What Do I Include In A Business Strategy?

If you are at the point of developing your business strategy and would like a checklist of inclusions then this blog is for you.

You first need to articulate clearly what your business idea is and why it should be successful.

Finances are the next area to consider in full and ask yourself the following questions:

• What do you expect your turnover to be in the first, second and third years? 
• After costs what is your profitability? 
• What are your funding investor, lender requirements? 

Profitability is key. So many businesses go to the wall despite high sales due to cost management issues.

Key personnel is the next consideration so ask yourself the following questions as well:

• Who has the requisite qualifications and experience in the market and what is their financial status?
• If the business is already operating what is the history of the business and its ownership?

However, the following is a full list of checklist of inclusions for developing your business strategy:

• Customer (and potential customer) numbers, profile and mix and expected growth in use of services, products
• Customer perceptions, needs, preferences, buying patterns, and trends (by sub-sector if necessary)
• Products and services, mix, values and trends including unique selling point and ideas for new services and products
• Demographic issues and trends - especially if dependent on consumer markets
• Future regulatory and legal effects
• Prices and values, and customer perceptions in these areas
• Distribution and routes to market
• Competitor activities, strengths, weaknesses, products, services, prices and sales methods
• Intangible assets and protection - for example, copyrights and trademarks

In terms of a physical layout and structure on paper and on-screen your business strategy should have and be organised into the following sections:

• Title, version number, author, date, company/organization if applicable, details of circulation and confidentiality
• Contents page - sections with page numbers, plus a list of appendices, allowing the reader to find what they need and navigate the document easily and to refer others to particular items and page numbers when reviewing or querying your strategy
• Introduction and purpose of the plan with terms of reference
• Executive summary page - no more than a page long - what the business is, market and potential and financial returns on investment
• The Business Strategy - split into clear sections
• Appendices - detailed reference material, examples, statistics, spreadsheets, for reference and not central to the main presentation of your plan.

In summary your business strategy is a document which spells out how you will achieve your vision and mission (see earlier blogs for an explanation of these).

Meanwhile, other documents to develop include the following:

• Values and ways of working - including business ethics and responsibilities wider than the business itself such as sustainability
• SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time Framed) Business Objectives
• Operational and Programme Plans.

Let us know how you get on or if you would like to work with a business coach in developing your business strategy please get in touch via our website West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Small- To Medium-Sized Business Growth

Are you the CEO or MD of a small- to medium-sized business with ambitions to grow your business?

I have been working with your peer group to help them to create high-performing organisations with the structure appropriate for the whole team to drive the business forward in a dynamic way.

How am I doing this?

We start by working out a programme which involves the whole senior management team with the aim that all senior stakeholders are actively engaged in creating a high-performing organisation.

The following are the key areas for you to focus on and begin to develop in order to start building your high-performing organisation and position it for growth:

1. A vision which all your staff can remember and relate to
2. A set of values which blend what is important to your customers and employees
3. A business strategy which delivers your vision and values
4. A clear and objective performance and talent management infrastructure
5. Ways of working that are simple and yet deliver results, such as, a common language for giving and receiving feedback

Your investment of time and money in focusing on these 5 core areas will deliver business growth.

On previous blogs I have covered vision, values and feedback and on future blogs I will cover how to develop a robust business strategy and a clear and objective performance management infrastructure so watch this space.

If this blog has developed your thinking at all please leave a comment or if there are other topics that you would like a blog on.

To work with us please visit the business coaching section of our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Business Networking Tips - Need To Network But Avoiding It?

Are you in a role where you would benefit from networking but usually find yourself avoiding it?

If so read on as I hope I can provide you with some good tips for successful networking.

A lot of your confidence - and even enjoyment - in relation to networking develops from having a good networking strategy which gets you results.

Start by developing a one-minute pitch and have it ready to tell people about your services in a concise and interesting way.

Always start with a hook, something compelling which people will listen and which describes how your services are of benefit to them. For example, 'I help you to change your behaviours so that you consistently enjoy your work and personal life'.

Start to think about where your target markets can be found - for example, meetings and events for people working in the key areas where your services are required - and add these events to your business plan.

Always take your business cards to events and swap them with people in your target market and make sure you follow every lead up.

If someone expresses an interest in you, ask if you can contact them in the next week to talk a bit more and always deliver on your promises. Make a note in your diary to phone if you have said that you will.

