Think Tank: Braving the change – making big business decisions
Braving the change – making big business decisions We can all happily carry on in business as we’ve always done – but where will that get us? Although staying in your comfort zone is often the easy choice, it’s not necessarily the best option if you want to grow or improve profitability. By pushing your product or service forward you can recoup some very satisfying rewards. Fancy an increase in profitability, market share and turnover? Well you can achieve it – but you’ll need to keep pace with your target markets as they grow and modernise, and the latest trends appear. So how do you make those brave, bold decisions that have the potential to significantly impact on your business? Decisions to ‘brave the change’ are sometimes easier to talk about than to put into practice. But it doesn’t have to be daunting, and we are here to help you through the process. Rather than jumping from A to B as quickly as possible we suggest putting actions into small, easy-to-achieve steps.
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Identify and research
Impact
Your starting point is at ground level and involves taking notes. Observe what’s happening in your particular market. What others are doing might indicate an opportunity or a gap in the market that you could exploit. For instance, have you received feedback on your products that might suggest small improvements are necessary to attract more customers? Jotting down these ideas can help you to capture these thoughts.
Before you take the next steps you need to consider what else you have going on in your business. Is it the right time, and will it fit in with your other projects? These may seem like common sense deliberations, but unless you pause and take a step back from day-to-day operations, you could easily duplicate costs or take manpower away from another important project. Gut feel will often play a part in your decision making, but don’t necessarily be afraid of that – experience does count.
Consider and discuss When you have an idea, don’t just keep it to yourself – talk to others about it. Whether it’s your family, friends, employees, suppliers or customers, everyone has an opinion! Seeking an opinion is also a great way to engage your staff and get their buy-in to the change.
Start small Once you’ve weighed up your options it’s time to give your new idea a go. Start off with a small trial; if it doesn’t work, that’s okay. The most successful businesses have made mistakes along the way, and it takes perseverance to
