Top Ten Client Feedback Questions
January 27, 2012 | 
Author As program chairperson of my SCORE ** chapter I am always looking for new presenters to address the group. I frequently ask my fellow business counselors to give me some ideas for topics of interest to them.
In August one member approached me with an idea. He suggested inviting some of the clients that the counselors had worked with this year to one of our meetings to give us some feedback on our counseling techniques -both the highs and the lows.
Five clients were invited to our meeting and they were asked the first 5 questions of this Top Ten list. We learned a lot from the answers we got.
As 2005 comes to a close and we begin 2006 perhaps you are interested in finding ways to get clients to give you feedback about the products and services you offer. Here is a list of 10 questions you could use. Select a few that suite your situation. The key is to ask the question and then allow the client uninterrupted time to answer. Your job is to just listen!
1. What was the greatest benefit you derived from my service***? This question helps you to understand what is working. Sometimes you will be surprised by the answer. Our SCORE chapter has a limit of 3 counselors at one location to counsel one client. Our client panelists said the more counselors the better! We have now eliminated the restriction on the number of counselors.
2. What would you like to see more of when you work with me? For our session the panelists told us some counselors introduced themselves by telling about their business background during the sessions while others did not. The clients said they wanted to hear the qualifications of the counselors who were working with them. Are you forgetting to be consistent when delivering your product or service to your clients? We were! :
3. How could I improve my service? Clients often have ideas that are easy to implement but somehow you haven’t thought of. SCORE does both email and face to face coaching. These were face to face clients who wondered if they could get support between sessions through email. Easily done now that we know it might be helpful. (Our email addresses are already on our SCORE business cards!)
4. Is there anything you would like to see me stop doing? This question gives the client the opportunity to tell you about something that isn’t useful to him or her. It was suggested in our session that sometimes it is difficult for the business owner to meet with the counselor because the owner can’t leave his/her place of business. The SCORE clients wondered if it would be possible for the counselors to occasionally meet them at their own place of business. The answer was “Yes”. Again not something we had thought to offer consistently.
5. Is there anything you didn’t get from my service that you were looking for?
Here is an opportunity for the client to tell you other services that you might provide. If you are looking for ways to expand your offering this question is important. In the SCORE session one client wanted to know how he might get a counselor who actually worked in or owned the specific type of business that he had. Access to a database of the counselors in our chapter and their background would be helpful to the counselors and our clients. We will be putting one together. (We did have one counselor with exactly the right background for this client.)
6. Has my staff treated you with care, attention, and courteousness? This would be an important question for a service provider with an administrative staff to ask. Clients don’t always complain about their experience with your staff but might share something significant when asked.
7. Is there an issue that I have not spent enough time on for you? Sometimes clients allow you to move forward but are still thinking about a previous issue. This kind of question helps them to revisit areas they may have not understood and still have an unanswered question.
8. Am I doing what you want me to do? Most of the time we are doing what we think the client wants. It is good to check once in a while to find out if you are actually doing what the client wants.
9. Where have we been less than proactive in addressing your concerns? It may be that the client is expecting you to move into different areas that you think are being covered by other vendors or staff members. “Being proactive” may have a broader definition to the client than you are using. Asking this question might uncover new business.
10. Is our billing clear? Are you getting value for your money? The bill is often a source of anxiety for the client. He/she needs to know exactly what he/she is being billed for. Does your bill show that? This final value question is critical to insuring your client is satisfied with your product or service.
**SCORE – This is an organization that is part of the Small Business Administration in the US. SCORE volunteers are experienced managers and business owners who counsel small business owners without charge.
***I have used the word service here and also client. You could just as easily substitute product and customer.
Finding & Using Free Restaurant Menu Templates
A Menu Must Look Appetizing – A restaurants success as a business is largely affected by the look of the menu. Whether you choose to include images of food on your menu, the more crucial part is making sure that the menu looks professional and sharp. The money spent on a graphic designer will be money well spent, however, an ultra-professional look for your menus can come from taking advantage of free restaurant menu templates available online.
There is a Large Selection Online – There is a large selection of restaurant menu templates online because it is such a common theme. Choose a color scheme that will match well to the design of the inside of the restaurant. Generally speaking, although there is a large selection online, the higher quality designs are usually downloadable for a fee. The fee can range from $25 to over $100. Even though this is a high price for a template, it is still much less than hiring a graphic designer to do a custom layout for you.
Order a Sample Proof – Once you have finished modifying your template, make sure you get a sample proof in the mail. Although it may seem like you can tell online exactly how the menu is going to look, it may look much different when you are looking at a physical sample of it.
