Podcasts about marginal cost

Chapter 1 What's The Zero Marginal Cost Society Book by Jeremy RifkinThe Zero Marginal Cost Society is a book written by economist and social theorist Jeremy Rifkin. In this book, Rifkin explores the potential impact of the digital revolution and the sharing economy on capitalism and society as a whole. He argues that advancements in technology, particularly in the areas of energy, communication, and transportation, are leading to a decrease in marginal costs and ultimately the creation of a new economic system based on collaboration, sustainability, and abundance. Rifkin's vision is of a society where goods and services are produced and shared at near-zero marginal cost, leading to a more equitable and sustainable world.Chapter 2 Is The Zero Marginal Cost Society Book A Good BookThe Zero Marginal Cost Society by Jeremy Rifkin is generally well-received and considered a thought-provoking and informative book. It explores the concept of a system where goods and services are produced and distributed at little to no marginal cost due to advancements in technology. Rifkin presents a vision of a more sustainable and collaborative economy based on the sharing of resources. Overall, many readers find the book to be insightful and engaging, making it worth a read for those interested in economics, technology, and sustainability.Chapter 3 The Zero Marginal Cost Society Book by Jeremy Rifkin SummaryThe Zero Marginal Cost Society is a book by Jeremy Rifkin that explores the concept of zero marginal cost - the idea that as technology advances, the cost of producing and distributing goods and services approaches zero. Rifkin argues that this trend is leading to a fundamental shift in the way our economy operates, with profound implications for society as a whole.Rifkin begins by tracing the history of economic systems, from the hunter-gatherer societies of the past to the industrial capitalism of the present. He argues that the advent of digital technology is leading us towards a new economic paradigm, where goods and services can be produced and distributed at near-zero cost.Rifkin goes on to explore the implications of this shift for different sectors of the economy, including energy, manufacturing, and healthcare. He argues that advances in technology such as 3D printing, renewable energy, and the Internet of Things are enabling a new model of production that is more decentralized, collaborative, and sustainable.Rifkin also delves into the social and political consequences of the zero marginal cost economy, including the potential for mass unemployment as human labor becomes increasingly obsolete. He calls for a new social contract that ensures everyone benefits from the abundance created by technology, through measures such as a universal basic income.Overall, The Zero Marginal Cost Society offers a provocative vision of a future where abundance, sustainability, and shared prosperity are possible through the transformative power of technology. It is a rallying cry for policymakers, businesses, and individuals to embrace the opportunities of the digital age and build a more equitable and sustainable society. Chapter 4 The Zero Marginal Cost Society Book AuthorJeremy Rifkin is an American economist, writer, and public speaker. He is the author of numerous books on the impact of scientific and technological changes on the economy, society, and the environment. Rifkin released "The Zero Marginal Cost Society: The Internet of Things, the Collaborative Commons, and the Eclipse of Capitalism" in 2014.Some of Rifkin's other...

Timestamps & Summary Chris Gwyn (02:11)I'd like to know a little more about why you became interested in researching ideal topic density.Dr. Albert De VriesI actually had an intern student from the Netherlands, and that student was very interested in welfare. And I said: If we just do welfare in the US, maybe that's not of primary interest to producers, although I understand our producers are all interested in welfare aspects as well. But I'd like to put dollars into whatever we do with cows. And so we did a little digging and came up on the topic of stocking density, the economics of stocking density. It's really a fascinating topic because there are some welfare implications but there are clearly also economic implications. […]Chris Gwyn (03:23)What are the key influencers of the economic return when you're evaluating where a farm is evaluating its optimal stocking density?Dr. Albert De Vries I think we should start by defining, what we mean by stocking density. Different metrics of that. We're not talking about dry lots here. We're talking about free stalls. We were also not interested in fresh cows or dry cows, which I think all experts agree should not be overstocked. We're looking at lactating cows. And we also did not think that feed bunk space was a limiting factor. So, in our research, we really looked at the number of cows over the number of stalls in a pen. And if that is 100%, then you have one stall per cow. And if it's like 120%, you have 120 cows for 100 stalls. So that is where we sort of limited our research to. And secondly, I think it's important to get the economic principle right. What are we trying to optimize here when we're talking about economics? […]Chris Gwyn (11:20)In that study, you looked at milk production. Did you look at component yield?Dr. Albert De VriesI think we looked at component yield, but I don't remember seeing anything necessarily, because, of course, we get paid for components. I don't think it was very clear that either fat or protein, for example, was reduced by overstocking.Chris Gwyn (14:10)If there are some other issues that you wanted […] to highlight, we can do that.Dr. Albert De VriesI haven't really said much about welfare yet. I mean, the student I work with was really interested in that, and I think it needs to be on our minds, too. So, if we say we just want to take care of the cow, we probably don't want to overstock. Cows are probably compromising welfare, perhaps a tiny bit only if we start to overstock, and more when we overstock more. So, we don't know how to square that with profitability. But obviously, that needs to be in our mind as well. […]Chris Gwyn (16:34)Can I ask you a further question about that? Because I'm not an economist, but where does cash flow come in if a farm needs to increase cash flow? Does that kind of counter go against optimal stocking density in low milk pricing?Dr. Albert De VriesI think you're on the right track there because we assume our fixed costs are independent of the number of cows. So, we would add cows to it up to the point of maximum optimal stocking density, which implies that, for that pen, the highest cash flow. And so, with low milk prices, we reduce cow numbers, because if we don't, our cash flow is going to be even less. So, cash flows, in this analysis, and this is obviously what I call a steady state; we sort of permanently are at a high or a low level of stocking density, but it's the same thing. So, the question becomes practically different: Well, my milk prices change, and I may or may not have the cows. What is the long-term response to stocking density? Those are harder to answer because, again, we don't know the long-term response to stocking density per se, but essentially, when we optimize our stocking density, we're optimizing the cash flow, the amount of cash made there for that pen on that day over time.Chris Gwyn (20:40)As we wind up, I always like to ask, what are some of the key take-home points for producers and nutritionists and lenders, in fact, and veterinarians, when considering evaluating the impact of a stocking density on the farms they work with, what would you recommend they look at?Dr. Albert De VriesIf I put on my economics glasses, if you will, then I think overstocking a pace. And like last year in the US, we had actually good milk prices. […] At the same time, we learned through the research that it sort of is farm-dependent in terms of prices and what are the losses that you observe. And so we have a spreadsheet available for listeners that they can work with, and play with. Probably the easiest way to get there. If you go to Google and you look for “dairy stocking density calculator Florida”, I think we end up number one on the Google search list there. And there's an EDI extension publication there. And that publication lays out what the research was about, hopefully in not too scientific terms. And there's a link to a calculator we used as well that we made available for folks to play with. […]

In this episode of Bank Statements we talk to Dale Sheller, Senior Vice President of the Financial Strategies Group for The Baker Group and one of the key presenters for FHLBank Topeka's 2022 Regional Meetings. Dale provides a sneak preview of his regional meeting presentation and discusses deposit, loan growth and marginal cost of fund trends for regional community financial institutions.

