A Rare Glimpse of Steve Job's Vision, Aspirations and Managerial Approach

And the Winners of the Global Technology Competition Are ...

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Who's out there tackling problems in our world?  First, you must spot a gap and then fill an opportunity.  In this instance, Sir Richard Branson has crowned the winners of global technology competition, the Talent Unleashed Awards, at a high profile event in Sydney last week.

The Awards recognize disruptive entrepreneurs who utilize innovative technology solutions to improve communities, social problems and the environment.

Read more:  Game-changers:  Winners of global technology competition announced  Shortcut to winners here.

Today in Global Small Business: Are Grads Ready for Their Jobs Globally?

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What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• What California's new 'Made in USA' legislation means.
• Whitebox launches a fully automated ecommerce solution which helps manufacturers and brands scale globally.
• Does the Bitcoin community need another wallet?  Find out.
• Are grads ready for their jobs globally?
• Globalization in a small Southern city.
• Up your global game by attending Forum held in Chicago on 10/23.

Explore Chicago's Rich History

©2015 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

How do you explore Chicago's rich history, famous architecture and amazing skyline?  Consider Shoreline Sightseeing.

Intuit Gets Lean in India

©iStock/Noppasin Wongchum

US accounting software company Intuit has retrenched at least 440 employees globally and the wave has hit Indian shores, too.

According to officials in the company's Bengaluru office, 35 employees including developers, sales and marketing staff were asked to leave last month. The employees were told in July that the company needs to get leaner and a reorganisation was on the anvil.

Read more:  Intuit Fires 440 Staff Globally, 35 in Bengaluru

Customers Love Roasting Coffee Beans On the Spot in Kyoto, Japan

©iStock/Frank Mirbach

% Arabica, a Kyoto, Japan based coffee shop, is the brainchild of Kenneth Shoji, a trading company boss who’s been investing heavily in specialty coffee.

In addition to owning a coffee farm, his company, Asiamix, is a distributor of high-end Slayer espresso machines and the sole exporter of the Japan-made Tornado King roaster. (The first branch of % Arabica opened in 2013 in Hong Kong, where Asiamix is headquartered.)

How does % Arabica have a steady stream of multinational customers?

While overseas visitors tend to discover % Arabica via the TripAdvisor website (where it’s currently ranked as the fourth-best “Restaurant in Kyoto”), Yamaguchi says that Japanese customers often come after word-of-mouth recommendations. Social-networking app Instagram is another major lure: Yamaguchi and his latte art have attracted more than 33,000 followers.

Read more:  Roasted-on-the-spot coffee from Kyoto is going global

Up Your Global Game

©2015 GSBB Media LLC

Global TradeSource, Ltd. invites startups, entrepreneurs and small business owners to learn the secrets to financial global success at a one-of-a-kind forum with the theme "Up Your Global Game" at the historic Navy Pier in downtown Chicago on Friday, Oct. 23, 2015.

The Global Small Business Forum will inspire attendees to get out of their own backyards and transition from local, regional or niche-market players into global titans. Event attendees will gain the knowledge and insights they need to market, sell and fulfill orders internationally by taking full advantage of the Internet and the opportunities it creates. Attendees will be able to boost their revenues by learning how to expand beyond borders.

For more information and to register, visit:  The Global Small Business Forum 2015 (http://www.globalsmallbusinessforum.com)

Is Global Uncertainty Taking Its Toll?

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Confidence in smaller firms is "cooling," with increasing caution among business prospects, while global economic uncertainty is taking its toll on Britain's manufacturers, according to new studies published by the Federation of Small Business (FSB).

Read more:  Small firms and manufacturers report dip in confidence

Today in Global Small Business: How to Take Advantage of Significant Duty Savings On Imports

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What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• How do you predict the future?  These 8 tips might help.
• The Global Small Business Forum held in Chicago on 10/23/15.  Have you registered?
• Would you recognize DHL Global Forwarding as a top employer?
• How U.S. importers can take advantage of significant duty savings.
• Trend for female entrepreneurship is significantly up globally.
• The best supply chain and logistics blogs on the web (according to Freightos).

Happy Labor Day to all Americans who have contributed to the strength of our economy.

Mickey Mouse Sitting on the Sand

©2015 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

You never know what you will find on the beach.  In this case, Mickey Mouse is sitting on the sand in Rogers Park, Illinois (Pratt Beach), waiting for his/her owner to bring him safely and lovingly back home.

Listen In: Illinois Exporters Say It's a Struggle With No Export-Import Bank

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WBEZ morning shift on August 31, 2015 interviews Richard Paullin, Executive Director, International Trade Association of Greater Chicago on the impact for Chicago business owners concerning the lapse in the reauthorization of the Export-Import Bank of the United States.

IL exporters say it's a struggle with no Export-Import Bank

Meanwhile, our Global Small Business Forum 2015 (registration OPEN) held in Chicago at Navy Pier on Friday, October 23rd, will help small business owners boost their exports and gather alternative methods for financing their sales.  Richard Paullin will be participating in the event.

In Pursuit of Development Opportunities Outside the United States

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Despite challenging economic conditions, a competitive environment and severe currency headwind, Rolling Meadows, Illinois-based Boston Scientific managed to post better-than-expected second-quarter 2015 results.  How is that?  They continue to strengthen their core businesses and invest in new technologies and global markets.

