It’s no easy task creating a business plan for 2016. Though many leaders have many ideas about what they would like their business to achieve in the coming year, they don’t always know how to create a plan that will lead them to success. Business planning is an art in and of itself, and even small mistakes in your business plan for 2016 can snowball into larger problems down the road that leave your business in a world of hurt. If you are struggling to create a business plan for this next year, one of the best things you can do is to turn to a consultant that has a positive track record of helping other businesses iron out the details of their roadmap for the future of their business. The following are just a few of the components of a business plan that a consultant will be able to help solidify to simplify the business planning process and save you a lot of time.
Setting Specific Goals for Key Leadership Personnel
Even small and medium-sized businesses need to work closely with their management staff to ensure success in the coming year. A good management team will have reasonable goals to meet, but exceptional management teams will constantly track their progress and follow up with objectives. And as your business grows, setting goals for management teams becomes even more critical because things can get out of control pretty quickly. Make sure that you make strategic decisions and set goals for the leaders in your business – you can’t afford to “wing it.”
Adapting to Growth
As a business grows, there are numerous new challenges that are introduced. You may need to hire new staff, open a new location, or improve internal processes to better meet the needs of your clients. These challenges are affectionately referred to as “growing pains,” and they need to be addressed in your business plan for 2016. Otherwise, you might find that you grow too quickly and the quality of your product or service diminishes as a result – which can be detrimental to the success of your business.
Restructuring Your Business
Your business needs to be extremely flexible, and you may need to prune away areas of your organization that aren’t adding value. This could mean that you close underperforming locations that are hemorrhaging profits, but it could also mean releasing some of your staff from your company. If you have staff that aren’t adding value to your business, it might be high time to let them go. But to identify areas of your business that aren’t performing well, you will have to analyze your past performance to uncover potential opportunities.
Seeking Assistance
Business planning is no laughing matter, and it can be challenging for even the most seasoned leaders in any industry. What’s worse is that it can take a lot of time that you could better spend on growing your business. If you need help creating a business plan for the upcoming year, contact John M. Ruh Consulting, Inc.
Written by John Ruh
John M. Ruh and Associates are mission based business advisors who partner with growth oriented leaders to create the right P.S.T. support: the right People, the right Structure and the right Tools.