Global Policy Watch: Energy Is Flagging Insights on burning policy issues from an Indian lens— RSJWho do you think has a better long-term view of the world? An administration struggling to control inflation and rising oil prices, one that’s facing midterm elections with the lowest approval ratings, or large institutional investors projected to own about 20 per cent of all US listed companies by 2028? I don’t know. I mean, it is conventional wisdom that all that the likes of Blackrock, Vanguard and State Street care about is making profits on their investments. On the other hand, the government is expected to take long-term decisions in the interest of society. But when you own 20 per cent of everything, I would suspect you will conclude there’s no other way to maximise profits except trying to do good for everyone. I mean, there won’t be a lot of arbitrage left anymore in choosing specific industries or sectors. You will have to do ‘sabka saath, sabka vikaas’. No wonder ESG (Environment, Social and Governance) investing has been important for these large institutional investors. That ESG is now a critical agenda tracked by the board of every company because of these investors' efforts. All good. Now, let’s look at the incentives of political parties. It is to win elections. Everything else follows only after you have the keys to power. And elections in democracies are a permanent affair. There’s a key election of some kind happening every other year. Will a political party craft a policy that’s painful in the short run but good in the long run? They do, but it requires a combination of inspiring leadership or ideology, a looming crisis and a powerful communication strategy to walk on this difficult path. That’s rare. Instead, what you have is parties taking the easy, opportunistic way out while hoping it will somehow make sense in the long run. Two Roads DivergedHere are two news items from last week for you.#1: Democrats may be on the verge of passing historic climate legislation after all.The $369 billion of climate spending in the Inflation Reduction Act that Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) announced on Wednesday includes funding for clean energy and electric vehicle tax breaks, domestic manufacturing of batteries and solar panels, and pollution reduction.If the bill’s policies work as intended, it would push American consumers and industry away from reliance on fossil fuels, penalize fossil fuel companies for excess emissions of methane, and inject needed funds into pollution cleanup.The bill would use tax credits to incentivize consumers to buy electric cars, electric HVAC systems, and other forms of cleaner technology that would lead to less emissions from cars and electricity generation, and includes incentives for companies to manufacture that technology in the United States. It also includes money for a host of other climate priorities, like investing in forest and coastal restoration and in resilient agriculture.#2: Blackrock warns it will vote against more climate change resolutionsBlackRock (BLK.N) said on Tuesday it expected to support fewer shareholder resolutions on issues such as climate change in the current season of annual general meetings, as many proposals were too prescriptive.While BlackRock said its view on the importance of managing climate risk remained unchanged and it continued to engage with companies over their efforts, a number of resolutions put forward at recent AGMs were too constraining on boards.Among such resolutions that it said it could oppose were those requiring management to stop providing finance to traditional energy companies, or those requiring alignment of bank business models to a specific climate scenario.Among votes that BlackRock has already opposed was an April 13 call for Canadian lender Bank of Montreal to adopt a policy to link financing with the International Energy Agency's Net Zero Emissions by 2050 Scenario.While the US administration is going down the path of spending more on tackling climate change, Blackrock seems to be signalling a u-turn. What Led Them HereSo, back to the question with which we started. Who do you trust is taking a long-term view here?Some context here will help. These moves have come on the back of an energy crisis facing the world today. Most of the commentary on this has attributed this to the Ukraine war and the sanction on Russia that followed. The general view is that this crisis will disappear once the war ends. How true is this? Not very if you look closely. Over the past many years, the energy inventory has been declining because the supply has held flat or gone down while the demand continues to be robust (except for the pandemic blip). The green sources of energy haven’t been able to fill the gap on the supply side. As we have come out of the pandemic, the global demand has gone up (though still below 2019 levels) while the supply isn’t keeping pace. This was even before the Russian invasion. The reasons for this aren’t hard to locate. Conventional energy companies have found it hard to fund new projects because ESG investing norms have made the availability of capital difficult. The so-called ‘extractive industries’ are orphans in capital and debt markets. Most of the growth in energy supplies in the last decade has come from shales. A lot of money was put to work to increase the efficiency of pumping out oil from shales. The three big shale fields in the Permian, the Bakken and the Eagle Ford pumped out enough oil to not have anyone worry about supply shortages anytime in the last decade. But like all good things, we have depleted these fields at rates faster than predicted. There’s been hardly any capacity developed that has backfilled these fields elsewhere. And it is unlikely we will get a second-time lucky so soon in finding rich fields like them. If the market were efficient, we would have seen capital find its way into funding newer sources. But the ESG overdrive led by the Big 3 index funds put up a barrier to that flow. And the energy companies that are making big profits now because of the high prices aren’t themselves putting money into conventional extraction. That would be seen as a negative in the market. So, even they are being constrained by the ESG norms. Into this decadal low in investment in production came the Ukraine war. Things have gone further south since. Europe needs Russian gas, and Putin is enjoying the gradual choking of the supply that will make things worse during the oncoming winter. Only last week, Russia’s Gazprom told its customers in Europe it cannot guarantee gas supplies because of ‘extraordinary’ circumstances. Heh!Gazprom said stopping another turbine at the Nord Stream 1 pipeline would cut daily gas production to 20%, halving the current level of supply. It is likely to make it more difficult for EU countries to replenish their stores of gas before winter.The Nord Stream 1 pipeline, which pumps gas from Russia to Germany, has been running well below capacity for weeks, and was completely shut down for a 10-day maintenance break earlier this month.The European Commission has urged countries to cut gas use by 15% over the next seven months after Russia warned it could curb or halt supplies altogether. Under the proposals, the voluntary target could become mandatory in an emergency. On Tuesday energy ministers will meet in Brussels in an attempt to sign off the plans.But numerous opt-outs are expected amid resistance from some member states.To this, add that the US has been depleting its SPR (Special Petroleum Reserves) to boost supply and keep prices under control. Last week it announced another 20 million barrels were released from SPR. But this isn’t sustainable, and it is likely this is the last of it.I don’t know about you, but I think the supply situation looks to worsen in the future. Evaluating the ResponsesNow, look at the two news articles that we started with. After a decade of not adding real capacity to boost energy supply, starving investments in conventional energy, stupidly shutting down nuclear plants and going for investments in wind and solar that are by themselves energy and capital intensive to set up, we are here with two kinds of response.  One is from the US government. Instead of finding ways to invest in the sector to solve this crisis is going the other way. Releasing special reserves, cutting taxes on gasoline, placing more restrictions on the conventional energy sector and planning to deficit fund more investments in green energy without a clear answer on how it will help with supply. These will only increase demand in the short term without any corresponding increase in supply to address it.The other is from the face of greedy capitalism, Blackrock, who thinks we might have overdone the ESG investment thesis without fully appreciating the unintended consequences of starving the oil and gas sector of investments. Maybe the rhetoric against conventional energy has gone overboard without an immediate answer to the supply shortfall. So, some calibration is needed now. Else, there will be significant pain ahead with misallocation of investments and a deepening energy crisis. The poor and the developing nations are most affected by higher oil prices. And poverty is worse for climate change. More than fossil fuels.  Those then are the two narratives. As London and NYC sweat in an unprecedented heat wave this summer, you know who will win the narrative battle. The war will be lost though. Thanks for reading Anticipating the Unintended! