Leaving your day job

Leaving Your Day Job

Leaving your day job to start a home-base business is stressful, but if you plan properly, you can succeed. Depending on which type of home business you want to start, working from home is possible if you have a computer, Internet connection, and a workspace. You may also need to invest in printer, fax machine, and separate phone line if you need to talk with clients on a regular basis. The only other expense may be for marketing materials, website, or listings in phone directories. Researching your needs before starting your business can help so you can prepare a budget.

Before leaving your day job, make sure that you have enough in your savings account to cover at least three months worth of expenses. Because many businesses take at least two before you will see any profits, being prepared and not having to worry about living expenses and paying for emergency situations will help you concentrate on starting a solid business without being pressured to make a profit right away. If you have a spouse, make sure you discuss your idea with them. If they have a health insurance plan, ask them to add you to it if you are not already on it. This will save money in having to buy your own policy.

If you are planning to use your job as a reference or if you are planning to become a consultant for the company, make sure you leave your position on good terms. Give ample notice so your employer can find a replacement. If you are planning to become a consultant, maintain your current contacts as they may become useful later on.

Making the transition from working in an office to working from home is difficult for some people. The need to work all the time because you have access to your computer, and the potential ruts you will get into when working by yourself can be frustrating in the beginning. By developing a routine and sticking it will help you make the adjustment. Expanding your business and focusing on the future will also help. You should create a business plan that can help you reach your goals or at least define them. This will give you a greater sense of purpose.

When you are ready to leave your day job, you should have a solid plan on where you want your business to go. If you will be staying in the same field, take the skills you have learned and use them. Keep in mind that it will take hard work and determination to reach your goals, but that you will reach them eventually. Networking with other business professionals can help you increase your client base and help you make the transition even easier.

How to use spill control kits

How to Use Spill Control Kits

Every worker in any facility that comes in contact with chemicals, oil, acids, or bases must have access and knowledge on how to use Spill Control Kits. Laboratories, factories, oil depots, marine, and the like must have their own spill control kits installed and readily available. Hazmat spills must be removed by hazmat spill kits, oil spills must be cleaned up by oil-only spill kits, and the general spills must be addressed by universal spill kits. It is appropriate to use the correct and matching kit to any spill that occurred to avoid worsening the situation. Spill kits allow workers to quickly respond to an incident to manage potentially dangerous and costly spills.

Though the spill control kits are installed to be use, it is important to consider the need to use it. There are several factors that must be considered in deciding whether the kit must be opened. First, the size of the spill must match the capacity of the kit as well as the type of the spill. A larger spill may require a different kit than the ones installed. That is why it is recommended that before purchasing a kit, there must be a corresponding analysis of the place itself ahead of time. Next, the training and the knowledge on how to use the spill control kit of the personnel that will be using the kit is adequate to solve the problem. Otherwise, lack of expertise may worsen the spill. A manual where instructions and guidelines are written is helpful whenever there is a spill. The persons may refer to it on what are the steps to follow and how to use the spill control kit properly.

Then, the kit must have all the necessary materials needed. This includes protective gears and complete set of pads or gloves. The gloves must be clean and not contaminated before using them. Further, the pads must be made out of fine quality. A cheap absorbent may scatter the liquid than absorb it. Lastly, it is best to determine the extent of the cleaning process and whether there is a need to contact outsiders that can perform better than the employees of the company assigned to clean up spills. There are contractors that offer cleaning services. The only backlash is that they tend to charge higher fees. However, no matter how expensive the service they offer, it is crucial to put the goals of the business ahead of any expense. Any spill may cause bad effects to the company like on its image or on its operations.

Aside form the specialized procedures that are employed din using the different kinds of kits, there is one standard measure. This is to use spill control kits with proper care. There are precautionary measures on how to use spill control kits that must be on the watch out. Sometimes, the proper use of this kit is stated in the spill control plan of any company.

Therefore, the information on how to use spill control kits comes hand-in-hand with the kit itself.

