Project management

Project management is the process. It is all about the activity of planning, organizing, motivating, and controlling resources, procedures and protocols to achieve specific goals in scientific or daily problems. When you look a it individually a project is a temporary effort meant to create a unique product, service or result. The beginning and the end are pre-defined (almost always within a certain time frame, and usually by funding and results). The goal of the project is usually about bringing around a beneficial change or creating an added value. Temporaty nature of the project makes it difference from business-as-usual since they represent repetitive, permanent functional activities needed to produce a product or service.

Primary challenge of project management is to achieve the desired result by keeping in mind the pre-determined constraints (time, money etc.).

Traditional approach to project management identifies a sequence of steps to be completed. There are five components within which project has to be developed:

1.                  Initiation phase

2.                  Planning and design phase

3.                  Execution and construction phase

4.                  Monitoring and controlling mechanisms

5.                  Completion phase.

You should keep in mind that not all projects will have every stage, as projects can be terminated before they reach completion. Some projects do not follow a structured planning and/or monitoring process. And some projects will go through steps 2, 3 and 4 multiple times.

There are other approaches to project management, but more on that later!

Return on investment (ROI)

Return on investment (ROI) is, plain and simple, a principle of investing which determines how much benefit from investing a certain resource will an investor have. High ROI means that investor will have big benefit when compared to the investment he made. ROI is often used in order to evaluate efficiency of investment and compare it to a number of other possible investments. Economically speaking it is a way of showing the relationship of profit to capital invested.

Businesses often use ROI to determine, through a period of time, how much money they will make based on a certain investment and base their investments on that.

ROI and related metrics provide an idea of profitability, adjusted for the size of the investment assets used. ROI is often compared to expected (or required) rates of return on money invested.

 Marketing decisions are obviously based on ROI to some degree (quite a degree at that!) since these decisions influence how assets will be used and what are capital requirements. it is used to understand the company position and what is expected in return.

ROI is quite easily calculated. You use a formula that tells you that ROI equals (net profit/investment)*100.

Top Hot Businesses

The timing is everything. You have got to know when to start your own business but you also have to know what your business will be. The trends are changing rapidly. What is hot today might not be hot tomorrow. Here is my list of top hot business ideas right now for you to start from your own home!

1. Resale
You don't have it in you to be creative? You are not into handiwork? You don't have enough money to start producing something?
You can always resell other people stuff. Try and find out what your town, country, state or whatever is looking for, buy it online, bring it in and sell it!
But remember, hot product of the day might just be that - of this day.

2. Freelancing
Freelancing is all about offering your services to the highest bidder. Try to figure out what you are good at and offer your services to the public. Maybe it is web design, maybe it is presentation skills or whatever. There are many sites serving as a bridge between those looking for freelancers and those who are freelancing. Try them out!

3. Facebook
Provide your services on Facebook. Facebook has over a billion users worldwide. You can create a Facebook page offering such services as creating fan pages, Facebook adverts etc. Just promote it on Facebook, first among your friends and see how it expands!

4. Bulk SMS
Sounds easy? Well it is! It is quite cheap to get set up with your mobile operator in order to be able to send bulk SMS. Next step is to contact your local businesses, churches, restaurants and what not and start selling those SMSs in their name!

5. Google Adsense
It would be a shame not to mention Adsense. Start your own blog or website, fill it with interesting topics, sign up for adsense and watch the money trickle in. Trickle in at start but watch out - The Flood is coming!

Top 5 Business Ideas that can't fail

Making money is important. Starting your own business is a good way to achieve that, but on the other hand starting your own business can lead to disaster.
Therefore I decided to make this list with couple of ideas which (in my opinion) can't fail.
So here it goes!

1. Food business
People have to eat. Even if they are poor and don't have any extra money they will have money for food. That is one of the basics of life. So if you want to have a surefire business sell food. Now there are many subniches to consider. Selling luxury food will have its market but I believe you should focus on quantity and provide affordable food to the mass market. You will always have customers!

2. Clothing store
Clothing is not life essential but today it is a social norm for people to wear clothes. So selling clothes is a business that people will always need. Same as with food every article of clothing will find its market but you have to stay on top of the trends and observe the customer behavior. Keep in touch with whats hip, watch out for the prices, discounts etc. and you should be doing just fine.

3. Financial consultancy
There are many way how this can pay off. People with lots of money always look for somebody who can advise them in order to increase their money. Poorer people, on the other hand, might need help dealing with all their costs and still saving some money. Of course you will have to have some knowledge in this field and not just scamming people if you are looking for a long-term profit. 

4. Ecommerce
Internet is the future. Internet is now. More and more business move to online. Webshops with practically every possible commodity are appearing throughout the web. It is not too late to jump on the train. You can profit in many ways. Blogging, web development, SEO, affiliate marketing, webshop - take your pick!

5. Entertainment
There is not business like show business! That phrase has never been more true than today. Today theoretically everyone can make it big in show business. People want entertainment so why not give it to them? You can use online services like Youtube to promote your singing/dancing/standup comedy or whatever and you will get million of views in practically no time! The big question is - are you up to it? 

Top 10 Cloud services

Cloud computing is the use of computing resources (both hardware and software) that are delivered to the user over a network (usually over the Internet). The name comes from the common use of a cloud-shaped symbol as an abstraction for the complex infrastructure it contains in system diagrams. Cloud computing entrusts remote services with a user's data, software and computation.

End users access cloud-based applications through web browser (such as Opera, Firefox, Internet Explorer etc.) while the software and hardware you are using is stored on servers at a remote location.

In the business model of using software as a service, users are provided access to application software and databases. Cloud providers manage the infrastructure and platforms that run the applications. SaaS is sometimes referred to as "on-demand software" and is usually priced on a pay-per-use basis. SaaS providers generally price applications using a subscription fee.