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support our work.A Framework A Week: Building Models Tools to help think about public policy— RSJLast week I came across this piece on ‘Models as mediating instruments’ by Margaret Morrison and Mary S. Morgan. You should read the full chapter. The authors lay out the importance of model building in helping us learn about theories and how they might operate in the world:Models are one of the critical instruments of modern science. We know that models function in a variety of different ways within the sciences to help us to learn not only about theories but also about the world. So far, however, there seems to be no systematic account of how they operate in both of these domains.And then, they proceed to outline how we should think about developing models that function as autonomous agents and as instruments of investigation of the world. Here’s a short extract from their introduction to model building:In order to make good our claim, we need to raise and answer a number of questions about models. We outline the important questions here before going on to provide detailed answers. These questions cover four basic elements in our account of models, namely how they are constructed, how they function, what they represent and how we learn from them.Construction What gives models their autonomy? Part of the answer lies in their construction. It is common to think that models can be derived entirely from theory or from data. However, if we look closely at the way models are constructed we can begin to see the sources of their independence. It is because they are neither one thing nor the other, neither just theory nor data, but typically involve some of both (and often additional ‘outside’ elements), that they can mediate between theory and the world. In addressing these issues we need to isolate the nature of this partial independence and determine why it is more useful than full independence or full dependence. Functioning What does it mean for a model to function autonomously? Here we explore the various tasks for which models can be used. We claim that what it means for a model to function autonomously is to function like a tool or instrument. Instruments come in a variety of forms and fulfil many different functions. By its nature, an instrument or tool is independent of the thing it operates on, but it connects with it in some way. Although a hammer is separate from both the nail and the wall, it is designed to fulfil the task of connecting the nail to the wall. So too with models. They function as tools or instruments and are independent of, but mediate between things; and like tools, can often be used for many different tasks. Representing Why can we learn about the world and about theories from using models as instruments? To answer this we need to know what a model consists of. More specifically, we must distinguish between instruments which can be used in a purely instrumental way to effect something and instruments which can also be used as investigative devices for learning something. We do not learn much from the hammer. But other sorts of tools (perhaps just more sophisticated ones) can help us learn things. The thermometer is an instrument of investigation: it is physically independent of a saucepan of jam, but it can be placed into the boiling jam to tell us its temperature. Scientific models work like these kinds of investigative instruments – but how? The critical difference between a simple tool, and a tool of investigation is that the latter involves some form of representation: models typically represent either some aspect of the world, or some aspect of our theories about the world, or both at once. Hence the model’s representative power allows it to function not just instrumentally, but to teach us something about the thing it represents. LearningAlthough we have isolated representation as the mechanism that enables us to learn from models we still need to know how this learning takes place and we need to know what else is involved in a model functioning as a mediating instrument. Part of the answer comes from seeing how models are used in scientific practice. We do not learn much from looking at a model – we learn more from building the model and from manipulating it. Just as one needs to use or observe the use of a hammer in order to really understand its function, similarly, models have to be used before they will give up their secrets. In this sense, they have the quality of a technology – the power of the model only becomes apparent in the context of its use. Models function not just as a means of intervention, but also as a means of representation. It is when we manipulate the model that these combined features enable us to learn how and why our interventions work.The whole chapter and Mary Morgan’s book (The World in the Model: How Economists Work and Think) is a great tool for building models.  India Policy Watch: Hoping Against HopeInsights on burning policy issues in India - Pranay KotasthaneEarlier this week, the union cabinet approved a revival package for the ever-embattled Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) worth ₹1.64 lakh crores. Let’s analyse this decision ground-up Let’s look at the two stated aims. The first argument is that the presence of BSNL in the telecom market acts as a market balancer; it plays a significant role in providing services to rural areas and during natural disasters. The second argument is that the telecom sector is strategic; hence, BSNL will become the vehicle for the government to “promote indigenous 4G technology development”. In other words, BSNL will have to commission an atmanirbhar 4G technology that Tata Consultancy Services and C-DOT are developing. A part of the bailout—₹22,471 crores—is allocated for capital expenditure on this deployment.For a moment, assume that both objectives are desirable. The question is, are there alternative methods to achieve the two stated objectives?Given the positive externalities of network infrastructure today, government intervention in rural connectivity makes sense. But the instrument required to achieve this objective doesn’t require the government to produce this service by itself through a public sector unit. The same objective could be achieved by a government procurement contract which finances private sector players for capital expenditure on network infrastructure in low-density areas. Think of a non-coercive version of the Regional Air Travel Connectivity Scheme - UDAN, but for mobile connectivity. This method would likely be far cheaper than attempting to revive a government-run company that incurs losses despite playing a game in which the umpire also belongs to the same team. This would be beneficial for the people living in far-flung areas too. Why condemn them to slow 3G services of BSNL when the government can finance private players to provide 4G services instead?Next, consider the strategic necessity argument. 4G was introduced in India a full decade ago. When the world (and India) is commissioning 5G connectivity, an Indian consortium has now done trials for home-grown 4G technology. Granted, that 4G is not going away anytime soon, but why should it now be shoved down BSNL’s throat? To me, it seems like a classic error—a violation of the Tinbergen Rule, which we had discussed in edition #135. The rule says: use one policy instrument for just one target (or as few as possible). Burdening one instrument with several objectives often results in a system that fulfils none. In the current case, it means that BSNL can either be an instrument to connect remote areas or it can be a testbed for indigenous technologies, but not both. To expect it to do both would make things tougher for an already troubled entity. More important, it would be a waste of taxpayers’ hard-earned money.Since allowing adversaries to manage your core networks is a strategic vulnerability, a better alternative would be to give domestic players a target for eliminating Huawei from their 4G networks over time. If the indigenous solution is any good, some players will consider opting for it. The second option is to support the indigenous 4G’s go-to-market programmes in other countries. Either way, the objective can be achieved without hoping against the BSNL hope.Finally, a reminder. The cost to society for one rupee raised by governments in India is ₹3 (Marginal Cost of Public Funds). So, Indians will be incurring nearly ₹5 lakh crores. For comparison, that is nearly 10 per cent of RBI’s foreign exchange reserves in equivalent rupees. Is protecting BSNL really worth this kind of expenditure?Course Advertisement: Admissions for the Sept 2022 cohort of Takshashila’s Graduate Certificate in Public Policy programme are now open! Visit this link to apply.PolicyWTF: Playing with Fire AgainThis section looks at egregious public policies. Policies that make you go: WTF, Did that really happen? - Pranay KotasthaneA couple of weeks ago, a film poster depicting Kaali Maa began an outrage cycle. As it happens with frightening regularity nowadays, it culminated in a couple of FIRs being filed against the director. Forget the fact that the movie was released in Canada by an Indian citizen from Tamil Nadu; the FIRs were nevertheless registered in Delhi and UP. It’s not worth spending time and energy on these Whack-A-Mole outrages. What concerns me more is the Indian High Commission in Ottawa’s press release. It read:We have received complaints from leaders of the Hindu community in Canada about disrespectful depiction of Hindu Gods on the poster of a film showcased as part of the 'Under the Tent' project at the Aga Khan Museum, Toronto.Our Consulate General in Toronto has conveyed these concerns to the organizers of the event.We are also informed that several Hindu groups have approached authorities in Canada to take action.We urge the Canadian authorities and the event organizers to withdraw all such provocative material. In the past, the official Indian position would have been to play the matter down and leave the issue to the host country. It is unusual and disappointing for an Indian embassy to act as a messenger for religious groups in other countries. Canadian citizens of the Hindu faith aren’t Indians. This admonishment by an Indian government entity is out of place.I say that the government is playing with fire here because acting on behalf of citizens of other countries—for whatever reason—is a slippery slope. There’s a reason that Indian immigrants are welcomed in many countries. Contrast that with China. The aggressive opposition by some Chinese immigrants against criticisms of the Chinese Communist Party in their host country ends up being detrimental to all Chinese immigrants. It’s in India’s interest that emigrants become trustworthy members of their host community. We shouldn’t go down the path China has.HomeWorkReading and listening recommendations on public policy matters[Article] In the last edition, we had written about the Enforcement Directorate’s zeal to slap charges of money laundering. This week, the Supreme Court upheld its powers under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). In his latest column, Pratap Bhanu Mehta explains why this implies, “Rather than being the guardian of rights, the Supreme Court is now a significant threat to it”.[Podcast] In the latest Puliyabaazi, we take a long hard look at the consequences of emigration on India. [Article] How can the government intervene to reduce dependence on Chinese pharma APIs? Bambawale et al. explain.[Paper] Jonathan Haidt has helpfully combined all the latest research on social media’s impact on society in this one master document. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit publicpolicy.substack.com

