Whenever 2 or more people

enter into a business partnership… 

They do it with the best intention—to succeed!

Statistics show there are 3 common reasons that failure occurs:

• Lack of a plan
• Failure to have a written partnership agreement
• Inadequate or incomplete agreements

That being said… always consult an attorney to have these agreements drafted making sure to cover all legalities, as well as the specifics of the relationship and the terms of the operating agreement. This ensures that the documents are complete, legal in your state and that the responsibilities of all partners are defined and understood clearly.

When the rules are in writing and agreed upon by all, the daily operations stay on track and the atmosphere remains positive.

Additionally, if the time should come when the partners want to go their separate ways the original agreement will easily guide that process.

So… do not necessarily run from what seems to be a great opportunity. Just make sure to get you ducks in line, make it legal and official, and then go fo it!

The post Why Partnerships Fail appeared first on A La Carte Business Services.

Our 3rd employee started today and it is a BOY!!

Kevin Ryan has joined our team, as the newest Client Specialist, bringing with him an extensive business management career and a great mind for the numbers. Kevin will be responsible for outsourced accounting services and client support.

We are proud to have him and excited about the future!!

You can read a bit more about Kevin on our About Us Page and connect with him on LinkedIn!

The post Employee #3 Welcome Kevin Ryan appeared first on A La Carte Business Services.

The article below references “A sense of meaning”, something that is such a huge part of that environment and something that us, as business owners & employers, must take seriously. I believe that the more seriously we take the issues surrounding employment along with our ability to give these issues the time and thought they deserve… the more we will succeed as EMPLOYERS, building a TEAM of happy, appreciated and hard working individuals that will ultimately play a huge role in pushing the company forward. A WIN, WIN FOR EVERYONE!!

Written By: Jeff Haden, Ghostwriter and Inc.com columnist (Connect with Jeff on LinkedIn)

In the photo my grandfather waits to board a train in search of work.

He stands awkardly, a poor man unused to being photographed. In one hand he clutches a small cloth sack and a one-way ticket. In the other hand he grips a broom.

The bag holds his clothes and what little food his wife and two small children can spare. The broom? Besides a fifth grade education and a strong back, it’s the only tool he owns.

I once asked him about the broom. He said, “I didn’t want to show up on a man’s doorstep empty-handed. I was hoping someone could at least use me to sweep up.”

Fortunately my grandfather found work as a farm laborer. At first he slept in a barn, but eventually he was able to send for his family. He worked and lived the rest of his life on that same farm.

When I was young I didn’t recognize the fundamental dichotomy in his life: Employed by the wealthiest man in the county and taking justifiable pride in running a showcase property, he was also in essence a tenant farmer who never owned his own home or vehicle. Losing his job would not just take away his income; losing his job would instantly take away his family’s home.

So he bought a racehorse.

Buying the horse made no sense considering he spent nearly all of what little savings they had. Still, he scraped together money for entry fees and ran without success at small tracks across the state… until one day the horse finished second at his local county fair.

After the race he held up the small silver plate at the finish line so I could take his picture. Then we led the horse back around the sandy track towards the stables as people on the other side of the rail congratulated him.

I was only twelve but even I could tell a noticeable difference in the way he walked. He stood taller, carrying himself with a clear sense of accomplishment, dignity, and pride.

Years later I realized why my grandfather bought the horse. He desperately wanted to be someone. He wanted to matter.

So do your employees.

I know: Sometimes they do things that aren’t logical. Sometimes they take over projects or roles without approval or justification. Sometimes they jockey for position, play political games, or ignore company or team objectives in pursuit of personal goals.

At those moments it’s easy to assume your employees don’t listen or don’t care. But there’s another reason: They might be striving to add significance to their own lives, to gain a sense of meaning that pay rates and titles can never provide.

As a leader, providing a sense of meaning is arguably your most important role. Assign projects, no matter how small. Praise individual employees as often as you can. Extend responsibility, since implicit in responsibility is trust and regard. Help employees understand their place in a larger effort that transcends procedures, tasks, and measurable outcomes.

Like my grandfather, we all want to matter. Help your employees know they matter.

Especially to you.

The post One Thing Every Employee Requires appeared first on A La Carte Business Services.

They gathered today at Eureka Crafts to kick off the month! A La Carte was proud to be there and spread the message. According to Chris Fowler, Executive Director of SyracuseFirst, that a 10% shift towards local buying in Onondaga County alone could result in $130,000,000 in new activity.

So ladies and gentlemen, BUY LOCAL!

Visit SyracuseFirst at http://www.syracusefirst.org/

P.S. A La Carte is proud to be a member of SyracuseFirst and you should be too!

The post November Is Buy Local Month appeared first on A La Carte Business Services.

A phone call from the CNY Business Journal to be interviewed… how cool!!

So…I am honored to say that my company was selected for the CNY Business Journal Small Business Special Report that was published on June 29, 2012.

Please take a look at the great job that Rick Seltzer did writing the article: CNY Business Journal Article June 29, 2012

If you are interested in subscribing to the CNY Business Journal, click here

The post A La Carte In The News appeared first on A La Carte Business Services.

For one a month and a half, while handling my workload, I painted, cleaned and orchestrated the pieces of the new offices. April 30th Mary Calhoun joined my team and the office was open!!

