Chicago Tribune from Chicago, Illinois • Page 3-3

123456 TRIBUNE 3 management technologies, watched its sales climb to $320 million in 2004 from $123 million in 2002 after it made capital improvements and emphasized innovation, said Paul Harvey, director of new business development. In fact, making no changes would have been a bigger risk to the long-term survival, he said, due to growing global competition. was initially a fear that it would displace Harvey said, if we invest in automation, we be able to compete from a price In the end, no jobs were lost, quality improved and the company picked up business from customers who appreciated its ability to solve problems on the fly, Harvey said. When customers asked the company to build a part, its engineers figured out a way to make it better, often using lighter materials for greater efficiencies. that happens, you build a bond, and these people tend to come back to Harvey said.

But to do that time and again requires a company culture that encourages innovation and risk-taking. Most of the new ideas come from workers on the shop floor, Harvey said. culture developed quickly because people saw a lot of opportunity here if we do this thing he said. Bradley can relate to the emphasis on quality. While Foulds has watched many of its com- petitors move to high-volume pastamaking, the company has continued to make its pasta slowly, drying it at lower temperatures over a longer time period to create an artisan texture, Bradley said.

you focus on high quality, your opportunities for growth can be more longer run than short he said. Besides Fiber Wise, the company makes premium white and whole-wheat products under the Foulds brand and for other food manufacturers. Still, the decision to enter the market with a new premium brand was a bold move for a company that in recent decades had been known largely as a co-packer. But to Bradley, innovation has been a part of the company since the 1880s, when it introduced its pasta to a market that had never seen macaroni before. Any company can be innovative if top management makes it a priority, Gundry said.

have to create a system that embraces risk and just tolerate she said, offering the following tips: Make innovation part of job description. Encourage all workers to e-mail at least one idea or identify at least one problem that needs addressing. Look for ways to help customers or suppliers alleviate frustrations. Establish a forum for communicating ideas. Set idea meetings, luncheons or e-mail exchanges at least once a month.

Encourage participation from throughout the organization and act swiftly on the ideas. Encourage workers to get outside the company to uncover new opportunities. Attend trade shows, conferences and networking events to get ideas from people in other companies or industries. Look for markets you targeted. Examine industry trends to forecast future developments.

Visit your customers to learn what new problems they may be facing. Start small. Many companies resist change or are reluctant to make an investment in a new idea because it seems overwhelming. Encourage a couple workers to spend 10 percent of their time trying something new. If it succeeds, got a case to build on.

By Ann Meyer Special to the Tribune Chris Bradley thinks his newest pasta could help diet-related New resolutions come true. Made with enriched durum semolina flour, natural pea fiber and flaxseed, Fiber Wise Pasta contains 12 grams of natural dietary fiber, about six times that of ordinary pasta and more than double that of whole-wheat products. By adding corn flour and egg white, the pasta has a taste and texture that is getting rave reviews, said Bradley, president of Foulds a 121-year-old pastamaker in Libertyville with less than $25 million in sales. The Fiber Wise brand, launched in March, represents less than 10 percent of the volume, but with research pointing out the health benefits of a fiber-rich diet, growing like a Bradley said. More than 4,000 stores carry the product, including Jewel and stores.

Foulds began developing the product while the low-fiber Atkins diet was all the rage, out of the conviction that pasta, as a slow-burning complex carbohydrate, had a place in healthy diets. all the focus on the Atkins diet, we saw the mass of confused Bradley said. What dieters wanted most, he was convinced, was to eat better and lose weight. thought long and hard about the landscape, and we came to the decision that we believe in low he said. Instead of jumping on the bandwagon, the company took the opposite tack.

thought, how can we build a product with a real nutritional impact, and do something honest and has integrity and will be Bradley said. what drove the A willingness to go against the grain, take risks and try something new is necessary for innovation, experts say. Yet, many small businesses get so caught up in the daily grind that they devote enough time or resources to research and development. Creating a culture of innovation must start at the top, with leaders who understand the importance of letting workers experiment and fail while developing ideas, knowing that lessons gleaned from those failures can lead to success later, said Lisa Gundry, professor of management and director of the Leo V. Ryan Creativity Center at DePaul University.

