GROWTH GEMS
Growth Gems: Quick Win Ideas To Grow Your Business
Growing your business needn’ t be like slogging your way through kneedeep snow. Every company has accumulated practices, habits, and processes that no longer fit. Streamlining them is like releasing the parking brake on your vehicle; it will enable you to move forward more easily. Here’ s how to find those quick-win opportunities that pay off fast:
1. Get aligned around your company’ s“ main thing.” Survey or ask your employees,“ What do you feel should be the company’ s most important priority to complete in the next ninety days?” Compile all the answers and then host a meeting where you give the respondents the task of consolidating the suggestions
and creating a master list of priorities. Place these suggested priorities on a grid comparing impact to simplicity or cost, and then discuss, debate, and rank the priorities.
Go for the top three quick-win opportunities first. Assign a different person to be accountable for completing each priority. Agree on a completion date for each priority and make sure each person has the authority to get it done. Review the resources needed( including buy-in from others) and ensure that all who must support completing the priority know its importance. Follow up weekly to ensure the priority is on track for completion. Celebrate its achievement, acknowledge the people involved, and build on this success by reviewing your master list and doing it all again. It’ s very energizing for people when they understand what’ s important and they can measure their progress doing important things.
2. Using the same methodology as in # 1 above, create a“ stop doing” list. Often, stopping something that is time wasting or doesn’ t add value for the customer is the quickest way to move forward. Ask your employees what current practices they feel, if stopped, would help“ de-hassle” the business. Collect suggestions, rank them, assign employees to eliminate
“ MAKE THE NECESSARY PEOPLE DECISIONS AND QUIT CARRYING DEADWOOD.“ the most impactful time wasters, and monitor employees’ progress through completion of the tasks.
3. Improve your execution by streamlining your meetings. For most businesses, successful growth strategy is not a revolutionary new business model or breakthrough innovation. Normally, it’ s executing the“ small things that matter” more consistently and more effectively than your competitors. The number one reason companies fail to execute their strategic priorities is their leaders and managers are“ too busy,” and the reason they’ re too busy is because they’ ve let their communication systems become inefficient and their meetings become bloated. Their lives are filled with reactive, ad hoc meetings to deal with operational emergencies, customer calamities, and employee mistakes.
Instead, design your own meeting framework by deciding in what meeting you’ ll deal with one-off tactical issues, common or systemic tactical problems, strategic issues like changes in the market and competitor actions, customer feedback, employee issues, financial reviews, strategic priorities, and the like. You’ ll find that your meetings will be shorter, more focused, more interesting, and more successful.
4. Make the necessary people decisions and quit carrying deadwood. Building a company of performers( A players) means not dragging them down by forcing them to work with poor performers( C players). C players include those who are capable but are so tainted no one can work with them, and those who aren’ t capable but are nice to be around. You’ re looking for performance and a cultural fit, so don’ t settle for anything less. u
Certified with Gazelles International Rick has generated results in the millions of dollars for his clients using Four Decisions TM tools like the One Page Strategic Plan, the Rockefeller Habits checklist, the Power of One and many others.
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