Youthful populations and burgeoning middle classes, from Pacific nations and the African continent to China, offer unprecedented opportunities for growth and profit for enterprising U.S. companies. As a businessperson, you already know that knowledge is power, and research is key to successful start-up and market growth. What if there were a free resource that can be … [More]
Five Questions to Ask Yourself Before Opening Your OWN Small Business
It’s been a dream for a long time: opening your own business. You’ve had the ideas scribbled on cocktail napkins, a budget long in the works, and now you finally have the money, the resources and the support to launch what’s long been a passionate idea into your very own business. But before you commit, take a breath and ask yourself these five questions that may save your … [More]
Global Success Takes a New Skillset and Mindset
In today’s fast-moving globalizing economy, “what got you here” some years ago will help, but it won’t “get you there” altogether. To lead in the modern global marketplace, you have to add something more. At Thunderbird Executive Education, we are finding that even seasoned global executives need to upgrade their skills to keep pace with the two overarching phenomena dictating … [More]
Forget about the Fortune 500. The future belongs to the Fortune 5 Million.
It seems as though you can’t turn on the television or pick up a magazine without coming across someone extolling the virtues of small business and its role in today’s economy. This renewed focus on small business is only the beginning. In fact, I believe that while the 20th century was dominated by the Fortune 500, the 21st century belongs to the Fortune 5 Million. The … [More]
Building an International Economic Network (“BIEN”)
Are you making all the best business contacts? Connecting your business to just the right people in a new trade region can be challenging. The Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG) and its partners have launched a first-of-its-kind website that allows companies in Arizona, Mexico and Canada to directly connect with each other. Using a comprehensive database, you can search … [More]
Get Ready for Exporting: Create the Foundation
I remember when we first started trying to sell our products and services internationally. We identified a few customers that we thought had a need for our services, started sending them information and then went on trips to call on them directly. Looking back, we made so many mistakes and wasted a ton of money. Even though we’ve done very well, we could have grown twice as … [More]
Bullish on Global Phoenix
I have always been bullish on Phoenix, and from the unique vantage point I enjoyed for 17 years on the publisher’s platform of the Phoenix Business Journal, I saw plenty of evidence to back up the optimism. And now just a few weeks into a new journey, I am even more convinced than ever that this region has the right people with the right spirit and energy that, collectively, … [More]
Foreign Policy, in Phoenix?
Phoenix Committee on Foreign Relations invites guest speakers from around the world to discuss important foreign policy issues. We hold evening dinners and lunches — including the annual “International State of the State” in October with global and local speakers discussing Arizona’s place in the world. We welcome Arizonans with an international background to attend and apply … [More]
Building Loyal Customers Across Borders
We’ve mapped business processes in more than 300 enterprises across six continents, deploying more than 25,000 processes and 750,000 process improvements worldwide. Building customer loyalty across town or across borders comes from understanding what customers want and then building a better Customer Value Package (CVP). Customer value comes through customers’ perception, not … [More]
Go South of the Border
Phoenix is yet another city divided by railroad tracks. I recommend that you cross the tracks into South Phoenix and visit Comedor Guadalajara, my wife’s and my favorite restaurant in Phoenix. The food is prepared by skilled Mexican chefs who put love and great care into every dish. It shows! Tasting the chicken enchiladas and Enchiladas de Camaron (green chile and tomatillo … [More]
