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Organic growth and M&A

Mergers & acquisitions and organic growth
1397_ 6/19/13 - Larry corralled Todd Roebken, the current president of ACG Denver. This past month they conducted their annual Leadership Planning Meeting, very exciting - the networking was spectacular, with all kinds of people who want to do and get involved, and it makes you proud to be part of it. "This is where you can hear about the different committees we have at ACG Denver - figure out where you can add value and where you can get value from being involved in this organization. If you're wondering why ACG, there are a lot of reasons." Todd tells us, "There are 500+/- members, 30% of those members are at C-level participation - Colorado middle market companies growing here in Colorado. It's really all the players, the movers and the shakers, in growth or M&A here in Colorado." One of the things Todd loves about ACG is that it is not industry specific. He said, "We have companies from all over the range, manufacturing companies, oil and gas, technology companies - all different kinds of companies trying to grow and that need resources to help them grow." ACG Denver has 50+ events every year that revolve around organic growth and M&A, so there are all kinds of opportunities for people to get involved as well as come to these events and network. Of these events, Larry loves the monthly luncheon meetings - he always attends and asked Todd to tell us about the other events. "We have a whole track for C-level execs, the Corporate Breakfast series. We do some social events on the corporate side, some CEO dinners. We have the DealMaker’s Forum, we also have the Leadership 20 program which is inspiring the middle market service companies - managers and up and coming leaders in those companies. And it's an MBA Leadership track that's condensed into a six week program, we put that on. We do a lot with schools to help them and we have the David Sloan Scholarship program for the Executive MBA and MBA program. The list just goes on and on, it's an exciting organization. We really have the community of service providers, we have the C-levels and their teams, intermediaries, the M&A gurus in town, the investment bankers - it is just the place to be if you want to help companies to grow."...Listen, there's much more...
RELATED LINKS: Jones Lang LaSalle Denver || Todd Roebken, Managing Director || ACG Denver || M&A Channel || Podcasting Directory || KEYWORDS: Todd Roebken, Jones Lang LaSalle, ACG Denver, Middle Market Companies, M&A, DealMaker’s Forum, David Sloan Scholarship Program, Leadership Planning Meeting, bytes=5892705
LISTEN TO: Todd Roebken, President, ACG Denver and Managing Director, Jones Lang LaSalle

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Innovation is a step further

What's the difference between an improvement and an innovation
1395_ 6/15/13 - Arlen Meyers, MD, MBA, a professor at the CU School of Medicine, Department of Otolaryngology and he is President/CEO of the Society of Physician Entrepreneurs.
Part 3 of 4... We're talking about innovation and Arlen says... "So, the issue is what is innovation? If you ask 100 people, you're going to get 100 different answers. So, here is Arlen's two cents..."First of all there is a difference between an idea, an invention and innovation. An idea is something that pops in your mind - that's the end of it. An invention is an idea reduced to practice. You make a sketch, you build a prototype - you actually start conceptualizing how this thing is going to look/taste/feel, it's reduced to practice. It could be a process or service, it doesn't necessarily have to be a product or goods. But innovation is a step further. Innovation is about creating value and value that someone is willing to pay you for, or exchange something of value which is usually money. So an invention doesn't do you any good unless someone is willing to give you money to use it or buy it. That's what innovation is. Now it's usually something new. An argument is what's the difference between an improvement and an innovation? And does that make a difference? Probably not, but an improvement is you take an old way of doing something and you improve it verses an innovation where you take a new way to try to make things better. Arlen said, "In my view the U.S. healthcare system has not been terribly innovative. In fact most of the biomedical industrial complex has not been terribly innovative." He went on to say if you look at the amount of money that goes into the top research and development funnel through NIH... Last year the FDA approved 39 new drugs - total. And that was the highest number in 50 years. So what we get out of the bottom for what we put in the top, are 39 new drugs. And, if you look at what are those drugs, a lot of them are ...listen for more...
RELATED LINKS: Society of Physician Entrepreneurs || CU School of Medicine || TiE Rockies Colorado || Economy Builders || KEYWORDS: Arlen Meyers, MD, MBA, CU School of Medicine, Otolaryngology, SoPE, TiE Rockies, Colorado, Society of Physician Entrepreneurs, Idea, Invention, Innovation, > bytes=4457015
LISTEN TO: Arlen Meyers, MD, MBA, President/CEO, SoPE