I have been running businesses for 20 years and in opening this office I have had to remember and sometimes re-learn what all goes into making a public office work…. phones, Internet, desks, paper, signs, marketing materials, printers, vendors, networks, wires…. the list goes on and on. Throughout each day I thanked God that I had my business experience and was able to work through the process day by day until it was finished. In fact there are still a few straggling items and just when you think you are almost done… you have a day like yesterday where your email and phones go down!

So… here I sit at my desk this morning feeling disconnected from the world and waiting for the repair people to do their jobs and get me up and running again.

Some people would wonder if it is worth all of this work and trouble and learning… I say YES!! This has been my dream for over a decade and the problems and set backs are so small compared to the pride and excitement I feel every day. I am honored to work with fabulous small business owners helping them run their businesses better and more efficiently and in turn I am controlling my future and the future of my family…. THAT IS THE AMERICAN DREAM!

So when your office gets you down and business overwhelms you, know that the ride is definitely worth the efforts and keep on chugging. We are all entitled to live our dreams!!

Off I go to get the phones working and get back to business! Have a safe and enjoyable holiday weekend!

The post New Office… New World! appeared first on A La Carte Business Services.

We ended up raising $2946.00 for CF!!

I cannot thank the people and busineses who helped enough… You are awesome and I am so touched by your overwhelming level of supoort!

Thank you.

The post Cystic Fibrosis A La Carte Team 2012 appeared first on A La Carte Business Services.

You certainly accomplished things but not the things that had to be done… so they push to the next day and the pressure is always on…

Time is valuable, priorities must be tackled and all said and done you must enjoy doing so or the ride is simply not worth it.

So…. check out this article for some tips to help make tomorrow more productive and a bit less like a hamster on a treadwheel running in circles and getting nowhere.

 ”The Magic Of Doing One Thing At A Time”

Carpe Diem!

The post Too much to do to get anything done? appeared first on A La Carte Business Services.

Due Dates:
1099s are to be mailed to your vendors and sub-contractors, post-marked by January 31st each year.

The IRS portion of the 1099-MISC must be sent to the IRS by February 28th. each year.

2011 follows the existing guidelines for the 1099-MISC, which have existed for quite sometime. Those being:

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) requires businesses (including not-for-profit organizations) to issue a Form 1099 to any individual or unincorporated business paid in excess of $600 per calendar year for services rendered. This is required whether these payments are spread out over the course of the year or are paid in one lump sum payment. This form is generally not required to be issued to incorporated businesses. The only exception is when payments are made to incorporated law firms. A 1099 must be issued whenever payments in excess of $600 per calendar year are made to law firms.

2012 starts a new set of rules regarding 1099s. Stay tuned… We will discuss those more in future posts.

TIP: The most effective way to obtain the information needed to prepare the Form 1099 is by requiring that an IRS Form W-9 be completed prior to any payment being made. Click here for the current W-9 form!

So… what do you do now?? Ask your accounting professional for assistance in filing the 2011 1099s… and begin requesting a W-9 for all vendors and sub-contractors, regardless of the type of business or the dollar amount paid to them. This will put you a step ahead as you learn the new IRS requirements for this year. 

The post 1099 Forms: Mail By January 31st appeared first on A La Carte Business Services.

Not many business owners tell me how much they ‘love’ accounting. In fact, it’s usually quite the opposite.  People who own a business typically are in love with their trade and often loath the numbers part of running the business.

The hard truth is, you simply can’t minimize the importance of good accounting, or understanding your financials enough to help you run day-to-day operations and to plan the future. Decisions, ideas and success are all supported by good recordkeeping.

A friend of mine says, “If you don’t know your diamonds, know your jeweler.”  Find a trusted source to help handle your day-to-day accounting and add a tax accountant for planning.  You’ll be so glad you did.

“THERE IS SIMPLY NOT ENOUGH TIME”…

Time management can be an overwhelming problem for business owners and professionals.  In fact, it’s one of the largest contributors to business failure.

As a business owner you wear many hats. Some you must wear, some you wear because you like them and some you wear because you can’t find the time to delegate them.

Begin to delegate by first tracking your time for a week and then categorize it three ways:

 1. “I MUST DO”

2. “I LIKE”

3. “DELEGATE”

The extra time it takes to complete this exercise will uncover some interesting truths, that will give you answers to how to acquire more time. With no more than 24 hours in a day… you can make better use of those hours.  

“I CAN’T SEE MY DESK…”

My office is designed so I can handle many tasks at one time. Much thought went into the layout to determine what I need around me, and what I definitely do not.

Knowing yourself is important when it comes to efficient office operations. I am not the kind of person that works well in a chaotic environment; right down to the walls, now painted a color I love, called “Fresh Day”.

Did you ever work with someone who had pictures, sayings and knick-knacks all around them? Surrounding yourself with things you love is great… until it takes up every inch of work/wall space. Do you know someone who keeps stacking things hoping to get to them someday and when they do, nothing can be found? Don’t be that person.

If you are, here’s a way to unclutter the clutter.

1. Pick the best things of your museum and make them into a small gallery.
2. Clear your desk, sort your paperwork, buy open shelves that help stack your projects (but not hide them), paint your walls a color that inspires you…
3. Each day, take note of what makes your tasks more difficult as you work. Then, one idea at a time, make changes to help you spend less time searching for what you need and more time getting things done.

These three tips are like magic. Implement them and poof… you have more time, a clear desk and best of all, PEACE OF MIND! I wish you boundless success in 2012!

Chris

The post Keeping Up the Office: Three Main Pain Points appeared first on A La Carte Business Services.