Tag Archives: Berkshire Hathaway

Warren Buffett’s Strategy, Selling Your Business, and Other Topics in Podcast Interview

I was interviewed recently by a very good business broker, Jim Cumbee of the Tennessee Valley Group.  I have gotten to know Jim this year as we worked on a transaction and we had a fun discussion about several topics including: Lessons learned about selling… Continue reading

Berkshire Hathaway Annual Meeting Notes for 2014

For those you have not attended a Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting, picture this scene at the 2014 meeting.  A stadium is filled to its capacity of 30,000 people with another 8,000 in overflow rooms at the adjacent conference center and hotel.  For nearly six hours,… Continue reading

Berkshire Hathaway: If You Love the Management, Set Them Free

Private equity investors often take the “father knows best” approach to working with their management teams.  To me, this is crazy — particularly when the management team has years of experience with the business, the investors are new to the business, and the track record… Continue reading

Ideal business financing for growing, profitable companies in 100 posts or less?

“Teach what you want to learn” is the theme with which I started this blog in April 2012.  Since then, I have written 100 posts — which means I’ve learned for myself and shared what I’ve learned under several themes: Business financing and venture capital… Continue reading

Joys of Ice Cream, Apple Pie, and Recurring Revenue

Charlie Munger, Vice Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, once told a friend of mine that if Charlie were a young man, he would be “trying to find online recurring revenue businesses” — like many that are being built and growing today. The combination of recurring revenue… Continue reading

Business Buyers According to Warren Buffett: Competitors, Flippers, or Berkshire Hathaway!

Whether to sell a business or accept outside equity capital is a high stakes decision for business owners.  Trade-offs are natural and necessary — we instinctively know that we cannot achieve every objective in every decision.  It is pretty easy to categorize the business buyers… Continue reading

Great Tool for Business Decision Making in Uncertainty

In business decision making, we never have as much information or certainty as we would like.  The best business and investment minds know how to focus on the factors in a decision that are the most relevant and ignore extraneous factors.  It is a real… Continue reading

BCG Growth Share Matrix of Cash Cows, Dogs, and Stars

Older ideas, seen anew, can be helpful to business owners.  In that spirit, I have highlighted Economies of Scale and Michael Porter’s Five Forces previously.  Today, I highlight another older idea in the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) Growth Share Matrix that was developed by the global consulting… Continue reading

Investment Wisdom Convergence from Clayton Christensen and Charlie Munger

When two great thinkers come to a similar idea from different starting points and careers, I pay attention.  For business and investment wisdom, Clayton Christensen of the Harvard Business School teaches his students a collection of “theories and frameworks” to help them understand and deal… Continue reading

Predict Stephen Burke as Warren Buffett Successor

I first predicted Warren Buffett’s successor last year, and I am reiterating it today.  I believe Stephen Burke, current Berkshire board member, will succeed Warren Buffett as the Berkshire Hathaway CEO as explained below.  Furthermore, here is another post that discusses how Berkshire is likely to… Continue reading