One of the most important protocols when networking is to always establish rapport before you talk business because building a good relationship is a key precursor to good business management.

Another more subtle tactic is to make sure that you thank the people who hosted the meeting or event and  shared their contacts with you because this will help you to be remembered which has got to be a good thing.

There are also some behaviours to consciously avoid when you are networking so instead try the following:

• Ask questions rather than espousing - dominating the conversation is not popular.
• Ask questions which establish what the client needs whereas assuming that you already know everything about their business by telling them so is not helpful at all.
• Waiting for people to approach you is not going to work so be proactive so take a deep breath and chat to as many people as possible.

Please leave a message once you are networking to let me know how you are getting on and if this blog has helped you in any way.

Alternatively, if you'd like further help on this or another issue networking issue please get in touch via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Leadership Coaching

Are you interested in developing your leadership skills for the future to ensure you are fit for a key leadership role in the next 1, 2, 3 years and beyond?

Scores of employee surveys reveal that staff need and want more from their leaders in order to perform at their best, help their organisation deliver its objectives and keep people in jobs.

With greater pressure than ever in both the private and public sector to achieve more with fewer staff, leadership to maximise the use of resources is of paramount importance.

Gone are the days when staff respond to being told what to do - not in the way they were in the past anyway.

To engage, motivate and enthuse staff and get them performing to their best, good leaders ask them their views and act on some of these.

Good modern leaders involve the idea generators and recognise and reward their success appropriately.

Different leadership styles and approaches are called for and there is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all approach.

If you are ambitious and driven, to feel a sense of enjoyment and fulfilment at work - as well as work at the level you want - demands a high level of leadership skill.

More and more senior leaders are turning to one-to-one tailored leadership coaching to build their skills and achieve greater effectiveness and enjoyment in their work.

Do you feel you need to develop any of the following which are key business skills and approaches for successful leadership:

• Leadership styles and approaches to address current people issues - such as under-performance
• Personal leadership vision and values
• Managing change in your team or organisation
• Pre-thinking difficult conversations with customers, staff and other senior leaders
• Building and cultivating your customer relationships
• Work-life balance - in particular achieving better health and well-being
• Creativity and innovation in product or proposition development
• Improving key processes to achieve optimum staffing levels for your business
• Building a high-performing team
• Emotional intelligence - particularly your self-awareness

Developing a leadership coaching relationship is an enjoyable journey because you can focus on tailoring your coaching programme to the kinds of needs outlined above and your specific leadership requirements.

In particular, you will benefit from working with someone you can trust to help you along your development journey.

For example, most individuals start off with a regular monthly 2-hour coaching session for about 6 months, moving this to every 2 to 3 months after this period.

Leadership coaching should always be moving you forwards, helping you to learn at a faster rate and gain better results than you would be achieving on your own.

If any of the above strikes a chord with you, a good starting point would be to discuss your position with us through our website West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Alternatively, our own coaching relationships commence with an initial Complimentary Coaching Session so you why not get in touch so we can help you decide if leadership coaching is something that you would benefit from.

What Can Small Business Learn From Larger Progressive Businesses?

If you run a small business and are interesting in developing your business please read on.

Five years ago the private health care charity Nuffield expanded its business to providing customer-focused preventative health care, buying Canons gyms and transforming these into client- focused holistic health and well-being venues.

Nuffield decided that the challenge was to move away from the minimum customer contact which many gyms operate on to a paradigm of maximum contact.

As part of this, the organisation introduced a member 'MOT' which included measuring people up against a number of health measures as well as asking them questions about sleep and alcohol intake as a baseline from which to build upon their fitness.

The MOT is repeated every 3 months so customers can see any improvements which ties in with their idea that maintaining a customer's health and fitness is about being proactive and preventative in terms of ill-health.

The Nuffield approach also recognised that health and well-being is an ongoing journey in life rather than having a start and end point.

As a result, Nuffield train their staff to be good 'generalists' who know all of their services while at the same time developing a specialism, such as diabetes and fitness or understanding back pain.

Leadership in Nuffield is also about delegated authority so that senior managers do not have too much of their time taken up by making small- and medium-sized decisions.

All Nuffield staff are involved in one of the organisations's strategic projects which creates a shared approach to driving the business forwards.

Nuffield uses an Appreciative Inquiry(AI) approach to facilitating change by focusing on what works rather than on what does not work - solution rather than problem focused.

