Surrounded by some of my most trusted friends, I asked the following question: “if you could distill your top relationship lesson into a one-liner, what would it be?” A passionate, sincere, and admittedly sometimes humorous discussion ensued between a group of men whose ages ranged from twenties to sixties, some of whom had been married for decades,…
Something big has recently happened. And not many people are talking about it. Like companies and individuals, even federal governments sometimes need to borrow money. They borrow money by issuing what’s called a Government bond. These bonds, like all loans, have an interest rate associated with them; a bond’s interest rate is referred to as…
When booking a vacation upon a luxurious cruise liner, most people envision themselves indulging in fine cuisine, enjoying live performances, and soaking up the sun on the top decks of the massive ship. Few people would expect to be clinging onto a rope on the ship’s hull awaiting rescue as the ship sinks into the…
Dear Utah executives, legislators, and educators: We’ve talked about this for far too long. It’s time to act. In Utah, like in many other states, we have a talent stalemate: while high-tech jobs provide enormous opportunity for socioeconomic growth for our young people, companies are complaining that they can’t fill them despite the increasingly higher…
Over the past few years, I’ve advised a large number of CEOs and CFOs of software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies all of whom shared one common challenge: which of the many SaaS metrics frequently cited they should track. I’m frequently asked, “I just need to know a few key metrics that can tell me how I’m doing and that I…
Originally aired on Salt Lake City’s KCPW on April 19, 2016: The Bottom Line – (Air date: April 19/26, 2016)Bassam Salem immigrated to the U.S. from Egypt as a young kid. Despite currents of prejudice and discrimination flowing against him, Salem rose to become a successful entrepreneur and software engineer in Utah. He has been…
These days, it’s easy to argue that the expression “if you’re not growing, you’re shrinking” has never been more true. We all know and talk about local startups that are growing and thriving, attracting all of the funding, media attention, and talent. Many of these startups aren’t even that big. However, how much time do we…