My dance competition is back in person! Salome and I just finished our annual Maxt Out Dance Competition and this episode is all about what we learned from the event and what our take-aways were from bringing the event back in person.  In this episode you will learn about:How can anger be a potency? Anger creates walls around you.Convincing others can be exhausting - how to do it differently? DONATE HERE to SLEIGH GALS 2021 If you enjoyed this episode, make sure and give us a five star rating  and leave us a review on iTunes, Podcast Addict, Podchaser and Castbox. Let's Connect:The Get Up GirlInstagramFacebookMonthly online fitness academy 

The marginal cost of production is the additional cost incurred to produce an additional unit of output. It is calculated by dividing the change in total production cost by the change in quantity.

Rethinking the customerAkimbo is a weekly podcast created by Seth Godin. He's the bestselling author of 19 books and a long-time entrepreneur, freelancer and teacher.You can find out more about Seth by reading his daily blog at seths.blog and about the workshops at akimbo.com .To submit a question and to see the show notes, please visit akimbo.link and press the appropriate button. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In today's episode, Alex and Shimon discuss the topic of inflation. Is it good or bad? Do we see it coming up on the horizon? Does the fact that we're moving to a zero marginal cost economy impact the effect of money printing on inflation?Visit us at www.hardcorefinance.comFollow us on twitter:@shimonlazarov@mrebitda

اینترنت چه تغییرات بنیادی‌ای در زندگی ما ایجاد کرده و ما را کدوم سمت می‌بره؟ نویسنده: جرمی ریفکین متن: عباس سیدین روایت: علی بندری تدوین: امید صدیق‌فر موسیقی: پیمان عرب‌زاده مرچندایز بی‌پلاس وب‌لاگ بی‌پلاس یوتیوب بی‌پلاس کتاب‌های بی‌پلاس را از این‌جا بخرید پشتیبانی از بی‌پلاس با تشکر از اسپانسرهای این اپیزود شکلات گالاردو فیدیبو خبرنامه‌ی بی‌پلاس

Mark Lewis has more than 20 years’ experience as a financial analyst covering energy and environmental markets. He joins from Carbon Tracker, an award-winning think tank, where he was Head of Research. Previously, he was MD and Head of European Utilities Research at Barclays, Chief Energy Economist at Kepler Cheuvreux, and MD and Head of Carbon Research at Deutsche Bank. He was also a member of the Financial Stability Board’s Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures from May 2016 to May 2018. Prior to his career in banking, Mark was an academic at the University of London at Royal Holloway College. Mark has an MA in German from King’s College London, an MPhil in Latin American Studies from Cambridge University and a BA in Spanish & German from Sheffield University. Mark joins Sustainable Nation to discuss: Process of integrating ESG metrics into portfolio evaluation Importance of weighting E, S, and G differently for each sector Current status of the TCFD and its evolvement Advice and recommendations for sustainability leaders Mark's final five question responses: What is one piece of advice you'd give other sustainability professionals that might help them in their careers? Never give up. I think in fact, you know, one thing I say a lot these days is every single day gets easier to make the case because the economics have changed fundamentally in the last five years. I feel now as if we're pushing on an open door, that door was only very slightly ajar 15 years ago. And we've had to do a lot of pushing over the last 15 years, but it's really opening up now and we just need more people to join in and keep pushing and keep developing. I'm much more optimistic than I was 10 years ago that we can build a better world. It's not to say it's guaranteed, but it's in our hands. The technology is there. We need policy makers to develop and for that we need as much enthusiasm and human energy as possible to keep pressing forward. So never give up and keep pushing. What are you most excited about right now in the world of sustainability? I mean, for me personally it's just the tremendous possibilities that are opening up with energy storage and also hydrogen is back on the agenda because I think, you know, renewables can only get you so far if you don't have a way of storing, solar and wind energy. And I think the good news is we're starting to see breakthroughs in the cost of storage. Europe has just launched a very big incentive program for hydrogen as well, which can be used both as a source of storage and as an energy source in its own. Right. So to me, that's the next phase of the energy revolution is really being able to combine storage with wind and solar energy, so that we can decarbonize the global energy system completely within the next three, hopefully three, maybe four decades. What is one book you would recommend sustainability professionals read? Yeah, sorry again, to focus on the energy side, this is, you know, showing my own bias, but a really great book, relatively recent, I guess it is three or four years old now, is the Marginal Cost of Society by Jeremy Rifkin. I think that's a fantastic read. What are some of your favorite resources or tools that really help you in your work? Well there are so many, on the energy side there's a lot of publicly available data from the International Energy Agency and from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). World resources Institute is an unending source of knowledge and insight. I think WRI is just a fantastic, fantastic tool. So those would be three that spring to mind that I regularly look at. Carbon Tracker. I've gotta give a shout out to Carbon Tracker. You know, I spent nine months there in 2018 as the head of research. It's the most fantastic think tank on climate change and aligning financial markets with the challenge of achieving the Paris agreement. Mark, where can our listeners go to learn more about you and your work? Well, you know, we have a website, the BNP Paribas Asset Management website. And, you know, if I may indulge your listeners, you know, I can be contacted on LinkedIn. I post regularly about my work and about interesting trends that I'm seeing and you can follow me on Twitter @MCL1965. About Sustridge: Sustridge is a sustainability consulting firm providing consulting in sustainability strategy development, sustainability reporting, GHG emissions calculating and management, zero waste planning and guidance in a TRUE Zero Waste, B Corp, LEED and Carbon Neutral certification.

This book predicts the collapse of capitalism by reviewing the history of its development. Driven by the Internet of Things, the Communications Internet, the Energy Internet, the Logistics Internet, and 3D printing technology, a new zero marginal cost society is arising on the horizon. The book argues that mankind will enter the era of the Collaborative Commons where a biosphere consciousness based on the Empathetic Civilization will eventually emerge.

