Small Efforts Make a Big Difference: Recycling Containers

As a citizen, you may be in the habit of separating your plastics from your regular garbage. Modern society has made it somewhat convenient, and most people are willing to dispose accordingly if it doesn't make them go out of their way. For businesses, though, it may be a different story. Trying to recycle used containers on a large scale can be a much more difficult endeavor, and you might not realize just how important it is.

 Every company should live by the motto "use and reuse." Take into consideration the findings of the company Envipco. This company works alongside other companies to help them with their recycling initiatives, because they have found that not only do recycled products consume less energy in the production process, but they cost less, too. You're benefitting the Earth and the environment by recycling and reusing your containers.

In fact, if the total amount of post-consumer containers that were recycled in 2008 were reclaimed, it would have required 30 trillion fewer BTUs than was required to produce virgin resin. That's equal to the amount of power used in 317,000 homes.

However, Envipco is also aware that it takes more than a business plan to extend the life of a produced material. For that reason, its chairpeople, which include Alexander F Bouri of Seament among other global figures, have come up with a number of solutions to be followed. Customized couponing, incentive programs, and advertising-generated revenue models are all part of the plan to get everyone on board with the recycling and reclaiming process. The ultimate goal is to transform business owners' ways of thinking – not to see containers as garbage, but as materials. Should companies adopt such a philosophy, Envipco ensures that they will find it both financially and morally satisfying.

Working alongside a company like Envipco is just one thing a company can do to go green. There are, of course, smaller steps that companies can use to start off with, but initiatives like the ones put in place by Envipco are the type that make immediate and substantial changes.

Meet the Envipco Board of Directors

Envipco's motto is one that should be shared by most of today's companies: "One of the best ways to protect our natural resources is to be smart about recovering our man-made ones." This company has quite the revolutionary business plan, especially in our world, where the importance of recycling can't be stressed enough. The company works with other partners around the world in order to embed a "use and reuse" philosophy into the minds of business owners. No matter what type of business you run, Envipco is willing to help you come up with a solution.

So who are the masterminds behind this project?

The chairman, Gregory S. Garvey, also chairs a private software company called Virtual Hold, Inc. Before that, he was the Vice Chairman of Tomra Systems A/S and the CEO and President of Tomra North America, Inc. Thus, he has the leadership skills to front such an endeavor.

Then there's Alexander Bouri, whose name you might recognize from his revolutionary work in the cement industry. He founded Seament, which went on to become the largest cement handling and chipping company in the world. However, he owns many other companies as well.

The President and CEO of the company is Gool B. Santchurn, who is on the board of a number of other different companies around the world. To further his blogal resume, he belongs to the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants in the UK.

Christian Y. Crepet of France is the Deputy Managing Director and is involved with many other European environmental efforts.

Along with many other talented and globally-conscious board members, these chairmen help lead the company in a powerful and successful environmental endeavor. Many companies are making small strides to "go green," but Envipco takes the sentiment to a new level with its experienced and creative contributors.

Tips For Managing Employees During Summer Time

Summer is just around the corner, and that means that it's time for vacation time, summer holidays, and employees coming in and leaving at different times than usual.  The summer season can be a nightmare for managers and people in human resources.  On top of your regular duties, you're also trying to deal with everybody else's changing schedule.  Alex F Bouri and other managers have a lot of summers under their belts, and it's possible that they probably followed a few of the following summer management tips.

Make a Large Calendar

Your employees probably have some electronic way they use to submit their requests for time off and early dismissals, but that system probably won't give you a convenient way to see every employees PTO.  Make a large whiteboard in your office and have your employees write down what days they're scheduled to take off.  That way you'll be able to clearly see what days people have off, and your employees will know which days their fellow workers will be out.

Make Sure You Have Enough Employees

It's a given that your office will probably be closed for the 4^th of July and Memorial Day, but you don't want your office to be unofficially shut down because all of your employees decided to take a vacation at the same time.  It would be great if every employee could have the days off that they want, but sometimes they may want to take off a day that a lot of other people have already taken off.  Use the calendar that your employees use to write down their vacation time to see what days people have already requested off, and use that as a gauge for whether or not other employees can take off the same day.

Consider Tele-commuting

If you're in the manufacturing business you can't exactly take your work home with you, but most employees who work in an office environment can easily work from home.  If your employees have work laptops and an internet connection at home, you should consider letting them work from home one day a week during the summer.  Your employees won't have to commute in during the hottest days of the year, and they'll have a chance to work in a relaxing environment

Three Questions to Ask Yourself Before Hiring Friends and Family

When you're a business owner you dealing with your customers can be almost as stressful as dealing with friends and family members who want to be involved in your business.  Maybe your best friend wants you to get their teenager a job for the summer, or perhaps your uncle wants to show off his business expertise by helping you manage the company.  Every business owner from Mark Bouri to the owner of the local bar have to deal with their loved ones and their desire to get involved with the business.  If you're concerned about hiring someone ask yourself these following questions, your answers will make the solution much more clear.

How will this person improve my business?

That question sounds like a no-brainer, but it's common for business owners in this position to consider giving their friend or loved one a job simply because they're a friend or loved one.  You should treat your potential employee the same way you would any other job applicant, think about their skills instead of their relation to you.

Can I resolve a conflict easily with this person?

If you're going to be closely involved with someone professionally you need to make sure that you're able to efficiently and peacefully confront and solve problems when they arise.  If you and your friend or family member always seem to be clashing over something, that could be a sign that going into business with them could be a big mistake. 

Can we separate our business lives and our personal lives?

When people give advice about navigating the professional world, someone will always tell them to learn how to leave business at the office and your personal problems at home.  Doing this on your own can be difficult, and when you're working with someone you personally know it becomes a lot more difficult.  If your friend always seems to be ranting about work at BBQs, or spends the work day e-mailing you about a personal problem, they may not be the best choice for a business partner.

Three Important Things For Family Business Owners to Remember

Running a family business isn't for the faint of heart.  Some people think that working with family members will be much easier than working with strangers, but in reality the opposite is true.  Business managers like Charlie Bouri could talk endlessly about the ins and outs of working with your family.  If you're at the end of your rope with your family business and family members, try to keep these management tips in mind.

Don't View Your Family Members as Clones

This tip is extremely important for family business founders to remember.  Your management style is unique to you, and if you hand over control of the company to somebody else they're going to start doing things their way.  Some family business owners expect the newest generation of family members/workers to never change a thing about their business, and many balk at the idea of seeing their family members deviate from their original business plan. The family member that takes over the business is most likely full of ideas on how to keep it running and successful. Keep in mind that you stepped down so somebody else can run your company, and now it's time to step aside and let it happen. 

Let Your Family Know They Have a Choice

It can be easy to feel like you have your professional life mapped out when your family owns a business.  Some people feel like they're forced to work "in the family" and see no other alternatives.  You wouldn't want any of your loved ones to feel trapped in a career they aren't happy with, so you should make a point to let your family members know that they don't have to work for you.  Let them know that you're happy to have the onboard, but that they shouldn't feel pressured to work in the family's business.

Speak Up

We just talked about how some family members can feel pressured to work in the family business, but the family business owners have their own unique pressure problems.  Some business owners feel like they have to avoid actively critiquing their family member's work because they don't want to hurt anybody's feelings.  If you choose to not tell them when they're doing something wrong they won't know that they're anything wrong.  You need to remember that when you're at work you're their boss and that they need direction from you.