Editor's Note: This is the second in our 2009 series, "Earn More, Work Less." To read the previous article, click here. To read the next article in the series, click here.
It's the start of a new season for your team. Over the last several years, your team has won more games than it has lost but it still hasn't won a league championship-always close but never the premier team that every other team aspires to become. Your team owners are a little frustrated with your performance and want a winner. Second or third place won't cut it much longer. Your stockholders want a better return on their investment and are threatening to replace you if major changes aren't implemented and things don't get better fast.
As you reflect on your company's past successes, challenges and failures, how was your performance? Would you have won a championship with your business strategies, managers, players, training program, systems and plays? Now it's the start of a new season and you want to become the best team in your league. Should you call the same plays with the same players? Should you keep the same management team and use the same strategy? Should you play the same game with the same equipment?
Think of the premier teams in sports history. They include the Boston Celtics from 1959 through 1966, the Green Bay Packers from 1960 to 1968, or the New York Yankees almost every year since 1922. What sets them apart? In almost every great winning professional or college sports organization is a tough, focused, decisive owner or coach. These winning leaders are not afraid to make tough decisions, change their strategies, move players around, replace poor performers, try some new plays and surround themselves with the best management team in the business.
What do winners do at the start of every season? They re-view their past performances and analyze what changes are needed to improve over the next season. They rate their strengths and weaknesses, weigh their current situation and look at their competition. Then they decide what changes they need to make. Now it is your turn to be a championship winning coach and build the best company in your marketplace. What do you need to re-do?
1. Re-Bound!
First and foremost, complaining about your competition, customers, employees or the economy won't win any games. It only makes things worse and demoralizes those around you. Do you think winning coaches talk about all the reasons they can't win enough games? No, they get focused on the positive things they can do to build a winner. I am so tired of listening to poor business performers talk about how bad it is. No wonder they can't build profitable companies, get customers to hire them, encourage their people to perform at a higher level or grow their business. They are the problem. They focus on the negative instead of the positive. In order to build a winner and achieve bigger results than your past performances, look for opportunities to improve your company, change how you do business, leverage your time, motivate your team, call new plays, find new players and re-bound at a higher level.
2. Re-Start!
Forget about how you've done business in the past. It wasn't good enough then and won't give you the results you want in the future. In order to become the best and most profitable company in your market, start with a clean sheet of drafting paper. What would a winning team look like? How would it be organized? What would be your role? What type of customers would it serve? What type of projects would it specialize in? Would it sell low price and be at the mercy of it's customers to decide if it gets new work, or would it create a service that customers seek, want, demand and pay top dollar for? Business owners get stuck in their own rut doing business the same way with the same customers expecting things to change. Be a winning coach. Don't be afraid to re-start by changing your lineup, plays, strategy and how you run the team.
3. Re-Balance!
Do you remember the reason you went into business? To build a profitable company that works without you doing all the work; a company that is organized and in control and run by your management team. The end result of your risk taking should be freedom and wealth-not hard work and little money. Never forget the main reason for owning a company is freedom and time to enjoy the benefits of business ownership. Put yourself first, not your customer or employees. You can't serve customers well unless you are refreshed, healthy and full of energy.
Dedicate time to re-balance your life and daily activities. Find time to do what you enjoy doing outside of work. Block out Friday afternoons for your hobby, Tuesday mornings for time with your family or Wednesdays for community or charity volunteer work. If all you do is work, what's the point of owning a company? Don't miss out on the benefits of hard work and taking business risk.
4. Re-Visit!
Football teams have evolved over time. Players have become more skilled, bigger and faster. The plays coaches called twenty years ago won't win many games today. The great coaches have had to learn to manage their team differently if they want to continue to produce winners. Now's the time to take a hard look at how you do business and if your current strategy is viable today. I received an e-mail from a construction company owner asking what they could do to win more work. He stated that because of the economy, there were fewer projects to bid on, and there were often twenty or more bidders on each bid opportunity. I was shocked. What was this business owner thinking?
How can you make any money competing against twenty other companies for jobs awarded based solely on the lowest price? Obviously, he had been somewhat successful in the past when work was plentiful and there was enough business for everyone. But in a tighter economy, the old strategy won't work. He needs to change how he does business and re-visit his business plan and what he offers customers. Offering the same things every competitor offers creates no competitive advantage and no profit large enough to build wealth or a sustainable company. Is your business strategy viable in today's marketplace? Will it build a winning company that works for you? It's the right time to take another look at how you do business and what you can do to offer something different than your competitors.