Ilo: bpo conditions stressful

ILO: BPO Conditions Stressful

The International Labor Organization is out with the results of studies conducted on the BPO sector in the developing countries. The studies were conducted in countries like Argentina, Brazil, Philippines and India. The survey was carried out to find out how the call centers in these countries were functioning, with a keen eye on the working conditions and the pay that the call center agents were making.

The ILO has released the results. It states that the working conditions in business process outsourcing units in these countries are stressful. The report mentions that the BPO services executives were making more money than in the other sectors, but that is not adequate compensation for the lack of ideal working conditions.

ILO published the reports a couple of days back. It says that BPO employees in India made much more than an employee of another sector and belonging to the same hierarchy. In Philippines, the difference was even starker. The difference between the salaries was as high as 53%. The data makes no bones about the fact that the business process outsourcing industry was a place where you could make money.

No wonder, then, that many young professionals, fresh out of college, worked in call centers to earn some quick bucks. Once they complete their degrees, they promptly shifted to other career options because they cannot deal with the high-octane work atmosphere. So what are the call center stress factors listed by the ILO? Let’s check out!

Call centers work on targets. Every employee in a call center is subject to targets specified by numbers. The pressure to perform and meet those stiff daily targets gets to the employees. They are less receptive to something new or to innovations. The routine work eradicates any chances of spontaneity or thinking on fresh new lines. Moreover, the stress at the workplace is responsible for the risks of burnout.

Attrition rate is high in the call center industry because of the high-stress work environment. Beyond a certain period of time, the BPO employees are not able to continue working without feeling drained and emotionally exhausted. The aggressive caller on the other end of the line is another cause for stress. The BPO services employees freeze at the thought of surmounting that hurdle and make a successful telemarketing sale.

The ILO reports present a wonderful opportunity for the BPO units to mend their ways. It’s never too late to start afresh! The call centers have to monitor the stress levels on the employees strictly. Like they appraise performances, this is another area which needs regular appraisals. The call center agents can only perform well if they work in hassle-free offices.

As a matter of fact, targets are necessary. However, in their bid to cut costs, BPO services shed employees fast. This puts additional pressure on the employees to handle extra workload. The best way to make things easier for the employees is to inculcate that sense of belonging them. Make them feel that they are working for their own progress and the success of the telemarketing department is to be shared by all employees.

Just like marketing a garage sale

Just Like Marketing a Garage Sale

Anyone who’s started his or her own business (be it brick and mortar, online, even something as simple as garage sales on the weekend) will tell you that the most important aspect to keep your business going (and so you make profits) is marketing.

Starting out with something as simple as a garage sale, think about what types of marketing there are. Most often you’ll find sharpie-scribbled cardboard signs stapled to telephone poles with a big arrow pointing in the direction of your «business». Now, you might laugh and say that isn’t marketing, but in reality that’s fundamentally all there is to marketing. You have a product or service and you want people to know about it. Simple as that.

Continuing with the garage sale analogy, there are plenty of other ways you can market yourself. I’m sure you’ll tell your neighbors and friends. And maybe you’ll even post an ad in the PennySaver or on Craigslist. These are all forms of direct marketing.

Possibly the biggest factor to a garage sales success is its location. If you live in an apartment, you’re obviously very limited to how successful you can become. In an apartment complex there just isn’t very much room to display your goods. You can put up signs, tell your family and post bulletins, but they probably won’t do very much good if people can’t get to your business. Now, what if you lived on the corner house next to a main road? Granted, people don’t usually move their homes to have a garage sale (it’s usually the other way around), but this is another example of marketing; and it’s very direct.

Okay, so how else can you market and advertise your sale? Is there anything else you can do? Yep. There are still plenty of other things you can do. Your garage sale is going to top all others.

How about expansion? Talk to your neighbors and plan a group garage sale. Get your whole street involved and you’ll have turned your garage sale into an antique mall. Want to expand even more? Maybe you could start a website. Take pictures of everything and let people shop online and you can ship them their orders.

Now that you’re starting to get big, it’s time to get some press coverage. Call up your local newspaper and let them know what you’re doing on your street. That’s a free ad in the paper which means more customers and more profits.

