Todd Anduze is a man of many talents. With an impressive professional background that includes military service, accounting, mining, and psychology, he’s seen the entire spectrum when it comes to teams – the good, the bad, and everything in between.

It was while serving in the U.S. Navy that Todd first gained experience in team building and leadership – a time that he refers to as what a “…team should absolutely be.” Ever since he’s applied those principles to every job he’s held since then. With a strong foundation in management and accounting, he’s turned his passion for understanding human behavior and team dynamics into a successful career in his latest role as the Director of the University of Georgia’s Small Business Development Center (SBDC).

As you’ll hear, Todd’s unique perspective, combined with his diverse experience, makes him an invaluable resource for small business owners seeking effective strategies for building strong and successful teams.

In this episode, he shares practical tips for:

• Mastering the art of recruiting, interviewing, hiring, and constantly assessing teams,
• Untangling the complexities of team dynamics through transparency and effective communication, and
• Cultivating a thriving work environment that nurtures employee involvement and commitment.

Discover how to utilize the resources and services offered by the (SBDC) by seeking help from experts like Todd to consult and advise on various aspects of your business, including team building, at no charge.

🔗 Get Links to Resources Todd Recommends: https://www.eqbsystems.com/podcast/251-small-business-advisors-todd-anduze-shares-tips-for-effective-team-building

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When Nicole McCullum promoted her real estate school using online ads, she quickly learned how difficult it was to fill her classroom. It was 2004 and the competition was stiff. Determined to crack the code of digital marketing, she began educating herself about Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

She soon found herself immersed in the world of SEO. What started as a desire to generate more ROI from her online ads turned into a new, full-fledged, and highly successful business called Captivate Designs. Nicole is now a preeminent coach, teacher, and public speaker to small businesses seeking to get found online using cutting edge digital marketing strategies and tactics.

In this episode, you get a chance to hear from the SEO maestro herself!

She shares best practices that include:

👉 4 pillars of effective SEO,

👉 Webpage vs. website optimization, 

👉 5 factors that Google looks for when ranking a webpage, and more.

Nicole also shares over 10 resources you can start using now to increase your chances of luring potential customers to your site and ultimately buying from you!

Getting found online in an increasingly noisy world is no small feat. It requires having more than an attractive website. There’s an art and science to ranking on the first page of an online search. Once visitors come to your company's website, your number one goal is to keep them there and…to convert them! Find out how in this episode. You won’t be disappointed! 

🔗 Get Access to SEO Resources Nicole Recommends: https://www.eqbsystems.com/podcast/250-small-business-advisors-nicole-mccullum-highlights-seo-best-practices   

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Never judge a book by its cover – an analogy that definitely applies to Prosper Taruvinga. Considering his massive success as a preeminent digital marketer, you’d never guess his humble beginnings as a child growing up in a small village in Zimbabwe plagued with inflation.

In this episode, we welcome Prosper as our next small business advisor. He’s the Founder and CEO of Livelong Digital, a digital marketing agency with a proven formula for scaling revenue from $200,000 to $2M in two years, specifically for business coaches and consultants. 

How does he do that?

Well, that’s exactly what you’ll find out. Listen now to discover his controversial, yet revolutionary Online Prosperity Blueprint for radically transforming service-based small businesses. In particular, you’ll learn how to supercharge your revenue and profitability by:

1) Capturing the attention of those whose pain and problems you can solve,

2) Developing original content that lures potential leads,

3) Converting those leads into loyal, repeat customers, and 

4) Building communities that continue to engage and address our customers' needs.

🔗 Links to Resources Prosper Recommends: https://www.eqbsystems.com/podcast/249-small-business-advisors-prosper-taruvinga-shares-his-controversial-million-dollar-marketing-strategy

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We’re kicking off Season 20 on the Business Infrastructure podcast! This season will feature 12 guests all of whom are small business advisors with specialized expertise they can’t wait to share with you. Expect to hear, learn, and discover specific strategies, tactics, and tips that you can begin applying right away to transform your back-office operations.

With small businesses being the backbone of many of the world’s economies, they are central to the vitality of local communities and must be protected at all costs. And one way to do that is to give entrepreneurs like you access to the information necessary to not just grow but scale your operations in a sustainable, repeatable, and profitable way.  

