Marilyn Scholl Recognized for Co-op Leadership
By Dave Gutknecht Her name will be familiar to readers of this magazine—Marilyn Scholl has been a major contributor here for years, as well as the author of valuable food co-op resources such as the Patronage Dividend Primer and the Ownership Toolbox. Her professional leadership and many thoughtful contributions to cooperatives are receiving a deserved and lasting tribute. Marilyn [...]
Leading Our Co-ops Beyond Customer Service to Cooperative Service
As food co-ops forge ahead in the “the new normal,” they often find themselves in the precarious place of trying to both differentiate from and conform to competitors. From the consistent progression of conventional grocery stores towards natural products offerings, to the growing threat of internet retailers, food co-ops are experiencing an increasingly urgent pressure to raise the bar on business operations while still maintaining and better communicating their distinctiveness as community-owned institutions.
Co-ops at a Crossroads: A Co-op Security Case Study
By Michael Feiner, Paul Feiner 194 Jan.-Feb. 2018 Retail grocery co-ops are as quintessential Vermont as the brilliant colors of our fall foliage, the hallmark herd of Holsteins on the pasture, or the one-room schoolhouse at the [...]
Is An Owner Capital Campaign Right For Your Co-op?
It seems like many co-ops are either in the middle of, just finished, or are about to start a project. And all of those projects need adequate capital to be successful. Raising money from co-op owners has become a standard component of project capitalization and the amounts co-ops are raising has been growing.
Telling Stories with Intention
In our digitally-connected universe, there has been an explosion of stories—and many of them come to us like processed food. Quick, canned, too many empty calories. So much of what people encounter in the form [...]
Using Storytelling Techniques for Owner Linkage
Flatbush Food Co-op Brooklyn, New York Year founded: 1976 Number of members: 3,500 Member investment: $200 Number of employees: 70 Retail square footage: 8,000 The Flatbush Food Co-op has been in business as a trusted [...]
Open Book Management: Now is the Time!
By Melanie Reid Co-ops continue to face an increasingly tough marketplace. Competition for employees is as tough as it is for food dollars. One strategy for attracting and retaining talented and passionate staff members is to [...]
Autonomy and Independence: What’s Up with Principle Four?
By Ben Sandel Cooperative principle four: Autonomy and independence. What do you think about it? Or perhaps a better question is—do you ever think about it? In my consulting practice, I sometimes lead activities designed to get [...]
Bridging the Gap. Interim General Management
Like any business, cooperatives need capable management at all times. Emergency management succession planning is essential but despite this planning, sometimes a co-op finds itself in need of a steady experienced hand to manage the [...]
Choosing Your Words
By Carolee Colter & Mark Mulcahy Intentions matter but so does your choice of words. Certain words can trigger a negative reaction in the mind of the receiver while other words can open up hearts [...]