Taking the changes Nuffield has made as an example, my advice in terms of learning from them about how to develop your business would be to:

• Explore ways that you can get closer to your customer thinking
• If you are not doing so already - ask your customers what you can do to improve the services you provide to them
• Think about staff training and developing individuals understanding of all of the services you provide so they can tell your customers about them
• Think about developing staff expertise so each has a specialism since customers want specialists and staff like developing their expertise
• Think about delegating your various tiers of decision-making to the appropriate levels
• Think about involving each staff member in strategic projects - people close to the shop floor know how to make things work
• Consider using an AI approach by seeking out what is good and amplifying it

If you have found this blog to be useful please leave a comment or if you would like us to help you develop your business through business coaching please get in touch via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

What Can Small Businesses Learn From Visionary Larger Businesses?

Are you running a small business and wanting to find new ways to increase sales?

What are savvy larger businesses doing during these tough economic times which smaller business owners like yourself can learn from?

I think it's an interesting period for businesses generally and the whole concept of increasing organisational effectiveness through innovative means is capturing my own and other's attention right now.

More than ever, intellectual philosophising management gurus are speaking about listening to staff and engaging them through getting them to consider, develop and then help to implement their ideas to improve the businesses and organisations they work for.

Yes - leadership is about having a vision and values that inspire your workers but it is also about interacting with them by listening to their ideas and putting some of their suggestions into practice.

If you don't know how to go about engaging with your staff then you might want to ask yourself the following questions which will help guide you through the process and benefit from their ideas:

• What do you really want from your staff and have you let them know?
• What communication channels exist for you as a leader in your businesses to truly maximise the capabilities and potential of your staff?
• How are you motivating staff and getting them involved in improving your business strategy, its delivery processes and operational action plans?
• When was the last time that you asked your staff what motivates them at work and what can be done to meet their needs for job fulfilment and enjoyment?

A simple way to open up the communications channel necessary to make staff engagement possible would be by introducing a 'Tell the MD' programme encouraging staff to share their ideas for improving the business -  especially focusing on the customer and improving the business to customer relationship.

You could also use this programme to ask staff what motivates them, what would be happening if they were optimally motivated and how they think that might be achieved.

One of our propositions right now is working with small businesses and teams within larger businesses to improve their performance - including building their business through introducing a 'High Performing Team' benchmark to measure themselves against and take steps to address any gaps in performance.

Please let us know how you get on with making positive changes in your business and if you would like to know more about the High Performing Team model we are using please get in touch in the usual way via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

What Does Business Coaching 'Do' For People?

Are you thinking about contacting someone about business coaching and want to know a bit more about what this kind of support will likely do for you?

I was motivated to write this blog by a new client who said that such a blog would have helped him to decide to start working with an executive coach sooner.

The truth is, the kind of support provided by any kind of coaching depends on what you want to achieve from the process.

Every case is different but here are some examples of what business coaching can do for individuals, their businesses and their careers:

Most of my clients who are senior executives - including MDs, directors, business owners, senior clinicians, department heads and senior managers - like to use my business coaching as a confidential sounding board for their ideas.

In fact, they come to rely on me as a confidante who they can debate and discuss things with and be challenged on issues where necessary.

I frequently use my own experience of operating in senior corporate roles to provide 'wise counsel' (a client's words - not my own) and advice when requested.

I also always look to help individuals think through what they specifically want, view their options and assess the plans they have put in place to achieve their goals.

Some clients see me for  career coaching where we work together to help them into the career move they're looking for through a process which involves assessing the skills they enjoy using the most and - in some cases  - directly approaching target organisations.

Many clients also use business coaching to help them to gain in confidence for a particular challenge, reduce their anxiety and alleviate any negative introspection or forecasting which might be holding them back

The feedback I receive from clients can also be used to help answer the original question posed in this post - 'What Does Business Coaching 'Do' For People?' - and here are some examples:

• 'Coaching really helped me to raise my game through raising my confidence levels'
• 'Coaching helps me to learn new and better ways of doing business'
• 'Reflecting with my coach helps me to think about new ways of approaching organisational effectiveness'
• 'My coach helped me to improve all of my key work relationships'
• 'Coaching helped me to achieve my goals quicker and easier than on my own'
• 'As a lone director, my coach provides an essential resource to air and discuss ideas with'
• 'I'm supporting my CEO - I needed a coach to give me support'
• 'Coaching helped me to radically change my thinking - I am now realistic, positive and able to put things into perspective'
• 'Working with a coach is like having a rudder on my boat helping me to navigate the rough waters'

If you're interested in coaching, it's a good idea to talk to people who have or are currently undergoing business coaching and I can put you in touch with these people if you want to take the first step towards taking on a business coach.