Our first guest this season is Shawn Palmer. He’s a small business advisor and pricing expert with OneRedmond, an organization that works in concert with the Washington Small Business Development Center (SBDC). In this episode, Shawn shares five main pricing strategies to consider as you work to increase sales, revenue, and profitability in your growing small business.

He also gives a tutorial on the Law of Supply and Demand and why understanding the type of supply and demand curve your business has is critical for repeatable and sustainable growth. As a military veteran and former small business owner himself, Shawn offers a unique yet easy-to-understand perspective on how the right pricing strategy can make all the difference in keeping the doors to your business open!

🔗 Links to Resources: https://www.eqbsystems.com/podcast/248-small-business-advisors-shawn-palmer-talks-pricing-strategies  248-small-business-advisors-shawn-palmer-talks-pricing-strategies 248-small-business-advisors-shawn-palmer-talks-pricing-strategies

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We’ve come to the final episode in our encore of the 13-part audio masterclass on business infrastructure! At this point, you’ve heard six stories of entrepreneurs and leaders in small businesses trying their best to keep their cool amid chaotic fast growth. If you’ve missed any of those episodes, be sure to go back and listen to them so that you can follow along with the info contained in this episode.

Behind the impressive façade of the businesses featured in this masterclass, lies operational landmines that threaten to destroy everything these founders and leaders have worked so hard to build.

Thanks in part to the consultants they each work with, they’re able to restore order. You were able to get a detailed understanding of the work they do together in six follow-up episodes that serve as D-I-Y tutorials in this masterclass. Each consultant recommended participation in a business process workshop. And that’s what this episode is about – you’re going to get an audio-based front row seat to this workshop and learn how to create a Business Process Manual!

A Business Process Manual, commonly known as an Operations Manual, is a physical or digital collection of documentation that describes your organization’s operations with a level of detail and precision that allows your team to work without your daily presence. It’s also the seventh and final element of the Kasennu framework for business infrastructure.

In this final episode, host Alicia Butler Pierre teaches an 8-step guide on basic principles for identifying and documenting key processes in your organization. Discover how to secure your intellectual property, guarantee consistent product and service quality, and keep your customers happy. You’ll also learn how the Kasennu framework sets you up for success in using advanced process improvement frameworks like Lean Six Sigma.

🔗 Links to Resources: https://www.eqbsystems.com/podcast/247-business-infrastructure-masterclass-missing-link-how-to-identify-and-document-processes-for-scaling-small-businesses    

❓ Send your questions to Alicia on Twitter or LinkedIn.

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In the last story of our Business Infrastructure audio masterclass, you met Clenard Smith. He’s determined to take his flourishing food distribution company public. But there’s one problem. He needs more physical space! Or at least that’s what he’s convinced himself. His consultant manages to convince him otherwise while also getting him to contend with the root cause of his company’s space constraints.

A Work Space Logistics plan organizes, consolidates, and segments your space into work zones according to your organization’s departments. It considers the proper placement of all team members, furniture, and equipment to ensure seamless work and information flow. It’s also one of the seven elements of the Kasennu framework for business infrastructure.

From tidying up to sprucing up, in this encore episode host, Alicia Butler Pierre guides you through an 8-step process to create a Work Space Logistics plan for your organization. Discover how to declutter your space, take an asset inventory, and sketch the optimal layout of your workspace. The result is an intelligent workspace design that maximizes floor space and stimulates productivity and communication.

🔗 Links to Resources: https://www.eqbsystems.com/podcast/246-business-infrastructure-masterclass-how-to-create-a-work-space-logistics-plan-for-flourishing-small-businesses   

❓ Send your questions to Alicia on Twitter or LinkedIn.

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Prior to the pandemic, people were already spending a lot of time in their offices likely sitting behind a computer. Now, that time has doubled if not tripled for many as companies begin to adopt work-from-home policies. In fact, there are scientific studies that show a direct correlation between the actual layout of a workspace and productivity, job satisfaction, and profitability.

A Work Space Logistics plan considers the best placement and arrangement of your team, furniture, and equipment to ensure seamless work and information flow. It’s also one of the seven elements of the Kasennu framework for business infrastructure.