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Removing roadblocks to selling business

Many business owners would like to retire
1393_ 6/14/13 - Fifty percent of all businesses in the United States are owned by baby boomers' today and eleven thousand are turning 65 per day! And, they're looking for ways out. They've spent their entire lives building the business up, now they're trying to find ways to retire. Les Simpson has important answers. There are many business owners out there that would like to retire but they don't know how, or if they can. According to the SBA 50% of all businesses are owned by Baby boomers. 8 Trillion ready to be transferred to the next generation. But of the 1.2 Million businesses for sale a year only 210,000 will sell. There are three main roadblocks for this. Baby boomers fear running out of money lasting for the future. Where will they re-invest the money for security. And how they will make it after paying the taxes. Structured Sales solves these problems. Larry asked Les to explain how this would work. Les answered, "When a person sells a business or commercial real estate, we reduce or bypass all the new taxes and guarantee a person retirement income. An example of that; If a person sells a business and there's a $3 million profit, all they know they can do with that at this point, is pay all the up front taxes. Thanks to the tax increases this January, it went up to $840,000 on that $3 million. The biggest challenge is educating people." If you're thinking about selling 10 years out, Les recommends getting professional advice now. There are a lot of things in a company that need to straighten out legally in order to be a good candidate for a sale. The SBA says 1.2 million businesses per year, go on sale, but only 20% of those sell. Sometimes it's because they don't want to pay those taxes, or they can't find the right financing, but a lot of it is when they do the due diligence on the company there are problems...Listen for more... Les also chairs the General Member Committee for TiE Rockies.
RELATED LINKS: Deferred Tax Benefits, Inc. || Innovation Pavilion || TiE Rockies || Blog || In the News || KEYWORDS: Les Simpson, Deferred, Tax Benefits, Charter Member, TiE Rockies, Colorado, Baby Boomers, Retire, SBA, > bytes=5351030
LISTEN TO: Les Simpson, Deferred Tax Benefits Charter Member TiE Rockies

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Conscious capitalism, social enterprise, new future

TiE Rockies & CIMCO Cares presents "Lead the Way" See Photos

“Lead the Way” Chris Pelley (CM TiE Rockies) and Mona McConnell, Marketing Director, CIMCO Cares and guest speaker, Francy Milner, J.D. from CU Leeds School of Business

Business leaders have the power to solve social problems with authentic collaboration. CIMCO Cares is one catalyst in this effort. This was a spirited presentation / discussion and everyone walked away with solid ideas on how to benefit from what we’ve experienced!

Francy Milner teaches business ethics and corporate social responsibility at the Leeds School of Business of the University of Colorado at Boulder. In her role as the Associate Director for the Center for Education on Social Responsibility (CESR), she focuses on curriculum development for graduate and undergraduate courses that help students explore their personal values and their assessment of the role of business and business leaders in a global society.