Make Sure You Have The Correct Software For Edits – Many templates require you to make your edits in photo editing software. Make sure you have that software if you need it. Some printing companies offer menu templates that you can edit right on the company’s website.
Free Restaurant Schedule Template: Its Many Uses in Restaurant Operations
A free restaurant schedule template may seem unreliable or inauthentic, but they are a cheap way of avoiding needless spending. If you are a struggling restaurateur, then your may appreciate using such restaurant templates to create your employee shift schedules, daily cleaning schedules, and table reservation schedules.
Known for their irregular work schedules, restaurants continually change employee shifts to meet the needs of a demanding public. Within a day, lunch and dinner are the busiest hours, and during these times, a restaurant has the most number of employees waiting tables, handling the cash register, and staffing the kitchen. A good employee shift schedule decreases the stress of managing restaurant staff and increases productivity of your employees.
The use of a free restaurant schedule template for shift planning, however, presumes a paper schedule, which many experienced restaurant managers deem time consuming. A restaurant template is only valuable to restaurant managers and owners who may lack extra funds to pay for a subscription to an online service, such as HotSchedules, ShiftPlanning or TimeForge.
Both online and traditional methods consider the following factors when scheduling work shifts: employee abilities and skills, anticipated sales, individual work habits, food preparation, employee availability, individual work requests, certifications required for handling alcohol, and overall labor costs. The manager needs the request book and availability sheets to match each employee to a specific shift schedule.
No matter what option budding restaurateurs take, employee scheduling is a very important aspect of restaurant management because it controls labor costs and reduces employee turnover. It also streamlines workflow systematically; thus, reducing operating costs and increasing employee productivity.
Aside from employee scheduling, a free restaurant schedule template also finds itself an invaluable tool in setting up daily or weekly cleaning schedules in a bustling restaurant business. Cleaning and maintenance procedures often require specific steps because of the machines and the chemicals used. For example, cleaning a fully equipped restaurant kitchen with large ovens, dishwashers and a variety of kitchen utensils follows safety procedures to guard against employee accidents and damage to the equipment.
In another area of restaurant operations, such as table reservations and event bookings, the use of a free restaurant schedule template could prove useful, especially during peak seasons when the volume of customers increase and more special occasions happen than in any other month.
Similar to employee scheduling, the restaurant manager would need the request book for reservations and bookings, the food costs, the labor costs, and the employee availability sheets to fit them together to a manageable schedule. Of course, a restaurant manager is not expected to work on scheduling alone. A team of two or three assistants adds more organizational consistency and decreases scheduling errors because more than one person handles the information.
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Tags: Operations, Restaurant, Schedule, Template | 
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Starting a Mobile Locksmith Business
One of the best decisions I ever made in my 62 years of life on this planet was to become my own boss in a field that is never dull, always challenging, and intrinsically interesting. It was not an early decision. In fact it did not occur to me to enter this field until after I’d already spent ten years as a professional photographer. It came about in an odd way, as many serendipitous things do. But regardless of how it came to be, I consider that decision the one that paved the way for me to spend the rest of my working life in comfort and with a good measure of security.
I’ve since discovered that many people follow a similar course, turning to locksmithing only after finding themselves unhappy in other jobs. I’m not sure how or why so many discover this particular business when looking for an interesting career. In my case it was a natural progression from a rather unique part-time career I had fashioned for myself: That of installing simple door viewers and doing this door to door. Many times my customers would ask if I could install deadbolts for them while I was at it, and after turning down money a dozen or so times I finally got wise and visited a local locksmith supplier who sold me an install kit and a book of instructions. From what I can tell, others come across this idea by doing Internet searches for home businesses, because ultimately this qualifies as such if you, like I do, run it out of your home and structure it as a Sole Proprietorship. In any case, it is obvious that locksmithing has become a popular choice for a chance at self-employment.
After tiring of door to door selling (which didn’t take long to do) I hit upon the idea of cold calling. I was still thinking too small, but at the time I didn’t know it. Lesson Number One: Don’t do this. I was doing it back in 1981 or so when the stigma attached to such endeavors wasn’t quite so strong. I’m afraid that calling people out of the phone book and asking if they’d like to have deadbolts installed just would not fly in the present era of terrorism and business rip-offs.
Still, I owe to this period of hard knocks a good deal. I became efficient at installing locks, rekeying locks, and duplicating keys. It was during this one year period that I scrounged together enough money to purchase a small key duplicator and also a lock rekeying kit. I carried these items in the trunk of my car and carried them into my customer’s home when needed. I also purchased several boxes of the most common domestic key blanks and by the time I’d accumulated all this stuff my car’s trunk was crammed and I was wishing for more room. Also, and most important, I came to realize that driving around in an unmarked car and working out of the trunk was not lending itself well to my credibility.