By now you’ll have run out of things to sell, so it’s time to bring in a wholesaler. Look for companies that sell faux antiques and order in bulk. Give each house on your street its own product line. Build signs, decorate your lawn, put up twinkle lights and you’ll be a phenomenon.

Next up, hire a camera crew and record your own TV commercial. Play it locally first and then move it to cable stations. By now, you’ll have competitors. Other streets will want a piece of the pie. And now you’re back to square one. That’s what marketing is all about. Time to start something new!

Implementing change in the healthcare system

Implementing Change In The Healthcare System

For many of us change is a difficult process. In organizations like healthcare it seems to advance at a snail’s pace sometimes. There is a need for change in healthcare, most agree, though we would be hard pressed to agree upon the changes needed. One incentive for change is pay-for-performance programs now beginning in several areas. I would like to describe a couple that affect primary care physicians and then give a few suggestions as to how to adopt changes to take advantage of these programs. Even if you are not in a primary care physician program, the methods suggested for change will be helpful, I believe.

In 2006 Medicare plans to institute a pay-for-performance program at the primary care physician level. Right now a model is being tested and seems to be doing quite well. In several states Blue Cross Blue Shield organizations are testing pay-for- performance programs. Here in West Michigan, Priority Health, a healthcare insurer, has promoted such a program for over five years. How does this work, you may ask? Priority Health, for example, funds the program for each of its patients a set amount. Doctors who meet a requirement of the program for a patient are rewarded with extra money for that patient. Hence, with many patients the income for the practice can be boosted considerably. The fact is that many are not rising to the opportunity. With planned cuts in Medicare reimbursements over the next few years, this source of income cannot be ignored! Healthcare programs need to change, no matter how difficult.

The impetus for change should rest with the leadership of an organization, although the change should not be the sole responsibility of the leaders. Representatives from all parts of the organization should be involved. Once the need for change in a process is agreed upon, either because of extra revenue from pay-for-performance programs or other agents or data that positively affect the bottom line, leaders should convene a task force to plan the change. With input from all, leaders should map the process as it currently exits and then should make a new map of how they would like it to be to incorporate the positive changes. The new procedure should be standardized for all to adopt.

How do you go about adopting these changes on a daily basis? This is probably the hardest part. Because humans learn in a variety of ways, it will take a variety of ways to implement the changes. The implementation of the changes should be based upon the learning styles of the individuals involved. Let me provide an example using the Medicare program. A patient who enters the Medicare program is entitled to a paid initial physical. A primary care physician should take advantage of this. Many don’t. If I were the manager of such an office, I would remind my staff who set up appointments to be aware of this fact. I would remind them at regular staff meetings. I would post visible reminders in the office. I might even have a message flashed on the computer screen once in a while. Then I would review the appointments of patients who have become Medicare qualified and see how many had their initial physical or were booked for it. I would adjust my methods to remind staff of the need for such examinations and continue to improve on this until the office achieves 100% compliance with the goal.

Booking the exam is not the only needed change. Doctors who perform the physical must accomplish examination details and actions laid out by Medicare. Hence, to be paid for the exam, each doctor must adhere to the exam details. I would help the doctors accomplish this in a variety of ways, depending on the doctor’s learning style. For example, a checklist of the exam details might be included in the patient history folder when the exam is performed. That way the doctor will not miss any steps. As the leader of the change, I would check with billing to see that all the steps were performed and adapt new approaches or reinforce existing ones to see that the changes are accomplished 100% of the time.

Changes such as these should be a part of a continuous quality improvement program at every healthcare provider organization. Let me quickly review the most important steps. First leaders should identify the changes needed. Then, the leaders should convene a committee of all affected staff to develop how to accomplish the change. Once the staff agrees upon the approach, the leaders should develop ways to implement the change on a daily basis adopting methods that incorporate learning styles of affected individuals. Then, they should continually analyze the progress of the changes and make necessary adjustments until the goals are accomplished. They should then audit the changes occasionally to be sure that the organization doesn’t fall back into old habits.

I believe that adopting such a change process will dramatically help at your site. You will see savings in time, increased patient or client health and satisfaction, as well as an improved bottom line!