Brainstorms

Launch “Project Brainstorm” in Your Business

Energize your employee suggestion box.

Published

8 years ago

February 20, 2017

INSTORE Staff Instore March 2017 Issue

Launch “Project Brainstorm” in Your Business

DO YOU HAVE an employee suggestion box, but there’s never anything in it? Bob Nelson, author of 1,001 Ways To Energize Employees, suggests adding some urgency to this timeless idea-generating device by keeping it open only for a short period … perhaps one or two weeks at a time, once or twice a year. Call these periods “Project Brainstorm,” and create a team that will decide definitively (within seven days after the box “closes”) whether and how to implement the ideas. Boost participation by offering rewards to those whose brainstorms are used.

This article originally appeared in the March 2017 edition of INSTORE.

Family Legacy, New Chapter: How Wilkerson Turns 89 Years of History Into Future Success

After 89 years of serving the Albany community, Harold Finkle Your Jeweler faced a pivotal decision. For third-generation owner Justin Finkle, the demanding hours of running a small business were taking precious time away from his young family. "After 23 years, I decided this was the time for me," Finkle explains. But closing a business with nearly nine decades of inventory and customer relationships isn't something easily managed alone. Wilkerson's comprehensive approach transformed this challenging transition into a remarkable success story. Their strategic planning handled everything from advertising and social media to inventory management and staffing — elements that would overwhelm most jewelers attempting to navigate a closing sale independently. The results speak volumes. "Wilkerson gave us three different tiers of potential goals," Finkle notes. "We've reached that third tier, that highest goal already, and we still have two weeks left of the sale." The partnership didn't just meet financial objectives—it exceeded them ahead of schedule.