For many small manufacturers that have grown accustomed to churning out products the same way for decades, a focus on innovation requires a leap of faith, Gundry said. they are successful but tried anything new in a while, they have to learn how to trust themselves she said. An investment in innovation might seem risky initially, but it can pay off over time. Engineered Machined Products, an Escanaba, manufacturer of diesel-engine components and thermo- and oil- MINDING YOUR BUSINESS Gaining by going against the grain Photo for the Tribune by Stacie Freudenberg Chris Bradley, president of Libertyville-based Foulds defied the recent trend of low-carb foods, and the move to a specialized high-fiber pasta is beginning to pay off. thought long and hard about the landscape, and we came to the decision that we believe in low Chris Bradley, president of Foulds Inc.

Pastamaker that rode out Atkins diet craze sees fiber-rich product like a Tribune wire services A rise in the U.S. minimum wage would have little effect on small-business labor costs, according to a survey of small- business owners released last week by Discover Financial Services. According to Discover, 70 percent of the 1,000 small-business owners it surveyed said an increase in the minimum wage to $7.25 an hour from $5.15 would have no effect on labor costs. most likely reflects that many small-business owners pay more than the minimum wage to their said Sastry Rachakonda, director of Discover Business Card, in a release. The survey includes companies with five or fewer employees.

While a higher minimum wage affect labor costs much, the survey found that 29 percent of small-business owners thought it would affect the prices of products and services they use, Rachakonda said. Congressional Democrats have made a higher minimum wage a top agenda item when they take control of the legislative branch next month. President Bush signaled his support but said any increase needs to be paired with tax measures to protect small business. The Discover survey found that only 9 percent of small- business owners plan to give higher wage increases in 2007 than they did in 2006, with 61 percent planning to give the same raise. The national random survey of 1,000 small-business owners was conducted by Rasmussen Reports, an independent research firm.

Postal Service to undergo changes President Bush recently signed into law postal reform legislation that provides for the first major overhaul of the U.S. Postal Service since 1971. The changes should limit price increases on U.S. Postal Service products commonly used by small businesses. Under the new law, stamp prices be able to rise faster than inflation rates for the next 10 years.

The postage-rate increase planned for this spring, however, most likely still will take effect, probably in May. The Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act also will enable the Postal Service to continue its transformation efforts and cost-cutting measures. The new law is the culmination of a 12-year effort by Congress to change the laws governing the Postal Service. Among its major tenets, the law reconstitutes the Postal Rate Commission into a regulatory body with greater authority and responsibility. SBA firms may receive training The Small Business Administration has announced that businesses participating in the SBA 8(a) business development program and certain other disadvantaged companies may be eligible for free training as part of a nine-month series of national workshops.

The programs, Executive and and will begin Jan. 9in Portland, Ore. SBA said the training is being offered under its management and technical assistance program and includes 80 workshops in 40 cities. Those wishing to participate in these courses should visit www.ussmc.com to register and view the list of cities and dates. Wage hike hurt small labor costs: survey Joyce M.

Rosenberg Associated Press At the start of a new year, many small-business owners are focused on plotting their financial course for the next 12 months. A more holistic approach is to plan for the year from a human resources perspective, taking into account the strengths and weaknesses of a current staff and projecting its hiring needs. Of course, setting sales and profit goals are critical parts of planning for the new year. But, noted Bonnie Beirne, director of service operations for Adminis- taff a Houston-based human resources and staffing firm, companies achieve those goals without the help of their employees. Beirne said business owners need to consider what they want to accomplish and then ask, can I use my people to get Much like the accountants who advise their clients to look at the old year as they plan for 2007, Beirne said owners need to consider the successes and challenges of 2006 and determine contribution of your people to that For example, if you meet a sales goal, was there a particular employee who lagged behind his or her colleagues? And, conversely, who were your top performers? Is there a way to use their talents to build your business in the coming year? If you were thinking of adding staff, would it make more sense to realign the people you already have? As part of this process, an owner needs to be thinking about salary and bonuses, deciding not only how much he or she can afford but also about possible changes in the compensation policy.

