George Lazcko

Work History

Legal processing firm (2004 – current)

  • Toronto, ON, Canada
  • Processing over 4000 application yearly
  • 5-6 Staff members
    www.immigroup.com

Establishing a business has to be the only way to truly understand what countless business theories ramble on about. With this business, I learned how to attract and keep great people, how to keep a partnership healthy, how to read people and understand general public thinking, how to keep a business financially healthy, and last and most important, how to run a business without micro managing the mundane day to day operation.

Online Marketing (2007 – current)

  • Globally outsourced (staff and location)

I love websites. They are low maintenance with limitless possibilities. I began to explore this venture as a solution to the ineffectiveness of print advertisement. Today, I can look at a product or service and very quickly identify market potential. Through exploration of this market, I have become well-versed in SEO, streamlining data, testing markets with small investments, and Google AdWord.

Call center (2009 – current)

  • Easter Europe
  • Call center is now handling 8500 – 10,000 calls per month
  • 8+ Staff members

It is quite rare to meet someone who has set up a call center overseas with only 8-10 people. After months of planning and execution, the end results gave me higher accountability, lower labor costs, and an increase in sales. I was also committed to lowering turnover so I paid better salaries. I hired only British nationals in an Easter European country. With their British accents and hospitality, I was able to increase the comfort level of my clients. This venture trained me well in VOIP technology, hiring, training, banking, Bulgarian business culture, and increasing my own potential.

Business Philosophy

  • Set up a business so it can exist with or without you.
  • Trust and competence are two must characteristics in your staff. Having the smartest person in the world working for but not trusting them is useless.
  • Mentor the future leaders and build your staff
  • Move aside when someone can do the job better than you
  • Protect your market share. Worry about tomorrow, resting on your laurels is a great way to get eaten.
  • Keep your overhead down, a healthy reserve in cash, invest in marking and research in new streams of income for your business.
  • Have your ideas scrutinized by others; conduct a small test in new ideas. Never go all out.
  • Move at a steady pace in your market: don’t run.
  • Never make a decision if you are excited or overly emotional
  • If you don’t have the money, don’t get it (exceptions are real estate, or other business)
  • It may save you more to start from scratch rather than salvaging a corrupt team, bad idea, or useless third party
  • Meet your team consistently and regularly. Don’t be that signature on the wall or paycheck.
  • Find someone to answer to and it’s a good idea to make sure they are nothing like you
  • Don’t micromanage. It will make you bitter.
  • Collect loyal people like others collect stamps
  • Accidents don’t happen in any market.
  • Don’t watch cable it will rot your brain.
  • Stay fit and eat well.
  • Create streams of income, big or small. It does not matter so long as it eventually runs itself. Your 9-5 is only one source and it’s eating up your time.
  • Do the opposite; don’t be a sheep.
  • If you have a CEO personality, hang out with a CFO or accountant so you learn to slow down. Look at things from a different angle. Otherwise you can turn in to a dangerous dictator who fluctuates between wealth and poverty for all his life. Most CEOs have what I call a day dreaming and gambling personality.  If you are a CFO personality, find yourself an honest and humble CEO.