Advivo Managing Partner, Leon Stephen, outlines how to obtain the best team to help take your business to the next level.
Here at Advivo, we are all about helping you grow your business – but we can only help and guide you. There are certain things you need to do or commit to do, and there is definitely an appropriate level of resources that you will need to have to avoid one of the most common (and really big) failures – that is overpromising and under-delivering!
By resources, I do not just mean physical resources such as the right equipment, vehicles, storage space and of course finances. Extra stock, work in progress and debtors all need to be funded, as does the extra staff you will probably need.
But what do these extra staff look like? And are your current staff equipped with the right skills, tenacity and drive to take on the extra work that comes with growth? Lack of planning and foresight in this area is the most common cause we see for a lack of growth.
The Importance of Skilled Execution
A former business partner of mine had a great saying: ”It is the jockey that wins the race, not the horse”. Most failed projects, business plans or objectives can attribute their failure to a lack of the right human resources to execute the plan. This is often compounded by poor research leading to poor execution (assuming there was a plan to begin with). If you follow this logic through, success is totally dependent on having appropriately skilled and trained people responsible for the delivery of the plan. Let’s think about this for a minute: research and complex project management are non-core activities of most businesses. Are these the skills most businesses have resident in their business? NO! This is why is important to hire experts to assist. People with the right skills and experience, people who have done it before, even if it is a short-term contract. But, getting this step right with the right people and skills at the beginning goes a long way towards ensuring a successful outcome.
Finding and Keeping the Right People
That covers the preliminary stage, and let us assume that we are successful in bringing onboard a whole lot of new business. What did we articulate to assure these new clients we would do for them that would be so much better than what they already had that convinced them to come over to us? Do we have the right people to ensure we can deliver the level of service, timeliness quality and communication backed up by quality administration that was promised?
Too often this is not the case and when you bring on a new client – you need to get it right the first time, as you may not get a second chance. So, when planning out this dream of growth and taking it forward to execute as a plan, part of the process needs to be a gap analysis: what staff and skills do we have now and what will we need, for example, if we are going to double our sales over the next year?
One of the hardest things in this process is to look hard and objectively at your current people and make an assessment: are they the right people and able to deliver on our promises under the increased pressure and volumes? Unfortunately, many leaders often accept mediocrity for fear of facing the hard truths, and whilst the business can often get by at low levels with mediocrity, significant increases in sales can turn an average performer into a disaster for production, service quality or other areas of the business.
Filling the Gaps
Part of the process is completing a gap analysis by starting at what we WILL need if we are going to grow this business in terms of headcount, roles, skills, experience, attributes and commitment, to make this a success for both the business and your clients. Then, look back at what we must start with and objectively see what additions/replacements might be needed. Another old saying: “One bad apple can spoil the bunch” the whole business plan of growth can come unstuck by one individual’s poor performance. Objective hard decisions are needed if you want to succeed.
The last step is to recruit and train and make sure you have the people and skills in place before you launch your growth plan. This may be a staged implementation, but is essential if you are to avoid overpromising and under-delivering which will blow your credibility and plans straight away before you really get going. One last thing: don’t forget you also need to support these people with well-documented systems, processes and technology and other resources so they can efficiently do their job and enjoy doing so.