5. Re-Tool!
The business world is getting more and more competitive. Even professional sports teams are doing whatever they can to cut out the fat. As a season ticket holder to the Anaheim Ducks hockey team, I have their ticket renewal process become streamlined and efficient. I get an e-mail to renew my tickets with several automatic payment plan options-no phone calls or personal contact, everything automatic. And if I can't attend every game, they give me the option to e-mail my tickets to friends, sell them on their website or donate them to charity. All with a click of the keyboard.
What should you do to re-tool your business to save money and increase efficiency? To streamline your daily business activities, perhaps you should consider using your website, technology, e-mails or the Internet to pay your bills, invoice customers, post shop drawings, order supplies, send proposals, market your company, track deliveries, schedule employees, communicate with customers, maintain vehicles and equipment or invest your money.
6. Re-Finance!
The best professional sports teams are often the best funded and financed. A strong financial foundation gives business owners the opportunity to hire the best players, market better than their competition and try new types of business models. Now is the time to take a hard look at your finances, your financial systems and your cash equity investment. I often see small companies struggle when they don't focus on making their numbers, have good financial controls in place, and are under funded.
By installing excellent financial software managed by an experienced accounting manager, you will take a large step toward building a better company. With these tools in place, you'll be poised and ready to seize opportunities like finding property at a reduced price or other companies in need of a cash infusion. But if you discover you are actually cash-strapped, you'll have the financials to present to another company with whom you may want to join. By merging your company with a stronger one, financial viability and strength of the total entity are enhanced. Keep your eyes open for strategic alliances and joint ventures that will make your operation better. Look for ways to re-finance your company via mergers and acquisitions. And seek investors who will strengthen your balance sheet to negotiate tough times.
7. Re-Structure!
Most companies use the same unwritten organizational chart for years without ever changing it. The owner is at the top of the chart and accepts most of the important roles like chief salesperson, general manager, chief estimator and money manager. But over time, the old chart doesn't work as business and customer demands change. For example, on a professional baseball team, the marketing manager used to be in charge of advertising on television and in the newspaper to sell tickets. Now 90 percent of marketing is done over the Internet. Managing Internet marketing requires a different skill and talent than the old role of marketing manager.
What outdated positions do you still have? What new positions do you need to compete today? Using the example of a professional sports teams, you should also consider changing the way you stay in touch with past customers and attracting potential customers. Your old equipment manager was a glorified mechanic. Now he needs to be fully responsible to get a return on your equipment investment plus keep everything working efficiently. The old role of an estimator was to prepare quantity take-offs and put a price on jobs. Now he must be a director of presentations, video modeling, power point slide shows and master of negotiating complicated design-build contracts with professional engineers. The old role of general field superintendent was a pusher and problem solver. Now he has to be fully computerized to coordinate complex challenges, field scheduling, material expediting, crew productivity rates and contract management. Perhaps it is time to re-structure and take a hard look at your company organizational chart, job responsibilities and who is in charge of your operations.
8. Re-Focus!
If you've never played ice hockey, you'll find it's a hard game to follow-confusioning, low scoring and very technical. Therefore, you probably would never consider buying a ticket or going to a game. To expand professional hockey into the lower United States, the National Hockey League (NHL) had to offer more than hockey to the non-hockey crowd. They had to realize the game they had always played in Canada, while exciting to Canadians, won't sell tickets in the U.S. They had to change their focus from hockey to entertainment.
What does your company offer or do differently to attract customers to pay full price for your services? Have you changed your marketing strategy, proposal, bid presentation, image or guarantee to gather new fans of your company? Have you changed your target market, project types or delivery systems to expand your customer base? Trying to convince customers to hire your company using the same old bid strategy and low price methodology won't get them to buy tickets from you at premium prices. It is time to re-focus your customer strategy and look for new customers in new markets and new project types by offering something exciting that will fill seats and get customers excited about paying your company what it's worth.
