Regardless of your industry, every business owner has faced the same challenge – balancing working “in” the business and “on” the business. Our top priority is caring for the customer, ensuring their experience with your company is stellar, and that you do whatever it takes to meet and exceed their hopes for a great result. As business owners, when we are serving our top clients, we are proud that we can put our talents and experience to good use by solving their issues and meeting their needs.
We serve, we get paid, we feel great. End of story? Not quite.
When our client roster is filling up, what is there to worry about? The truth is that while we were giving our all to working in the business, the back office is often left unattended. And while we’re in the rosy glow of closed business, who’s in the mood to take a look at resources and cashflow?
Bringing in a Consultant To Polish Best Practices
After years of success, one small business owner decided it was time to have someone look at the company as a whole and to assist with polishing processes and best practices.
Because she offered two distinct services, she had decided to transform her business into 2 separate entities. The business owner was delighted with the quality of clients she was attracting in each of her entities, as well as the revenue she was bringing in. With two professionals serving on her advisory board, she knew it was in the best interests of the continuing growth of the company to install sustainable business processes and procedures so that she wasn’t reinventing the wheel with each new client.
This is always a smart decision, and should happen several times over the life of a company. Business is a fluid journey and every twist and turn will necessitate “recalculating” to ensure you’re on the right track.
One company – two entities – zero business plan. Working together, we discussed all the pertinent aspects of the business. Every piece of the company was examined so a cogent business plan could be created, and we could determine what was going well and should be repeated for every project. Customer Service, Sales, Marketing, Technology. Check, check, check, and check.
Turning Over the Finance Stone
Once we turned to the finances, there was a hesitation. Money’s coming in, and bills are being paid, so what’s there to look at, right?
It’s a common oversight among growing small businesses. Cashflow and forecasting are sometimes outside of the business owner’s wheelhouse; plus, who really wants to look too closely? Because she had bought me in to look at the full picture, and knowing I come with no judgment, she felt more at ease peering into the finances. And while she had no trouble paying her expenses and depositing customer payments, we did discover a cash flow problem. Money was leaking, which she had not seen because the financial reports had not been generated and examined.
You Can Spot A Problem If You Know What to Look For
Even when business owners run the usual financial reports, often they’re not sure what they should be looking for, and thus, are not aware of what the report is telling them. This is why it’s a best practice to bring in a third party who does not have emotional ties to the company. The job of a coach/consultant is to look at the health of the business, uncover existing or potential problems, and discuss an action plan to mitigate it.
Together, taking a deep dive into the financials allowed us to see where money was leaking and what was in our power to stop and reverse the situation. What started out as a “help me build solid business procedures” turned into much more – a new business plan and a revelation of a financial situation that was easily solvable.
If you feel that things are going well in your company, but are ready to take a deep dive into a holistic look and develop best practices, I invite you to schedule a complimentary consultation.