Category Archives: Communication
Posted in Blogging | Client Service | Codes & Regulations | Communication | Education | Leadership | Social Media by Justin Keister, PE, LEED AP (Director of Site Engineering) on March 25, 2013
Click image to enlarge.
I recently had the privilege of spending a couple of hours with some local high school students who are members of the Building Leaders for the Susquehanna Valley program. This group was picked among some of the brightest local students and they meet on a monthly basis. Their February session included an exercise where they were given a hypothetical 200-acre property in “Bright Hope”, USA and divided into groups to propose a development on the tract. After a brainstorming session, each of the five groups unveiled their plans, which ranged from a hospital to a golf course to a power plant.
Over lunch, I joined professionals from the Central PA Chamber of Commerce, Union County Planning Department, Bucknell University Small Business Development Corporation, and Susquehanna Visitors Bureau to quiz a group on their ideas and to provide real-world insight to refine their proposal. After some tweaks (from coal-fired power to natural gas at my table), each group took turns giving a final presentation to the entire group.
> Read the rest of this article
Posted in Alternative Energy | Architecture | Communication | Marketing | Social Media by Marty Muggleton (VP Client Development & Marketing) on January 26, 2012
This chart is the author’s personal opinion on who people choose to trust for news and truth, and who has the most ethical, moral, and/or legal responsibility to be accurate.
I’ve been working long enough that young people think I’m wise. Secretly, I think they mean old and just want to be nice about it. But these are gifted people, with a bright future and we have some interesting discussions. Broad but predictable range of topics – religion, environment, healthcare, politics, and the list goes on.
Over the holidays, I had a couple of interesting discussions on news, truth, and trust. These chats matched up with some free time that let me look at the relationship of news, truth, and trust a bit differently.
The primary role of media is news not truth. They mark the date of an event, and that establishes chronology. You hear on television and radio. “At 11:00 this morning…”. A book or published research attempts to offer truth, by reaching for cause and effect after the event happened. You read it. “We found measurable amounts of…”. Trust, I feel, is established by where you are and what you’re surrounded by.
> Read the rest of this article
Posted in Accounting | Communication | Current Events | Education | Leadership | Professional Development by Brenda Nichols (Accounting) on October 31, 2011
I had the wonderful opportunity to participate in the inaugural Professional Development Business Conference recently held by the Bloomsburg University College of Business. What a great opportunity for the students to attend sessions with many “Bloom U” business graduates offering insights and knowledge of their real world experiences.
I’m sure I am not alone in receiving a request or two from outside organizations when it comes to participating in roundtable discussions, forums, or panel discussions. Even though the timing of this event couldn’t have been much worse for me, I am so glad I did it. While the students were the intended beneficiaries of this conference, I also took a lot away from it. I gained a greater appreciation for the Bloomsburg University College of Business, met fellow graduates that could turn into business opportunities, talked with professionals from all over the nation, and even reconnected with a few people that I haven’t seen in over 25 years.
I guess you could say that by participating in this conference, I actually lived my presentation. My focus was on, “Using Your Position to Give Back”, and in a small way, I contributed my time to the next generation of leaders. The questions asked, the discussions had, and the attention paid to all the presentations makes me confident that we have some future stars in the making at Bloomsburg University. I know that the quality of business education they are receiving is top shelf. My “Husky” education has been invaluable to me throughout my career. I can’t thank Professor Woodward for telling me in 1984 that I wouldn’t be doing Accounting for long. He thought an inquisitive mind like mine would need more stimulation than crunching the numbers. At the time this sounded terrible, but now I know what he meant.
> Read the rest of this article
Posted in Accounting | Client Service | Communication | Employees | Initiatives | Leadership by Brenda Nichols (Accounting) on June 8, 2011
Image © Elvis Santana
As we continue to transition our accounting department into a more integrated model that mirrors our organization, I realize how important full documentation of procedures and processes can be. Larson Design Group has always had good step-by-step accounting documentation such as how to record a vendor’s invoice in our accounting software, etc. However, we have learned that we were weak on system documentation; the things that really matter in making a company run efficiently, effectively and without risk of errors in the big picture.
For example, since LDG conducts approximately 20% of its business with State agencies, their audit standards require thorough review of our systems. In the last few weeks, various co-workers and I have taken the time to document our internal controls in all areas. Yes, it has been a lot of work that came with struggles in finding the right words and preparing numerous documents that ensure everyone understands these procedures. But in the big picture, it shows that in all situations, we can improve. We have looked even closer at segregation of duties within the accounting department and our approval processes. And accordingly we are making changes. The first change we made is that all electronic payments for vendor invoices will now go through an additional review and approval process to ensure more “eyes” see these.
In the end, I am even more confident with the integrity of our data and proud to be part of making these changes happen.
No comments yet | Permalink |Posted in Architecture | Communication | Innovative Solutions | Marcellus Shale | Marketing | Natural Gas | Networking by Brad Breneisen (Graphic Design) on May 17, 2011
This understated marketing piece shows that appropriateness is more important than a huge budget. A recent award from the SMPS National Marketing Communications Awards is proof.
“Well we’re going to be catching a flight in a few days to Dallas Texas for the Annual INGAA (Interstate Natural Gas Association of America) Conference to network with some folks from the Energy Industry and see what LDG can do for them. We’re only staying for the day so we’re traveling light. We need to get our message, service capabilities, and business cards into these people’s hands in way that makes them hang on to it and introduces them to our brand…”
Hmm, this sounds like a pretty typical marketing/graphic design assignment, I thought to myself, until Marty Muggleton, VP of Client Development finished his thought…
“Most everything aside from business cards gets tossed in the trash at these things.”
> Read the rest of this article