This Podcast Is Episode Number 0380, And It's About Contractors, Know What You're Good At And Generate More Leads The pressures of owning and operating a construction company can be, at times, almost unbearable. Unlike any other business, there's no "one size fits all" solution in your toolbox to fix your dilemma. Everything is created twice. First, in our minds, and when we do the work to bring them into physical existence. Take your power and take control of your ability to Be-Do-Have. You can re-write your scripts and take control and responsibility for the outcome of your Construction Company by using your imagination, conscience, and excellent implementation of your business plans. Concentrate Successful contractors know what type of contracting they are good at doing. SWOT Analysis is one of the tools we use in strategic planning for construction companies to evaluate the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats involved in determining the particular target market. Strengths - are projects that your construction company does exceptionally well and earns a higher than average gross margin that gives you an advantage over other contractors. What are they, and how can your construction contracting company expand on them? Weaknesses - are projects that your construction company does poorly at and breaks even or loses money. What are they, and how can your construction contracting company turn them into strengths? Opportunities - are projects and markets not currently being served where your construction company can enter and turn them into strengths. Threats - are elements outside your construction company that could cause trouble for you or your construction projects. What are they, and how can your construction contracting company turn them into opportunities? A SWOT analysis will help you identify each of these characteristics for your business to understand better what you're doing well, what you could improve, and which external factors could affect your business. Generate Marketing is a science, not an art. Now that you've analyzed your SWOT, you laid the foundation by having a vision for what your Construction Company will be when you finish building it, you know who you are, and you know who your prime client is. You can quickly generate more leads than you can handle. Let's Run The Numbers Starting With The Cost To Acquire A Customer Step #1 – Generate a Profit & Loss Report from the previous two years and isolate total income. (Note: All companies are only two years old regardless of how long they have been in business because what happened more than two years ago doesn't matter when developing a financial forecast). Step #2 – How Much Money Did You Invest In Marketing? Not investing money in marketing is like winking at a pretty girl or guy in the dark, you know you are doing it, but they don't. Relying on word of mouth means being in a race for the championship of low price leaders! Step #3 – How many new customers or clients did you acquire during the past two years? Step #4 – Divide Total Income from step #1 by the number of customers or clients in step #3, and you will have a rough idea of your sales per customer. Step #5 – Divide The Amount Of Money You Invested In Marketing by the number of customers or clients in step #3. Just know that 80% of the marketing is done to keep current clients, and only 20% is designed to attract new ones. Why do you suppose the car manufacturers invest so much money advertising their products when most people continue to purchase similar makes and models repeatedly? Step #6 – Multiply The Net Profit Percentage shown on your Profit & Loss by the sales per customer in step #4 to generate a rough idea of a customer's net worth to your Contracting Company. This is one of the numbers that become very important if you ever want to sell your Contracting Company. Step #7 – Customer Gross Profit in step #6 minus marketing cost in step #5 = Customer Net Profit. Step #8 – Where MR > MC - When the Marginal Revenue is greater than the Marginal Cost and risk is manageable, do the deal. MR>MC is a long discussion for more on it click here Step #9 – Where is Break-Even, or how far can I go before it is time to quit doing it? Step #10 – When You Know How Much A Client Is Worth, you will know how much you can invest to acquire a new one and as many new ones as you want.  Step #11 – Keep Your Existing Clients Happy and continue offering new products and services.  Would you like to start evaluating your geographic and demographic target markets and develop strategic plans to increase your company sales, cash flow, and bottom line profits? Focus on a few Key Strategies that require the least amount of effort and generate optimum sales cash flow and earnings for your contracting company by taking our SWOT Analysis class. Final thoughts Seeing the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of your business and various projects is essential in fine-tuning your strategy. SWOT analyses are a great way to explore potential solutions, identify potential barriers, choose an effective strategy, or revise an existing policy. Conduct regular SWOT analyses to keep your business on the right track, and whenever you're faced with a decision. Be the contractor who will do whatever it takes to rise above owning a job and develop a construction business that will provide for themselves and their families for a lifetime. About The Author: Sharie DeHart, QPA is the co-founder of Business Consulting And Accounting in Lynnwood, Washington. She is the leading expert in managing outsourced construction bookkeeping and accounting services companies and cash management accounting for small construction companies across the USA. She encourages Contractors and Construction Company Owners to stay current on their tax obligations and offers insights on how to manage the remaining cash flow to operate and grow their construction company sales and profits so they can put more money in the bank. Call 1-800-361-1770 or sharie@fasteasyaccounting.com  

In this episode, Oliver and Horace talk about cost-per-mile calculations for micromobility, and the implications of the recent blogpost that Horace published on the Micromobility.io blog. In short - what happens when the marginal cost per additional km collapses towards zero with Micromobility. We think there are lots of lessons we can take from the telecom industry.Specifically, we cover:- The cost-per-mile calculations from New York for both Citi-Bike and taxis and how they compare to private owned cars- The comparison of shared vs. owned micromobility, and why Horace is far more bullish than Oliver on shared platforms- The jobs-to-be-done of shared vs owned micromobility, and why they’re in many ways different markets- What new behaviours and business opportunities we’re seeing emerge on shared platforms and why scooter trains validate our early thesis about why micromobility is disruptive.- Why Lime and Bird are likely to become the equivalent of Vodafone or Verizon over time- A discussion about whether the social layer for micromobility transport will sit on the vehicle or on the phone of the user.It’s a great discussion with lots of sparring. Hope you enjoy it as much as we did making it!

Is there a business model that won't be shattered by capital efficiency and marginal cost pricing? Not likely, says Francis McInerney. Learn why universal access to marginal cost computing gives companies an edge.