Lesson Number Two: Start out with credibility. Purchase a small work van, or a large one if you can afford it. Buy signs or have signs painted on it. Use whatever lending power you have, may it be with banks or with family, to locate a used vehicle and have signage made up, even if this is in the form of magnetic signs. Of course all this suggests you start out as a legitimate business, and this is just my point. Create a name for your business (think long and hard about this, as you’ll lose any credibility you might initially gain if you keep changing it), have signs and forms and letterheads made up, and dive in.
There is, too, the question of legality. This is a hard subject to field, because the legality of doing business from one jurisdiction to another can differ widely, and even wildly. It is incumbent upon you to do the research and determine whether or not your jurisdiction requires a locksmith be certified, bonded, and/or licensed. You’ll almost certainly discover that licensing is the fundamental hurdle, and that is usually taken care of with the signing of a few forms and the payment of a small annual fee. Certification is something else. Not all jurisdictions require this. In my case I found that the state in which I was then living — Utah — did not require it. Nor was I required to be bonded, though I chose to do so for the added protection (it is widely and incorrectly thought that bonding protects the locksmith’s customer, whereas in fact it is the locksmith that is protected by the bond).
Lesson Number Three: Do the homework required to determine if acquiring a business license is all that is needed to establish your locksmith service. One phone call to your state’s Attorney General office will likely answer that question.
Once you have lined up an affordable vehicle and put a reasonably professional sign on it, you must begin outfitting it. This should, and must, be done before you begin advertising your services because if you are like I was at this point you know next to nothing about the business and not much more about the work. We will endeavor at this point to educate ourselves. Locksmithing is in point of fact one of the few professions left in this world in which a formal education is absolutely UNnecessary. I have spoken to very few professionals during my career who got to be that way through going to a ‘locksmith school’ or a college. This is certainly not to say that a formal education isn’t desirable. If you can afford it, if you have the means, then by all means take that route. This article is for those of you who can’t.
The vehicle you purchase will in large part determine how it is to be equipped. I’ve always preferred a full-size van (I’ve owned Ford, Chevy and GMC models during my career), but there are many locksmiths who just love the Astro Van or Safari Van made by GM. These minivans are popular with many different professions and are ubiquitous. You can undoubtedly find one in your price range. Either way, the first order of business is to erect a work bench that will give you as much space as possible. Best to have the bench on one side of the van and leave the opposite side for shelves or storage bins. Make it sturdy! There is nothing worse than a wobbly bench when you’re trying to rekey locks. Make it level for the same reason.
You’ll need a power source. It is excusable to string extension cords until you can afford something better, but bear in mind that this detracts from your professionalism. The ultimate is probably having a RediLine Generator that runs off your van’s 12V power. This is not a power inverter, it is actually a generator and it kicks out 110-115V power. They are wonderful sources of AC power and you can even run a bank of flourescent lamps off one of these for your interior shop lighting. There are several models to choose from with varying outputs, but they are expensive. If you can locate a rebuilt, so much the better. A good inverter might do the trick if you can’t afford a RediLine, but be careful. Some key machines (and you’re going to have to have one) will not run with an inverter.
Power now available, you need to start out with at least a key duplicator on your bench and preferably, as well, a good code cutting machine. The latter is desirable but not necessary in the beginning unless you plan to launch directly into automotive locksmithing, in which case you’ll find it hard to get along without one. We’ll touch on that in a moment. Key machines are almost impossible to find used. You’ll likely end up buying a small HPC Speedex because they’re pretty much the least expensive good key duplicator around. Expect to pay around $500. Best if you include this in your initial loan. A key duplicator is bread and butter for any locksmith, mobile or otherwise, so don’t even think about starting up until you have one.
Equip yourself with a good rekeying kit. I’ve always preferred ‘universal’ kits because they do the work of dozens of other keyway-specific kits and they are easy to use. LAB makes the best of these, hands down. If you have the space, try to get a metal Classic Kit. If you don’t, you can start out with one of LAB’s Mini-Durex kits or, better, the miniature version of the Universal Kit (LMK-005 or LMK-003). You simply can’t rekey locks without one, and if you get a Universal you won’t be confined to keying up one or two brands . . . you’ll be able to handle them all. Don’t know how to rekey locks? Pick up an instruction manual on the Internet or at Amazon.com. They are available and this is one of the quickest locksmith skills to pick up. While you’re at it, buy at least one plug follower, a pair of pin tweezers, and ideally a pair of TruArc pliers. Over time you’ll accumulate more rekeying tools but these fundamentals are nearly essential.
