Reviewing your business for the New Year

January is an ideal time to take a step back, evaluate the business and look for ways to make improvements. Doing a strategic review will help you to better position your business to cope with the continuing market uncertainty 2012 is likely to bring.

It can be easy to get carried away by the day-to-day running of things and not give yourself the opportunity to take a broader view of your business. However, the danger of working too much ‘in’ and not enough ‘on’ your business will likely result in a lack of strategic focus, an inability to see the bigger picture and inadequate long term planning. All of which will hold you back from building a successful and profitable business.

The start of the New Year is a great time to do a strategic review of your business because psychologically it’s a fresh start, a chance to refocus and get your plans in place for another year. By analysing key areas and looking at your business as a whole you can begin to see where there may be opportunities for improvement.  

Areas of the business to be reviewed

The core areas you want to assess include internal systems & procedures, internal communications, KPIs, business vision & strategy, your financials & the profitability of you product/service lines and also whether key personnel, like the CEO, have clearly identified roles.

You want to identify how you can be more efficient, cut down on wastage & costs, improve productivity, develop a better workplace culture, implement more effective strategies, if you are achieving your goals and ultimately how you can improve the business’ bottom line.

Review your business objectively

To effectively undertake a strategic review you need objectivity. There are a number of ways this can be achieved.

1. Firstly you could consider bringing in a professional, like a virtual CFO. Being experienced in analysing and evaluating business operations, they can quickly pinpoint areas for improvement and often advise on the best ways to implement them.
2. You could have your division managers conduct a review of areas of the business they do not normally work in. However, often they are unexperienced in areas of the business outside their scope and this lack of understanding may result in them not seeing opportunities for critical improvements.
3. You might also consider undertaking an anonymous employee questionnaire encouraging constructive feedback and ideas for improvements from your team. You may be surprised to see where the most insightful ideas come from. Sometimes it is the lower levels of staff that can see things managers and owners often miss.

It’s hard to predict what will impact in businesses in 2012. What is clear is the need for SMEs to work smarter not harder and to position themselves to deal with whatever the market throws at them. This will require leadership, strategic thinking and a healthy dose of planning. Good luck.