Making Use of the Pause

Previously, I discussed why there are reasons to be optimistic about growth once the impact of COVID-19 starts to lessen so now is the time to focus on how we can best utilise the enforced Coronavirus “pause” to take full advantage of this anticipated growth. The items listed below are necessarily important, non-urgent matters as these are typically overlooked when busy.

Be clear about what you want to achieve
When you commit your business goals to written form, they take on a reality of their own. Whilst they remain in the business leader’s head, they simply don’t exist and are not communicated uniformly to others in the business. Having the time to do this means they can be thought out and properly defined using SMART criteria after which they should be shared and agreed with all key stakeholders. Doing this properly will make the goals easier to measure and manage and hence more achievable.

Maintain key relationships
During this difficult time, I have had more contacts reach out and likewise reached out more myself to ensure that we are doing okay. Clients and suppliers alike will appreciate the thought and care and whilst it may not necessarily result in more business now, it will provide the foundation for improved cooperation as business starts to flow again.

Develop yourself personally
It is a curious irony that during times of financial austerity, one of the first things to hit the deck is training. It is true that it is a soft target since there are often more pressing expenses to be addressed but equally there is now time to acquire new skills and knowledge and as the saying goes: “if you think education is expensive, try ignorance”. Investing in your own personal development through (usually inexpensive) online training, research or reading a good business book (please get in touch if you would like some recommendations) is a low-cost way to improve performance.

Establish your financials
One of the more common issues I come across with many businesses is a lack of appreciation of the power and importance of knowing how to drive the financials. It is not at all unusual to hear that an SME has “outsourced” handling of the financials to their accountant or bookkeeper, but this puts the business at a massive and unnecessary disadvantage. Bookkeepers will handle the input of transactions and typically be able to submit your BAS, but they won’t know what financial levers to pull to get the necessary business results. Similarly, an accountant will specialise in tax minimisation and interpretation of financial regulatory requirements but if the business is struggling to generate more revenue, this is typically not their preferred domain. Establishing your own budget along with simple tools to measure and report on your financial performance along with the underlying trends will pay huge dividends in terms of enabling you to better understand and hence control your business’ financial performance.

Please don’t hesitate to get in touch if you would like more practical advice on any of the above.

Ian Ash ACC, AInstIB, Managing Director OrgMent Business Solutions