If you want to avoid an employee break up, then focus on the engagement. According to a new Gallup study entitled “State of the American Manager: Analytics and Advice for Leaders,” 51% of managers were not engaged and 14% were actively disengaged. If this statistic isn’t staggering enough – Gallup estimates that this lack of engagement costs the U.S. economy between $319 billion and $398 billion annually! And managers aren’t the only ones unhappy – Gallup also found that approximately half of employees have left a job “to get away from a manager.”

The lack of engagement by managers, and thus their employees, is something that HR and business leaders are highly aware of, as Deloitte found that 87 percent of the 3,300 HR and business leaders from 106 countries surveyed say lack of employee engagement is a top concern.

Having been in sales for over 25 years with experience as both an entrepreneur and sales executive, I am intrigued by what people think makes a great salesperson. When I talk to salespeople and business owners about this, some tell me it’s having the ability to communicate persuasively, some emphasize personal charm and charisma, and for others it’s that special person who won’t take “no” for an answer.

Have you ever hit a giant, suspension-rattling pothole and wondered aloud why someone hasn’t done something about it? If that pothole is in your business parking lot, P3 can help you do something about it.

P3 is Pacific Pavement Protection and they know that curb appeal is an important factor for any business, as it is the first impression your customers will have of your company.

Spring has sprung and the sun is shining (well, maybe not so much at our offices here in Seattle and San Francisco) we’re all making that yearly attempt at spring cleaning.

While we weed out old newspapers and those clothes that we thought would fit by now, we often forget that home isn’t the only part of our lives that requires a detox. Why not do a little tidying up in our professional lives? Read on for the top tips from around the web for spring cleaning at your business.

At the top of a long list of events and tradeshows in the Pacific Northwest, sits the biggest and most widely renowned of all, the Seattle Chamber Tradeshow. It is the place to be for business owners to meet, mingle and network with their peers.