Simple Cream Cheese and Date Snack

Sometime you need to bring something to a friends house or to entertain. Few things are easier than a date and cream cheese snack.

1. 1 lb. pitted dates
2. 1/4 lb. Sliced pecans
3.  Cream cheese.

Make a cut in the dates and put just a touch of cream cheese in opening. Top with a sliced pecan.

The Role of Technical and Vocational Training for Entrepreneurship

The more educated and skilled a person is the more likely they are to engage in entrepreneurial type behavior. According to a study of 1500 apprentices the more training in technical and vocational areas the more likely they are going to engage in business type activities (Behroozi, 2017).

It helps us realize that business is more than simply putting out a shingle and hoping that things go well. There is a knowledge component to success.

There is a learning curve associated with success. Having business knowledge before you try and engage in profit seeking behavior is helpful. Training, education and knowledge help people successfully navigate the business environment.

It is also likely that knowledge and skill raise the confidence of people who want to start a business. It will be pretty tough to get out there on your own unless you believe you will be rewarded.

Furthermore, our ability to understand technology and quickly learn the business environment is also based in existing knowledge. Technical and vocational training offers background knowledge that puts everything else in context.

Behroozi, M. (2017).  The Role of Technical and Vocational Training for Entrepreneurship Development and Business Skills in the...Journal of Educational, 6 (1).

Digital Marketing and Communication Skills Needed at Marketing Employers

Employers want ready made marketing graduates that have the skills to start work quickly upon hire. Research has found that two primary skills are missing in higher education that could impact the ability of graduates to effectively work on the job. 

The most important employer needs of marketing graduates includes 1.) digital marketing specialties; and, 2.) effective communication skills (primarily writing) (McArthur, et. al. 2017). 

Digital marketing specialties include the ability to function with specific technologies common to employers. This may be social media tools, data bases, and other online methods of "getting the word out". 

Communication skills is important in any office setting but is very important in marketing where small changes in word usage could impact the meaning of the entire message. Marketing graduates will need strong written communication tools to effectively compete. 

McArthur, E., Krzysztof, K., Pang, B. & Alcaraz, C. (2017). The Employers’ View of “Work-Ready” Graduates: A Study of Advertisements for Marketing Jobs in Australia. Journal of Marketing Education, 39 (2). 

Is there a Case for More Administrators in Higher Education?

I read an interesting article on the reasons why administration is the fastest growing sector of higher education. The article was in education drive and had three main points.

https://www.educationdive.com/news/in-defense-of-administrative-bloat-in-higher-ed/523403/

-Less tasks for faculty are necessary for higher education quality.

-Return on investment for administrators that can be measured.

-More resources, technology integration and support students.

It seems that student support services are growing and with that new administrators. Likewise, there is also more need for academic metrics and this is leading to more administrators to improve those metrics.

Finding the Threshold in Business Product Listings

If you start a business online you will find that if you have too few products your sales are going to be lackluster. There is a points where a threshold is reached and your sales improve exponentially. It isn't just a one for one correlation but more of a reason why people continue to visit a site and the other products they come in contact with. Where is that threshold is somewhere around 500 products.

Look around Amazon and Ebay and you will find that the biggest sellers have thousands of products. They do so because they have an opportunity to increase sales. Unless you are selling something unique that you invented chances are you will need to meet a threshold.

Consider that consumers often look for one product but see something else they want and purchase that. They are shopping because they have some money in their pocket. Browsing your store with many products gives them a chance to purchase something.

More products also means more sales. There are more listings, more ways of connecting with the store, and more people viewing the products.

You may also find that people will return to a site that has enough products to keep them interested. If you only have a few products then they will not come back unless they are interested in that specific product.

Keeping Teams Focus by Finding Purpose

Teams are successful when they are focused. As the team moves through its stages and accomplishes goals sometimes it will begin to break down unless it has a new purpose. Nearly all teams are the same whether the be as large as Congress or as small as a few friends hanging out. The goals are subject to the teams wishes and motivation. Rejuvenating your team means finding a new purpose.

Purpose should be important enough and meaningful enough to the team to spark their interest. If the goal has no meaning to the members and is not worth their effort they simply won't engage. 

There should be rewards associated within to encourage active participation. The goals may be social, financial or personal in nature.

The objectives should be clear and people should know what success looks like. If achievement is not defined you won't have significant misalignment of action and possible motivational loss.

Each member should have a role. If roles are not defined many times people are not sure how they fit within the team and whether or not their actions are beneficial.

Members of the team should be treated as important participants. It isn't about making their boss look good or encouraging the glory of someone else. People deserve recognition, respect, and be treated as a valued member.

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