Articles by Theodore F. di Stefano

Too many executives either ignore or are unaware of corporate culture. Yet, it is absolutely critical to the success of their company. Whether you know it or not, corporate culture permeates your organization -- for good or for bad There are actually many definitions of corporate culture, and you can find a load of information about it on the Web.

An aggressive investment advisor or stockbroker might not agree with this article. You see, it takes a rather simplistic but safe approach to investing What I am advocating is mutual funds -- not just any mutual funds, but mutual funds that have produced a steady stream of income and have consistently traded within an acceptably safe range -- the d...

Many Americans, me included, have been oblivious of the economic powerhouse forming in Europe. The European Union (EU) has been slowly and steadily gaining strength and momentum and has today become a major financial challenger to the U.S This article will look at the EU from its origins to its present-day status....

If you are looking to raise substantial capital for your privately held business, you need a competently prepared business plan. You must convince the lender that your business is capable of repaying the debt, through principal pay-downs and/or the issuance of publicly traded stock to the lender Here's what Robert Krummer Jr., chairman of First Bus...

Polite behavior goes a long way in influencing what people think of us. Certainly, there are businesspeople who are rude and obnoxious and yet are still successful. However, the vast majority of humanity would rather be associated with a person who is polite and considerate Whether we like to admit it or not, we are all salespeople; we are all sell...

There's no doubt about it, Microsoft is a behemoth. It has permeated the computer industry and has an enormous amount of clout. So, what's to rain on Microsoft's parade? Actually, a threat is emerging that can do considerable damage to this powerful software company. The threat is free software....

As most of us are aware, the textile genie is out of the bottle. Global quotas have now been lifted on China's textile exports Is this a bad thing? Here's what Cass Johnson, the president of the National Counsel of Textile Organizations, recently said about this situation: "The wolf is at the door and only the U.S. government can slam it shut, and ...

Let's say that the time has come for your closely held corporation to take the next step for growth and credibility -- the choosing of a board of directors. Or, let's say that you are a major shareholder in a publicly held company and are concerned about whether your corporation is in compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX), and whether you have the right board to properly oversee that compliance...

A critical path to growth for any company is the creation of business proposals that ultimately are accepted by prospective customers. Unfortunately, it has been my experience that many proposals are poorly prepared and lose site of both their goal (to secure a sale) and their audience (the prospective customer) This article is based on an actual s...

A short while ago, I wrote a column for the E-Commerce Times entitled "VoIP Here To Stay." In it, I talked about WiFi technology and its impact on VoIP. This article goes further in that it explores the widespread adoption of WiFi technology and what it bodes for the future of technology What Is WiFi?...

Many publicly held companies have been struggling with SOX (the Sarbanes-Oxley Act) since its enactment on July 30, 2002. In fact, some companies have chosen to either de-list as public companies (go private again) or change their listings to the Pink Sheets -- an electronic market where the companies listed do not have to comply with SOX (Please s...

Insider trading laws have been around for a long time, even before the SEC Act of 1934. Martha Stewart's recent trial and incarceration have brought a higher degree of awareness and caution to investors who are potential beneficiaries of insider trading This article will define insider trading, explain the intent of the insider trading laws, and g...

This article will focus on how Europe is handling SOX compliance for their companies whose shares are listed in the United States. Briefly stated, Europe is pretty far behind the U.S. in compliance and it looks as though they might never fully comply with the law in its present form By now, most of us have heard of SOX, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act....

These appear to be trying times for officers and directors of publicly held companies. But are they really? Many people involved on the management and directorate level with public companies are quite leery nowadays. But should those of us involved with corporate boards and corporate governance be afraid, or just cautious? In my opinion, there is no real need for concern...

Well, we have yet another definition to add to our technology lexicon: click hijacking. With the advent of powerful and profitable search engines, like Google, Internet schemers have come up with yet another way to illegally make a buck This article looks at this new phenomenon, what gave rise to it, how it works and what companies are doing to pr...

You probably remember what happened to the tech bubble when it burst in 2000. It was quite a disaster. How could a sector that showed so much promise become so decimated? Exactly what went wrong? And, why does the future now look promising for this once devastated sector? In a previous article, Finding Dollars for Small-Cap Companies, I talked abou...

Not too many years ago, the acronym VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) was virtually unheard of. Today, it is becoming an everyday term. In fact, the major phone companies ignore this technology at their peril A while back, I remember trying to set up my computer to receive and send phone calls via VoIP. I quickly learned the meaning of full-duple...

If someone were to ask you, "What are the most important financial controls for a small business?" what would your answer be? This article looks at the minimum monitors that must be in place in order to protect and preserve the assets of a business What you should aim to achieve is to have a system in place that will give warnings when your busines...

Most of us are aware that the U.S. dollar has been struggling lately. Evidence the fact that it has been on a steady decline compared to the euro. In fact, the dollar recently fell to yet another record low against the euro Besides meaning that your next trip to Europe will be more expensive, what else does this phenomenon mean? Actually, the impli...

Some people have the erroneous idea that a small business cannot effectively compete against larger competitors. This concept is quite far from the truth For example, if someone were to ask you, "What is a major source of job formations in America today?," what would you answer? If you said small business, you would be right....