Services

I am often asked, “How can I more effectively grow my business?” To effectively grow your business, it is critical that you have alignment among your stakeholders (i.e. investors, employees, suppliers and customers). This alignment is strengthened enormously when you communicate a vision, mission, core values and key strategies for your business. I like Yogi Berra’s quote, “If you don't know where you are going, you'll end up someplace else.” This quote is never truer than in a company. 

Developing Your Mission, Vision and Core Values: Typically, business owners use a third-party facilitator, such as myself, to assist in the development of their mission, vision and core values. These owners have found that third-party facilitators create a healthy, non-biased meeting environment which is non-threatening and inclusive for their participants. When the leadership team works together developing the mission, vision and core values there is important buy-in from the team.  Finally, the facilitator ensures that the process is focused on achieving the desired goals. 

Implementing Strategic Planning: Once the mission, vision and core values have been agreed upon, management teams focus on developing their strategic plan. A strategic plan is all about looking forward and identifying the key strategies and action plans which will lead to achieving your goals. I can help you develop realistic goals along with specific strategies and action plans to achieve these goals. Furthermore, I can help you develop a communication plan that ensures all stakeholders are informed and, ultimately, aligned. Alignment is powerful. 

Business owners often ask one of two questions, “Why have my margins declined?” or “Why has the growth rate of my business slowed?”. In the beginning, many businesses grow because the founder provides an excellent product or service that customers value. Almost magically, the business grows. All that is required to grow is more product or more people to provide the service. However, for many businesses, revenue growth eventually stalls, and margins decline. Below are typical areas where family-owned businesses eventually need advice and support.

Identifying Opportunities for Revenue Growth and Profit Margin Improvement: Developing strategies and action plans that will springboard revenue growth and improve margins is critical for continued business success. Growth strategy development sounds easy, but it isn’t. In addition, many business owners often focus on revenue growth and forget that they need to also continue investing in their business, especially infrastructure, as it relates to people, processes, and systems. 

Implementing Financial Planning and Analysis (FP&A): Most business owners would agree that revenue and profit growth year after year is a sign of a strong, vibrant and healthy business. Consistently attaining and managing growth is not easy. How do successful CEOs do it? The CEOs “secret sauce” is financial planning & analysis (FP&A). FP&A is the process successful CEOs use to effectively manage the growth of their companies. FP&A allows business owners to chart the course of their business before the start of the new year, monitor how they are achieving their growth goals and, when required, implement needed course corrections so that the business achieves the desired goals. 

“Should I transition my business to a family member, or should I just sell my company?” is another question I often hear. There are over 5 million family businesses in the United States and many of the owners of these companies want to transition their business to the next generation. Understanding family-owned businesses is important to being able to help them. I have experience managing family-owned companies providing me with a unique perspective for my work.  

Planning Generational Transitions or Selling the Company: Generational transitions are not for every business. According to the Family Business Alliance, only 30% of family businesses survive the transition from first to second-generation ownership. Even fewer, 12%, of family businesses survive the transition from second to third-generation ownership. Transitioning a family business to another family member or simply selling the business can be a challenging process. Whether you want to transition your business to the next generation or sell your company to an outside party, developing the appropriate transition plan is critical for success. I can help you build this plan. 

Improving Inter-Generational Communication within Businesses: While many families have no inter-generational communication issues, others struggle to communicate. I have experienced inter-generational communication issues firsthand within the family-owned businesses that I led. I have had to develop strategies and tactics to improve communications and would welcome the opportunity to assist you if this is an issue you are experiencing.