Successful experience creates SKiL

Go with something that you are really passionate about
1389_ 6/5/13 - Larry sat down with Keith Larson, President, SKiL Business Advisors to discuss some business issues. Their purpose is to help small to medium companies be successful. They help in many areas like finance, sales and marketing, human resources, funding, operations and specialize in startups. Keith is also a charter member of TiE Rockies. It is an organization set up to foster entrepreneurs. He has had a good career as the president of sales & marketing of a $2 billion company and the CFO of two $800 million companies. SKiL Business Advisors & TiE Rockies are organization where he can work on new exciting projects and also give back to entrepreneurs. Larry asked, "What are the biggest business challenges today?" Keith answered, "The biggest challenges are around resources and sense of urgency. Small businesses are usually short on resources such as cash and expertise. They seem to have a very high sense of urgency to hit a home run immediately. My experience is that they need help and they need it fast but they also need to follow good business practices and communicate. The biggest challenge is to slow down the process and do things right from the beginning." We asked what opportunities do you see? "I have been pleasantly surprised at the quality and quantity of great ideas in the Denver area. I am working on 8 startups now and most of them are in the Denver area. The startups are in energy, healthcare, nutraceutical, technology, international business, healthy products. The need for better healthcare, better energy, and improved technology are limitless. This is an exciting time. I find more and more people wanting to work for themselves or small companies and make a real impact. Keith's advice for entrepreneurs today was, "Go with something that you are really passionate bout. Never stop. Get good advisers through organizations like TiE. Be totally honest about your situation. If you don’t have funds.. .Listen for more...
RELATED LINKS: Innovation Pavilion || w3w3 Blog || In the News || KEYWORDS: Keith Larson, SKiL Business Advisors, Charter Member, TiE Rockies, Colorado, Energy, Healthcare, Nutraceutical, Technology, International Business, Healthy Products, > bytes=4960238
LISTEN TO: Keith Larson, President, SKiL Business Advisors,
Charter Member TiE Rockies

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Share the Journey - Walk With Autism

Autism affects one in 88 people today
1385_ 5/30/13 - Introducing Kim Tenune, Director of Outreach and Policy Program, Autism Society of Colorado along with James Buckles, CEO...and we are talking about how Autism effects the workplace. It is important to understand that Autism is a spectrum disorder that effects the brain development of social and communication skills. Obviously Autism manifests itself in deficits in the social, communication, maybe restricted interests and repetitive behaviors. It is truly a spectrum disorder, it effects everyone differently. What we are seeing in the business community is an increase in prevalence. The CDC's most recent numbers indicate nationally, one in 88 people are affected by autism - in 1990 it was one in 2500. As that number increases, what we're seeing is not just children being affected by autism, but adults being affected by autism. And obviously when we're dealing with adults we're dealing with workplace issues. Adults who have gone undiagnosed their entire lives, suddenly unemployed, seeking answers and finding out they do have autism - going through that diagnosis process. Kim said in the workplace there are issues around communication. "We've had some great stories come back from employers saying these individuals I have with autism are wonderful, they're productive. They may not be as social with their coworkers but they do their job and they do it well. Kim said, "Our mission is to improve the lives of all those affected by autism. That includes the individual with autism, their parents, teachers, potential employers, and their coworkers, the business community. We want to be a resource, a bridge to connect people, much like your radio show does. There is still definitely stigma around autism. The beauty of the walk is bringing people together, and for employers it's going to create a place where their employees can really be themselves. It's going to create a healthy workplace. Walk With Autism - Share the Journey kicks off on Sunday morning, June 9th. Register at 8:00AM - the Walk starts at 9:30AM and you'll be home by noon." Listen for more...
RELATED LINKS: Autism Society of Colorado || Walk Page || ASC Programs || Donate || Blog || KEYWORDS: Walk for Autism, Kim Tenune, James Buckles, Autism Society of Colorado, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Autism Friendly Business. Sensory Friendly Films, CDC, Beau Jo's, Autism Friendly Environment Started in Colorado, bytes=8461900
LISTEN TO: Kim Tenune & James Buckles - Walk With Autism - Share the Journey

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LGI revenues, over $10 Billion - 21,000+ employees

