Business Coaching

Prior to bringing this column to Augusta Business Daily (ABD), my tenure at ABD began with a weekly feature which was known as “Mondays with Rick.” For that feature, retired ABD writer, Gary Kauffman would interview me on a business topic and then write up an edited version of that interview. Back in January 2023, our topic was how to learn and be more informed about business, and in that interview, I highlighted some recommended business books (e.g., Jim Collins’ “Good to Great” and “Built to Last”), print media (e.g.,

While I am not running for office, like most of us, I am concerned about the direction of our country. Like most readers of Augusta Business Daily, I am most concerned with how this direction impacts business and our country’s economy. In a little over three weeks, our two presidential candidates are scheduled to participate in the first of two debates prior to the election. Hopefully, this debate will enlighten us on how each candidate plans to address the issues that impact us the most. Unfortunately, I am not too

During my three-week hiatus from writing this column earlier this month, Augusta Business Daily’s publisher (Neil Gordon) and editor (Mitzi Oxford) chose to fill my usual space with what they considered “Best of” columns of mine from the past year. One of those columns was one which I wrote in December in which I made business-related predictions for 2024. (Note:  Toward the end of June, I will write a column that will evaluate how accurate all of those predictions have been at the halfway point of the year.) One of

After taking a three-week hiatus, I thought I would “come out swinging” with a column on a controversial, yet critically important topic: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, or DEI. While the term DEI is a relatively new one, it has its roots in the civil rights movement in the 1960’s. While its origins are primarily race-related, over time, DEI addressed a number of identities, such as gender, sexual orientation, and ethnicity, along with race. Early on, DEI was primarily informed by affirmative action and other equal employment legislation, but DEI programming

Editor’s note: As Dr. Rick Franza continues a break from the classroom, we thought a repeat of a past column was timely. If you don’t spot him on aisle 7 of Trader Joe’s, here’s a cart full of valuable business lessons. In the strategic management course that I teach in the MBA program at Augusta University’s Hull College of Business, I periodically assign my students take-home exams that are analyses of cases prepared by the Harvard Business School. In early November, I assigned my students two cases that examine the

Editor’s note: As Dr. Franza enjoys a couple of weeks out of the classroom, it seemed like a good time to repeat his column from mid-January following the announcement from Alabama Coach Nick Saban of his retirement. It’s timely because Saban’s own succession planning has landed him in the broadcast booth for ESPN’s popular College Gameday show. A week ago today, there was a major shakeup in the world of college football as Nick Saban announced his retirement after 17 years as head coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide. Saban

Last week, both my older daughter, who lives in Atlanta, and I had birthdays. She turned 26 and I turned a number significantly higher. Earlier this week, my younger daughter flew in from Seattle and my wife and I drove in from Augusta so that the four of us could celebrate the recent birthdays. Being with my two daughters (the younger turns 24 next month) caused me to reflect on over a quarter century of being a parent. In an interesting parallel, I became an academic department chair of approximately