So, if you have an appetite for making changes through business coaching, career coaching or executive coaching and have any questions before you embark on this journey then please do get in touch with us via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

What Can Small Businesses Learn From John Lewis?

Are you eager to increase your sales and keep your business alive during these challenging economic times?

I ran a workshop recently with a group of senior managers to think about a new way of doing business.

The group wanted me to help them think about the characteristics of a high-performing team and the starting point for them was their values.

John Lewis came up as a good example of an organisation with strong values that drive the success of the business.


John Lewis’s values include treating staff as ‘Partners’ with co-ownership, ‘Sustainability’ in a changing market and maintaining and building ‘Long-term customer relationships’.


You may or may not be in a position to create co-ownership in your business but one way of introducing this idea is perhaps creating a bonus scheme for your staff.

Essentially, the John Lewis ethos is: ‘Looked after staff creates looked after customers and the profit takes care of itself’.

You can bring these values to your small business by introducing any of the following 6 ideas which are drawn from the John Lewis business approach:

1. Empower team members to seek and provide back to the team feedback on what the customer wants and improve your service in line with those ‘customer priorities’
2. Talk to team members regularly about being exceptional and noticing areas where services could and should improve to serve the customer better
3. Openly share your vision, objectives and expectations with all your team members
4. Train your team members in how to effectively deal with customer complaints with an emphasis on ‘the customer is always right’ ethos
5. Empower team members to make their own decisions
6. Ensure your team members ‘know their stuff’, the services you provide inside out and that they 'bend over backwards' for customers

If you find any of these ideas useful please leave a comment on this blog or to find out about more about business coaching contact us through our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Business Coaching for Senior Women Leaders

Are you a woman in a senior role at work?

Do you want to make your mark in business through a job in which you feel well-respected, well-paid and valued for what you achieve?

Do you care more about the organisation than your own individual needs? Are you a nurturing character?

The likelihood is that you make an excellent 'high-performing team' leader.

High performing teams have a clear vision, clear structures, team aligned and agreed goals and objectives and - where there is role clarity - positive team behaviour and change agility.

How does your team fair?

A starting point would be to assert your needs - what do you need to communicate with your team to achieve the high performing team that you want and what do you need from the Board to perform at your potential?

Is your vision aligned with that of your organisation?

Are your goals and objectives aligned with and contributing towards the organisation's?

Are you achieving results in the areas most important to the business, such as, increasing sales performance and reducing costs?

Are the behaviours of you and your team helping you to achieve in the key result areas?

Are you and your team flexible to the changing requirements of the business?

If you have answered 'Yes' to each of these questions you can develop a good business case to support what you are asking for from the Board.

If there are one or more 'No' answers then you may need to address that area before developing your business case.

If you have found this blog useful please leave a comment.

If you would like support in achieving the next level in your career please contact us through our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

All Senior Managers Need A Personal Coach

Are you a Senior Manager in an organisation?

If you are, you may or may not be aware of your significance in terms of organisational performance.

I think, of all the layers within an organisational hierarchy, senior managers impact the business more than any other tier.

Senior managers influence the strategic direction of the business as well as the performance of more junior managers and staff.

Senior managers are being made more and more accountable for results - often in the form of key performance indicators (KPIs) or metrics such as, revenue targets, budget targets, people targets and so on.

Being a senior manager in today's high change transformation organisational agenda will feel at times stressful and onerous whilst often satisfying as it can help you achieve your ambitions.

Senior managers supported by an executive coach give good gearing for their organisation in that their performance impacts the performance of many others, including, line managers, staff and more senior directors or partners in the business.

Unless you are perfect - and few people are - the likelihood is that you will have development needs identified through your performance management infrastructure which would benefit from a bespoke individual programme best met by working with an executive coach (as opposed to going on a generic training course).

In particular, the non-technical part of your development - your personal competencies - are best met through a combination of coaching, group support and self-development - such as relevant reading.

