been tougher for companies to hire unskilled workers, and the shortage is going to get worse. Fortunately, some smart companies have figured out how to attack the problem.
- Can Business Still Save The World?
- Meet the new breed of socially responsible CEOs. They share the goals of activist pioneers like Body Shop cofounder Anita Roddick and Ben & Jerry's Ben Cohen -- but are taking radically different approaches to activism.
- The Mystery of The Blood Red Ledger
- CEO Fred LeFranc quickly realized that something was poisoning the profits at Louise's Trattoria, and he didn't have long to find out what.
- Frank Lautenberg: My Biggest Mistake
- Frank Lautenberg, cofounder of Automatic Data Processing Inc. and former U.S. senator from New Jersey, discusses an unwise acquisition.
- New to the HR Brew
- This advertising agency spent $30,000 to build its own in-house coffee bar to recruit and retain top creative people. was it worth it?
- In a Former Life: Len Rodman
- Len Rodman, CEO of a $2.4-billion engineering and construction company, discusses how he learned the importance of understanding employee strengths and weaknesses.
- Book Value: As God is My Witness
- A spate of recent business books implore CEOs to ask "What would Jesus do?" An unearthly consideration of books that claim divine inspiration.
- Putting Your Company on the Block
- When you put your company on the block, potential buyers may urge you to sell them your company's assets rather than its stock. Your decision can have serious tax and legal implications.
- Business for Sale: North Carolina-Based Photo Studio
- The snapshot: this North Carolina-based photo studio has corporate customers any company should shoot for. But when you look at the big picture, does its asking price make sense?
- CEO's Notebook
- Links to this issue's CEO's Notebook of mini-articles on delivering painful layoff news gracefully, revamping your distribution strategy, and tying employee bonuses to spot tests of service.
