2 minute read
Business Next Steps, What Would I Look for?
by Jesse Lee, PhD. Candidate
Silicon Valley SNUG
Advertisement
Business Next Steps, What Would I Look for?
by: Jesse L. Lee, Jr. | Editor-in-Chief | https://smallbusinessconcierge.biz/
Congratulations, you are in business! That is an accomplishment given so many businesses have had to cease operations primarily due to the pandemic. Now, it is time to put your foot on the peddle and allow the peddle to grow roots into the floorboard. Seriously, it’s not good to always be on full tilt-grinding. Because, if you know what you’re doing you should be looking at your business systems and working smart. Thank you for asking what I’d be doing.
Let’s face it, without customers you would not have a business at all. So, that my first focus. Continuously ask yourself what can you do to improve customer satisfaction. If you do that, customers will take care of your financial challenges.
Then, I would focus on my processes and internal infrastructure. If your customers increased, would you be able to keep up with the increased volume of business? If not, you need to think about what would be necessary to scale up. Consider, your infrastructure and processes are an important part of your intellectual capital.
What about your team? Are they happy, having fun, and learning and growing with your organization? If so, you’re good. Consider, it’s your team that helps keep your customers happy. These key human resources are also a critical part of your intellectual capital.
Lastly, I would focus on my financials. I know that does not seem intuitive. However, your financials are a lagging indicator of your organizational success. It’s your customers, infrastructure, and team that will influence your financial performance. So, yes I would look to understand my profitability by benchmarking and looking at the trend of my operating margin, gross profit margin, and return on capital.
Obviously, there’s so much more to it. The key is knowing with certainty what the numbers mean and what influences them. Eliminating blind spots and staying close to positive people who have walked the walk and talk the talk will be very helpful too.
22| SBC Magazine Winter 2022
