SAVE THE DATE

The Santa Barbara Women's CPA Lunch Group and The CPA/Law Society of Santa Barbara County are co-hosting as special event for small businesses.

Topic: Good to Great for Professionals and Small Business
Date: September 17, 2007

Based on the book Good to Great by Jim Collins, documentary film maker Sam Tyler will provide a customized presentation using several case studies and parts of his various films (including Good to Great) to show professionals and small businesses how they can create truly great businesses here in Santa Barbara.

Thank you to:
Our Platinum Sponsor - Business First Bank
Gold Sponsors - TBA
Supporting Organizations - Santa Barbara Chapter of ASWA & Others TBA

Watch blog posts for more information.

It's What You Stand For

“It’s not what you make. It’s what you stand
for.”

Jim Collins

With that in mind, many businesses will create a mission statement and establish a set of core values.

The first step is to create a mission statement and establish a set of core values. The second step, which many businesses fail to do, is to incorporate the mission statement and core values into everything the business does.

Take, for example, a CPA firm. Let’s say that they establish Integrity as one of their core values. If you call that firm and ask for a price for various service, more likely than not, you will get a response similar to this: “Our fees are based on the time required by the individuals assigned to the engagement, plus direct expenses. Individual hourly rates vary according to the degree of responsibility involved and the skill required.”

How does that response answer your question? It doesn’t. And, where’s the integrity in that?

In order to stand for something, a business needs to have a mission statement and a set of core values. And, these must be incorporated into everything the business does, including pricing policies, sales process, product/service offerings, customer selection criteria, etc.

Does your CPA stand for something? Do they have a mission statement and a set of core values? Have they incorporated these into everything they do, including pricing? Or is there a disconnect between what they say and do?

On a final note, is you need to create a mission statement, establish a set of core values, and incorporate these into everything your business does, talk to a Principa CPA. He/she has the tools and special worksheets to get you started and complete the process.