SMB

Today, with the pressures on business executives to meet their projections and to always present a glowing picture to analysts, it is understandable how some succumb to the temptation to present a rosy outlook when things actually might be deteriorating. This article analyzes ways by which the CEO o...

Most businesspeople get a knot in their stomachs when they think of bankruptcy. The reasons for this, I believe, are twofold: They don't have the basic knowledge about the implications of bankruptcy; and they feel a loss of control whenever they think about it. This article attempts to dispel the my...

If someone were to ask you, "What are the most important financial controls for a small business?" what would your answer be? This article looks at the minimum monitors that must be in place in order to protect and preserve the assets of a business. What you should aim to achieve is to have a system...

All executives of public companies know of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX), which was signed into law on July 30, 2002. Many owners of small businesses planning an IPO certainly are aware of it, and some dread it. In fact, there are owners of small-cap companies who have withdrawn their IPO application...

Greg Stanger knows how difficult it can be to take a company public, even in the best of times. A former Microsoft employee, Stanger became CFO of Expedia when the travel site was spun off and taken public in 1999. Stanger also knows that even with the recent run-up in technology stocks and the pros...

After its successful push into the consumer electronics space in 2003, Gateway's branded introduction to the professional services space is problematic, according to Yankee Group SMB senior analyst Mike Lauricella. Specifically, Lauricella expressed doubts about Gateway's ability to tap into the lar...

Venture capital commitments ended 2003 on an up note, with the fourth-quarter amount raised closing at $5.2 billion. That amount represented almost half -- 47.8 percent -- of the total amount raised in all of 2003. Amity Wall, manager of research operations at VentureOne, told the E-Commerce Times t...

Underscoring the potential it sees in positioning computers as entertainment devices, Intel has announced it will establish a venture capital fund to back startups that develop home entertainment hardware and software. The chipmaker's venture wing, Intel Capital, will oversee the Digital Home Fund, ...

Hewlett-Packard unveiled a line of low-cost servers aimed at the small- and medium-sized business market, saying it would sell the products for as much as 50 percent less than similar offerings from competitors. HP said the server-storage products are part of its larger smart-office push to attract ...

As companies begin to pay more attention to eliminating spam, a host of software makers are trying to cash in on the trend, giving companies a wealth of options. Even small businesses, always on tight budgets, have an abundance of low-cost choices to choose among. Picking the right one can be a chal...

With many online behemoths still struggling to turn a profit in the e-commerce sector, small and medium businesses may question whether the online sales model is truly a road to riches or just a pipedream. In the latest trend, many companies are abandoning their aging homegrown systems in favor of p...

Of all the words that inspire affection in a small-business owner's heart, few can compete with "free," especially at a time when companies are trying to rein in spending as tightly as possible. Still, it is virtually impossible, even in a buyer's market, to get something for nothing when it comes t...

To a small-business owner, choosing technology can be daunting. On one hand, the latest gadgets can glitter like a well-stocked toy store, with vendors promising to put a company on the cutting edge. On the other, budget constraints mean purchases must pay for themselves in the long run. So, what is...

Venture capitalists may not be the heroic figures they were a few years ago, but they still have the power to decide whether would-be e-business superstars get a chance to seek the limelight. The difference between now and then is scale, Bain Capital Ventures partner Mike Krupka told the E-Commerce ...

According to Giga/Forrester analyst Stacey Quandt, tech-oriented organizations, such as the Johnson Space Center and the U.S. Census Bureau, have begun using the Linux operating system on their desktop computers, and several insurance and financial services firms also are evaluating it. Has Linux fi...