Top tips for a productive year

OPINION: New Zealand is a nation of small businesses.

According to MBIE, more than 97 per cent of all enterprises have fewer than 20 employees.

We know that small business owners never stop thinking about how they can run their business better.

But the summer break could be a chance to step back from day-to-day decision-making for a look at the bigger picture.

In my job I talk to business owners every day. And from the largest companies in New Zealand to some of the smallest, there are some basic tips we use to help them frame their thinking at the start of a new year.

With a March 31 balance date, the clock is really ticking for small businesses to get that strategy in place for the year and then use that to inform their sales and costs budgets. Here’s what you can do.

Keep/stop/start

Make a list of everything you and your business does.

Divide it into three columns. Into the ‘‘keep’’ column goes everything you decide you can’t do without. The ‘‘stop’’ column is obvious – this is for the things that you might still be doing out of routine, but are no longer delivering value.

And what new things can go in the ‘‘start’’ column to help drive business performance?

The owner’s mandate

The owner or operator of a small business has enormous credibility when dealing directly with customers.

They know that when you make a promise you have the power to ensure it happens.

Use that power for the good of your business and identify your key customers, get connected to them and understand their experience and how it might be improved.

People power

Do you have the right people doing the right stuff in the right order?

If you don’t have the right people on board then you’ll never be as successful as you could be.

Phone a friend

The importance of having the right people around you extends to your business partners.

Make sure that your bank, accountant and business advisers are on the same page as you and ready and able to support your growth journey. If you need to call in the outside experts, then do it.

We put our customers through the Icehouse’s business growth programme that has seen the revenue of those businesses increase by an average of 30 per cent over three years – 2.5 times faster than normal.

Magic numbers

I’ve left this to last but I think it’s the most important.

Every business will have different indicators of its overall health. You need to identify six key metrics and monitor them relentlessly to understand how the business is performing and what is driving that performance.

These could include turnover, margin, sales per employee, wastage, customer satisfaction or debtors to creditors ratio.

With a little time set aside over the quieter period you can hit the ground running in 2017 and help contribute to the success story that is small business in New Zealand.