For example, does it make sense to give everyone an across-the-board raise, or should you channel more money to top producers while letting also-rans know they need to work harder to earn more? Beirne said these deliberations be done in a vacuum; an owner should bring employees into the discussions too. She said many businesses give staffers their annual performance appraisals at the beginning of the year. If that been your routine, you might want to start meeting with employees to give them feedback and to get their input. And you need to let them know the goals you want them to reach in the new year. Meetings can help you with other HR issues, such as your policies on vacation, sick leave and other time off.

Meetings with groups of staffers, and not just at the beginning of the year, are another important planning tool, Beirne said. can make an impact on your business. handling it, so they can have key she said. Another equally important part of HR planning has to do with recruiting, something that many owners tend to do only in a time of need. Beirne said savvy owners think about recruiting before an opening, and that gives them a network of other business owners and referrals.

This is an ongoing process, not just something to be done in the early days of the new year. SMALL TALK Getting more out of workforce key to business planning for new year SMALL BUSINESS IN BRIEF Need-to-know news for the entrepreneur made mistakes. Share what learned, and spare someone else a hard lesson, by contacting What did you learn? Pipas said one act demonstrated how little the sales crown mattered: It closed the Atlanta plant that built the Taurus in October. Continuing production through year-end would have virtually assured Ford the sales lead. puts our feelings on that subject in the right perspec- tive.

If the calendar-year sales race with Chevrolet was important, we could have built another 40,000 Taurus he said. Charlie Hughes, former head of North American operations for Land Rover, which Ford owns, and Mazda, which Ford controls, calls attitude Instead, Ford should use the sales race as an opportunity to generate good news, he said. should be tremendously important to said Hughes, head of branding consultant Brand Rules LLC. enough bad news going around Detroit to sink a navy. When times are tough, when you need to search for pos- itives, pull out all the Quantifying the benefits of being the leader is difficult, but Hughes thinks it sways shoppers.

sense who is rising and falling, who has the he said. But what is it worth for Chevrolet to catch Ford? Apparently not outspending its rival on incentives. Chevy is participating in General year-end sales promotion, the Red Tag Event, and the most generous offers on 2007 models are on the Silverado, which has a $2,500 rebate on extended-cab versions. Large sport-utility vehicles such as Suburban, Tahoe and TrailBlaz- er have $2,000 rebates. But the Aveo, Cobalt and HHR offer only $500 back, and Malibu, Monte Carlo and Colorado have none.

All 2007 Ford models carry a $1,000 in addition to rebates up to $3,000 on the Freestar mini-van and F-Series pickups. Incentives expire Tuesday. GM, for several years the biggest spender on incentives, lowered prices on most models last January and has cut rebates and other offers this year. It spends less per vehicle than Ford or the Chrysler Group, the U.S. unit of DaimlerChrysler.

incentive game, as far as Chevrolet is concerned, is a thing of the Stasek said, so he is back to selling the virtues of the vehicles instead of prices. back in our court, and we have to prove what we say is true. battle between Chevrolet and Ford is certainly one interested in, but banging heads with a lot more than Toyota again, along with Honda. When CNW Marketing Research surveyed consumers who bought Chevrolets this year, it found that more considered Toyotas and other GM models than Fords. Among Ford buyers, Toyota was also the top competing brand considered, with Chevy second.

Stasek said that unlike 30 years ago, when dealers could count on customers coming back, consumers today routinely explore alternative brands. certainly is not the blind loyalty there used to he said. used to be able to just put a Chevrolet sign out, and people would come. Today you have so many quality products competing for the attention of Stasek said improving quality rankings and the five- powertrain warranty on 2007 models are turning heads. taking more import trades than ever he said.

CHEVROLET: Ford plays down rivalry CONTINUEDFROMPAGE1.