One year, we had a new client who wanted us to work out in a lot more detail which parts of his business were profitable over the past 12 months, and which weren’t. It was a wonderful idea, because you need to understand where the profit lies in your business in order to grow faster. …
Continue reading “The devil’s in the details. So are the opportunities”
In the early 1990s, an employee of Swan Vesta, the matches company, told his bosses that he could save the organisation millions each year. Initially, they laughed at him. But he persisted, and was eventually granted a few minutes with the Board. His proposal? Instead of using the sandpaper strike on both sides of the …
Continue reading “Genius ideas for your business – from an unexpected source”
I’ve come across a lot of advice on social media recently on how businesses can improve their finances during the economic crisis. One expert recommends that you cut back your overheads and pay down debt. Another has 10 ways to keep your energy bill manageable. A third believes you should create alternate revenue streams… It’s …
Continue reading “Terrible financial advice on social media”
They say that moving house is one of the biggest stresses in life. If so, I’ve just been through its younger sibling – moving offices! After years working on our company’s main floor, surrounded by our team, I’ve moved upstairs to the penthouse suite (it’s actually a loft conversion but we thought this grandiose title …
Years ago, I was invited to consult in a business that was constantly running on a shoestring and in danger of running out of money. The business owner thought they were profitable. But looking through their very messy accounts, it took me just 30 minutes to show they were actually running a loss. “It’s like …
Continue reading “Preparing for growth – and sabotaging it instead”
Last week I mentioned I’ve always had an interest in the Tudors. I’ve learned an enormous amount about them… …And I’ve also discovered that some of the things I believed for many years are absolutely untrue! For example, Walter Raleigh didn’t introduce tobacco to the UK in 1586 – a fun fact I had learned …
Would you rather retain complete financial control of your company – or make more money from it? That’s the “founder’s dilemma,” says Harvard Business School professor Noam Wasserman[1]. He studied 212 start-ups that were determined to grow large (not ‘lifestyle businesses’ that simply made their owner comfortable). What he found is that owners could optimise …
Over the past few weeks I’ve become a lot more active on LinkedIn. I’ve noticed an enormous improvement in the quality of the posts since I was last heavily involved on the platform, a few years ago. There’s still a bit of boring, salesy material. But there are also a lot of people sharing knowledge, …
Think back to the early days of your business, right when you were starting out… Perhaps you were working alone or with a small team. Your business was showing lots of potential, but your turnover was low compared to today. But there was one thing you had in abundance: Vision. Chances are that even at …
Continue reading “Why you should upgrade your financial management BEFORE you’re ready”
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