What Early-Stage Entrepreneurs Can Learn From Successful Businesses

Statistics say that approximately half of startups fail within the first five years since their founding. And one of the primary reasons for this occurrence is the entrepreneur’s lack of experience.

Here are some tips for early-stage business owners from those who have achieved success in the business world:

Create a winning team

Human capital is one of the most crucial element of a successful business. Recruiting the right people and building the best team with well-defined roles should be one of the foremost priorities for startup companies.

Everyone has weaknesses, even the company founders. These deficiencies, and more importantly, the strengths of every member should be objectively evaluated to fill the gaps.

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Focus on sales

The bottom line for any company is sales; without sufficient revenue, the business will fail. There should then be increased effort to drive up sales, and in order to do so, actively involving customers from the start is necessary. By listening to their needs and wants, business owners can gain several insights to develop business ideas faster.

Successful businesses focus on the customer experience with the objective of creating value in their products and services.

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Keep investors happy

Investors are few of the early partners a startup gains during the initial phase of the business. They are present not only to provide the initial capital required, but they can also serve as counsellors and mentors. There should then be a conscious effort to foster a healthy relationship with the investors. One of the best practices is ensuring that equity distribution is clear and has been agreed upon early on.

Bethesda, Maryland resident Sassan Kimiavi is a principal investor at Blu Venture Investors, LLC, an early-stage technology venture investment firm. For more insights about entrepreneurship, subscribe to this blog.

Success Factors In Real Estate Development: Far More Important Than The Financial Capital For Investment

There has been a lingering misconception that in the capital intensive real estate development industry an investor needs only the financial muscle to succeed. Those who have ventured into the business and emerged triumphant would advise that there are equally essential elements of viability and sustainability in the field.

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Being able to gauge productive engagements in the market as well as interpolate statistical data on trends is an indispensable capability someone wanting to prosper in chattels real trade must acquire. It is not a skill that can be basically learned in the process but one that is a pre-requisite, further honed by experience. A relevant formal training in the discipline such as a college diploma in financial or business management, civil engineering, or urban planning will give one the edge over competitors, especially if enhanced with attendance to real estate classes and assessments as well as securing the specific license.

Practical knowledge is likewise important. The valuable hands-on involvement in the business can be obtained through employment in a related company that will entrust direct undertaking of land deals, thus providing insights in purchasing, development or transacting sales of real estate. It is crucial at this period of absorbing information about the business that capital be built up through personal savings along with a network with possible sources of supplemental funds, in preparation for future investment.

Building relationships with experts and professionals in construction management will help in the acquisition of correct methods and systems for timely and quality work in the future. Further, accumulating contacts from the financial community, particularly establishing mutual trust, will offer advantageous options as well as access to efficient, personalized services at preferential rates.

Continuing education through constant reading, monitoring, joining discussion forums and linkage with state-of-the-art online tools and services, issuances and publications must be given priority as these will offer priceless information on up to date market behavior, projections on real estate prices.

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Alta Development LLC, a fast-growing real estate construction company, welcomes new players in the industry and will be pleased to share its expertise.

Sassan Kimiavi, a resident of Bethesda, Maryland, developed Alta Development to become a fast-growing real estate construction company. Get to know the projects under Sassan Kimiavi’s Alta Development LLC on this website.

A sight of elegance: Home decor and interior design ideas for the living room

Elegance can be achieved by focusing on accents; instead of stressing over its cost. This holds true in terms of home improvement. If you want to have a classy abode, start considering these elements and turn your home into the sophisticated direction:  

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Colors 

Colors have a psychological value, which can affect the mood of a person. It also reflects a person’s personality. This is the reason it’s important to pick the right colors for your home. 

For the living room, a decorator’s fail-safe choice is to go for neutrals. Instead of going for the latest Pantone of the year and sacrificing your budget every year for a repaint, you can be smarter by choosing neutral shades for the whole room. Not only do neutral colors give the living room an airy and calm appeal, but they also give you the liberty to play around with color accents throughout the room, without things going overboard. The recent trend in home improvement is painting everything white. If white is a bit high maintenance for you, then you may choose hues like taupe, gray, ecru, and beige as an alternative. 

