This book provides an effective antidote to the small business owner's frustration with government, demonstrating how to cut through regulations, red tape, and political corruption.
Managing state and local bureaucracy is a critical survival skill when getting a "yes" on a permit means the difference between profit and loss, or between launching a business and being unemployed. Studies show that independent business owners attribute six of their ten most pressing problems to government interference.
Even as the American economy has slumped and every institution—private, municipal, and federal—strives to cut costs, government continues to grow more complex, intrusive, and expensive. Small businesses already bear a disproportionate share of regulatory costs and suffer more than large competitors when corruption distorts local markets. This situation will soon get worse: looming federal health care as well as environmental and financial mandates will push vast new oversight responsibilities into the states—and onto businesses' backs.
Amy H. Handlin applies her 20 years' experience in state government and politics to provide this practical, results-oriented guide that teaches how to successfully navigate the jungle of overlapping federal, state, and municipal rules—skills that will become more essential as regulations balloon. Readers will learn how government works, get insight into the mindset of bureaucrats and politicians, and discover specific, nuts-and-bolts strategies for dealing with even the most unwelcoming, recalcitrant, or even dishonest officials.
Features
• Provides model advocacy materials
• Includes end-of-chapter summaries that reinforce key concepts
• Presents vignettes dubbed "Tales from the Dark Side" that portray the worst in government bungling and help reinforce points in the text
• Contains a glossary clarifying common bureaucratic and political jargon
Highlights
• Teaches readers how to constructively challenge bureaucrats and other officials
• Contains information that builds familiarity with arcane procedures and jargon
• Replaces frustration with information and insight about how local government and politics actually work
• Provides model communication strategies and tools that can be easily adapted to different situations
Amy H. Handlin, PhD, MBA, is deputy minority leader of the New Jersey General Assembly and associate professor of marketing at Monmouth University, West Long Branch, NJ. Her published works include Be Your Own Lobbyist: How to Give Your Small Business Big Clout with State and Local Government.
Reviews
"Handlin draws on her 20 years of political experience in this unique, insightful, and practical guide on dealing with the oversight, bureaucracy, and red tape that often characterize state and local governments. . . . Excellent examples, vignettes, and chapter-end summaries enhance this work. . . . Highly recommended."—Choice