Even before I was making money rekeying locks, I was being called to open cars. If you intend to advertise yourself as an emergency service, you’re going to have to take in this kind of lucrative work. Let me tell you now, this will be the easiest money you’ve ever made. It is well worth learning the skills required to open vehicles even if it means spending a couple of hundred dollars on tools and a good manual. Lockouts, at least in my case, virtually supported me for years. If you live in a medium to large city, count on getting lockout calls day and night even if you have only a tiny ad somewhere (a subject for later). There are many good lockout kits available online, to suit any budget, and the same goes for lockout manuals. Do a Google search for ‘car opening tools’ or ‘lockout tools’ and you’ll have no trouble finding suppliers. Are they legal where you live? Again . . . this is up to you to determine. The supplier cannot and will not endeavor to police this aspect of marketing, as it is simply not possible. I’m not advocating the purchase of anything that is not legal where you reside!
House and business lockouts are likewise lucrative sources of income for the locksmith, but these require different skills, different tools. Here is where it becomes necessary to learn the skill of lock picking — probably the most fundamental skill of the trade. It is not as easy to learn as car opening and lock rekeying, but it is by no means difficult, either. It requires practice and patience, and it requires good tools. Do not get stingy here. There are lots of cheap lock picking tools for sale. You’ll find them in automotive magazines, even. Stick with tools from the established firms like HPC, SouthOrd, Lockmasters, etc. Purchase a beginner’s set with a few picks and one or two tension tools for start, unless you have a big budget, then go for a set that will last you a while. Choice of spring steel or stainless steel is largely a matter of personal choice. Whichever one you start out with will likely be the kind you’ll stay with, because you’ll form an attachment to that type and you’ll train yourself to make the best of it. More important is the concept of practice. Buy Practice Locks. Once you’ve picked all the locks in your home you’re going to need more challenges, and now that Practice Locks are an accepted training aid in this field you’d do well to pick up a few of them. Practice until you can repeatedly pick the most challenging of your Practice Locks and then practice some more.
Did I mention that servicing lockouts will likely be the single most lucrative service you offer your customers? I thought so. Good!
There are other aspects to providing a locksmith service and among these is the ability to install locksets on homes and businesses. Primarily you’ll be asked to install deadbolts, but later on, as your business gets bigger, you’ll want to offer commercial business and real estate companies the option of replacing all their old lock hardware for newer more secure hardware. Again, practice is called for and you should be prepared to install a few unnecessary deadbolts and knobsets on doors in your own home that don’t need them. After doing this a dozen or so times, it will be easy to go to that first installation with confidence. You’ll need to add a few essential tools to your toolbox, such as a 1/2 inch drill, a couple of hole saws (2-1/8 inch and 1-inch), a 1/2 inch boring bit, and a good wood chisel. With these tools, you can install deadbolts in metal or wood doors. Complete installation kits are available and are the best choice if you can work them into your budget. Need instruction? Books galore available on Amazon.com or at any large scale bookstore in your city.
Once you’ve accumulated vehicle and the tools, and some knowledge gleaned from practice and reading, you can start thinking about getting your feet wet. The best way to start is the old fashioned way and that is to appeal to family and friends for work and for referrals. Network. Talk to everyone you know and let them know you’re serious about this and that you are available. Step two is to advertise and this is absolutely necessary, even if you start out only as a listing in the Yellow Pages. This is where 99% of the people who need a locksmith will look. Newspaper ads, flyers (Yucchhh!), direct mail and radio ads don’t work for locksmiths unless you have one enormous budget. Try to justify a small one-eight or one-quarter page Yellow Page ad if at all possible. Even in the face of huge competition, you will get calls and over time your name will be spread around, if you do a good job. Well, it will get spread around if you don’t, as well, but you’d do well to avoid that.
That’s how I did it. That’s how thousands of others have done it, give or take a detail or two. Be sure to cover the legal bases, because if you jump into it and find later that you’re acting outside the law, don’t come to me! This is part of your research. It is not that difficult to acquire a certification and satisfy local laws that may pertain to this business. If you keep the business small, and maintain yourself as a sole owner, you’re going to be profiting right off the bat because overhead with a mobile service is nil.
It’s within your reach whether you’re 18 or 58.
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Rental Grants to Help You Pay Rent
When people face financial hardship, everything becomes a problem. Rental grants help people who are having trouble paying their rent in order to keep them from being evicted. There are also rental grants that will pay to help you with moving expenses to move into a new housing unit. Best of all, grants for rent are not loans. These funds are provided to those who need financial aid and they never have to be repaid.