Leadership coaching is on the increase and covers a multitude of skills including the following areas:

• Vision and goal setting
• Influencing and negotiating
• Decision-making
• Managing poor performance
• Handling conflict
• Delegation
• Assertiveness
• Confidence
• Presentation skills

If you are an ambitious senior manager, who also recognises your scope for further development, and are keen to explore this we would like to sign up for one of our complimentary 'Better Results Today' coaching sessions.

During these sessions we can discuss and explore your strengths and areas for development and you can sign up by simply filling in the online form on our Complimentary Coaching Sessions page on our website.

Alternatively, you can get in touch with us via email at enquiries@westofenglandcoachingandcounselling.co.uk or via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Career Coaching - Checklist

So you want to get in control of your career. Where do you start?

Start with your career goals and then progress with a strategy or approach and an action plan.

Career Goals:

• What would you like to achieve long-term, at the height of your career - your ultimate ambition?
• What about medium-term over - say the next five years?
• What about in the short-term - say 12-24 months?

Approach:

Start with a self-assessment. What are you good at? What do you enjoy doing?

If you are interested you might complete a working styles questionnaire such as Myers Briggs Type Indicator.

Action Plan:

Is your CV up to date, 1-2 pages long and are its content geared to the roles you are seeking in terms of your results to date and your capabilities (skills, knowledge and competencies)?

Do you have a good cover letter template?

What verbal self-presentation statement do you have off-pat to use with potential employers?

What will you do to prepare for an interview?

I hope this checklist is of use to you in managing your career. Please let us know how you get on and if you would like assistance please contact us via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Coaching to achieve your potential

Do you feel as though you could be doing much better in your professional working life and yet feel stuck and unsure of how to deal with this?

Are you frustrated working for others who seem to take all of the recognition for work that you deliver?

Do you think that you are achieving a small fraction of your potential?

A good personal coach will help you to clearly articulate what you want from your professional life over the long, medium and short term.

A good personal coach will help you to identify where you are currently in relation to your ambitions and goals and help you to address any barriers to your moving forwards, in particular limiting beliefs and confidence issues.

A good personal coach will help you to develop an action plan and interventions that will help you to achieve your long-, medium- and short-term ambitions and goals.

A good coach will provide you with tools and techniques to help you to get where you want to go at a pace that is right for you and to ease you into making the changes you will be making.

A good coach will provide you with optimum levels of support and challenge so you can achieve your potential, which will change as you progress in achieving your ambition and goals.

At West of England Coaching and Counselling, we all experience excellent coaching support as well as providing excellent coaching support to our clients.

We know that coaching helps us to achieve extraordinary results and we want the same for you. We are passionate about you achieving your potential and what you deserve.

What dreams would you like to make a reality through congruent goals, objectives and action plans?

You are likely to be somewhat successful now and with the help of an experienced coach you can look forward to taking the next steps up the ladder in your professional life or move careers or maximise your current opportunity.

Whatever your situation we will help you to move onwards and upwards.

Why not make a positive start in 2012 and get in touch with me personally via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling for an investment in your future.

Career Coaching - Stay Or Look For A New Role?

I am currently working with a senior executive who needs to make a decision about whether to stay in her existing role or move to another role in another organisation.

In fact, she has a job offer on the table and the organisation concerned is so eager to have her that they have given her until the end of the calendar year to make her decision prior to giving notice in her current role.

Are you in a similar position? Perhaps you have dissatisfactions in your current role which are causing you to consider your options.

From personal experience - and in working with many executives in this area - it is important to start by thinking about what is driving you to consider a change within your career.

Can the issues which are causing you to consider change be resolved within your current role? For example, workload, work type or work location?

Have you exhausted all of the possibilities for making the changes that you want within your current role?

If the issue - or issues - are not resolvable and you are sure that you want to make the change, think through your decision carefully first and ask yourself the following questions:

• What is the rationale behind the decision? 
• What are the facts? 
• What is the logic behind your decision?
• How do you feel? 
• What impact will this decision have on your values?

But what are your options and what criteria will you use to assess these options and make a decision?

One technique which I suggested to my client - and we went though in our session - may provide you with some help. Simply answer the following questions and it should help you reach a decision:

• What would/could you gain if you moved to the/a new role?
• What would/could you lose if you moved to the/a new role?
• What would/could you keep [which is important to you] if you stay?
• What would/could you lose if you stay in your current role?

Sometimes we need to step back and see the wood for the trees.