Mirrors, Marble, or Metals 

Have a specific theme in mind, and add a certain element to your living room. An option is to put touches of silver, glass, mirror, or marble in the room. These elements are eye-catching. Thus, it’s recommended only to play around with just one element to avoid the room looking tacky. 

Choose a marble table top with silver or gold stand instead of a glass or wood. You can also go for a silver mirrored console table rather than the typical ones. If you are into wood furnishings, it’s best to choose one type of wood for your living room.  

Accents 

If you choose an overall neutral color for your living room, you can play around with accents more. One of the thing you can focus on is the set of pillows or cushions that you’ll put on your couch.

Home stylists recommend oversized pillows rather than smaller ones. Decide the particular pop of color that you would want all over the room. If you have a taupe couch and beige or gray walls, a pop of teal or turquoise won't hurt. The key is to pick only one vibrant color to avoid going overboard.

The color scheme and patterns in your living room don’t have to be monochromatic, though. You can choose to suddenly put a chair with floral prints in a corner just for added charm. 

                  Image source: Decoholic.org

For your tabletops, choose simple accessories like a white lamp, a huge glass vase, an indoor plant, but remember not to accessorize, so as not to avoid clutter.  

Dr. Sassan Kimiavi of Bethesda, Maryland, is the CEO of ALTA Development, a company that specializes in designing and building luxury residences in the Washington Metropolitan Area. For more on Dr. Kimiavi, visit this website.

Promoting Cybersecurity with Power Fingerprinting

Ransomware, cyber theft, cyber espionage attacks, security misconfiguration, and injection vulnerability attacks--the list of malicious software attacks happening in cyber space can go on. Once hackers access a company's system, they have the power to steal, manipulate, and leak the company's sensitive data. Studies show that successful cyberattacks cause millions of dollars’ worth of financial damage and a billion dollars’ worth of lost data. That said, it is essential for companies to engage in measures that will promote cybersecurity to avoid the costly perils of cyberattacks.

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PFP Cybersecurity, also known as Power Fingerprinting, Inc. provides early detection of cyber intrusion in digital systems. The company ensures cybersecurity through cloud analytics and chip/IoT level firmware. 

PFP's patented technology monitors and analyzes the power consumption profile of an electronic device and immediately detects anomaly using base references. In a matter of milliseconds, deviations from the baseline power fingerprint can be detected and remedied. The method utilizes continuous real-time monitoring and it also harmonizes with existing cyber solutions. 

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Their sensors can work efficiently with any kind of electronic device, regardless of operating system. PFP's system experts report that their technology can successfully detect malware-infected hardware, attacks on Industrial Control Systems, covert attacks on mobile devices and network equipment, and also backdoor type of attacks. 

Sassan Kimiavi of Bethesda Maryland serves in the PFP Cybersecurity's advisory board. He is also the CEO of ALTA Development, LLC and ALTA Worldwide, LLC and a principal investor at Blu Venture Investors, LLC. Read more about his professional work in this website.

Welcome Home: The Grand Purpose Of The Foyer

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Nothing inside a luxury house says “Welcome Home” to both residents and guests better than the foyer. The first step through the front door transitions visitors from the outside to the interiors, a radically different view from the outside. A well-designed foyer, thus, is essential to creating a good first impression of the house.

There are many routes to go in designing the foyer; the space can be of a quaint and cozy design, or vibrant and eclectic. The foyer, though, ultimately shares the personality of the resident, setting the mood of the entire house. It should therefore be inviting and at the same time intriguing. The practicality of the design should also be considered because it is a high-traffic area, with numerous guests passing it frequently enough.

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The design and development of a luxury home, both the exterior and interior elements, should be placed in the hands of trusted and experienced firms, such as ALTA Development. Its CEO, Dr. Sassan Kimiavi, is an accomplished entrepreneur, and technical and business professional. He grew a successful and reputable Federal government technology contractor that boasted 225 employees and an annual revenue of $42 million before selling the company in 2012.

Dr. Sassan Kimiavi of Bethesda, Maryland, has firsthand knowledge of the processes involved in developing grand luxury homes. He has worked side-by-side with project architects and construction managers. Through his involvement, Dr. Kimiavi has established relationships with building material suppliers and other construction subcontractors. Read more about him by visiting this Facebook page.