These programs are often provided by the department of housing and other local government agencies. Rental grants may also be provided by private foundations that help individuals and families who are facing financial difficulty. Depending on the specific grant program that you apply for, there are different qualification and eligibility requirements.
To find out if you can qualify to receive government rental grants, search for the grants that you want to apply for and are likely to qualify for. When you see the list of available grants, review the application process and eligibility requirements carefully. If there are more than one program that you feel you qualify for, submit your application to as many as you feel fit.
As you search the grant database for your rental grants, you may find many additional grants that you could use for your personal use. For instance, you can find grants to help you pay off your debt, grants to pay your tuition, and grants to help you start a small business. With hundreds of government and private foundation grants, there are plenty of ways to obtain free money that you never have to pay back.
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Stihl Chainsaw Prices – The Truth About Stihl Chainsaw Prices
Price is a big consideration when purchasing a chainsaw especially for a first time or part-time user. Stihl chainsaw prices may scare a few non-professionals off but that’s only because they are looking at the wrong models. One of the biggest mistakes newcomers make is to head for the heavy duty section and look at the biggest and most powerful machines on the market. Why? If you are intending to use it spasmodically then why not consider heading to the other end of the spectrum and looking at the smaller machines.
For use around the home, the smaller machines are extremely effective in fact, don’t let size put you off. For example, Stihl’s new MS 192 C-E model is ideal for the work-at-homer. It features the advanced easy-to-start system and is comfortable for just about anyone to operate.
Comparing Stihl chainsaw prices – at around $300, the MS 192 is ideally priced for someone not really hell bent on making a living with a chainsaw. Compare $300 to over $1500 for the top of the line models and you can quickly get a guage on the difference between between the lightweight and heavyweight models.
Stihl Electric Chainsaws
One of the best pieces of advice a newcomer can get is to compare the electric chainsaws against the noisier, more expensive gas-powered models. The ideal situation is have have both electric and gas-powered but consider how much use you are going to put your new saw to and you may find an electric model under $100 may just be the ticket.
Don’t worry though, while these electric models may be priced low, they have the necessary capability to perform well on minor jobs around the house. If you’re comparing Stihl chainsaw prices, then buying a Stihl electric is stepping up a level again. While you’ll be parting with anything up to four times the price you would for an electric saw at one of the main department stores, the Stihl models such as the MSE 220 are loaded with extra features.
What you need to decide is it could be more cost effective to purchase a good gas-powered model for the price you would outlay to buy the top electric model on the market.
Job Applications – How to Write Effective Selection Criteria Statements
Selection Criteria are statements that employers, particularly government agencies request job seekers submit with their applications to demonstrate the scope and depth of their skills, experience and knowledge in relation to a specific personal attribute or competency. Listed below are examples of typical selection criteria:
Tertiary qualification in a relevant field, or equivalent experience
Proven track record in contract management and administration
Demonstrated experience in budget management and reporting
Ability to work in a high performance team
Highly developed interpersonal and communication skills conducive to respectful dealings (including active listening) with colleagues, board executives, managers and direct reports.
A three part structure is recommended for selection criteria responses – Positive Opening, Scoping Statement and 2 or more Examples.
The benefits of using this strategy include
being a guide for job applicants to include all the best and most relevant information from their work history relating to a specific skill
recommending the best structure, presentation and format for each section, and
providing a practical tool to generate the most concise, effective, comprehensive and supported statement of competency or skill guaranteed to impress any employer.
NOTE: Many employers restrict the length of selection criteria responses to a page, or sometimes specify 250, 500, 800 or 100 word or equivalent character limits. Always check the entire ‘Application Information Package’ to see whether there is a restriction before you start composing your responses. However, for the first drafts ignore this requirement, it only becomes important during the editing phase. All energy for the first draft should be focussed on creating and generating ideas for content. Direct your critical internal editor to take an extended coffee break until summoned.
POSITIVE OPENING
The first one or two sentences of your selection criteria response should be a positive statement that immediately links you with the desired skill, experience or knowledge. If you have been acknowledged for past performance, this is your opportunity to show perspective employers how you have used the targeted skill in a work situation to achieve good results.
Opening Examples
Teamwork- For the last 10-years my role as a Team Leader has required me to work collaboratively and productively with multi-disciplinary teams to produce project deliverables on time and within budget. This has enhanced our company’s reputation for being a market leader in project management.
Client Service Delivery – My experience in client services has involved both face-to-face and call centre work environments across a number of industries including telecommunications, hospitality, insurance and banking. My employers have acknowledged my competencies and results through multiple Client Service awards recognising both individual and team performances.
