Many business models rely on auto renewal contracts. Auto renewals provide a business with a reliable cash flow and they provide clients with reliable service. No one wants to come in on Monday morning to discover that the software they depend on is no longer available to them. However, auto renewals are also a frequent Read full post >
The Kaplan Group is pleased to announce that Karli Study has won our 5th annual $1,000 Scholarship! Karli is in her third year of law school at Widener Commonwealth School of Law in Harrisburg, PA. Karli’s winning essay is reprinted below and was in response to the following prompt: SHOULD YOU SUE A CUSTOMER? Let’s Read full post >
As a collection agent and a business owner, I spend a lot of time in negotiations. I’m fascinated by how negotiation tactics vary from situation to situation. I try to learn from negotiations outside of work and apply them to my work, and vice versa. Ask my kids, I’m very good at using active listening Read full post >
Economies are cyclical. For every upturn, there’s a downturn. When there is a downturn, unqualified collection agencies tend to spring out of nowhere. In 2011, during the Great Recession hundreds of un-trained collection agencies entered the market. Predictably, complaints about collectors’ abusive practices reached all-time highs. According to the Wall Street Journal, in 2011, the Read full post >
Whether you own or lease, real estate is a huge expense for any business. If you are planning on remodeling your space, or building a new facility, the expenses can skyrocket. Quality construction costs money, but that’s no reason to throw away money by failing to plan properly or negotiate with your contractor. Negotiation is Read full post >
Working from home, either full-time or part-time has become a popular option for both employees and business owners. More and more companies are becoming 100% remote. Workers like working from home because it saves commuting time and money and can provide a great work-life balance. Employers like the ability to attract top talent (no matter Read full post >
With e-commerce and the Internet, some of the barriers between international business no longer seem as difficult, especially when it comes to close neighbors like Canada and the United States. But, if you’re doing business with Canada, it’s important to know that there are different laws covering situations like unpaid invoices, collections and corporate bankruptcy. Read full post >
Entrepreneurs report rates of depression and stress that are significantly higher than those of other people. According to the Gallup Wellbeing index, 45% of entrepreneurs report being stressed. Thirty percent of entrepreneurs report being depressed, compared to only 15% of the general population. It’s important that business owners and CEOs be aware of the risks Read full post >
It’s hard to imagine anything more awkward than asking about an unpaid debt after someone dies, but just because it’s awkward doesn’t mean you can avoid it. What happens to an individual or company owner’s debt after they die? It depends. If an individual dies owing money, generally, their estate is responsible for paying any Read full post >
If you Google “hiring negotiation” you’ll see hundreds of articles about how to negotiate a higher salary when given a job offer. You’ll also get a lot of articles from the employer’s point of view about how to negotiate a lower salary. But what so many of these articles overlook is that the negotiations involved Read full post >