The 3 must haves to take the next big step for your business determine if you grow or shrink. The must haves determine if you get in control or flail around responding to all the issues and obstacles.
3 must haves to take the next big step in business includes paying attention to employees.
A quick tale of two business owners
One business owner put in place all the mechanics to run the business quite well. Got the operations well defined, with processes delineated clearly and metrics in place. They even put people in the right positions that seemed to fit the jobs. Also, the owners knew their customer base extremely well and marketed their business so that customers lined up to buy. However, they experienced a high turnover rate in employees, some staying only weeks. And then the business failed to meet expectations.
The second business owner knew the mechanics of operations very well, as you would expect. They knew the processes, but did not go to same extent to define all the processes as the first owner. And, the owners knew their customer base fairly well, but were not as clear about the customer characteristics as the first business owner above. They had to work harder to get customers in the door. However, they did know what got their employees going in the right direction. And, they had a clear direction that wasn’t just about them making money. The big difference boiled down to their commitment to continual improvement based on a clear direction and values. The business thrives and continues to grow.
Okay, so you’ve decided to make the next big step for your business.
What exactly are these must haves?
3 must haves to take the next big step in business
Understand your customers
Yes, we all know we need to have clear understanding of our best customer characteristics.
Why do they buy? Why would they buy from you? What do they get out of buying? Who buys and who gets the benefit of the purchase? What is the value of what they buy? How do they want to receive what they buy? What exactly is the service they get? How do they prefer to make the payment and in what time frame?
And, the list can continue. So, you get the idea. Understand customer’s characteristics extremely well.
Know what employee characteristics get you where you want to go
Especially relevant, each of your employees, whether W2 or 1099, have their own wants, needs, motivations, distractions, values. Appealing and honoring those characteristics in a genuine way will go a long way to align employees to your business goals.
An important note to keep in mind, employees think first in terms of time spent out of their lives for your benefit. Only then do they think in terms of your business goals and achievements. Remember, people always look for a WIIFM (what’s in it for me) component.
As a side note, if you are a one-person shop, YOU are the employee and all this holds true for you.
Therefore, the more you find the “right” employees and give them some amount of WIIFM in their terms, the more they will serve your customers and achieve your business goals.
Commitment to change
All of the positive affects of the 3 must haves to make the next big step in business gets wiped away as if it didn’t exist at all, if you are not fully committed. The commitment to change personally, professionally gets the business changes you want.
Most of all, your commitment to change will be tested again and again.
Consequently, during these tests managers and leaders bail out, get frustrated, start the blame game, get bitter, and in affect sabotage their own business success.
This stuff sneaks up on all of us. We have to be diligent.
Now what? How do you become more diligent on the 3 must haves?
It is time to become more diligent
Take some time to work on your situation.
As an executive business coach I help clients nail down their 3 must haves to take the next big step and achieve their goals.
Let’s see if I can help you too!
Contact me to set up a 30-minute complimentary time to discuss your situation.
Give me a call at 503-753-9971 or email me at phil@PhilBride.com.
