Jay Sachetti joined Jeff O’Brien, partner at Husch Blackwell and Dyanne Ross-Hanson, president of Exit Planning Strategies talked about the market for mergers and acquisitions, exit planning opportunities for companies that don’t end up for sale and how companies can maximize their eventual sale price during an early October panel at the first Upsize on Tap event at Summit Brewing Co. in St. Paul.
When the state Legislature passed a law requiring employers to provide paid leave and safe time for employees, Justin Bieganek started hearing differing details from friends, colleagues and peers.
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There are more than twice as many nonprofit board members in Minnesota — 70,000 — than there are elected officials. And each one of them can be held personally responsible for financial missteps at their organizations.
That’s the eye-catching fact from Jon Pratt, executive director of the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits.
“There’s no more frustrated board member than one who finds out, No. 1, the organization hasn’t paid withholding taxes, and No. 2, they’re personally responsible for that,” Pratt said. He was one of three panelists at a September seminar on nonprofit financials, sponsored by KDV, an accounting firm with offices in the Twin Cities and St. Cloud.
Nonprofit managers and directors should regulate themselves, before the government passes new rules, Pratt said. Especially important is the goal of transparency.
“Putting 990s online — that’s a great reform,” Pratt said, referring to the form reporting financial information that nonprofits must file each year. “Donors should be able to see this information. But government getting into the internal affairs of the organization — that’s bad.”
David Brown, a panelist and a certified public accountant at KDV, said it’s a good business practice to obtain an audit each year, even though that’s not required for all nonprofits in the state. “The organization’s management needs to be responsible for knowing what’s going on,” Brown said.
Bonus: You can get tools to improve the accuracy of Form 990s from the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits, www.mncn.org, or find best practices and related tools at the Charities Review Council Web site, www.crcmn.org.
Try to make it to: KDV sponsors regular seminars to help business owners in different industries. Contact Pat Enderson, KDV: 763.537.3011; pe*******@*dv.com; www.kdv.com
Anne Hunter started her business 11 years ago, merged with another organization at one point, and then un-merged. “All of the employees started small, independent operations,” she said. She began using their services and along the way has become an expert in outsourcing.
Hunter runs Marketing Source USA, a marketing and branding firm. She gave tips on which jobs to send to other firms and which to keep on staff at a panel sponsored by Minnesota Entrepreneurs.
How does she choose which vendor to use for which job?
“I’m methodical. I think of my needs and write it down. We do a formal RFP,” or request for proposal.
John Shulman is founder of Alignor, a Minneapolis company that trains clients on the art of negotiation. He also recently wrapped his first movie, called “Justice.”
“Making a movie is the ultimate outsourcing experience. You’re bringing together 250 people,” Shulman said. “I’ve had really good experiences and really bad experiences” when outsourcing.
Responding to a question from the audience, Shulman differentiated between a vendor and a partner. “A vendor has a set of interests, their own needs, and they’re going to make sure those needs are met. A partner will think, ‘How can we satisfy each other’s needs?’ ” Shulman said.
Try to make it to: Minnesota Entrepreneurs hosts monthly events to help business owners: www.mn-entrepreneur.org
If the subject of business ethics, or Martha Stewart’s jail sentence, fails to get your attention, consider this tidbit: Of 1,600 sentences handed down for business offenses between 1991 and 2001, 80 percent of those slapped were small-business owners. The average fine paid was $2 million.
So said Ron James, who heads the Center for Ethical Business Cultures in Minneapolis. “The government was sending the message — size is not a defense,” James said.
He was one of a handful of executives, professors and others associated with the University of St. Thomas College of Business, kicking around the topic of business ethics at a media breakfast. Complying with the law is not enough, all agreed.
“Compliance is one thing. It’s also about getting an ethical culture in place,” James said. Business owners should ask themselves, “What am I doing to instill values in my organization?”
Try to make it to: The Center for Ethical Business Cultures Web site has tools for creating same: www.cebcglobal.org. For a St. Thomas business faculty guide: 651.962.4281; www.stthomas.edu/cob