Organisation – The majority of my employment has required using my organising and prioritising skills to manage large volumes of work with competing critical deadlines in order to meet strict compliance requirements as well as client imperatives.
Financial Management Reporting – The aim of all financial management reporting is to be confident that the output is comprehensive and clearly indicates the financial situation of the organization and its component functional/operation units. I have consistently been able to deliver financial management reports on that have been fully aligned with each of my employing organisation’s strategic goals, amply supported with evidence that either validates current initiatives or provides recommendations for a commercially viable way forward.
SCOPING STATEMENT
A scoping statement teases out the components of each skill area, providing an overview designed to demonstrate to employers you understand the dimensions of each attribute, preferably supported with short examples. This section should be no more than one or two paragraphs in length. It can be formatted either in dot point form or as a statement and may contain the following information
a list of skill types e.g.communication types include interpersonal, presentation, liaison, negotiation, written, etc.
a competency listing, e.g. demonstrate functions you routinely use in MS Word, such as create table of contents, bibliographies, flow and organisational charts, mail merge, etc.
an outline of your method, process, procedure, ‘how to’ approach or way of doing something e.g. problem solving, handling client inquiries or managing a poorly performing team member.
Scoping Examples
Meet Deadlines – I use a series of ‘To Do’ lists which is constantly reprioritized throughout the day as circumstances, operational and service demands change. I use a diary and/or desktop computer system to track daily, weekly, monthly and longer term tasks, plans and projects. I generally use periodic check lists to ensure certain tasks are completed on time. In addition, I maintain a neat and tidy desk area and make full use of lists, information retrieval systems, document trays and folders to organise my physical environment.
Accuracy and Attention to Detail – With over 4-years experience in managing data collections I have developed a keen eye, proven strategies and a methodical approach that enables me to readily detect information and data anomalies. In spreadsheets I always cross reference my calculations to ensure that the rows and the columns of a set of figures verify the same total figure. I employ in every spreadsheet self checking mechanisms that will highlight errors the moment that a stray finger makes them.
Clear and Concise Written Communication Style – My experience in written communication extends to targeting specific groups across diverse audiences – clients, team members, supervisors, committees and professionals. I take great pride that all my documents are factual, easy to read, grammatically correct, error free and professionally presented. I have extensive experience in generating business correspondence as well as performing on a daily basis a wide range of document tasks such as writing, drafting, collaborating with, contributing to and editing policies, procedures, proposals, business cases, project management plans, marketing collateral, data collection forms, surveys and newsletters.
Experience in using Spreadsheets – On a daily basis I use MS Excel for recording, analysing and generating reports. I am highly proficient in importing data into and out of Excel spreadsheets. I am able to generate graphs, simple front end forms, paste-link functions, and many of the data manipulation (transcribe) and statistical functions (sum, average). My proficiencies extend to presentation and printing of Excel worksheets to facilitate the ease of reading and interpretation of data. Any work that requires comparative analysis on costings for venues and set up of budgets, as well as the monitoring of expenses is performed in MS Excel.
RELEVANT EMPLOYMENT EXAMPLES
The last and most critical section of a selection criteria response is to provide at least two examples from your work history to demonstrate where and how you have used the desired skill in a work situation to achieve an intended outcome. My recommendation is to take 2 or 3 positions from your work history, using a company name as the header and provide your experience in a narrative style, and include who, what, where, when, how and why along with a statement of achievement. The examples should be written so they create a picture in the mind of the reader thereby overcoming any impediment associated with prospective employers’ lack of familiarity regarding your industry, company, position, project, role responsibilities, activities or discrete tasks.
Employment Examples
Company A
Since July 2008 as the Accounting Manager my role has been to receipt and review all processes and systems leading to the monthly consolidation of the company’s Group accounts. A key accountability is to ensure a strict adherence to financial data accuracy, consistency in treatment of accounts and reporting standards across numerous projects administered by multiple financial reporting units and involving billions of dollars. I use a number of comparative methodologies to verify accuracy and completeness of submitted accounts before consolidating them into Group financial statements. My role requires demonstrating leadership and the training of financial and accounting staff in head office and subsidiary offices to ensure they deliver their components of key strategic Group financial reports by the scheduled due dates. Our dynamic and highly competitive business environment often requires the Board and Executive Management to request a specific configuration of the Group’s financial data in order to provide information that comprehensively guides, directs and supports strategic planning initiatives. A significant challenge for special reports is to ensure expenses and revenues correctly relate to their associated activities, receive the same consistent treatment and are aligned with the organisation’s budget forecast to ensure comparability.
