11 Bonehead Business Decisions You Must Avoid

Think you're making smart moves for your company? Maybe not. BNET sister site TechRepublic lists 11 dumb decisions that can take down just about any business, large or small. Start with these two:

#2: "Human beings can be replaced with machines to answer our phones" Today, it's a treat when we call a business and get an actual employee on the phone. Very few voicemail systems are as smart as they are supposed to be, and these poor tech systems cause untold losses in sales, customer loyalty, and goodwill. I am seeing a lot of real-world evidence that the cost of having a receptionist is easily offset by the improved customer satisfaction generated. My advice: Break away from the crowd and show your customers that you care about how they feel.

#8: "Let's be honest: Women are always going to want to have babies, so it's dangerous to promote them too far up the ladder" WPP, the world's largest ad agency, fired its company head for this philosophy just two years ago, so don't think it doesn't still exist. And if you don't know it yet, I'm happy to tell you: Women are tired of this attitude. It's part of the reason that most business startups are being led by women in North America.