If you haven’t yet then set yourself a road map and detail when future releases will take place and what features they will include. It won’t always be possible, but try and stay as close to this map as possible. You will see as things develop you will most defiantly need to recruit and build on your team. TURN THE AC UP AND GET MOVING Right then, before we all melt and people start jetting off on holiday, give yourself time and plan your moves over the summer. As always I can only comment from firsthand experience, however an entrepreneur steering their own ship will know time is the most valuable part of the business.
AS AN ENTREPRENEUR, AND ESPECIALLY A NEW ONE, THESE QUIETER, HOTTER MONTHS ARE AN IDEAL TIME TO TIE UP LOOSE ENDS AND PREPARE. A KIND OF CALM BEFORE THE STORM. So, tools, team and operations are all in place- are you on track with your finances? Oh no! One area that ‘treps tend to overlook are the finances and balance sheet of the business. At the early stages of the startup a Finance Director is probably not someone you had considered- fair enough. To employ a person who only looks after three or four people may not make sense. However, these can’t be overlooked and as the Big Cheese of the company you will need to make sure it’s done. My advice would be at the end of each week take a look back at the finances and neatly bring everything back into line. If you find yourself spending more than a day or two on your filing it might be time to get your recruiting gloves out again. LICENSES AND PERMITS Depending on when and where you’ve established your empire, you need to make sure that all of your licenses and permits are up to date. Some zones require an annual renewal, others can be up to three years- either way make sure you have a solid grip on this.
While the business and office seem quieter, now is a good time to get on top of the “boring” part of being an entrepreneur. No one likes paperwork, however it needs to be done and you’re the person for the job. One of the tools I personally use is the aforementioned Asana. It’s a brilliant to-do list tool and works very well: From project managing your team to setting your own personal lists, it helps keep everything in one place and puts you on top of your game. GROWING THE TEAM How big is your team? Is it big enough? Are they working quick enough? These are all questions that I am sure you will ask yourself frequently. Trying to understand what features to roll out and when to get them to market is always a tough decision. A few articles I read recently say it’s better to get it to market sooner than later, as it will never be ready. This is very true. At Brndstr we released our first Beta two months after launching. Six months later came the second major release and even then we left some features out. One question I always ask the guys at Brndstr HQ is do you think we need anyone else? When they tell me that we would benefit from an extra body I then start my talent search. The summer months are always a good time for this.
Now you have a little extra time, make good use of it and chip away at that never ending to-do list. Best of luck fellow ‘treps and stay cool. See you next month! Simon Hudson is the CEO and Founder of Brndstr.com. Having recently closed a large funding round, Hudson is well versed with the challenges ahead of any startup. Prior to becoming an entrepreneur, Hudson worked as Marketing Director for Trump Towers in Miami and more recently as a senior figure at Groupon Middle East. Over the past two years he has been busy helping to grow, build and develop the Dubai startup circuit. As the Founder of ThinkTank.ae, ex-Chapter Director for Startupgrind.com, moderator of the previous Young Arab Leader event, and a coach at this year’s Dubai Startup Weekend, in addition to contributing the monthly entrepreneur column for newspaper 7days UAE, Hudson is well positioned to offer help and advice to any budding entrepreneur.
june 2014
Entrepreneur
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