7 steps to build a successful business & join the 39%

Only 39 percent of businesses make a profit. Make sure yours does.

Why is it that only 39 percent of businesses make a profit over their lifetime?

It’s such a low figure not because most business owners don’t work hard. Nor is it because of a lack of passion; and it’s usually not because they don’t have enough opportunities.

It’s down to of a lack of focus. It’s this that prevents most business owners taking the required steps to build a successful business.

Without focus, there is no defined purpose. And without defined purpose there is no strategic plan.

A lack of focus also means plans are not implemented. Historically only 10 percent of strategies are executed. Without execution of plans, there is no result. And without focus, there is no monitoring of effectiveness, outcomes, and success.

Join the 39%: Steps to build a successful business

Many businesses wander aimlessly from year to year, losing control of staff, sales, profit, systems, and stress levels. The failure to focus and implement strategy is the number one killer of a business.

Some business owners are fortunate to reach a point where they realise that they have let things get out of hand and need to re-establish control.

But where do you start? You want to get your business running at high performance again but how?

Start by implementing each of the following seven steps:

Step 1 – Set high level goals & strategy

You must know where your business is right now and what you want to achieve over the next three years.

Step 2 – Determine & review the strategic success factors for your business

What are your goals regarding the number of customers you need? How much revenue does your business need to reach its goals?

Step 3 – Determine the strategies, actions & milestones required

It’s important to understand the strategies, actions, and milestones required for each of the strategic success factors you identified in Step 2. What do you need to do to achieve these goals?

Step 4 – Review the results of your business monthly

If you don’t track and review your performance monthly, you’ll lose focus. Make yourself accountable and set 90-day goals.

Step 5 – Review & improve your systems & processes

Your systems and processes are crucial to how you implement your strategy. When was the last time you reviewed your business policies and procedures? Do your employees know what is expected and how they need to accomplish it?

Step 6 – Align your employees with your goals

Disengaged employees will undermine your strategy and can become roadblocks in the way of improvement. Engaging your employees through consistent communications and accountability helps to align them with your goals.

Step 7 – Change the culture of your business

To be successful in the long term, you need to provide continual support and continuous reinforcement of steps 1-6 in your business.

What next?

These seven steps are simple to identify but not so easy to implement. Running your business will get in the way of taking the steps to build your business.

You must make a commitment to change. Creating a high-performance business certainly won’t happen overnight. You will need to invest time in this process and, because your time is scarce, it’s important to use it wisely and adopt the right method.

The process we have outlined is proven to lock in performance improvements for your business at each of the seven steps.

When we work with business like yours, we use powerful software and proven processes to diagnose the health of the business. We provide focus through our mentoring and reporting of the key factors for your business success each month.

This essentially leads to:

• Enhanced profit and value
• A clear direction – and less stress
• Staff accountability and engagement at all levels
• A strong platform for growth – systems & process

If that sounds like the kind of business you want, contact us to start the ball rolling.

Or access our Client Advisory Board Service and reap the benefits of having your very own advisory board. Whether it’s help with planning & goal setting, problem solving or some other task, having an independent board of advisers is an essential part of running a successful venture. To learn more about this exciting service, contact us.