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Business Planning Myopia
With few exceptions, business plans tend to change very little from year to year. In most cases it's a matter taking last year's plan, making a few modifications, changing the dates and the title page and attaching new financials. After all, we're...
Creating a Business Strategy
On a scale of one to ten, having a good business strategy rates
about a fifteen!
No matter what kind of business you have -- whether you sell
products or a service, as the saying goes, "if you fail to plan,
then you're really planning to...
Have You Ever Thought of Joining or Forming a Consortium?
Are you an entrepreneur but don't like selling alone? A consortium is a combination of different industry-types of entrepreneurs working together to attract business as a group. Even though each member maintains their individuality and operates as...
Home Business Grants
Depending on what kind of business you're planning to start, you
might be able to get a home business grant. These grants are
usually government-issued. They are, effectively, 'free money' -
as long as you use the money for what you say you're...
Management Span of Control and The Power of Models
There isn’t a steadfast rule in determining a proper Management to Staff ratio. However, there are some guidelines that can assist in establishing a ratio that allows Upper Management to efficiently assess and evaluate a department, department...
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New Years' Resolutions for Your Business
You can meet your goals for your business this year. Consider these resolutions as ten steps to your success in 2005.
1. Develop a business plan or strategic plan. You won't get
where you're going unless you know where you want to be and let your employees know as well.
2. Constantly Promote Your Business. You can't execute one marketing effort each year and expect your business to grow. Plan marketing efforts quarterly or even monthly and plan
time for follow through and tracking of results.
3. Create action plans for each person in your organization. Make sure every employee knows how his or her job relates to the company's overall vision, and that each has individual objectives and goals with measurable standards and timetables.
4. Survey your employees. Sometimes the biggest employee dissatisfactions are the easiest things to fix. Know what changes your employees would like to make in their work lives and do your best to increase their quality of work life (and usually their productivity as well).
5. Survey your customers and suppliers. Maybe the way you
are doing business is costing you relationships with suppliers and customers. Know what bugs them and make it easy to do business with your company.
6. Set up business performance measures and get only those key indicator reports you need to run your business. Don't waste your time and staff time compiling reports you never
use. Know what you need to know to run a successful business, study those reports every month, and use them to
take action.
7. Do a human resource compliance audit
and stay out of legal trouble. Unless you have a fully staffed HR
department, you may not be aware of all of the compliance laws regarding employees. Have an audit done by an outside professional and prevent problems that could result in
million dollar lawsuits by unhappy ex-employees.
8. Know your top 10 customers - what more can you do for them, where can you find more just like them. List your top ten customers by sales volume and let everyone in your organization know who they are. Are they in a particular geographic region, of a particular type - what is similar
about them? Do everything you can to build on those relationships.
9. Get a coach or mentor, or join a business support group. Build accountability into your own personal planning by asking others to help you turn your dreams into reality.
Enlist people who you can trust to give you objective feedback and create deadlines for your planned successes.
10. Make a list of the year's accomplishments and celebrate your successes with your employees. Don't forget to acknowledge and celebrate each of your milestones. The best
part of creating a plan is to know when you've reached your goals, allowing some time to pause and appreciate the accomplishment, and begin to create your next set of goals.
About the Author
Jan B. King is the former President & CEO of Merritt Publishing, a top 50 woman-owned and run business in Los
Angeles and the author of Business Plans to Game Plans: A Practical System for Turning Strategies into Action (John Wiley & Sons, 2004). See www.janbking.com for more information.
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