The Mitchell Report was released on December 13, 2007.  For baseball, it’s just another black mark on an era now known as the "Steriod Era". 

But what was accomplished by the report?  Did we really need the report to determine steriod use was (and apparently still is) widespread in major league baseball? 

The report outed many of the big names in the sport but the reality is much of the report would not hold up in a court of law.  Many of the allegations are based upon hearsay and shaky evidence.  Besides it’s incomplete.  Those mentioned weren’t the only ones who allegedly took performance enhancing drugs in major league baseball.  Is it fair to name names under these circumstances?  

I find the hypocrisy in all of this amazing.   MLB glorified the pursuit of the single season home run mark and fans returned in droves to stadiums across the country. (Recall that baseball was practically dead before Sosa and McGwire did their magic due to the strike in 1994-95).  Selig apparently called the Mitchell report "a call to action".  Sorry Commissioner, but the call to action rang a few years ago.

I also find it particularly interesting that Rafael Palmeiro testified under oath before Congress that he did not take steriods – shortly before he tested positive for steroid use. Was he prosecuted? No. In fact, the President of the United States (and former Texas Rangers owner while Palmeiro played there) supported his friend 100 percent. Bush reaffirmed his belief that Palmeiro did not take steriods even after a positive test!

Barry Bonds?  Indicted despite no positive tests.

Mitchell says everyone should concentrate on his recommendations rather than focus on the names.  Unfortunately he knows that is not possible and it is disingenuous to indicate otherwise.  And if he truly recommends a full pardon for all included in the report why name names.  Ultimately I think the Mitchell report just excentuates major league baseball’s mishandling of this whole situation.  This report just hurts baseball.  And I know others agree.

MLB should keep in mind this quote from Yogi Berra,  "If the fans don’t come to the ball park, you can’t stop them."  The fans deserve better than this report offers.  Stop with the mud slinging and solve the problem.  The report wasn’t necessary in the process.  We all know the problem.  It’s up to the commissioner and the players’ union to do something about it.

 photo on flickr by jason michael.

 

 

 

I am attending the Iowa State Bar Association’s eCommerce seminar tomorrow.  The man formerly known as the sixth best law blogger in the world is one of the presenters.  I am looking forward to Brett’s talk as he shares his Vegas Blogworld speech with the audience.

It got me thinking a little bit about how to improve presentations.  Recently I have been to a rash of presentations where the speakers throw up their power point and then talk directly to the screen rather than the audience.  It’s unbelievably annoying.  It’s death by power point.

The best presenters I know are terrific storytellers.  The best speech I have heard over the past year came from Charlie Anderson who delivered a terrific story about his company at a SEMEE event earlier this year.  He was the only presenter that evening who talked without a power point.  His passion was evident.  No slides were necessary.

For great advice on making the right presentation be sure to check out how I made my presentations little better.  This comment about slides from the post is particularly insightful:

Let the slide serve your message, rather than letting you (and your personality and timing) be governed by the slide. 

Thanks to Matthew Homann’s [non]billable hour for the link to the presentation post.

 

Iowa accountant Joe Kristan of Roth and Company shares some year-end tax planning ideas over on IowaBiz.com. 

It’s a good idea to visit your accountant now (if you haven’t already) to determine if there is anything you can do to improve your position come April. 

Iowa has never been the hot bed for franchisors but it seems as though some Iowa franchisors are really picking up steam.  According to the Des Moines Register this morning Chocolaterie Stam stores have expanded to Ames, Chapel Hill N.C., and Wauwatosa, Wisconsin.  Upcoming stores including Minneapolis and Steamboat Springs (that would be my personal favorite) and also is contemplating stores in Kansas City or West Des Moines.

Another expanding local franchise is Maid-Rite.  It is my understanding Maid-Rite is growing rapidly with plans to head into Florida and Texas and with the new store design it’s easy to see why.  This definitely is not your father’s Maid-Rite.

But if you are considering these franchises be sure to conduct your due diligence and consider the fundamentals for franchisees in your negotiations.  Don’t fall in love with the deal.  (I know it’s tough with chocolate but control yourself). 

The Rooftop Foundation is holding its annual shopping tour for the kids at the Moulton Elementary School this Saturday.  The Rooftop Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization created by Ken and Esta Deever of Deever Roofing. 

Every year the Deevers (and 60 volunteers) load up two bus loads of children and arrange to take the children shopping for their families.  The children are not permitted to buy gifts for themselves as we try to teach the philosophy "it is better to give than receive".   Along the way we manage to stop at McDonald’s for breakfast and the children also receive a surprise gift bag of their own after wrapping gifts for their families. 

In addition to the elementary children, our Santa has made it a priority to help spread Christmas cheer at the Young Women’s Resource Center and to children in cancer treatment at Blank Children’s Hospital in Des Moines.

It is an honor and a privilege to be a part of such a great organization.  One hundred percent of all donations go to benefit the children.  I am also excited because we have a new Web site coming very soon by Sandy Renshaw of Purple Wren.

Happy holidays!

Looking back on the first year of work at the Business Innovation Zone (BIZ), I have met with over 60 potential clients ranging across a wide variety of business areas.  I have learned much on this path. First and foremost, I have learned to never prejudge an idea. I must say that some of the most "unique" sounding ideas described in an initial phone call or meeting have turned out to have the most merit. The entrepreneurs in this area have a tremendous amount of creativity and several have identified truly unique market niches that have not been exploited to date. Along with those great ideas, I have met with many whose ideas I found lacking. Asking hard questions has become a well worn path for me. In many cases the idea has not been thought through from a business perspective. The euphoria of the "perfect product" has overshadowed the realities of a profitable venture. I often find myself asking potential clients questions about the running of their prospective business. For many, it is a rude awakening as they come to understand the immense hardship and stress that will come with starting a venture.

