Posted on Friday, 10th October 2008 by LMN
It is hard to think about aggressively growing a company during what is arguably the most serious economic downturn in a generation. Yet, those companies that are well positioned and prepared will not only survive the downturn, but also find a way to grow. If you don’t see your company as one of those that is positioned to grow, then you may need to face the brutal fact that your company might need help.
But, facing the brutal facts isn’t easy. It requires a level of humility that enables you to recognize when you have veered off course. You must be able to admit that it’s time to get help. Only after you have faced the brutal facts will you be able to recognize the 3 sure signs that your company needs help.
Remove the “Parent Goggles” so you can really see your baby
No one wants to believe that their baby is ugly. However, I can tell you that pictures of me when I was a newborn are not so attractive. I am grateful to my parents for sticking with me despite my rough start. On the other hand, pictures of my 2 sons as newborns are the most beautiful that I have seen. I will spare you the slide show, but trust me… they are the most handsome boys you will ever lay your eyes on!
If your business is your baby, then you too may be wearing vision altering “parent goggles”. Parent goggles allow you to see only the beauty in your baby, and whatever you see is always perfect. So, before you can determine whether your business needs help or not you will need to remove the parent goggles by focusing on the facts.
Look at your business through the eyes of your least satisfied customers
This is hard to do… really hard. However, if you can bring yourself to meet with (phone or in person) and listen (not talk) to 10 of your least satisfied customers you will begin to see your baby in a new light. Take notes because they will tell you what’s broken, what needs to be fixed, and for what they are willing to pay a premium. Do this once a year and follow it up in 3 months with 10 of your most satisfied customers just to keep yourself balanced. Waiting 3 months to meet with your satisfied customers is critical because you don’t want to immediately go back to seeing through your “parent goggles”. After you have challenged your point of view you will be able to see the 3 sure signs that your company needs help.
Read the signs
- Sign #1: You are experiencing declining trends - revenue, profit or increasing costs
Except for normal seasonality in your business 3 consecutive periods of declining revenue, profit, or increasing costs is a trend. If you see the trend and you don’t know how you got there, or how to turn it around then this is a sign that you need help.
- Sign #2: An increasing number of your customers are dissatisfied
If you are receiving more complaints or you are hearing more chatter from dissatisfied customers through your normal listening posts, then you need help. You have listening posts right? You know, regular channels that you use to get direct feedback from customers like random customer service phone calls from the CEO. If you don’t have listening posts, then build them at key stages in your product or service delivery process.
- Sign #3: Fewer employees are being fulfilled by working at your company
The Family Work Institute (FWI), (a not-for-profit research and consulting firm that studies a wide variety of work and family issues) re-created a common result from modern management research. Their study found that income was not the number one measure of success among the modern American workforce. Surprised? In fact, income (earning a good living) was number 4 behind:
- Personal satisfaction from doing a good job
- Earning the respect and recognition of supervisors and/or peers
- Getting ahead or advancing in job or career
This finding suggests that if you detect that your employees are unfulfilled, then you likely have something going on that is much more complex than salary issues.
Waiting too long to get help can be deadly for a business. If you recognize these signs in your company, then quickly get help from an experienced and objective expert.
Growth is Good!
Leamon Crooms III, Guru of Growth
Tags: Business growth, Business help, business success, success tips
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