This Podcast Is Episode Number 0326, And It Will Be About Understanding Other Construction Company Costs And Opportunities To Increase Your Profit   Many contractors are having trouble adapting to the new economy. I have made more mistakes – than ten of the average contractors put together. I've learned a great deal of hard, hard lessons, and worked my way through several "Character Building Moments." What I am about to ask you to do is something I have done for many years during my contracting days, and it still works.   Understanding Other Costs:   Marketing Cost   The cost your company spent to acquire and maintain the job. Depending on how you allocate marketing dollars as a percentage of sales or a fixed budget will have an impact on your marketing cost per job. Your cost-per-call, closing ratio, and other related information is all part of your operations, accounting, and bookkeeping reports.   Mobilization Cost    Are the costs you incurred to get a crew to the job site in terms of travel time and vehicle operating costs; and then the labor costs to unload tools, equipment, and material and put everything in place for easy access and not in the way of the work to be done. These costs are generally high and fixed.   Demobilization Cost   Are the reverse and generally lower because it takes less time to load the truck or van since you know where everything goes, and you know the quickest route back to the shop or office. These costs are also generally high and fixed.   Add these costs together and you will understand the value of staying on each job and solving all of your customers, or client's construction and maintenance issues are so much more profitable than windshield time.   Some contractors prefer not to offer "add on" sales, change orders, additional work orders whatever you call them because they feel it is a disservice to their clients and if it makes you uncomfortable don't do it.   Let's Run The Numbers Starting With The Cost To Acquire A Customer:   Step #1 – Generate a Profit & Loss Report from the previous two years and isolate total income. (Note: All companies are only two years old regardless of how long they have been in business because what happened more than two years ago doesn't matter when developing a financial forecast).   Step #2 – How much money did you invest In Marketing? Not investing money in marketing is like winking at a pretty girl or guy in the dark, you know you are doing it, but they don't. Relying on word of mouth means being in a race for the championship of low price leaders!   Step #3 – How many new customers or clients did you acquire during the past two years?   Step #4 – Divide Total Income from step #1 by the number of customers or clients in step #3, and you will have a rough idea of your sales per customer.   Step #5 – Divide The Amount Of Money You Invested In Marketing by the number of customers or clients in step #3. Just know that 80% of the marketing is done to keep current customers, and only 20% is designed to attract new ones. I have studied marketing extensively and will offer this one hint. Why do you suppose the car manufacturers invest so much money advertising their products when most people continue to purchase similar makes and models over and over?   Step #6 – Multiply The Net Profit Percentage shown on your Profit & Loss by the sales per customer in step #4 to generate a rough idea of the net worth of a customer to your Contracting Company. This is one of the numbers that become very important if you ever want to sell your Contracting Company.   Step #7 – Customer Gross Profit in step #6 minus marketing cost in step #5 = Customer Net Profit.   Step #8 – Where MR > MC,  when the Marginal Revenue is greater than the Marginal Cost and risk is manageable, do the deal.    Step #9 – Where is Break-Even or how far can I go before it is time to quit doing it?   Step #10 – When you know how much a client is worth, you will know how much you can invest to acquire a new one and as many new ones as you want.        Profit Opportunities:   Add-on Sales   Your Customers And Clients - Are depending on you to give them good advice and help them protect their real estate investments.   I cannot begin to tell you the number of times people have come up to me at social and networking events to relate stories about how they did everything but get on hands and knees and beg their contractor to do a little extra work while they were already there. When I asked if they expected it for free all of them said no, they planned and were willing to pay extra.   You can choose  to provide add on sales and services for your customers and reap bountiful profits or wait until your customer calls one of my contractor clients who are learning how to grow a profitable and successful business and they will take your customers off your hands and turn them into high-profit clients.   Service Agreement   Service agreement holders are more likely to be clients that add more value to your construction company because they represent the most loyal segment of your customer base. Every service agreement client represents future work. In the meantime, service agreement clients are a source of cash flow and are predetermined to call you instead of your competition when repairs are necessary.   Non-service agreement customers are more likely to be customers and fickle. They may call your contracting company for future work, or they may decide to shop the competition and use the information they find to negotiate for a lower price. In some cases, they may not even remember you or your construction company name.   Also, your replacement sale close-ratio usually is higher with service agreement clients and your overall pricing and related service care level can be much higher, resulting in even more raving fans. Service agreement clients trust you, follow your recommendations, and do not frequently shop around.    Accept Credit Cards   Unplanned Emergencies are stressful, now add "how am I going to pay for this" to the mix, and the anxiety increases exponentially! For most people short in cash supply, it leaves them using a credit card, getting a bank loan, or selling something to raise money as their best options.   For Example: Homeowner with a leaking roof is going to get it fixed right away because rainwater is damaging the interior of their home including some irreplaceable sentimental treasures such as items passed down from parents and grandparents.   Who will they call? - You, I hope! If you are their contractor and you are actively working and the contractor they like and trust.   Accepting all credit cards makes you the hero because they get instant financing and your Electronic Armored Car takes your money to the bank.   "Everybody wins, your client gets roof fixed, they earn airline miles and other perks, and you made a sale which you could have easily lost to a competitor that accepts credit cards."   Conclusion:   Two Easy Ways: to massively increase cash flow and profits is to cut costs or increase revenue. One is limited the other one is not. Money is not everything; it is merely a way for you and your family to enjoy the good things in life. By serving your client base effectively giving them what they want, your wealth will provide opportunities for other people who help you to do the same.   About The Author: Randal DeHart, PMP, QPA is the co-founder of Business Consulting And Accounting in Lynnwood Washington. He is the leading expert in outsourced construction bookkeeping and accounting services for small construction companies across the USA. He is experienced as a Contractor, Project Management Professional, Construction Accountant, Intuit ProAdvisor, and QuickBooks For Contractors Expert. This combination of experience and skill sets provides a unique perspective which allows him to see the world through the eyes of a contractor, Project Manager, Accountant and Construction Accountant. This quadruple understanding is what sets him apart from other Intuit ProAdvisors and accountants to the benefit of all of the construction contractors he serves across the USA. Visit http://www.fasteasyaccounting.com/randal-dehart/ to learn more. Our Co-Founder Randal DeHart - Is a Certified PMP (Project Management Professional) with several years of construction project management experience. His expertise is construction accounting systems engineering and process development. His exhaustive study of several leading experts including the work of Dr. W. Edward Deming, Michael Gerber, Walter A. Shewhart, James Lewis and dozens of others was the foundation upon which our Construction Bookkeeping System is based and continues to evolve and improve. Check out our Contractor Success Map Podcast on iTunes.    OUTSOURCED ACCOUNTING FOR  THE BUSY CONTRACTOR IN A MOBILE ENVIRONMENT                           Download the Contractors APP today from the App Store or Android Store Access Code: FEAHEROS Click here to download the App on Android: Click here to download the App on iOS: Simply scan the QR code or search for ‘MyAccountants’ in the App Store and enter the Access code: FEAHEROS to utilize the powerful App features and capabilities, and benefit from having our Construction Accounting App at your fingertips, 24/7." PS: Even if you are not a Construction Contractor you will find a plenty of benefits in the app so we invite you to download it too! It's Free so why not?  

Guest host Jake Thomsen explains the real meaning of great operations / processes. John tries (and fails) to apply economic ideas to his personal life. Daniel blows everyone's mind with some mysticism. And then Jake settles a long-standing debate about the Protestant Work Ethic! Hit us up on Twitter! Fits and Starts - @fits_and_starts Daniel - @dcoulbourne John - @johnrudolphdrex Special Guest: Jake Thomsen. Links: - [Jake Thomsen | LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakethomsen/ "Jake Thomsen | LinkedIn") - [Overcast](https://overcast.fm/ "Overcast") - [Fits and Starts: 5: Closing the Gap](http://fitsandstarts.fm/closing-the-gap "Fits and Starts: 5: Closing the Gap") - [Music | Twice Adapted](https://twiceadapted.bandcamp.com/ "Music | Twice Adapted") - [Simon Sinek: How great leaders inspire action | TED Talk Subtitles and Transcript | TED.com](https://www.ted.com/talks/simon_sinek_how_great_leaders_inspire_action/transcript?language=en "Simon Sinek: How great leaders inspire action | TED Talk Subtitles and Transcript | TED.com") - [and that's why you always leave a note - YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNZsWIzEhP4 "and that's why you always leave a note - YouTube") - [Marginal Benefit and Marginal Cost](http://www.investopedia.com/exam-guide/cfa-level-1/microeconomics/marginal-benefit-cost.asp "Marginal Benefit and Marginal Cost") - [Opportunity cost - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opportunity_cost "Opportunity cost - Wikipedia") - [The Denial of Death - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Denial_of_Death "The Denial of Death - Wikipedia") - [Phallic architecture - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phallic_architecture "Phallic architecture - Wikipedia") - [Donald Trump’s Math Takes His Towers to Greater Heights - The New York Times](https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/02/nyregion/donald-trump-tower-heights.html "Donald Trump’s Math Takes His Towers to Greater Heights - The New York Times") - [Pascal on Our Addiction to Distraction | TGC](https://blogs.thegospelcoalition.org/justintaylor/2010/07/08/pascal-on-our-addiction-to-distraction/ "Pascal on Our Addiction to Distraction | TGC") - [Telos (philosophy) - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telos_(philosophy) "Telos (philosophy) - Wikipedia") - [Blaise Pascal - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blaise_Pascal "Blaise Pascal - Wikipedia") - [James K. A. Smith - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_K._A._Smith "James K. A. Smith - Wikipedia") - [Martin Luther - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Luther "Martin Luther - Wikipedia") - [Protestant work ethic - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protestant_work_ethic "Protestant work ethic - Wikipedia") - [Fits and Starts: 0: Episode Zero](http://fitsandstarts.fm/episode-zero "Fits and Starts: 0: Episode Zero") - [Stakeholder theory - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stakeholder_theory "Stakeholder theory - Wikipedia") - [Work–life balance - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Work%E2%80%93life_balance "Work–life balance - Wikipedia") - [Sabbath - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sabbath "Sabbath - Wikipedia") - [John F. Kennedy assassination conspiracy theories - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_F._Kennedy_assassination_conspiracy_theories "John F. Kennedy assassination conspiracy theories - Wikipedia") - [Revealed preference - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revealed_preference "Revealed preference - Wikipedia") - [Open-source software - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open-source_software "Open-source software - Wikipedia") - [Simulation hypothesis - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simulation_hypothesis "Simulation hypothesis - Wikipedia") - [Why Elon Musk says we're living in a simulation - YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J0KHiiTtt4w "Why Elon Musk says we're living in a simulation - YouTube")

