Back to the Basics

Monday, August 2nd, 2010

On July 14, 2010, I hopped on a plane to Jamaica with one goal in mind – no, not to bask in the sun and get as tan as possible on their beautiful white sandy beaches, but to educate local Jamaican entrepreneurs by teaching them the basic skills they need to operate and grow their small businesses. 

The University of Miami American Airlines/Eagle Jamaica Project is the final result of University of Miami Hyperion Council members devoting their energy, time and knowledge to creating lessons and real-life activities to teach 50 Jamaican small business owners.  In the U.S. we take a lot of things for granted like basic education, financing, paved roads, modern technology, clean water and shelter. How would you run your business if you didn’t have access to all of these things (which we consider necessities)? It would probably be pretty challenging, which is exactly what these business owners are experiencing.  And by business owners, I mean chicken farmers, agro-processors, juice producers, and hair dressers among others.

Although we couldn’t help them through all of their challenges, we are confident we taught them sound business practices.  We presented lessons that taught these Jamaican entrepreneurs basic accounting, marketing, operations, and business plan development skills.  We actually visited some of their businesses to help them distinguish themselves in their local market and obtain small business loans.  We worked in small groups which helped us really get to know these participants on a deeper level and understand their mission and vision.

It was truly amazing to see how these third world businesses survive on a daily basis.  Even though it was my second time visiting Jamaica and implementing this project, I was still stunned and fascinated by what I saw.  As a new addition to Kaufman, Rossin, I’ve grown accustomed to the great work environment that I experience every day.  We’re able to make business decisions by the click of a button, and many of our employees have graduated from some of the nation’s top schools.  And it goes without saying that we have clean water, beautiful facilities, and some other great amenities that come with being a part of the Best Place to Work For in South Florida.

Experiencing Jamaica and meeting these extraordinary people reminded me of how great things are here, and how entirely different it is just one time zone away.  As I now begin my professional career at Kaufman, Rossin, I bring to it my one-of-a-kind experience meeting and teaching these inspiring business owners as I was exposed to a different way of living and operating a business.  As we work in our robust, modern business world sometimes it’s necessary to go back to the basics – and enjoy the simple things in both life and business.

Aubrey Swanson is the social media coordinator with Kaufman, Rossin & Co., one of the top accounting firms in the Southeast. She can be reached at aswanson@kaufmanrossin.com.

Hurricanes are no joke.

Friday, July 2nd, 2010

On Sunday night, August 24, 1992, Hurricane Andrew ripped through South Florida and caused more than $26.5 billion in damages. Our firm’s offices were closed for two full weeks – power in the neighborhood was out for a week, and then we were closed for another week to replace the electrical panel that had been flooded and the air conditioning towers that had blown off the roof. The name Andrew was retired by the National Weather Services, and replaced by the name Alex.

If you were in South Florida in 1992, you won’t forget that hurricanes are no joke.

Hurricane season runs June 1 through November 30. Building a “culture of readiness” for your family, employees and business will help you make good decisions and provide you with options to minimize the effects of a disaster like Andrew.

If you don’t have a plan, start planning right away.   Ask yourself:

• Who is my emergency management team, and what tasks should each of them be assigned?
• Which staff, materials, procedures and equipment are absolutely necessary to keep the business operating?  
• What are my backup plans if any of these are unavailable? 
• Can employees work at home if necessary? 
• What is my communications plan – how will employees know the status of the business and whether they should try to get to work?  How will I know all employees are safe?
• Which customers should I make sure to contact immediately, to let them know the status of the business?  Do I have their contact information easily available?

To learn more about how to prepare your business and minimize the effects of a hurricane or other disaster, register for my free breakfast seminar on July 22nd.  You’ll get important tips and answers to your questions, and receive a free copy of the Kaufman Rossin Disaster Preparedness Guide. 

Jorge Rey is Director of Information Security for Kaufman, Rossin & Co., one of the top CPA firms in the Southeast.  He can be reached at jrey@kaufmanrossin.com.

7 tips to protect your new venture

Monday, May 10th, 2010

New business ideas are hatching every day.  Whether you’re capitalizing on the Green Movement with a new solar-powered motorcycle or marketing the Fountain of Youth to aging baby boomers, starting a new venture brings  both opportunity and risk.   

One important risk area many entrepreneurs neglect is the risk to your data. Did you know that a business can be held responsible for identity theft if you don’t protect your clients’ sensitive personal information? This is no small matter: the chance of a data breach increases every day; the risks to your financial well-being and your reputation are enormous. 

What should an entrepreneur do to protect your data at this very delicate stage of the business lifecycle?   Here are some important tips for new businesses…and existing ones.

1. When you design your network, you’ll want to provide remote access. But make sure to protect sensitive data. Your network should be protected with firewalls. Publicly accessed servers should be segregated from the internal network. If you are planning to use a wireless access, take additional steps to protect this access point.
2. Install anti-virus software and update it regularly.  New viruses crop up daily – old software won’t protect you.
3. Implement a business continuity plan that takes into consideration business process priorities, maximum allowable downtime and cost associated with downtime.
4. Implement physical security devices (e.g. cameras, card readers).  If  your hardware leaves the building, your data goes with it!
5. Require strong passwords, and mandate frequent changes.  If staff will be using laptops outside the office, consider hard drive passwords that protect your data even if the hard drive is removed.
6. Develop and implement an Information Security Policy.   Make sure your employees are trained on the policy.  Include:
   • policy maintenance
   • asset management (including information handling)
   • physical and environmental security
   • communications and operations management
   • access control
   • information systems acquisition
   • development and maintenance (including vulnerability management)
   • information security incident management
   • business continuity management, and
   • compliance with legal requirements.
7. Outsource services that support your business but are not core to your organization.  These include  IT support, email messaging, on-line back-ups, and more. These disciplines change rapidly, so using outside professionals is the safest choice.  But perform the proper due diligence to engage the right vendor.   Review audited financial statements, service delivery capability, internal controls and security (e.g. SAS 70) and insurance.  Ask for references, and check them.

On yearly basis, review regulatory requirements and verify that your policies address them.   Make sure your procedures are updated as changes in your business occur.   Verify internal compliance with your policies and monitor third party vendors.  And train your employees — the new ones as they join you, and the existing ones annually!

Jorge Rey is Director of Information Security for Kaufman, Rossin & Co., one of the top CPA firms in Florida.  He can be reached at jrey@kaufmanrossin.com.
 

Get back to basics to come out stronger

Saturday, March 28th, 2009

Drive down the street and you can’t miss the empty storefronts, more and more every week. If you wanted to find new office space, it’s a great time to negotiate an advantageous deal. Let’s face it, we’re seeing businesses fail all around us. Bankruptcy filings in the Federal courts were up 31% in 2008.

Better businesses can come through the recession, and even find opportunities to best competitors.   They’ll be stronger and in a better position to pick up market share.  Prudence dictates watching costs carefully, and getting back to basics.   What would you do if you were starting from scratch? (more…)