An important aspect of the company’s growth strategy is its pursuit of development opportunities outside the U.S. by expanding global presence, inclusive of the emerging markets. 

Read more:  Boston Scientific Expands Globally, Fights Currency Woes

Private Capital Access Project: Small Business Optimism on Upswing

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Dun & Bradstreet and Pepperdine University has released the Private Capital Access (PCA) results for Q3. In addition, Dun & Bradstreet will be at the upcoming WBDC 29th Annual Entrepreneurial Women’s Conference on Wednesday, September 2nd at McCormick Place West in Chicago moderating the morning breakout session focusing on access to capital issues for small businesses in addition to co-hosting the 1:1 Lender Matchmaking session.

To learn more about the WBDC Conference and D&B's morning breakout session, visit:
http://www.ewc29.org.

To learn more about D&B and Pepperdine University's Private Capital Markets Project, visit:
http://bschool.pepperdine.edu/about/people/faculty/appliedresearch/research/pcmsurvey/pca-index/

Read the press release:  Small Business Optimism Continues Along Three-Year Upswing, According to Dun & Bradstreet and Pepperdine Graziadio PCA Index

Disruptive Innovation in the Cargo Space

©iStock/Prasit Rodphan

Cargo shipments are coming into the Internet age and promise to reshape the transportation industry.  Find out how in the following article I authored for the About.com Import and Export site.

Shipping Global Cargo in the Internet Age

Today in Global Small Business: Private Air Travel Has Flown In Via Ubair

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What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• How to connect a website to a payment processing network (options).
• How to avoid three mistakes when launching a website.
• Is it true?  Facebook has become the top social platform for e-commerce.
• An app that allows you to shop and pay using social media.
• You've heard of Uber, now there's ubair.com for private air travel.
• Coming soon ... pay easily on social media.

How to Be a Cloud Floating in the Blue!

©2015 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

"How sweet to be a cloud
Floating in the blue!
Every little cloud
Always sings aloud.

How sweet to be a cloud
Floating in the blue!
It makes him very proud
To be a little cloud"

-- A Cloud:  A poem from the original Pooh Bear book by A.A. Milne

To Go Global, Improve Your Online Presence

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There is $50 billion in untapped business potential out there, which businesses could get a share of if they improved their online presence,” says Richard Flanigan, Google's head of small business marketing in Australia.

Small Business: Digital Growth, new PwC analysis commissioned by Google, found that this myth is preventing Australian small businesses from realizing their growth prospects and future economic gain. The research, which is powered by PwC’s innovative Geospatial Economic Model (GEM), discovered that embracing digital and mobile technology could help small businesses unlock an additional $49.2 billion of untapped economic potential over the next 10 years.

Learn more:  Google head of small business to speak with Darwin businesses at Skycity next week (9/3/15).

Global Small Businesses: Is It Tough Out There?

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The portion of small businesses reporting that the U.S. economy was improving fell to its lowest level in August since the government shutdown of 2013, according to a monthly survey of small firms by The Wall Street Journal and Vistage International Inc.

Only 42% of the 682 small companies surveyed by the two organizations said economic conditions were better than a year ago, down from 47% in July and a January peak of 67%.

But small-business owners’ waning optimism about the larger economy belies their outlook for their own operations. Fifty-seven percent of small firms surveyed expect their total number of employees to increase over the next 12 months, while 46% forecast growth in investment spending. 

Bob Gross, the owner of 25-year-old Gross Automation, a distributor of automation and controls in the Milwaukee area, said, "But it’s tough out there."

Read more ... Small-Business Owners' Confidence in Economy Wanes

SBA's STEP Program Supports Global Small Businesses

To help enter and compete in the global marketplace, small businesses across the country will have access to $17.4 million in funding. The Small Business Administration (SBA) will make 40 awards from the agency’s State Trade and Export Promotion (STEP) program to states and territories to support activities to increase exporting by small businesses.

Here's the listing of states that received funding in 2015 (note:  IL received $686,855 -- last year zero).

SBA’s STEP program ensures local resources are available to help small businesses tap global markets. By funding states and their export development partners, the SBA is delivering the tools and resources required for small businesses to launch their services and products abroad.

Learn more ... SBA Awards $17.4M to Small Business Global Trade

Chart screenshot courtesy:  Business Facilities

Related posts.

Ohio Grocery Store Offers Specialty Foods From Across the Globe

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Jungle Jim’s International Market is anything but traditional. The Ohio-based grocery store was opened by Jim Bonaminio as a vegetable and fruit market along Ohio 4.  It has morphed into Southwest Ohio’s most talked about grocery store with two locations -- the Fairfield store with 210,000 square feet of space and the Eastgate store with 228,000 square feet -- both offering specialty foods from across the globe.

It's a major destination.  Take a look:

More than 80,000 people come each week to shop with annual sales topping $90 million. They can choose among 150,000 different items including 1,400 different beers, 1,600 cheeses, an acre of produce and even a section devoted to jerky, Bonaminio said.

Think your local store can't be global?  Guess again.  Read more:  40 years later, Jungle Jim's remains a wild, fun place

Oh, and according to Bonaminio's wife, there is no retiring for her husband.  "He’s having too much fun.”