How to Foster Healthy Conflict
from Forbes
If entrepreneurs want to survive this recession (and, with any luck, emerge stronger on other side), what they really need right now is honesty. As Abba Eban, the former Israeli foreign minister, once said, "consensus means that everyone agrees to say collectively what no one believes individually." More

from Fast Company Expert Blog
On the “Using Workplace Flexibility as Part of a Downsizing Strategy” Flex Options teleconference for the U.S. Department of Labor Women’s Bureau, Fast Company blogger Cali Yost announced that she was going to start a list honoring organizations that used workplace flexibility to manage costs and minimize layoffs. Whether it’s reducing pay and schedules, telecommuting to save real estate costs, adding unpaid vacation days to the calendar, job sharing, having former employees consult on a project-basis or offering sabbaticals/furloughs, there are many creative applications of flexibility as part of a downsizing strategy. More

Small Business Administration Readies Emergency Loans
from CNNMoney.com
Small businesses owners struggling to keep up with their bills may see some relief from a new $255 million emergency loan program authorized this week as part of the economic recovery bill. Congress is pushing for the money to start flowing fast: It gave the Small Business Administration just 15 days to issue guidelines for the brand-new program. More

Could Your Team Be More Effective With an Odd Man Out?
from Fast Company
It seems intuitive to think that in any group aiming to make the best decisions, equally balanced viewpoints are ideal. But maybe that's too simplistic - a recent study just found that odd-numbered groups made better decisions than even-numbered ones, simply by virtue of how the numbers worked out. More

SBA Relents on Goodwill Rule, For Now
from Inc.
New rules had left business brokers and some bankers howling. "The SBA's goodwill cap eliminates a very important source of financing in the businesses-for-sale marketplace," Gaebler Ventures President Ken Gaebler told WashingtonPost.com's Sharon McLoone. "The result is that it will kill a lot of deals for buyers who have offers on the table." The SBA reports that banks have come down on both sides of the issue; according to the agency, "several lenders stated that they do not finance goodwill on a conventional basis." But critics should be pleased to learn that their voices have been heard. More

Cloud Computing Not Fully Enterprise Ready, IT Execs Say
from Computer World
Amazon, Google Inc. and other cloud computing vendors still aren't fully prepared to meet the needs of corporate IT, technology executives said during a panel discussion at Computerworld's Premier 100 IT Leaders Conference in Orlando. Security concerns topped their list of shortcomings - and the audience's, based on an electronic poll conducted at the event. But the execs also cited reliability and availability as hurdles that cloud vendors need to overcome before they can truly win over IT. More

Business Intelligence Software’s Time is Now
from BusinessWeek
Interest in business intelligence software is on the rise, analysts say, as economic woes force companies to pursue profit by delving deeper into the information already at their fingertips. "There's a tremendous pressure on cost containment, on developing accurate forecasts of sales and expenses and trying to align the expense stream with projected revenue stream," says John Van Decker, research vice-president at research firm Gartner. More

Small Businesses Find a New Source of Funding
from The Wall Street Journal
Unable to get loans at banks, more small-business owners are turning to credit unions. Most credit unions didn't get in on the subprime-loan market, so they're not smarting from multibillion-dollar losses like many banks. Many also have extra cash because deposits increased in 2008 as more investors abandoned the stock market and sought greater certainty in savings accounts. So credit unions are more able -- and willing -- than most of their banking counterparts to dole out money to small businesses. More