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Category Archives: Corporate Culture

Outsource for Efficiency

Once upon a time, running a small business was relatively uncomplicated. Not easy, but uncomplicated. You were good at something. You saved or borrowed some capital. You set up procedures that focused on doing what you were good at, which was what drove the business, and then you hired people who could do the supporting functions like keeping the books. As you progressed, you hired some contract specialists like tax accountants, or you hired contractors to do things you didn't want to do like clean the office every night. (more…)...
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Create A Feedback Culture In Your Business

One of the consulting assignments I most enjoy is working with all the people in a client's business. Often, when I am helping Directors prepare a strategic plan, or Managers work on their business plans, I only work with these Directors and Managers, or sometimes owners and other stakeholders. Rarely do I get to work with the company as a whole unless I am working on a change management assignment involving restructuring, systems, people and culture. But of course, even when I don't work with people below management level, I meet and interact with the other employees, and see a vast range of cultural phenomena. Even in driven and well-led companies, I sometimes see an underground layer of tension. Leaders need to recognise that some people feel intimidated by strong leadership and despite being invited to, do not voice their opinions. They have to be invited to do so and be given the opportunity to see that feedback from them is welcome and positive. (more…)...
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Design Your Organisation Chart Now!

All small businesses start in a very similar way, and I’ll bet you can relate to this story: Jack and Jill started their small business just by themselves. They did most things together– they did the sales together, they discussed stock levels as they ordered stock, they worked side by side as they stacked the shelves, they took turns to write different pages of their website, they kept the books together, together they opened every morning and closed every evening. Then they got busy as the business grew and they hired a store helper, Sue. Sue was really keen and helpful, she mucked in and helped to do everything as well. In some things, all three of them were interchangeable as they looked after all the tasks in the business. But things were starting to get missed because they got confused about who was going to do what. This didn't really matter because one of them would see the confusion and between the three of them they sorted it out. Then the business became more successful and they hired Tom. Between the 4 of them, they did all the activities of the business as people could. If one was busy another picked up the slack. But more...
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10 Things Every Small Business Needs To Do To Succeed

As a business advisor and accountant, I am often asked what a small business needs to do in order to succeed. It's a simple enough question but there are so many things small business owners need to know, need to be, and need to do in their businesses. So I asked a number of my most successful clients what they thought about the question, and, using my own experience gained over the last 30-plus years, I have collated the top 10 things that a small business needs to do to succeed. 1. Make sure that you are marketing effectively. From experience, I cannot stress enough how important marketing is to the success of any small business. The problem is that most small business owners are subject matter experts - they are good mechanics, good lawyers, good accountants, good toy retailers, good garment manufacturers - and this means that they try to make their business succeed by being good at what they do. Unfortunately, that is not enough. A business succeeds only if it finds and continues to find customers. Some of these will come from word-of-mouth or reputation but the volume of these new customers will not be enough to grow your business. So, you...
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OTS Management