Company B
As a Clinic Booking Officer in the 2009 National Oral Health Survey Project, I performed in a high volume, pressured and deadline dependent work environment. My role required the planning, organising and scheduling of dental examination clinics for six teams operating across the state. Each team was required to handle up to 30 patients per examination day. My tasks included contacting patients to secure a minimum number of appointments before confirming no later than two weeks prior that a scheduled clinic day was approved to go ahead. For the duration of the 3-month project, not only did I achieve the booking target for every scheduled clinic (no clinic was cancelled), but my contribution lead to our state being acknowledged as the project’s Best Performer for the highest service volume and the quality of results.
Even for a professional writing selection criteria responses can be hard work. It is strongly recommended that the moment you identify a position requiring preparation of selection criteria you START IMMEDIATELY by quickly setting up a draft document using the selection criteria as headings and temporary subheading titles of ‘Opening’, ‘Scope’ and ‘Examples’ to guide you in the initial placement of content. In the first few sessions concentrate only on setting up the framework and filling in with rough notes or outlines of suitable information as it comes to mind. Strive to stay creative and avoid going into edit mode. You will have plenty to editing to do as the application deadline draws closer.
When you run out of energy, focus, concentration or fail to make any progress, it is more productive to WALK AWAY, leave it for a day, and resume when refreshed and able to sustain an objective viewpoint. Starting sooner, means you can give yourself the luxury and gift of time to create, edit and conduct multiple reviews to enhance the quality and presentation of your application before submission.
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Conversion Vans Vs Mini Motorhome (Class B RV)
Conversion Vans vs. Mini Motorhome (Class B RV)
How many people know the difference between a Conversion Van, Camper Van, or Mini-Motorhome? Knowing the differences can help an individual make “Good Purchase Decisions”. The right Van can be your daily transportation or RV. The differences become important for simple reasons like:How much will it cost me to insure my vehicle?
How do I determine a fair “Blue Book” price to buy or sell?
Does my neighborhood association allow me to park my Van at Home?
Safety: Is my Vehicle Crash Tested by a Government Agency?
Who will service my Van when I need repairs or maintenance?
Conversion Vans are not Motorhomes, but they can offer many of the features of a Motorhome. So let us clear up the differences!
Keep in mind there is room to stretch from one class of vehicle to another; and there is no defacto industry definition; just guidelines. Search the listings at RVTRADER.com and you’ll find many Class C’s mixed into the Class B listings not to mention the Class B’s in the Bus Conversions. You’ll even find ordinary Conversion Vans in the mix. It seems people really don’t know what they have! Confusing isn’t it? We love vans and own several different types and is how we at Conversion-Vans.NET define the Vehicle Classes.
Cargo Van – A Cargo van is a vehicle provided direct from the Manufacture with no rear seats, carpeting, or windows. These vans can be “Up fitted or Converted” to meet the needs of a variety of purposes.
Camper Van – This is the simple conversion of a stock cargo van to add features helpful for “camping”. So a Camper Van is any van that has been converted for the purpose of camping – simple enough! Yes and No. There is no such thing as a commercial “Camper Van” – unless you get outside of the USA where the nomenclature changes. Camper Vans are typically “Homemade” modifications. A Class B Motorhome can be Called a Camper Van if you please, but you can not call a Camper Van a Class B Motorhome unless it has some very specific features! (See next)
Class B Motorhome (Class B RV) – Any full fledged Motorhome built on a Cargo Van Chassis by a licensed up fitter. The van may have the top removed or the sides widened, but it is still essentially a van in size and shape. Additionally in order to qualify as a Class B Motorhome the van must have built-in sleeping, eating, and bathroom facilities (Including properly mounting fresh and grey water holding tanks). If the frame of the van has been cut down clear to the floor level (they come direct from Ford, Chevy, and Dodge this way – just a frame and a cab) and built up completely from the floor it’s a Class “C” not a Class “B”.
Conversion Van (aka Luxury Van, Custom Van) – Any van that has been customized for comfort can be considered a conversion van. These are really luxury vehicles used to transport 6-10 people in comfort. Conversion vans can have some of the features of a “Camper Van” or even a “Class B Motorhome”, but are typically more upscale and designed for daytime use and luxury transportation. These vans may have a raised roof, fancy paintjob, Custom Wheels, Leather Seats, 4 Captains chairs, dual stereo, TV/VCR Combos etc.
Mini C’s & B+’s – These are really Class “C” Motorhomes masquerading as Class B Motorhomes. They feature sleek aerodynamic body styles – often made of a single fiberglass shell. The Chinook line of Motorhomes by TrailWagons, Inc. is probably the best example. These are also sometimes referred to as B+ Vans. They are in fact built from the same chassis as a Class C, but are made more to look like a Call B. Confusing? Ultimately it doesn’t matter, as long as you find what you want.