Proponents claim that the SaaS allows a business the potential to reduce IT operational costs by outsourcing hardware and software maintenance and support to the cloud provider. This enables the business to reallocate IT operations costs away from hardware/software spending and personnel expenses, towards meeting other IT goals. In addition, with applications hosted centrally, updates can be released without the need for users to install new software. One drawback of SaaS is that the users' data are stored on the cloud provider's server. As a result, there could be unauthorized access to the data.

If your company decided to use Google Apps you might be tempted to use a myriad of applications available (free and pay) in the Google Apps Marketplace. The choice is overwhelming so you could start off by checking the apps that have been downloaded by other businesses. In order to get you started I made a list of 10 must have apps you should install.

1. MailChimp - A newsletter service that can be integrated with a bunch of other popular small business cloud apps, including Rapportive, Batchbook CRM, Zendesk and Freshbooks. It also connects with e-commerce software including Shopify and Magento.
2. FlashPanel - Management and security capabilities, including the ability to manage passwords, control user access, manage email usage and consumption, or create (and delete) shared contacts.
3. Do by Salesforce - A projects and tasks manager; you can share items with people on your Google Contacts list.
4. Accounting tools by Wave - A small-business accounting system that includes invoicing and reporting features. 
5. Mavenlink - A workforce and project management system that shows time sheets, budgets and costs related to ongoing projects, accounts receivable aging reeports and other information that will help with resource utilization and planning.
6. Gantter Project - An application for handling scheduling of complex projects, which integrates with Google Drive for sharing and collaboration. It can import files from Microsoft Project.
7. Insightly - A basic application for tracking customer interactions.
8. Draw.io - An app for producing graphical diagrams using predefined objects.
9. Zoho CRM - As with the other CRM tools mentioned, this service is for tracking leads and customer prospects. But it can also be used for customer support management and marketing automation.
10. Capsule CRM - A customer relationship management (CRM) tool that integrates with Google Apps, and with cloud accounting and financial management software including Freshbooks and Xero.

Management

Management in all business and organizational activities is the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals and objective using available resources efficiently and effectively. Management comprises of planning, organization, staffing, leadership and control of an organization (a group of one or more people or entities) or effort for the purpose of accomplishing a goal. 

Since organizations can be viewed as systems, management can also be defined as human action, including design, to facilitate the production of useful outcomes from a system. 

One could view management functionally, such as measuring quantity, adjusting plans, meeting goals. This applies even in situations where planning does not take place. From this perspective, Henry Fayol (1841–1925) considers management to consist of six functions: forecasting, planning, organizing, commanding, coordinating and controlling. He was one of the most influential contributors to modern concepts of management.

Another way of thinking, Mary Parker Follet (1868–1933), defined management as "the art of getting things done through people". She described management as philosophy.

Some people, however, find this definition useful but far too narrow. The phrase "management is what managers do" occurs widely, suggesting the difficulty of defining management, the shifting nature of definitions and the connection of managerial practices with the existence of a managerial cadre.

One habit of thought regards management as equivalent to "business administration" and thus excludes management in places outside commerce such as public sector or charities. More realistically, however, every organization must manage its work, people, processes, technology, etc. to maximize effectiveness. Nonetheless, many people refer to university departments that teach management as "business schools."

English speakers may also use the term "management" or "the management" as a collective word describing the managers of an organization, for example of a corporation.

As the general recognition of managers as a class solidified during the 20th century and gave perceived practitioners of the art/science of management a certain amount of prestige, so the way opened for popular management ideas. In this context many management trenda may have had more to do with popular psychology than with scientific theories of management.

Towards the end of the 20th century, business management came to consist of six separate branches, namely:

• Human resource management
• Operations management or production management
• Strategic management
• Marketing management
• Financial management
• Information technology management responsible for management information systems

9 Online business models

One of the most popular questions for startups online (and even major ones like Twitter and Facebook) is ‘what is your business model’. Sometimes the question is sincere but often it is voiced more like an accusation: what are you exactly trying to acomplish?

The interesting thing about business models is that there is not much magic involved. Business models are pretty much set and all you have to do really is apply one of them to your business. The hard part is choosing the right one for you. You can choose one or the combination of couple of them.

So here comes the list:

Brokerage
Brokers are market-makers: they bring buyers and sellers together and facilitate transactions.

Advertising
The web advertising model is an extension of the traditional media broadcast model. The broadcaster, in this case, a web site, provides content (usually, but not necessarily, for free) and services (like email, IM, blogs) mixed with advertising messages in the form of banner ads.

Infomediary
Independently collected data about producers and their products are useful to consumers when considering a purchase. Some firms function as infomediaries (information intermediaries) assisting buyers and/or sellers understand a given market.

Merchant
Wholesalers and retailers of goods and services. Sales may be made based on list prices or through auction.

Manufacturer (Direct)
The manufacturer or “direct model”, it is predicated on the power of the web to allow a manufacturer (i.e., a company that creates a product or service) to reach buyers directly and thereby compress the distribution channel.

Affiliate
In contrast to the generalized portal, which seeks to drive a high volume of traffic to one site, the affiliate model, provides purchase opportunities wherever people may be surfing. It does this by offering financial incentives (in the form of a percentage of revenue) to affiliated partner sites.

Community
The viability of the community model is based on user loyalty. Users have a high investment in both time and emotion. Revenue can be based on the sale of ancillary products and services or voluntary contributions; or revenue may be tied to contextual advertising and subscriptions for premium services.

Subscription
Users are charged a periodic – daily, monthly or annual – fee to subscribe to a service.

Utility
The utility or “on-demand” model is based on metering usage, or a “pay as you go” approach.

You can combine any of these models and vary slightly to make new models. But this is a nice list to get started with.