E-Business & Entrepreneurship

Broadly speaking, the term "e-business" refers to using the Internet for doing business.
Are you doing e-business?

Is your business doing e-business? Here's a checklist to find out. If you can say yes to any of these, then you are doing e-business.

* We communicate with customers, clients or suppliers via email.
* We send emails to other businesses to order products and services.
* We sell our products or services via our website.
* We use the Web to find information, such as prices, phone numbers, reviews of products.

Entrepreneurship is the practice of starting new organizations or revitalizing mature organizations, particularly new businesses generally in response to identified opportunities. Entrepreneurship is often a difficult undertaking, as a vast majority of new businesses fail. Entrepreneurial activities are substantially different depending on the type of organization that is being started. Entrepreneurship ranges in scale from solo projects (even involving the entrepreneur only part-time) to major undertakings creating many job opportunities. Many "high-profile" entrepreneurial ventures seek venture capital or angel funding in order to raise capital to build the business. Angel investors generally seek returns of 20-30% and more extensive involvement in the business.[1] Many kinds of organizations now exist to support would-be entrepreneurs, including specialized government agencies, business incubators, science parks, and some NGOs.

Advantages of Entrepreneurship

Every successful entrepreneur brings about benefits not only for himself/ herself but for the municipality, region or country as a whole. The benefits that can be derived from entrepreneurial activities are as follows:

1. Enormous personal financial gain
2. Self-employment, offering more job satisfaction and flexibility of the work force
3. Employment for others, often in better jobs
4. Development of more industries, especially in rural areas or regions disadvantaged by economic changes, for example due to globalisation effects
5. Encouragement of the processing of local materials into finished goods for domestic consumption as well as for export
6. Income generation and increased economic growth
7. Healthy competition thus encourages higher quality products
8. More goods and services available
9. Development of new markets
10. Promotion of the use of modern technology in small-scale manufacturing to enhance higher productivity
11. Encouragement of more researches/ studies and development of modern machines and equipment for domestic consumption
12. Development of entrepreneurial qualities and attitude among potential entrepreneurs to bring about significant changes in the rural areas
13. Freedom from the dependency on the jobs offered by others
14. The ability to have great accomplishments
15. Reduction of the informal economy
16. Emigration of talent may be stopped by a better domestic entrepreneurship climate

Stocks & shares

Share Holders

A shareholder (or stockholder) is an individual or company (including a corporation) that legally owns one or more shares of stock in a joint stock company. Companies listed at the stock market are expected to strive to enhance shareholder value.

Shareholder rights

Although ownership of 51% of shares does result in 51% ownership of a company, it does not give the shareholder the right to use a company's building, equipment, materials, or other property.

Means of financing

Financing a company through the sale of stock in a company is known as equity financing. Alternatively, debt financing (for example issuing bonds) can be done to avoid giving up shares of ownership of the company. Unofficial financing known as trade financing usually provides the major part of a company's working capital (day-to-day operational needs).

Trading

A stock exchange is an organization that provides a marketplace for either physical or virtual trading shares, bonds and warrants and other financial products where investors (represented by stock brokers) may buy and sell shares of a wide range of companies.

Stock price fluctuations

The price of a stock fluctuates fundamentally due to the theory of supply and demand. Like all commodities in the market, the price of a stock is directly proportional to the demand.

Stock derivatives

A stock derivative is any financial claim which has a value that is dependent on the price of the underlying stock.


Trading Statistics Definitions


Price & Volume Section

Recent Price
The closing price on the previous trading day.

Trade Date
The date of the previous trading day. "Recent Price" is the closing price taken from this day.

52-Week High
The highest intra-day price during the preceding 52 weeks.

52-Week Low
The lowest intra-day price during the preceding 52 weeks.

52-Week Change
The % change in the latest closing price of the stock vs. the closing price 52 weeks ago.

YTD Change
The % change in the latest closing price of the stock vs. the closing price at the beginning of the calendar year.

Avg. Daily Volume Last 10 Days
The value is calculated as the average of the last ten days trading volume as reported at the close of market.


Share Related Section

Market Capitalization (Thousands)
The combined market capitalization of all listed common equity classes for this company.

Shares Outstanding (Thousands)
This is the number of shares of common stock currently outstanding. This is the number of shares issued minus the shares held in treasury. This field reflects all offerings and acquisitions for stock made after the end of the previous fiscal period.

Shares Outstanding Date
The date the latest Shares Outstanding are downloaded into Multex Market Guide's Database.


Short Interest Section

As of The latest short interest date, which is usually 5 trade days before the 15th of the month. This figure is available monthly, and is provided by either the NYSE, the NASDAQ, The Toronto Stock Exchange, the Canadian Stock Exchange,or the American Stock Exchange (depending on where the security trades).

