Meddlesome

In episode 1 of this series, we discussed starting a project and how a project should be sponsored. In this episode, we discuss how project teams should be formed. Some important tips about getting a team up to speed and productive quickly.

Businesses will lose people. Some losses have a greater impact than others. In this episode, we discuss our experience with and the consequences of losing a senior individual in a small company. The bottom line is to have a plan for staff loss.

Can you believe Jim and Ken are starting their third year doing the Meddlesome Podcast? Neither can we. In this short promo, we talk about finally implementing our website and some changes to the upcoming year. As always, we're short and to the point so we don't waste too much of your time.

Consultants not only solve problems but also create or bring them. If you use a consultant, you should be aware of these. In recording this, we realized pretty quickly that there are so many problems with consultants that we couldn't cover them all in a single episode. In the first of what will be a multi-part series, we ask whether consulting is a profession. We also dive into the first few of these problems.

Retreat! Does taking your staff away from daily activities for an extended off-site meeting return benefits? We'd get together for a few days twice a year. The real benefit to our team came from socializing with peers. Jim and I, as business owners, learned a lot about our people during these sessions. Was it worth it? We think so, but tune into our stories and make up your own mind. 

Taking an existing brand and changing it comes with not only challenges but also hazards. In a follow-up on Episode 2.07 "Branding," we discuss rebranding an existing entity. We relate stories about others' rebranding efforts and our own. As usual, Ken can't make up his mind, er, ah...has a diverse set of conflicting opinions.

Ken puts Jim on the spot by having him dissect a load of corporate speak about layoffs and the impact of AI on a business. Unintentionally, this has ended up being a follow-on from Episode 2.14 "Consultant Lingo Bingo" and is a great study in attempted [Epistemic Capture-](https://product.sustainability-directory.com/area/epistemic-capture/resource/1/). Can Jim make sense of it? Could any of us? Tune in and find out.

What do you really do as a business? Do you need to become an expert in accounting or Human Resources to have a successful business? Or should you leave that to someone with more experience? In these stories, we share our experiences trying to be jacks of all trades, how that worked out for us, and offer advice on when to DIY and when to call for help. This is a critical skill for starting and growing a business.