This Podcast Is Episode Number 0174 And It Will Be About  Four Simple Steps To Make Your Contracting Company Great Again What Separates Wealthy Contractors From Poor Contractors • It's not lack of opportunities to bid jobs or get leads because getting leads is easy • It's not lack of ambition because every contractor I know is strong and ready to get busy • It's not lack of intelligence or the ability to develop a production method and follow it to the end • It's not lack of money because if you follow my method you know how to overcome that, just use O.P.M. The Answers Are Simple, But Not Easy • Wealthy Contractors begin with the end in mind and knowing what to do • Wealthy Contractors know who they are and what they believe to be true • Wealthy Contractors know what type of Contracting they are good at doing • Wealthy Contractors know how to generate more leads than they can handle Do You Want To Know How They Found The Answers? Step #1 Begin With The End In Mind  "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People." Everything is created twice. First in our minds, and when we do the work to bring them into physical existence. Take your power and take control of your ability to Be-Do-Have. You can re-write your own scripts and take control and responsibility for the outcome of your Construction Company by using your imagination and conscience. Three major aspects of personal and business management of your contracting company: 1. Leadership - what do you want to accomplish? 2. Management - how can you accomplish it? 3. Productivity - just decide to do it. Peter Drucker and Warren Bennis, "Management is doing things right; Leadership is doing the right things." Have a vision of what your Construction Company Money Machine will be when you are finishing building it. It will be like a deep, wide river running smooth and calm moving millions of gallons of water through lush green valleys where farmers and ranchers pump the fresh water into their crops and fields to feed their families for a lifetime and beyond. Your Construction Company Money Machine will be moving millions of dollars from customers and clients through lush green valleys where you will pump cash flow into your bank and investment accounts to feed your family for a lifetime and beyond. Step #2 Know Who You Are And What Your Believe To Be True Your Perception Is Your Reality And The Truth Is Four Levels Deep To get to the truth about your construction company, you must go on a journey. It is four levels deep and like most successes in life, it is simple but not easy. Level One - What contractors want to hear Level Two - What contractors want to believe Level Three - Everything else Level Four - Truth A Story To Illustrate The Four Levels What Contractors Want To Hear - One evening after work a group of contractors met at the Contractor Business Round Table, which is the neighborhood tavern with a round table, pitcher of beer and four contractors. They talked about how tough it is to get profitable jobs no matter what the economy is like. When times are good, it is hard to find employees, when times are tough the phone doesn't ring. Everyone agreed there was nothing anyone could do about it. What Contractors Want To Believe - A short while later they talked about making money and agreed that really big contractors make most of the money, and little contractors were doomed to struggle. Everything Else - One of the contractors suggested maybe they could ask one of the larger more profitable contractors and find out what they did that made the difference. This made the other contractors a bit uncomfortable. Then it happened, and they all heard and felt the dreaded Snap-Crackle-Pop! The contractor who suggested asking for help experienced a paradigm shift and broke through to the other side. This contractor began leveling up! Suddenly they all remembered what that The Contractors Accountant, Randal DeHart, had said about leveling up. "As you develop your Business Strategy your income is likely to increase. The impact on your friends will not be pleasant as you will be proving that good people can win in the construction game by playing it with high moral and ethical standards and the willingness to try something different." Truth - Is whatever you believe, and you will look for evidence to support your truth. Part of my truth comes from some of the writings of Og Mandino: --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Salesman’s Prayer Oh creator of all things help me for this day I go into the world naked and alone, and without your hand to guide me I will wander far from the path which leads to success and happiness. I ask not for garments or gold or even opportunities equal to my ability; instead guide me that I may acquire ability equal to my opportunities. You have taught the lion and eagle to hunt and prosper with teeth and claw. Teach me how to hunt with words and prosper with love so that I may be a lion among men and an eagle in the marketplace. Help me to remain humble through obstacles and failures yet hide not from mine eyes the prize that will come with victory. Assign me tasks to which other have failed, yet guide me to pluck the seeds of success from their failures. Confront me with fears that will temper my Spirit yet endow me with courage to laugh at my misgivings. Spare me sufficient days to reach my goals; yet help me to live this day as though it be my last. Guide me in my words that they may bear fruit; yet silence me from gossip that none be maligned. Discipline me in the habit of trying and trying again yet show me the way to make use of the Law of Averages. Favor me with alertness to recognize opportunity, yet endow me with patience which will concentrate my strength. Bathe me in good habits that the bad ones may drown; yet grant me compassion for weakness in others. Suffer me to know that all things shall pass; yet help me to count my blessings of today. Expose me to hate so it not be a stranger; yet fill my cup with love to turn strangers into friends. But all these things be only if thy will; I am a small and lonely grape clutching the vine, yet thou hast made me different from all others. Verily there must be a special place for me. Guide me, help me, show me the way to become all you planned for me when my seed was planted and selected by you to sprout in the vineyard of the world. Help this humble salesman, guide me God. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Step #3 Know What Type Of Contracting You Are Good At Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities And Threats (S.W.O.T.) SWOT - Is one of the tools we use in strategic planning for construction companies to evaluate the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats involved in determining the particular target market. Strengths - Are construction projects that your construction company does extremely well at and earns a greater than average gross margin than give it an advantage over other contractors. What are they and how can your construction contracting company expand on them? Weaknesses - Are construction projects that your construction company does poorly at and breaks even or loses money. What are they and how can your construction contracting company turn them into strengths? Opportunities - Are construction projects and markets not currently being served where it is possible for your construction company to enter and turn them into strengths? Threats - Elements outside your construction company that could cause trouble for you or your construction projects. What are they and how can your construction contracting company turn them into opportunities? "So it is said that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you can win a hundred battles without a single loss. If you only know yourself, but not your opponent, you may win or may lose. If you know neither yourself nor your enemy, you will always endanger yourself." The Art of War by Sun Tzu There Is A Lot More that I would like to share with you about using SWOT to help your construction company increase sales, profit, and cash flow by redirecting the time, money, energy and resources from the bottom 80% of your current customer's clients and jobs to the top 20%. Please feel free to contact Sharie for more information.   Step #4 How To Generate More Leads Than You Can Handle You can easily generate more leads than you can handle because in the previous three steps you laid the foundation by having a vision for what your Construction Company will be when you finish building it, you know who you are, and you know who is your Prime Client. Marketing Is A Science Not An Art A lot of Contractors are having trouble adapting to the new economy. I Have Made More Mistakes – than ten of the average contractors put together. I’ve learned a great deal of hard, hard lessons and worked my way through a number of “Character Building Moments.” So what I am about to ask you to do is something I have done for many years during my contracting days, and it still works. Let’s Run The Numbers Starting With The Cost To Acquire A Customer Step #1 – Generate a Profit & Loss Report from the previous two years and isolate total income. (Note: All companies are only two years old regardless how long they have been in business because what happened more than two years ago doesn’t matter when developing a financial forecast.) Step #2 – How Much Money Did You Invest In Marketing? Not investing money in marketing is like winking at a pretty girl or guy in the dark, you know you are doing it, but they don’t. Relying on word of mouth means being in a race for the championship of low price leaders! Step #3 – How many new customers or clients did you acquire during the past two years? Step #4 – Divide Total Income from step #1 by the number of customers or clients in step #3 and you will have a rough idea of your sales per customer. Step #5 – Divide The Amount Of Money You Invested In Marketing by the number of customers or clients in step #3. Just know that 80% of marketing is done to keep current customers and only 20% is designed to attract new ones. I have studied marketing extensively and will offer this one hint. Why do you suppose the car manufacturers invest so much money advertising their products when most people continue to purchase similar makes and models over and over? Step #6 – Multiply The Net Profit Percentage shown on your Profit & Loss by the sales per customer in step #4 to generate a rough idea of the net worth of a customer to your Contracting Company. This is one of the numbers that becomes very important if you ever want to sell your Contracting Company. Step #7 – Customer Gross Profit in step #6 minus marketing cost in step #5 = Customer Net Profit. Step #8 – Where MR > MC When the Marginal Revenue greater than the Marginal Cost and risk is manageable do the deal. MR>MC is a long discussion for more on it click here Step #9 – Where is Break-Even or how far can I go before it is time to quit doing it? Step #10– When You Know How Much A Client Is Worth you will know how much you can invest to acquire a new one and as many new ones as you want. Step #11– Keep Your Existing Clients Happy and continue offering new products and services to them. The number one profit maximizer is Service Agreements, click here for more. I trust this podcast helps you understand that outsourcing your contractors bookkeeping services to us is about more than just “doing the bookkeeping”; it is about taking holistic approach to your entire construction company and helping support you as a contractor and as a person. We Remove Contractor's Unique Paperwork Frustrations We understand the good, bad and the ugly about owning and operating construction companies because we have had several of them and we sincerely care about you and your construction company! That is all I have for now and if you have listened this far please do me the honor of commenting and rating podcast www.FastEasyAccounting.com/podcast Tell me what you liked, did not like, tell it as you see it because your feedback is crucial and I thank you in advance. You Deserve To Be Wealthy, Because You Bring Value To Other People's Lives! I trust this will be of value to you and your feedback is always welcome at www.FastEasyAccounting.com/podcast This is one more example of how Fast Easy Accounting is helping construction company owners across the USA including Alaska and Hawaii put more money in the bank to operate and grow your construction company. Construction accounting is not rocket science; it is a lot harder than that and a lot more valuable to construction contractors like you so stop missing out and call Sharie 206-361-3950 or email sharie@fasteasyaccounting.com Thinking About Outsourcing Your Contractors Bookkeeping Services? Click On The Link Below: www.FastEasyAccounting.com/hs This guide will help you learn what to look for in outsourced construction accounting. Need Help Now? Call Sharie 206-361-3950 sharie@fasteasyaccounting.com Thank you very much and I hope you understand we really do care about you and all contractors regardless of whether or not you ever hire our services. Bye for now until our next episode here on the Contractors Success MAP Podcast. Warm Regards, Randal DeHart | Contractors Accountant Our Workflow Removes Your Paperwork Frustrations                         Contractors_Success_MAP, Contractors_Success_Marketing_Accounting_Production, Contractor_Bookkeeping_Services, QuickBooks_For_Contractors, QuickBooks_For_Contractors, Contractors_Success_Map_Four_Simple_Steps_To_Make_Your_Contracting_Company_Great_Again

