Oh, The Places Your Business Will Go!
November 26, 2024
Gosh, here we are, nearing the end of 2024: Are you thinking about where your business should be in 2025? Or are you just crossing your fingers that all will be well in the new year?
Since hope is not a business strategy, and neither is all talk and no action, a plan to achieve your desired results is essential. Here’s how to tackle that task.
Empty your head by jotting down your thoughts. Seeing your ideas, ... Continue Reading
Year-End To-Do
November 1, 2024
We’re rapidly approaching the end of this calendar year. Are you, as a small business owner, organizing your tax-related information in a timely way, or will this year be a race to the finish?
While others enjoy holiday times, including New Year’s Eve, with family and friends, will you be wondering how you are ever going to organize your books for your CPA? Many of my clients have confessed that December 31 is not a day ... Continue Reading
Everyone Wants to Grow But Nobody Wants to Change
September 27, 2024
The seven most expensive words in business? “We have always done it that way.”
This tradition-rooted mindset is a major obstacle to an organization’s growth, because it assumes that the “same old, same old” will achieve new outcomes. But, as Albert Einstein famously said, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.”
In my many years as a business leader, I have learned that all company leaders want to ... Continue Reading
Gratitude: Low Cost and High ROI
September 3, 2024
A culture of gratitude exerts a powerful influence on an organization. When you, as a business leader, recognize your associates’ contributions and express your thanks, wonderful things happen. A true attitude of gratitude is contagious, and it can cascade throughout the organization.
It’s simple: people want to feel seen, heard and appreciated. When their managers acknowledge their work and their input, it makes employees happy. And happy employees tend to be productive employees. An organization whose ... Continue Reading
Giving You Time, Saving You Money
July 29, 2024
Potential clients frequently ask, “Can hiring a fractional CFO or COO really save money for my organization?”
The good news is that YES! A fractional CFO or COO can save you money and boost your business. In other good news, we at Lumina Business Solutions have an even better idea: In case you haven’t met the concept of a CFOO, let me introduce you.
A CFOO – Chief Financial and Operating Officer - is like a Swiss Army Knife. ... Continue Reading
Are You Running Your Business, or Is It Running You?
July 1, 2024
If you launched your own architectural business, you probably didn’t do it with the goal of spending time on bookkeeping. If you’re a lawyer, you probably didn’t go to law school so you could manage a law firm.
As a firm principal or nonprofit executive, you likely spend more wakeful nights worrying about the parts of your job that interest you least: personnel issues, technology and finances among them. Not only do these concerns take time ... Continue Reading
The Past Formed the Future: Amy Sullivan’s Take on Growing Lumina Business Solutions
April 16, 2024
Yes, Amy Sullivan has her eyes firmly fixed on the future, but she also knows that future is promising because of all the help she’s had in the past. She deliberately cultivates – and advocates – a sense of gratitude. “I am grateful to a number of people who invested in me and fostered the characteristics that made Lumina Business Solutions possible,” she says.
For example, there is the group of women she calls her “tribe.” ... Continue Reading
“The Luck of the Irish” with Lumina Business Solutions
March 14, 2024
With St. Patrick’s Day coming up, and my last name being Sullivan, I’ve been thinking recently about that phrase, “The luck of the Irish.” Just what is luck? We probably all know someone who wins the door prize at every gathering, or who comes away from a casino ahead of the game, financially. But luck in the world of business? I’m skeptical.
I prefer to quote Oprah Winfrey, who said, “I believe luck is preparation meeting opportunity. ... Continue Reading
Is a Fractional CFO Right For Your Start-Up or Small Business?
August 28, 2023
What is a fractional CFO?
Most of us know what a Chief Financial Officer does in a business organization: that’s the person who monitors the flow of revenue and expenses, assesses risks that affect the company’s financial health, and generally keeps the financial heart of the company beating.
Startups or very small businesses often do not have a CFO on board because they may not have the revenue to support a person in that role. But that ... Continue Reading
Business Consultant, Amy Sullivan, Helps Medium Sized Businesses Thrive While Giving Back To Her Community
August 4, 2023
Amy Sullivan launched Lumina Business Solutions in 2022 and comes to her current endeavor with a full portfolio. She has helped launch, grow and manage a wide range of businesses and has learned what strategies work. She also has a record of balancing proven practices with innovative thinking to solve problems and set businesses on track for success.
Sullivan began her career in Wilmington, where she started as an accountant with Intracoastal Realty. In her decade ... Continue Reading