Expanding into foreign countries, the challenges and opportunities
1384_ 5/29/13 - Balan Nair is the Executive Vice President and CTO for Liberty Global a leading international cable operator. Their revenues, over $10 Billion with over 21,000 employees, and active in 13 countries. LGI operates mostly in Europe with operations in South America as well (Chile and Puerto Rico). As a matter of fact a 14th will be added very soon with their acquisition of Virgin Media in the United Kingdom. Balan says they are very bullish on Europe and very bullish on the paid TV business. It's counter intuitive for the macro economic situation in Europe is somewhat challenging - our business has grown right through it. Balan said, "Our customers don't buy luxury goods from us, they buy basic necessities, voice, video and data. Even in the worst of times you really don't want to disconnect that and especially your broadband pipe. And we price them in Europe where it's really affordable and consistent with the competitive landscape there." Larry asked, "If you were talking with a business person thinking of expanding overseas, what advice would you give them?" Balan replied, "There are a number of things I would look at depending on the country you want to get into, and they are all different. Among the local regulations, you ought to look at the labor environment in both hiring as well as firing and what that does to your costs. You'll definitely have exposure to currency fluctuations, so you want to look at that track record. And fourth, definitely the political situation because the political climate drives the other three so you ought to have a good sense of that. Then, you decide if your product is relevant in that environment, that country. Can you price it in the right way and still be competitive." They went on discussing the greatest opportunities and the biggest challenges in doing business in foreign countries and TiE Rockies in Colorado ...listen for more...
RELATED LINKS: Liberty Global || LGI Officers || TiE Rockies Colorado || Podcasting Directory || KEYWORDS: Balan Nair, Liberty Global, Cable Industry, TiE Rockies, Europe, South America, Chile, Puerto Rico, Virgin Media, United Kingdom, Voice, Video, Data > bytes=6800930
LISTEN TO: Balan Nair, Executive Vice President & CTO, Liberty Global

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Straight Talk Series... Prepare for coming ups and downs

Straight Talk about the Ups and Downs of the Coming Market
1378_ 4/24/13 - At the 'Straight Talk' Luncheon Series, program last week, Chris Pelley, CEO & Managing Director of Capital Investment Management (CIMCO) introduced an old friend and today's keynote speaker, Mike Robertson, 'an experienced investment advisor'. Chris says, "Mike wants to share his wisdom and advice gathered over the years - he enjoys complex problem solving and helping people see there are better ways of doing things." Mike's radio show has been very successful in Texas for the past few years - they're now opening up in Denver, broadcasting weekdays from 7:00am to 8:00am on Denver radio, AM-1060 on your dial. Larry was really interested and surprised at some of the things Mike talked about that maybe coming up in this year and in the next few years... Robertson said, "Well, I'm really happy, like everyone, that we've done so well these last couple of years. You roll back the clock and talk to somebody about this time in 2009 - the market was just beginning to turn around. We'd gone through a devastating loss, the market was off by 57% and people were really depressed. Okay, it's recovered now. One of the things that's great about Americans is we wake up in the morning ready to conquer the world, but we also tend to forget history a little bit. So my concern now is that people are not preparing for the next time it's going to happen. I can't say when it's going to happen, the pull back in the market - There will be a pull back. How deep will it be? Who knows. Obviously we've done very well, we've come back a very long way. We have some systemic problems in the U.S. - We have way too much debt. We've got interest rates at zero, you have people that are investing in investments like stocks that have never been there before. There are people that literally used to invest in CDs that could get 7 - 8 - 10% on their CDs... they're actually going to invest in stocks now because that's the only place they can get in." The bond market? Your interest rates are practically zero - they peaked on September 30th of 1981 - interest rates have been dropping since that time. They've pretty well hit the floor now and there is really only one way to go now. They can stay where they are now, at zero. Or, they're going to go down in price as interest rates rise - at some point interest rates will rise... that's just the way it is, everything goes in cycles. The important thing to remember is to prepare for those cycles in advance. Mike's favorite quote, by John F. Kennedy, 'The best time to prepare the roof is when the sun is shining.' ...listen for more valuable information...
Chris Pelly, Capital Investment Management, Securities offered through First Allied Securities, Inc. A Registered Broker/Dealer (Member FINRA/SiPC) Advisory services offered through First Allied Advisory Services Inc., A Registered Investment Advisor. Mike Robertson, Robertson Wealth Management, Securities offered through First Allied Securities, Inc. A Registered Broker/Dealer (Member FINRA/SiPC) Advisory services offered through First Allied Advisory Services Inc., A Registered Investment Advisor
RELATED LINKS: CIMCO || Community Reach || Social Entrepreneurs || Straight Talk Event Photos || KEYWORDS: Mike Robertson, Wealth Creation, Chris Pelley, Capital Investment Management, CIMCO, Straight Talk, Jeffrey Hartmann, CDs, Bonds, Interest Rates, John F. Kennedy, Ben Bernanke, Federal Debt, bytes=5868119
LISTEN TO: Mike Robertson, Robertson Wealth