BSSE students and alumni will know all too well why Professor Clayton Christensen was so excited to learn in 2015 that U.S. Steel was finally building a mini-mill at their Fairfield Works plant in Alabama. Several months later, however, the project was postponed. Does theory have an opinion about why U.S. Steel chose not to go forward with the construction of their electric arc furnace? In this episode, we share some brief reflections by Professor Christensen recorded in January. 

Jeremy Rifkin is a social activist, economist, futurist and best-selling author of twenty books on the impact of scientific and technological changes on the economy, the workforce, society, and the environment. His books have been translated into more than thirty-five languages and are being used in hundreds of universities, corporations, and government agencies around the world. In […]

Chapter 2.7: Marginal Funcations and Rates of Change

Chapter 3.7: Marginal Funcations and Rates of Change

Chapter 3.7: Marginal Funcations and Rates of Change

Chapter 3.7: Marginal Funcations and Rates of Change

Chapter 5.2: Applications of Antidifferentiation

Chapter 2.7: Marginal Funcations and Rates of Change

Chapter 2.7: Marginal Funcations and Rates of Change

Chapter 3.7: Marginal Funcations and Rates of Change

Chapter 3.7: Marginal Funcations and Rates of Change

Chapter 2.7: Marginal Funcations and Rates of Change

Chapter 2.7: Marginal Funcations and Rates of Change

Chapter 2.7: Marginal Funcations and Rates of Change

Chapter 5.2: Applications of Antidifferentiation

Chapter 3.7: Marginal Funcations and Rates of Change

Chapter 3.2: Applications of Antidifferentiation

Chapter 3.2: Applications of Antidifferentiation

When light reflects off a surface, to another point. This is the shortest distance of any reflection (when the triangles are similar) We consider a calculus proof of the topic.

Examples of optimization of profit and average cost

Copyright, Copyright Violation, YouTube, Copyright Protection, Music Industry, Suffolk University, Suffolk University Law School, Marginal Cost, Creative Work, Intellectual Property, Creative Community, Online Piracy, Copyright Infringement

We examine a multinational firm which has a decreasing marginal cost, and the optimal sales tax policies of the regions where that firm operates. We show that the regions set higher sales taxes than those given by a cooperative equilibrium. Each region fails to fully internalize the effects of its tax level on another region's welfare and the incentives for that region's authority. Exponential cost functions which exhibit economies of scale (for example Cobb-Douglas) and linear demand functions satisfy our assumptions. Our results suggest the need to coordinate sales tax levels between countries and between smaller entities, like states in the United States. Smaller regions benefit more from such coordination. Lowering sales taxes in each region increases welfare for all regions, profits for firms, and consumer welfare.