Jim Blasingame

Business futurist, award-winning author, speaker and columnist

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Jim Blasingame

The Key To A Successful Post-pandemic Banking Relationship

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One of the most interesting relationships in the Main Street economy is the one between business owners and their banks. It is at once powerful and essential. Let me tell you a short story about where this dynamic has been in order to explain where it’s going.

Unlike our big business cousins, small firms have limited capital sources. Indeed, the lion’s share of our growth funds come from a bank loan, with almost 60% being made by a community bank (ICBA). Yet, since 2008, more than half of small business CEOs have consistently reported not needing to borrow money (NFIB).

A dozen years ago, a kind of perfect storm began for Main Street businesses: the 2007-09 recession was made “Great” by the Wall Street-induced financial collapse, which was followed by our economic lost decade during the Obama administration. In survival response, small businesses tightened their belts and deleveraged on a scale not seen in generations.

This deleveraging phenomenon resulted in small businesses retaining more earnings which, by definition, produces stronger balance sheets and reduces loan demand. And it produced a silver lining we didn’t know we had or needed – until last year.

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Will America And The World Survive The Climate Change Church?

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If a company quadrupled sales while simultaneously reducing all expenses to levels from 30 years ago, it would be celebrated from Main Street to Wall Street. Books would be written about such performance and that model would be taught in schools as a clinic on operating excellence.

Well, that story is the metaphor for how the U.S. has balanced economic production and carbon emissions. But instead of celebrating and building on that success story, the Biden administration has embarked on a quixotic agenda that in one policy motion will punish the U.S. economy for its unmatched performance, and in perverse irony, likely do harm to the climate.

And the lost opportunity and increased energy cost will disproportionately hurt America’s small businesses. Recently in an online poll, we asked small business owners, “How will the climate plans of the Biden administration impact your business?” Almost 80% rejected the new president’s energy agenda as damaging to their business.

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The CEO Paradox: Getting Out Of Your Own Way

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Paradox: when two associated things – words, traits, situations, etc. – seem illogical and/or contradictory, but may, in fact, be true, compatible, or justified. Examples: “You have to spend money to make money” or “less is more.” Here’s a digital transformation example: “Using artificial intelligence to get closer to customers.”

Contemplating the paradox is fascinating, but never more so than how paradoxical humans are. Consider these human paradoxes:

  • Your intense personality can seem aggressive, but the other side of your paradox is an outgoing nature with a handy sense of urgency.
  • You’ve been called a workaholic, but the rest of the story is that others benefit from the fruits of your labor.
  • You may seem unorganized, but your creative paradox sees order in clutter.

We humans are at once a sweet and sour but always spicy Brunswick stew of paradoxes. But most of us don’t spend a lot of time thinking about it because paradox sounds negative and we don’t like dwelling on our negatives – just the good stuff. And there’s the rub.

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The Small Business Mission Statement

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On August 8, 2020, the unprecedented Paycheck Protection Program closed, even though there was over $130 billion of unused funds.

This money was appropriated specifically to help small businesses that were struggling to survive through no fault of their own, but rather due to the one-two punch of an unprecedented pandemic and unprecedented political shutdowns. Since that date, the ugliest and most shameless display of partisan politics has been afoot, with Main Street operators being used as the football.

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Eight Rude Truths Of Interfacing With Customers In The Digital Age

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For the list of “Most Annoying and Pretentious 21st-Century Terms,” surely “Let’s Interface” qualifies.

It’s annoying because it grates against the way most analog humans express connection requests. For example: “Got time for lunch?” “Gimme a call,” “Text me,” or “I’ll email you.”

“Let’s interface” also furrows the brow because it sounds pretentiously geeky, which is oxymoronic since the pretentious are usually not geeks, and geeks are typically not pretentious.

But who says that, anyway? Well, before you look around, indignantly denying you ever did, the answer is …

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The New Regular: PPP Update #4 – New Money And Rules

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This is the 23rd edition of my New Regular series, which didn’t begin as a series because no one on the planet imagined Main Street would still be getting hammered by two very dangerous forces: a deadly virus and state/local politicians. So, welcome to 2021 when, apparently, Normal has checked-out for another year.

Since last February, your humble correspondent has been reporting on what I’ve named the “Three U’s of the Apocalypse”: an Unprecedented coronavirus pandemic, precipitating an Unprecedented economic shutdown, necessitating Unprecedented direct government assistance. Now, in my fourth report in this series to focus on that last “U,” let’s bring you up to date on the “Economic Aid to Hard-Hit Small Businesses, Nonprofits, and Venues Act’’, or PPP2, for short – which is at least five months late.

This is essentially the availability of another round of Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds, with new money and new rules that update the original CARES Act of March 27, 2020. The new law also delivers some excellent new provisions that you’re going to like.

Here’s the essence of this new PPP cupcake with new sprinkles.

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