Sometimes the grass looks greener on the other side of the fence when we may be:

• Jumping from the frying pan into the fire
• Avoiding handling issues such as relationship management that we may well come across in our next role - the saying 'Wherever I go, there I am' springs to mind here
• Experiencing the horns effect when we give a high weighting to an issue that we are unhappy about but may have not done enough to address it using all of our strengths and resources.

If you have found this blog to be useful please leave a comment and if you would like support in your career then please do get in touch via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling - Career Coaching.

Executive Coaching

Are you an ambitious manager, senior manager or director working within a public or private sector organisation or for yourself or in a partnership?

Have you recently had your performance review and identified with your line manager areas of strengths to build on as well as possible areas for development?

Perhaps you have had some feedback through a 360-degree feedback process which has highlighted areas of development which, addressed, will help you to further your career.

Research shows that managers, senior managers and directors often develop more quickly and better through one-to-one executive coaching than through any other performance development intervention - including traditional classroom training.

This is because individual one-to-one coaching focuses on you and is tailored to your specific and precise needs within a structure that will have you feeling more motivated and confident in achieving your development objectives.

An independent coach will provide the following:

• A confidential listening ear and sounding board for your experiences, problems and solutions
• A source of advice should you request this
• In-time support, being available regularly face-to-face and also available on email and the telephone when you need them
• Work with you to clearly articulate positive, specific, measurable, realistic and time-bound objectives
• A structure to achieve your desired outcomes, such as, career progression or specific leadership skills development
• A coaching model to guide and steer discussions
• Good challenging questions that help you to think differently
• Collateral specific to your needs, such as, communication models, tools and techniques
• A non-judgemental presence coming from a supportive, positive and enabling place.

Managers, senior managers and directors who are serious about their continuous professional development and want learning on the fast-track develop business cases to secure funding for their coaching, which include coaching being an investment to help them to achieve their objectives and also improve the performance and engagement of their teams.

If you are unsure about whether to progress with coaching at this time please see my blog - are you ready, willing and able to be coached?

If you have found this blog useful please leave a comment or if you would like to discuss your personal coaching needs please get in touch in confidence via our website West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Small Business Coaching - Improve Productivity and Morale

Are you interested in learning about one simple, easy-to-implement tool which will boost staff productivity and morale?

How much do you estimate that poor communication costs your business? How much do you estimate not using all of your staff's potential is costing your business?

The truth is that when your people are not managed well it costs your business - That's the impact plain and simple.

What issues are most often behind this?.... These most common issues include the following:

1. Individual X has a development need that is ignored
2. Individual Y is only told when they get things wrong and the individual spends much time at work complaining about their manager
3. Individual Z is a manager and avoids tackling conflict so performance issues are ignored

Using a good feedback model addresses all of these issues and builds your staff productivity as well as their morale.

Psychological research shows people respond best to feedback which is specific, timely and in the ratio of 3 positives to each development point.

So how would you go about this?

• Step 1: Start with 3 specific positive things that you have seen/heard/read about them – their strengths
• Step 2: Then focus on 1 specific thing that you would like them to do more/less of that would make them even more effective/develop further/able to positively influence you. 

Focus on what you want from them NOT what you DO NOT want from them.

Ask them how they think they can achieve that - i.e. let them come up with their solutions to get their commitment to change.

Feedback in your business needs to become part of your way of working - something everyone does to get the best from each other and avoid standing still or even regressing.

If you have found this blog to be useful please leave a comment or if you would like assistance implementing this way of working into your business please get in touch via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling - Team Development.

Small Business Coaching - Reducing Costs

There is an old adage - 'It's not what you earn but what you spend' - which tends to dictate your personal savings.

There are people who on the surface appear wealthy and have well paid jobs but actually carry a lot of debt -living pay cheque to pay cheque because of lifestyle factors such as a big mortgage, school fees, expensive cars, expensive and frequent holidays and the latest technology.

There are others on more modest incomes who have perhaps lower mortgages and more simple lifestyles.

These people have a budget, always compare the market when they do spend and think carefully before they spend money on non-essentials.

In running your small business - and especially in the current economic climate - your costs play a big part in your survival and if you can pare these down you will increase your bottom line.

I am working with one small business team currently identifying areas where they can reduce costs throughout their whole business model - from staff costs (often your biggest controllable cost whatever your business) through to marketing, rent and consumables.

This organisation is pleasantly surprised at the significant indicative cost-savings they are now working towards and all of the team have found the process to be fun and motivating.