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Top Stories August 29, 2005 - Historical Perspective...

2005 History - Building Business in Colorado...
1378_ 4/19/2013 -  8/29/2005- HISTORY and perspective from 2005! We will transport you back to 2005 - eight years ago to listen to interviews and see tons of photos from 2005 business events. Just click on the Listen/Subject link and we can take you back. You will see the 100s of photos that are not found on other websites. Let us know what you think email radio@w3w3.com.
LISTEN TO: Phil Weiser, Merc Mercure, Chris Johnson, Stan Feld...
Keywords: Stan Feld, M.D., Healthcare system, Merc Mercure, photonics, Chris Johnson, VoIP, Phil Weiser, political environment changes, Silicon Flatirons Center, University of Colorado, Law School

Transformation of Dynamical Complex Systems

Enlightened Empowerment, a term Fitzgerald got from a favorite client

1370_ 4/12/13 - Laurie Fitzgerald, PhD and senior practitioner for The Consultancy, Inc. has been providing guidance for business leaders in their efforts to navigate the hyper competitive and increasingly turbulent market place. Larry asked, "Although you have a long list of American organizations, I've noticed that it's been almost a decade since you've worked with U.S. clients. Where have you been and what have you been up to in the interim?" Well, Fitzgerald's been out of the country. A number of years ago she published some articles on the Transformation of Dynamical Complex Systems, [that's organizations]. That captured the attention of business executives in Australia, India, South Africa and also in Europe. When Laurie was invited to join them in implementing and facilitating a change process within their organizations, she leaped at the opportunity. Laurie's background is in the social sciences. In particular sociology and psychology. That's her life's work, getting into the minds of people and the minds of organizations, and organizations do have minds. And helping them to change the way they think and the way that they see the world. Enlightened Empowerment? A term Fitzgerald got from one of her favorite clients, the Marel Company. they are a combined Dutch and Icelandic firm that is the world's largest producer of poultry, meat and fish processing equipment, their machines are located all over the world. In 1999, Laurie met Theo Hoen, CEO of that company. He had been working for a long time trying to bring about profound change in the company by the old outside-in approach. When we talked about inside-out transformation, he jumped on the bandwagon. He said," this is the way we're going to have to do it. What I want to do is to enlighten empowerment." Which means he wanted everyone in the company to be empowered to make decisions, to take action within the company. In order to do that he knew they needed to be enlightened. Their minds needed to be evolved to a higher level so they could see the organization as a whole. And that would be everyone, secretaries as well as managers and executives. Larry said, "You deal with organizations worldwide, and I hope you'll be doing more in the U.S. What do you think are the biggest business challenges today?" The biggest business challenge in Laurie's mind is the fact that organizations are built on the hierarchical model. In that model, as you rise through the hierarchy you are vested with power. The problem comes when a person who is not enlightened, who does not look at things as whole but only looks from their own perspective, is given power. And as Lord Acton, a famous British historian said, "Power corrupts!". That is true and in order to avoid that problem...
RELATED LINKS: Lessons from Jurassic Park || Economy Builders || Mastering Change || Blog || KEYWORDS: Enlightened Empowerment, Laurie Fitzgerald, The Consultancy, Guidance for Business Leaders, Global, Turbulent Market Place, Inside-Out Transformation, bytes=6744088
LISTEN TO: Laurie Fitzgerald, PhD, Senior Practitioner, The Consultancy, Inc.

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