This encore features the story of Clenard Smith, a no-nonsense veteran who wants to take his food distribution company public. His military background serves him well when it comes to strategy and execution but proves to be no match in his latest battle for more workspace. A consultant devises a Work Space Logistics plan to dramatically increase productivity and help him defeat this formidable enemy once and for all.

🔗 Behind the Façade Book: https://www.eqbsystems.com/podcast/245-business-infrastructure-masterclass-organized-chaos-the-story-of-clenard-smith-the-flourishing-food-distribution-company

❓ Send your questions to Alicia on Twitter or LinkedIn.

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Vandana Thiagarajan was the subject of the last story you heard in our Business Infrastructure audio masterclass. She’s desperately trying to make sure she and her co-founders can once again fulfill their promises to their customers. Their consultant introduces them to the Service Delivery Blueprint as a solution for quickly pinpointing the source of missing target deadlines.

A Service Delivery Blueprint is a visual control tool that documents the people, process, tools, and metrics necessary to provide your core product or service. It offers a holistic view that shows how everyone in your company gets involved or at least provides some level of support in providing goods and services to your customers. It’s one of the seven elements of the Kasennu framework for business infrastructure.

In this encore tutorial, host Alicia Butler Pierre guides you through an 8-step process to create a Service Delivery Blueprint for your organization. Discover how to succinctly document, track, and manage lifecycle processes like order-to-delivery, farm-to-table, procure-to-pay, intake-to-discharge, and more! The result is a one-page overview of what you do, how you do it, and the associated timeframe.

🔗 Links to Resources: https://www.eqbsystems.com/podcast/244-business-infrastructure-masterclass-how-to-create-a-service-delivery-blueprint-for-small-businesses-on-the-rise  

❓ Send your questions to Alicia on Twitter or LinkedIn.

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As small businesses grow, so does the need for consistency. Your company’s ability to provide value and meet promised deadlines is only as good as the people, tools, and processes you have in place to deliver your goods and/or services.

A Service Delivery Blueprint describes how you provide goods and services to your customers. Once defined, it enables consistency in your customer order-to-delivery process without compromising quality. It also affects how customers and vendors experience your business. It’s one of the seven elements of the Kasennu framework for business infrastructure.

This encore features the story of Vandana Thiagarajan, one of three co-founders of a promising real estate upstart in New York. They also work as mortgage talent on a reality TV show. Lately, she’s been shouldering most of the responsibility at the expense of missing client deadlines. 

Torn between growing the business or pursuing the TV show, she describes her decision as choosing between taking the red pill or the blue pill. A consultant shows her how to create a Service Delivery Blueprint to pinpoint the source of quality issues so that they can keep their promises of a fast loan processing time.

🔗 Behind the Façade Book: https://www.eqbsystems.com/podcast/243-business-infrastructure-masterclass-red-pill-or-blue-pill-the-story-of-vandana-thiagarajan-a-mortgage-companys-meteoric-rise

❓ Send your questions to Alicia on Twitter or LinkedIn.

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In the last episode of our Business Infrastructure audio masterclass, you heard the story of twin co-founders, Karen and Sharen Benoit. They’ve been given a second chance to pass an audit of their mental health clinic’s records. Their consultant friend comes to the rescue by teaching them how to design a compliant Paper Records Management system that consolidates, organizes, stores, and protects their physical files.

You might be wondering, “Why are we talking about organizing paperwork in the digital age?” Some industries are heavily regulated and require the maintenance of physical files for certain periods. Paper Records Management is the fourth element in building business infrastructure. Think of it as the paper-based version of your Digital Records Management system.

Now you can experience the satisfaction of decluttering and organizing your company’s paper records! In this encore feature, host Alicia Butler Pierre offers a 10-step tutorial. The result is an audit-ready paper management system that standardizes best practices for recordkeeping.

🔗 Links to Resources: https://www.eqbsystems.com/podcast/242-business-infrastructure-masterclass-how-to-create-a-paper-records-management-system-for-expanding-small-businesses   

❓ Send your questions to Alicia on Twitter or LinkedIn.

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