It is easy to lose control on spend and not look for the best deals for your business in the same way as it is easy to lose control of your personal finances.

However, it is very satisfying to save money for your business and increase your bottom line - leaving you feeling in control - just as it is very satisfying to find a bargain during a personal purchase.

But how do you start saving money and where do you look?

First - go through all of your business expenses and make a list of your say Top 10 costs.

Then work out what is a realistic and specific goal that you want to set for your cost-savings? Perhaps start with 10% and then review this figure every 3 months when you may decide to adjust it.

Asking the following questions will help you to act.

• Which of your costs is ripe for a cost saving because it is currently high? 
• Have you compared the market in this area? 
• What options are there to reduce spend in this area? 
• What criteria will you assess these options against - for example, what will you gain / lose and what will the cost be? Then what will you do?

Once you have a focus on your costs this exercise will become a healthy habit and you are more likely to stay in control of your business and increase your likelihood of staying in business.

Of course, there is more to running a successful business than controlling costs and your focus will also need to be on generating top-line sales but I have no doubt that in any business the latter is often prioritised at the expense of the former.

Focusing on cost control as well as growing your business will help you to run an effective thriving business.

If you have found this blog to be useful please leave a comment and if you would like help in this or any other area of your business please get in touch via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Small Business Coaching - Dealing With Attendance Issues

Do you have a problem with staff attendance which is primarily short term?

Have you noticed patterns to attendance issues - for example, the individual who is often sick on a Monday or Friday?

I think the best tool to deal with attendance issues is the return-to-work meeting. Why?

1. It shows the individual that they have been missed
2. If the individual is a malingerer they will be less likely to call in sick in future
3. It sends a clear message to other staff that attendance issues will be managed
4. If there is an underlying problem you can find out - for example, the individual calls in sick but the issue is really a problem at work or home

So what do you say at this meeting..... Have a think about what your goal is? What are your options and what will you do?

Here's a suggested format:

• Welcome the individual back
• Tell them that they were missed
• Check they are ready to return and have not come back early for whatever reason
• Discuss any issues that may have contributed towards or caused their absence
• Where any causes are identified discuss what help you as the employer can offer to address them
• Discuss any further action that may be necessary

You will need to prepare for this meeting and ask yourself the following questions:

• What are the advantages of holding the meeting in a private place?
• What information will you need to have in front of you relating to recent absences?
• What about sensitivity and listening skills?

You will also need to carry out certain actions after the meeting including the following:

• What about note taking?
• What adjustments need to be made for the individual if any?
• Do you need to consider disciplinary action yet?
• How will you continue to monitor the attendance issues?
• What action does your policy say you can take if the non attendance issues persist?

If you have found this blog to be useful please leave a comment or if you require an small business support please visit our website West of England Coaching and Counselling - Business Coaching.

Small Business Coaching - Tackling Poor Performance

Are you interested in tackling poor performance before it becomes a formal disciplinary issue?

What do you think are the benefits of 'nipping an issue in the bud' before it escalates?

Where are you now with the performance issue? What is the impact on your business?

What is the impact on other staff? What are your options....ignore the issue and hope it will go away or tackle it?

A really good tool towards tackling poor performance -is the following 6-step coaching model:

1. Gaining Commitment: Open the discussion in a positive way. Discuss current level of performance, agree that a problem exists and the impact of this on the business, other staff and them. Discuss and agree the size of the performance gap. Do not move on until the individual recognises a performance gap exists and that it is significant enough to warrant change – Why?
   
2. Closing The Gap: Discuss options to reach the required performance level. Review the advantages and disadvantages of each option. Encourage the individual to come up with ideas, prompting where you think necessary.
   
3. Develop The Strategy: Agree the best approach to close the performance gap. Identify performance measures that will show clearly when the new performance level has been reached. Explore any resources that may be required.
   
4. Agree The Action Plan: Who will do what and by when? Agree the time frames for when the new level of performance must be reached. Set review dates to monitor progress - including interim reviews if you think necessary. Express your confidence in the individual’s ability to deliver - keep it positive.
   
5. Action: Both of you agree to commit to the action plan. You discreetly monitor and guide 1:1 when necessary. Hold interim review sessions if required.
   