9. Re-Build!
When the NHL added the Anaheim Ducks, it quickly became one of the hottest teams in the league in merchandise sales. They had teal and purple jerseys that stood out and attracted lots of attention. But over time, they looked dated, too cute and not tough enough for true hockey fans. So, their gear sales slowed. A few years ago, Disney sold the Ducks, and the new owners decided to change the look of the team. The fans were skeptical and said it wouldn't work. When the new, tougher black, gold and orange jerseys were revealed, fans started buying again, and the team won the Stanley Cup championship the next year. Now, merchandise sales of Ducks gear is at the top of the charts in the league.
Image isn't the only reason the team won the cup. But it did help. The Ducks were able to change their colors, look, slogan, music, theme and perception in the league. The new look felt like a winner and created excitement. It gave the fans a new reason to cheer and opponents a look to fear. Take a fresh look at your overall company image, logo, stationary, proposal format, communications, presentations, uniforms, trucks, job signs, office, showroom, business cards and website. Do they create any excitement, or are they old, tired and like everyone else's? Do they give out the right professional clean impression to your customers? Does it make your employees proud to be a part of a winning team? Does it promote technical expertise and value? Now is the right time to re-build your image. To be the best, customers must perceive you are the best.
10. Re-Vamp!
Every year, professional teams take a hard look at their playbook. They bring in new coaches to replace the ones who didn't develop winning plays. Even the Los Angeles Lakers are now trying a new offense instead of the triangle they have used for years. What plays do you call over and over, year after year? Have you called any new plays lately? Your management style most likely is not the best in today's competitive marketplace to maximize the bottom-line results you want. Perhaps it's time to re-vamp your field, project management and operational systems.
Make a list of the systems and procedures you have in place that guarantee and deliver consistent results every time. Then list of all the problems you have experienced over the last year that have cost your company money. Decide which problems can be solved with new plays for your team to use. For example, if you are challenged with getting paid for extra work, create a system for field changes and implement it companywide. If your employees are not being productive, challenge them to design a productivity program that increases their efficiency. If you are not achieving your project goals on a regular basis, enlist a discussion of your team leaders and develop a system to achieve every project goal.
11. Re-Fresh!
Even winning professional teams take a break between seasons to rejuvenate. I like reading how athletes spend their time off. Most go back to their hometowns and hang out with family and friends, fish, golf, hunt, workout, do nothing and refresh. This allows them to return to training ready to hit it even harder with renewed energy. How much time do you give yourself on a regular basis to renew?
I was speaking at a company annual convention in New Orleans earlier this year. The opening party was incredible. They had a Mardi Gras parade for the group with music, jugglers, clowns and lots of beads to throw. At the party there was a fortune teller offering advice. She approached me and asked if I wanted her ideas on my situation. She told me I needed more downtime in my life. I rebutted that I play golf two or three times a week and take lots of trips with my wife. She smiled and said that sounds like work, not relaxation. She was right. I fill my downtime with competitive activities or meaningful work. I rarely sit down and do nothing, read a novel at the beach or just swim in the ocean. Wow! Stop and smell the roses. To continue building your business, take time to re-fresh on a regular basis. Take regular two- or three-day breaks to do nothing. And take a two-week vacation every year. You deserve it. Plus your customers and employees will appreciate the new you, too.
12. Re-Live!
Every once in a while, I dream about owning a golf course. I imagine as the owner, I will get to play golf every day, be surrounded by my golfing buddies, have lots of fun and make money enjoying my hobby. But the fantasy becomes reality when I talk to a friend who actually owns a local golf course. He works seven days a week, sixty to eighty hours per week, is on call full time and rarely plays any golf. Not the dream I had in mind. Are you living your dream? Is your company delivering exactly what you want it to? Why not? Never forget your dream. Write down specifically what you want your business to do for you. Next, decide what you must do to turn your fantasy into reality. re-live it every day by reviewing your wish list and taking the actions required.
Re-New
Think like a winning coach. Stop and re-view where you have been, the results you have accomplished and what changes you need to re-do your company to develop a winning team. Starting over gives you the ability to go in new directions, change what doesn't work and capitalize on what gives you're the biggest return. For example, every year you decide if you'll re-new the magazine subscriptions you subscribe to based on which ones you like or give you the biggest bang for your buck. Do the same in your company every year. Decide which strategies, plays and players you will re-new to build a champion.
Construction Business Owner, February 2009