So there you have it! The Van is an incredibly versatile mode of transportation that can be “converted” to suit the needs of a variety of individuals and purposes. Vans offer large storage capacity for hauling cargo to completely self contained luxury travel. So don’t just rush out and get a giant RV until you have considered a Conversion Van or Class B RV.
Rental Property Tax Benefits
People who own residential rental properties are afforded numerous tax benefits. You are allowed to offset your rental income with rental expenses. If you own rental property it is critical that you understand the tax advantages afforded to you that will enable you to protect your income and lower your tax burden.
Here are a few of the deductions the IRS grants you on your tax return if you own rental property:
Mortgage Interest – You can deduct the mortgage interest you pay on your rental property’s mortgage payment.
Depreciation – You can depreciate your rental property by deducting some of the cost on your tax return each year. For residential property, the IRS states that you must depreciate the property over 27.5 years. You must EXCLUDE the value of the land from the value of your home prior to calculating depreciation.
Repairs – You can deduct the cost of repairs. Examples of repairs include repainting your property, fixing gutters or floors, fixing leaks, plastering, and replacing broken windows.
Travel Expenses – If you own a rental property the IRS allows a tax deduction when you drive anywhere for your rental activity. For example, when you drive to your rental property to deal with a tenant complaint or go to Home Depot to purchase an item for a repair, you can deduct your travel expenses.
Generally, if you use your personal vehicle for rental activities you can deduct the expenses using one of two methods; actual expenses or the standard mileage rate. For 2006, the standard mileage rate is 44.5 cents a mile for all business miles.
Home office – You may deduct expenses related to your personal residence as home office deductions. These include utilities, insurance, depreciation, and repairs allocated to the business use of your home.
Employees and Independent Contractors – Whenever you hire anyone to perform services for your rental activity, you can deduct their wages or services as a rental business expense. This is the case whether the worker is an employee (for example, a resident manager) or an independent contractor (for example, a repair person).
Insurance – You can deduct the premiums you pay for almost any insurance for your rental activity. This includes fire, theft, and flood insurance for the rental property, as well as landlord liability insurance. If you pay the insurance premium for more than one year in advance, each year you can deduct the part of the premium that will apply to that year. You cannot deduct the total premium in the year you pay it.
Legal and professional services – You can deduct fees that you pay to attorneys, accountants, property management companies, real estate investment advisors, and other professionals. You can deduct these fees as operating expenses as long as the fees are paid for work related to your rental activity.
What Is An MAI Appraisal?
MAI appraisals are among the most sought after appraisals in the commercial real estate world. MAI stands for Member of the Appraisal Institute, a trade organization which monitors appraisers and holds them to a higher standard than appraisers who are merely licensed and do not belong to such an organization. There are other appraisal trade organizations active in the world of real estate. However, MAI is the best known, and thus the most popular.
Technically, there is no such thing as an “MAI appraisal.” There are only appraisals performed by an appraiser who has completed the MAI Appraisal Institutes class offerings, and holds this designation. However, it’s often much easier to refer to the appraisal itself as being certified than to hold to technicalities.
An appraiser who has earned the MAI designation is qualified to and experienced in the performance of both residential and commercial properties. Many other appraisers are only qualified for residential property. At one point, lenders were likely to require that an appraisal be done by an MAI certified appraiser, or a member of another trade organization. However, this has been unlawful since 1989, as there is not federal regulation of these organizations. Still, certified appraisals can increase the chances of a favorable lending situation, since the lender will feel more comfortable. An MAI certified appraisal offers lenders a reliability that allows them to be confident in their investment.
A commercial appraisal by an MAI certified appraiser can include many things. Generally, it will provide an overview of the community, neighborhood, and general area in which the property is situated, as well as a detailed description of the site and all buildings it contains. Zoning analysis, an analysis of the highest and best use for the property, and an in depth discussion of the property’s value from several different approaches will also be included. The appraiser may also make a recommendation of which valuation is most appropriate in his or her opinion.
Appraisers tend to be conservative in their estimates. However, this does not mean that one will receive a low appraisal. An MAI certified appraisal firm assumes liability if the appraisal is too high, and the property cannot be sold for the price they recommend. The firm also assumes liability if the price is too low and the property is sold for too little money. Because of this, appraisers have a vested interest in making sure that their estimates are in the middle range. Which sales an appraiser places the most emphasis on will depend in the type of market. In a rising market, emphasis will be placed on higher recent sales, and in a falling market, that emphasis will go to lower recent sales. A good appraiser is interested in giving clients the most accurate estimate possible.