I am often asked what advice I have for would-be or current entrepreneurs. Here are my thoughts for those starting out:

  • Seek out many opinions on your idea. Do not just "go with your gut".
  • Spend time up front on a business plan, but only to the point that you frame your path and plan. Business plans evolve rapidly when you are forming a business, rarely surviving the first customer engagement.
  • Know your exit points. It is easy to look out and say "I will sell my business for $xxx,xxx,xxx". It is much harder to say, "I am only going to invest $xxx,xxx" or a certain amount of time. Treat your venture as an investment and know when to exit as the event arrives.
  • Take a balanced approach to your idea and business. Do not ignore important areas for lack of knowledge or assume that "I will figure it out when I get there".
  • Relationships matter. No matter how automated or high tech things get, the relationships you build will support your company and conversely the lack of relationships will guarantee its failure.
  • Learn to sell. Selling is ABSOLUTELY CRITICAL to your initial success. Hiring a salesperson is not the answer in the initial phases of a startup. You the entrepreneur must be prepared to get out and sell your idea, your product, your service, and yourself.
  • Finally, spend a substantial amount of time understanding the cash flow of your business. For most businesses, the lack of cash flow management is the single greatest failure point.

 

From Rush:  BIZ is a community sponsored non-profit business accelerator designed to provide economic growth in Central Iowa through the development and expansion of entrepreneurial enterprise.  Particularly if you have a business in Central Iowa that is poised to grow regionally, nationally or globally, I encourage you to contact Mike. 

photo on flickr by aloshbennett

I have seen many articles on the Internet which state that you absolutely need to form a limited liability company (LLC) if you are a small business owner.  The S corporation, once the darling of small business entities, must now feel like the red-headed step child.

But as New York attorney Derek Underwood points out LLCs are not always a good fit for the small business owner.  You may be able to save on self-employment taxes by using an S corp instead of an LLC.  But as Iowa accountant Joe Kristan cautions you need to be careful when you set your "reasonable" salary.  Joe says the issue is given greater scrutiny by IRS auditors these days.  It’s important to get advice from an accountant and/or business attorney on the issue when you make the decision about which business entity to choose.

Please note:  In Derek’s post he mentions that an S corporation is usually less expensive to form than an LLC.  In New York the filing fees for an LLC are considerably more than an S corp.  However, in Iowa the filing fee for LLCs and S corps is currently $50.00.

 

photo on flickr by digitalclickclick

The deadline for filing claims in the Microsoft Iowa Class Action Settlement is December 14, 2007.  If you have any questions about how to file a claim be sure to email the claims administrator at claimsadmin@iowamicrosoftcase.com.

For a recap of articles on the Microsoft Iowa case click here which includes one of my most popular blog posts entitled On the Seventh Day She Rested.

In the last blog post I picked on college football coaches and their exorborant salaries.  But its probably not fair to pick on college coaches alone.

The Philadelphia Litigation Blog discusses how lawyers at large Manhattan firms are now charging $1,000 per hour or more.  Superstar litigator, David Boies, sums it up pretty well:

Frankly, it’s a little hard to think about anyone who doesn’t save lives being worth this much money . . .

All of this reminded me of a great story from John Ward the managing shareholder of our firm.  Sullivan & Ward has represented many of the rural electric cooperatives in Iowa for decades.  At some point many years ago a decision was made to raise hourly rates to $50.00 per hour.  When John discussed this rate increase with a client one of the board members proclaimed:

Ain’t no man alive worth $50.00 per hour!

And while I don’t advocate returning to the days of charging $50.00 per hour, I agree with the discussion on the Philadelphia Litigation Blog regarding flat fees in a case or deal.  In many instances billing in this manner promotes greater efficiency than billing by the hour.  In late 2006  I decided I would start charging on a flat fee basis for litigation in addition to my work for incorporating businesses, forming LLCs or monthly outside general counsel services.    I have not moved exclusively to flat fees.  I find some clients still prefer the billable hour but I am always open to alternative billing arrangements. 

I know others agree with moving away from the billable hour including lawyer and author Scott Turow who believes the billable hour must die.  For me I like flat fees and alternative billing arrangement for two reasons:

  1. The businesses I represent can better budget and allocate for legal fees.  Business clients seem to appreciate that.
  2. I have experienced greater satisfaction in my work.  Living by a clock is no fun in my opinion.

One couldn’t help but notice the carnage at the end of college football’s regular season.  Coaches everywhere were fired or forced out.  Some of those coaches even had winning records.  Even the coach at my Division III alma mater didn’t survive the past few seasons of mediocrity.  

Are college football fans just nuts or have these coaches created the monster of expectations by earning as much as $5 million dollars per year?  With that kind of money "It’s just win, baby" and that means nothing short of championships and New Year’s Day bowls.

But then a revelation.  The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania ruled that Joe Paterno’s salary must be revealed to the public for the first time.  Speculation had put his salary at more than $1 million a year (which would have still been a deal in the present coaching market).   Paterno has been the head coach at Penn State for 42 years.  That tenure includes national championships, numerous top ten seasons and has made him one of the winningest coaches ever in Division I college football history. 

So his salary?  Drumroll please . . . $512,664.

Still a substantial sum of money but nothing approaching the dizzying sums of money that several other college coaches make including Iowa’s very own Kirk Ferentz. 

Is there a lesson somewhere here? 

 

photo of Paterno statute on flickr by audreyjm529