Short Interest (Millions)
The number of shares of the stock that have been sold, but not yet repurchased.

Short Interest Ratio
Shares sold short (as reported by the exchange) divided by average daily volume during the short interest period. This period is usually the 11th of the month to the 10th of the next month. This represents the number of days of average trading needed to cover the shorts. This is also called Days-to-Cover.


Insider Transactions Section

As of The date of the latest insider information. There is usually a lag of approximately six weeks before a report is posted.

Net Insider Transactions

This is the net difference between the number of SHARES of company stock purchased by officers and directors and the number of shares sold by officers and directors during the preceding six months.


Institutional Holdings Section

As of The date of the latest institutional holdings information.

Shares Held by Institutions

The actual number of common stock shares held by all reporting institutions.. This figure is the sum of all the shares held by institutions filing 13-Fs and all non-13-F reporting funds.

Percent of Shares Outstanding Held by Institutions
The percentage of common stock held by all reporting institutions on the corresponding Institutional Holdings Date.

Institutions Holding Shares
The number of all reporting institutions that are holding shares of this stock.

The 10 Absolutely Must-Follow Cash Flow Rules

When it comes to properly managing the cash flow of your business, the best way to move from where you are now to where you want to be is to get a clear picture in your mind of the benefits you will enjoy as you take control of your cash flow.The benefits include:Increasing the likelihood that your business never runs out of cash.Eliminating the constant worry associated with not knowing what your cash balance is right now or what you expect it to be in the near future.Improved relationships with your vendors because they are no longer banging on your door demanding that their past dues invoices be paid immediately.The ability to see cash flow problems long before they can happen.In short, you free yourself to focus your unique talents and abilities on growing your business rather than fighting the constant cash flow fires.

Here are 10 cash flow rules you can implement immediately that will transform the way you manage your business from this point forward. These rules are the keys to creating the kind of financially successful business you deserve.
1. Never Run Out of Cash.
Running out of cash is the definition of failure in business. Make the commitment to do what it takes so it does not happen to you.
2. Cash Is King.
It's important to recognize that cash is what keeps your business alive. Manage it with the care and attention it deserves. It's very unforgiving if you don't.Remember, Cash Is King, because No Cash = No Business.
3. Know the Cash Balance Right Now.
What is your cash balance right now? It's absolutely critical that you know exactly what your cash balance is.Even the most intelligent and experienced person will fail if they are making business decisions using inaccurate or incomplete cash balances. That's the reason why business failures are not limited to amateurs or people new to the business world.
4. Do Today's Work Today.
The key to keeping an accurate cash balance in your accounting system is to do today's work today. When you do this, you will have the numbers you need - when you need them.
5. Either You Do the Work or Have Someone Else Do It.
Here is a simple rule to follow to make sure you have an accurate cash balance on your books. You do the work or have someone else do it.Those are the only two choices you have. The work must be done. It's like mowing the lawn. You can't just ignore it. Someone has to do it. That means either you do it or have someone else do it.
6. Don't Manage From the Bank Balance.
The bank balance and the cash balance are two different animals. Rarely will the two ever be the same. Don't make the mistake of confusing them.It's futile (and frustrating) to attempt to manage your cash flow using the bank balance. It's a prescription for failure. You reconcile your bank balance. You don't manage from it.
7. Know What You Expect the Cash Balance to be Six Months From Now.
What do you expect your cash balance to be six months from now? This one question will transform the way you manage your business.This question really gets to the heart of whether you are managing your business or whether your business is managing you.
8. Cash Flow Problems Don't "Just Happen.
"You would be shocked and amazed at the number of businesses that fail because the owner did not see a cash flow problem in time to do something about it.The key is to always be able to answer the question - what do I expect my cash balance to be six months from now?
9. You Absolutely, Positively Must Have Cash Flow Projections.
Cash flow projections are the key to making wise and profitable business decisions. They give you the answer to the all-important question from Rule # 7.It's impossible to run your business properly without them.
10. Eliminate Your Cash Flow Worries So You Are Free to Do What You Do Best - Take Care of Customers and Make More Money.
This is the real key to your success in business. The reason you have to make sure you have the cash flow of your business under control is so you are free to focus all your time and talents where you can make the most difference in your business.When you have your cash flow under control, you are free from worry, doubt and concern. You have the cash flow information you need to make sure that everything you do each day in your business is clearly focused on making your business better.You have the information you need to measure your progress using the amount of cash you generate (and keep) for yourself and your business as your ultimate financial measurement. In subsequent columns, I will delve into the specifics to help you achieve each step.