6. Review: Meet to review/measure progress towards targets. Recognise, communicate and record in writing achievements that have been made. If performance has not reached the required level go back to step 1 - make the targets more specific, the review periods shorter and be less tolerant of shortcomings e.g... ‘this is the third time we have spoken about this [specify performance gap].

If you have found this tool to be useful please leave a comment or if you would like assistance please contact us through our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling - Business Coaching.

Small Business Coaching - Managing People Tools

Do you have a small business and see that managing people is important to your profitability?

This is the first of a number of blogs which - actioned by you - will help you to increase your productivity, morale and profitability.

The first tool - I want to share with you is objective setting.

Be clear on your business plan then determine what objectives to set each of your employees which will help you to achieve your business plan - few businesses do this really well.

Make sure you avoid duplication of effort when you develop individual objectives for and with your team members.

Also, any training and development should only happen if it helps the individual or your team to achieve their objectives.

Individual objectives are important to ensure that individuals are accountable.

Clear alignment of team and individual objectives with your business plan will help to motivate staff and increase their productivity because they will see how they are adding value to the business.

All these objectives must be SMART - by that I mean:

• Specifically - What do you want them to do?
• Measurable - What will be the evidence of success? Aim to make this clear i.e. quantitative or qualitative and both if possible.
• Achievable - Do they have the resources - for example, skills, materials etc., to achieve it?
• Realistic - Is it challenging yet realistic - including the timescales involves?
• Time bound - When are they to complete it by?

Aim to review your staff objectives with individuals every 3 months and set new ones where appropriate.

Check how individuals are getting on a at least every month by asking the following questions:

• What is going well? 
• What is not going well? 
• What support can you give them?

You set the 'what' they are to achieve. Allow them to set the 'how' they are to achieve it.

With inexperienced staff you may need to help them with the 'how'.

People are naturally goal and objective driven and setting them objectives that contribute to the achievement of the company business plan will motivate your people.

Future blogs will provide advice on other people management areas including:

• How to nip poor performance in the bud early on when you spot a problem
• How to address non-attendance
• How to massively improve the way you communicate with your staff and develop them into the bargain

If you have found this blog to be useful please do leave me a comment or visit our website West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Small Business Coaching - Back-to-Basics Business Development

Does the idea of business development fill you with dread? Something you would prefer to leave well alone whilst you focus on what you do well?

If you answered "Yes" to this question - you are not alone.

And yet, business development (BD) can make a business while a lack of it - or the wrong type - is often a key reason for business failure. So...we have to do it.

With this in mind, I think our aim must be to enjoy BD and we can do this by focusing on getting the key tools and techniques right.

The aim of BD and marketing is to get maximum return - or paying customers - for minimum expenditure.

Therefore, it pays to first consider the free BD you can do before actually spending a penny.

The first thing to do is make a list of everyone you know and tell them about your business.

If appropriate, you may consider giving them a sample / complimentary service with the proviso that they tell say five other people about you.

It also helps your family, friends, work contacts if you let them know what your ideal customer / client looks like and the key problems you fix or services you offer.

Telling your network is the simplest and easiest form of marketing and it's free.

Other free sources of marketing for small businesses include a card in your Post Office, offering to do a talk about your business to local groups and developing (and then printing at low cost) your own flyers to distribute to your target market.

If you're targeting a particular market and calling prospects would be helpful then you will need a cold-calling script. For some great tips visit businessballs.com.

If you do go down the cold-calling route expect to have to approach prospects about 8 times before getting a "Yes" to your proposition.

Someone once told me that customers need to see us in at least 3 places to buy our services - so bear that in mind when you are planning your BD and marketing strategy.

If you want to try an advert in a local paper, start with something small and see the advice on my previous post called Small Business Coaching: Back-to-Basics Marketing relating to this.

When you do start advertising in your local paper do negotiate. For example, ask for 12 months advertising with 2 free months and then get this in writing.

Why not ask for an advertorial so you get to tell readers about your business. For example, outline successful examples of your business in action or come up with a case study as both work well in this type of marketing.

Is it necessary at this stage for you to have a website?

Many successful small businesses have no brochure or website and are just as successful by simply using business cards and word of mouth.

If you do want a website make sure it fits in with the type of business you are offering and then shop around for good website designers who are competent at Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) as this will help to ensure you site is visible on the first page of search results.

Business Development (BD) can be enjoyable and reap rewards if you focus on getting the basics right.

If you have found this blog to be useful please let me know or get in touch via our website West of England Coaching and Counselling.