Ever had the feeling where you are surprised by something that’s happened in your business? Like one of your team suddenly resigning? Or your best client leaving for a competitor? You certainly wouldn’t be alone. But at the same time, you’re probably wondering ‘why didn’t I see that coming’?
It’s all too easy to get caught up in the whirlwind of day-to-day operations. Managing client and staff issues as they present themselves creates a vicious cycle. At the end of each week you head home and, providing none of the fires you’ve been hosing down all week are still burning on Friday night, you’ve had a good week. Right?
WRONG!
This is a conversation about balancing priorities, in particular, the strategic and operational priorities of your business. By this I mean the time spent working ‘on the business’ versus time spent working ‘in the business’. And more importantly, about the right balance between your work and family life.
These priorities don’t necessarily have to compete but if you don’t plan appropriately they will inevitably clash. In this case something’s got to give.
Remember, the stakes are high, so you can’t afford to get it wrong.
How to get the balance right?
Start with your Strategic Plan. You need to think across a 3-5 year time horizon and be clear about the ‘road map’ for your business. What do you want to achieve in 1 year, 3 years’ and 5 years’ time? What do you have to believe in order to achieve these goals? What makes your business different? What has to change or be done differently for this to happen? What do you need to do more of or less of for this outcome to be achieved?
You also need to be specific about what success looks like. Success measures can vary from business to business but might include business size or value, profitability, employees, business locations, client numbers etc.
Now that you’re clear about your strategy, let’s think about how you get there. To achieve this, you need to develop your Business Plan and Budget across a 12 month horizon. This sets out your financial and operational objectives that align to your Strategic Plan objectives.
Some key questions you might ask include: how can you enhance profitability in a sustainable way? What does your ‘ideal client’ look like and how can you find more? Are your staff right to help you achieve your business’ goals? If not, how can you support them to align with your objectives or help them find other opportunities? Does your office present the type of image you want to convey about your business to clients?
And finally…
Make sure you take time out of the business to reflect on your progress. It is only when you stop and think critically about what’s happened that you learn (and avoid the same pitfalls in the future). Don’t be afraid to ask questions of your peers, your business networks and for support from your dealer group – you’ll find that others may have been through similar experiences and by opening up, ‘a burden shared is a burden halved’.
We have a saying that we like to help advisers through ‘holding a mirror to your business’. If you don’t like what you see, you’re looking at the person who owns the change that needs to take place to achieve true success.
Rod Bristow is the managing director of Infocus Wealth Management. He has 18 years’ experience in the financial services, consulting and agribusiness fields, including over eight years’ experience as a director of public and private enterprises.
