What Changes can Pittsburgh Expect from New Mayor Peduto

This week marked the inauguration of new mayor, Bill Peduto.  It will be interesting to see what changes could happen in Pittsburgh with this new leadership.  Pop City Media compiled some highlights from Mayor Peduto’s list of goals during his term.  Many highlights focus on neighborhood revival and investment and support for green, clean technology companies in Pittsburgh.

A self-described data-driven guy, Mayor Peduto moves into the office armed with 1100 pages of notes generated by a citizen-lead advisory committee that worked through the holidays on ideas to lead the region forward.

He has an ambitious to-do list of his own, as well, no less than 100 highly-detailed ways to lead the region, often tapping technology to get the job done.

Here’s a sampling of a few of the items on his innovation checklist, things Mayor Peduto wants that Pittsburgh needs:

· User-friendly government, beginning with a new cabinet position. Among the first hires will be a chief performance and innovation officer, a job expected to go to Debra Lam. Bring on big data!

· City streets with smarter traffic signals. Streamlined digital building permit systems and equal opportunity technology for all.

· A green tech and clean tech investment fund. 

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How to Keep 2014 Business Resolutions

Forming New Year’s resolutions is a great opportunity to reflect on what had and had not worked for your business and career in 2013.  Many of us create resolutions that sometimes get lost as to-do lists, schedules, and workloads pile up in our personal and professional lives. The key to making sure your goals don’t get lost is to create a system of steps that will lead you to them.  This article from Entrepeneur provides tips.

And for most of us, the path to those things starts by setting a specific and actionable goal. At least, this is how I approached my life until recently. I would set goals for classes I took, for weights that I wanted to lift in the gym, and for clients I wanted in my business.

What I'm starting to realize, however, is that when it comes to actually getting things done and making progress in the areas that are important to you, there is a much better way to do things.

It all comes down to the difference between goals and systems. 

The Difference Between Goals and Systems

What's the difference between goals and systems?

• If you're a coach, your goal is to win a championship. Your system is what your team does at practice each day.
• If you're a writer, your goal is to write a book. Your system is the writing schedule that you follow each week.
• If you're a runner, your goal is to run a marathon. Your system is your training schedule for the month.
• If you're an entrepreneur, your goal is to build a million dollar business. Your system is your sales and marketing process.

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Where To Go On New Years

Highmark First Night Pittsburgh will be kicking off at the turn of the new year, are you prepared for the festivities?

Feeling those annual pangs of New Year's Eve stress just pondering the party options, cover charges, wardrobe choices and travel headaches? We suggest you look no further than Downtown Pittsburgh for an Auld Lang Syne filled with art, culture and community. 

If one of your resolutions is to make more time for art, then the best place to kick off 2014 is at Highmark First Night Pittsburgh. Bid adieu to 2013 and help mark two decades of First Nights Downtown at the 'Burgh's biggest New Year's Eve bash, which boasts some 150 events taking place in 50 indoor and outdoor venues located within the 14-block Cultural District. 

From an immersive ice and LED labyrinth to a miniature city constructed from medicine cabinets, desk lamps, Victorian dollhouses and repurposed junk, Highmark First Night Pittsburgh offers arts-centric family-friendly programming from 6 p.m. to midnight.

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Common Marketing Mistakes

What do you do to keep your marketing campaigns on point? Take a look at these common marketing fails and how to avoid them:

Even after all the marketing, selling, messaging and posturing, it’s not working when: At a chamber of commerce meeting you overhear a peer refer an ideal prospect to your competitor. When you ask him why, he asks, “Your company does that?”

The next day, you learn your vendor just suggested his friend buy from your arch rival instead of automatically pushing the work your way. When confronted, your supplier says, “Your company does that? I had no idea!”

Finally, your new employee hears and misses your client’s buying signals. You gently point this out, and she responds, “Oh, that’s right, I guess our company does that.” This upsets you for three reasons:

Your offline and online marketing isn't working.

If the people you know don't know what your firm does, then who does?
You are needlessly embarrassing your colleague, vendor and trainee.

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Do you know one of the region's outstanding women in business?

Honor them by sending in a nomination for the Pittsburgh Business Times 2014 Women in Business Awards program. Winners will be honored at an event and in a special Business Times supplement in the spring of next year. 

To qualify, the nominee must have a home office located in our region. 

We're looking for women from every industry and profession, including non-profits, women who've blazed a trail and who are leaving a mark on Pittsburgh business. We'll also be considering community and social efforts of nominees, but the primary focus will be on the nominee's work experience. 

The nomination process consists of completing a nomination form with basic contact information and providing narratives to several basic questions. The entire process is online. 

And by the way, if you qualify for this prestigious award, don't be shy. Many of our winners from previous years are self-nominated. The program does not take into account who nominates the candidate or how many nominations are received for an individual. 

Nominations close Dec. 20, 2013. The winners are notified by the end of the year. The names of individuals who are nominated but not selected are not publicized.
To enter a nomination, visit our Women in Business nomination page.

For more information, contact Richard Cerilli, rcerilli@bizjournals.com or 412-208-3815.

How to Thrive? Create a Stellar Advisor Board.

Often times, the most successful businesses thrive when leaders surround themselves with great advisors. Here is a great look into how to get create a board to help your company grow:

In 2011, my co-founders and I were looking to get into a market we knew little about: foreign investment. We saw an opportunity in helping Chinese investors find projects in Latin America (my home continent), but we had a few obstacles to overcome: Neither of us knew Chinese or had any experience in international finance. 

Our solution? Get a rock-star board of advisors to provide expertise and connections. While having an advisory is often a necessity for startups (us included), nabbing a stellar team isn't easy. 

For companies just starting out, here are a few tips on how to get advisors and best practices for leveraging your board: 

Navigate your network. Like I mentioned, finding the right advisors isn't easy. How do you wrangle in top-notch people to work for free? 

It was frustrating at the beginning. We met with more than 200 investors (we counted) who gave us a lot of great contacts and insights but no advisors.

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Small Business Accounting Simplified

Accounting can be a difficult task for startups and small businesses. But there are some ways to simplify the process and make it more manageable.

1. Calculate a minimum monthly profit and write down your ideal monthly profit You need to keep proper records of all invoices and payments to get an idea of what you make in a month and to figure out how much it will take to keep your business running. This is the first step to making it happen. Keeping track of these records will show you when invoices are paid, how long it takes customers to pay you, and if you're having difficulties collecting payments from particular customers. By keeping track you can come up with an exact number you'll need to earn each month. 

2. Keep your personal and business finances separate The biggest mistake you can make is to mix business with personal, which can keep you from knowing the true state of your finances. Avoid using your business credit card to pay for personal expenses. Maintaining separate bank accounts for your business and personal finances will save you time in the long run and make it easier to track expenses. 

3. Maintain records It is imperative to always keep all receipts, invoices, bills, bank statements, etc. If you write down a number for office expenses today and forget to keep your receipts, a few months from now you will not remember from where that number came.

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