It happens every year. As a CEO, president or business owner you are faced with a new calendar year. Last year is behind you. Time to look forward to doing business in the New Year. How much thought have you given to the next twelve months? You are in business to make a profit. Which leads to the next question: What is your business profit target this year?
Every CEO, president or business owner says the same thing: I want to make more money this year. I want the company to earn more profit.
But… How much time and thought have you spent developing the strategy to get you there – to make more money; to earn more business profit?
Let’s look at how you can achieve your business profit target this year (or in the next twelve months if reading this article at some other point in the calendar year). Have pencil/pen and paper ready to take notes as you read along. Get ready for lots of questions to consider about your business.
First, you need to consider where you and your business currently are. Be realistic and factual. Once you have the information analyzed ask yourself:
- Where do I want to be with the business over the next twelve months or year?
For example:
- This is the current annual sales volume. This is where I want to be in the next twelve months with total sales numbers.
Next, do you have…
- The facilities
- The infrastructure
- The people
… in place to create more business?
Look back at last year and ask yourself:
- What does the company (and me as CEO, president or owner) need to correct this year to improve and grow business in a profitable way?
For instance: If there are quality issues of any type throughout your company how best to correct so the related problems and issues do not continue?
Because if a business problem or issue continues it will keep the company from:
- Doing more sales volume
- Lessen customer or client satisfaction
- Reduce profit potential
Worse yet, what you’ll be doing is the same thing over and over and over again; having the same problems, creating the same situations and… creating more stress and yes, pain, than you might like to take on or ever thought possible.
Let’s specifically get back to the question which headlines this article:
- What is your business profit target this year?
In other words…
- How much more business profit do you want for your company?
- Do you want 5% – 10% – 15% – perhaps 20%?
When you look at the target of additional profit remember to be realistic. Better to make your goal or even exceed goal by stretching yourself beyond your comfort zone.
Making the observation your company is already profitable, ask yourself:
- How much more money do I want to make?
- How do I maintain a solid, consistent business?
- Where am I going to go from here to get where I want to be?
Certainly, as a CEO, president or business owner, you should always be working on how to be more efficient within the company. It’s a necessary step in order to create more business.
- If you want to create 5% – 10% – 15% – 20% more profit this year, how much more business or sales will it take to create the additional profit target?
- What will expenses be to create the profit?
- Does the company need, for example: Another vehicle, equipment or employee? (You may need to think plural rather than singular.)
I am asking you to consider sitting down in a quiet place where you will not be distracted and give some serious thought to what you did in the past business year – as a company and as a business leader. You should have available to you a company financial statement. Tear that financial statement apart section by section and thoroughly analyze it all.
Seek answers to:
- Was labor too high?
- Were purchases too high?
- Was payroll too much for the volume of business?
- What is not working in the business when looking at the numbers?
- What can be fixed or improved?
- What do you need to pay more attention to?
There isn’t a company operating today that can say everything is working just fine. Nothing is perfect. There is always something to improve upon and make better – for you, the employees, vendors and most importantly, the customers.
CEOs, presidents and business owners:
Be a student of business. It’s key to your business success.
Study your business daily.
Then…
- Think about how much to increase company profits in the year to come.
- Put the plan together.
- Set the date for when to put the plan in action. If you are reading this article at the start of a new year and you haven’t a business plan, then you’ve already lost part of the calendar year. Get started NOW!
You CAN do this!
You are an experienced businessperson. You need to open your eyes and your mind to what isn’t working; what people (including customers and employees) don’t want. What YOU don’t want!
Some businesspeople don’t want to take this type of action. Some would rather plod along hoping everything is going to work out just fine. But that’s not going to happen unless you are in ACTION to make it HAPPEN! Success in business doesn’t just come to you. It’s something you work at every day.
You must put a lot of thought through effort into your action plan for the business. Invite your trusted employees and management team to provide input and additional strategy ideas. You need to have conversations with them about:
- what worked
- what didn’t work
- where the company is currently
- what needs to be done to meet goals.
Also, consider training. Not just for new employees but for all employees. Training keeps people informed, up-to-date, and feeling like part of company doing more than just a job. It’s also a key business advantage as many companies fall short with ongoing training of team members.
Make the next year the BEST YEAR EVER!
Let’s put a note to self in place to year after year after year think about how to make the business better to gain more profit. Do this on a monthly, or at the very least, a quarterly basis. Don’t let something that’s brewing into a problem become one. As Barney Fife from the classic Andy Griffith Show would often say: Nip it in the bud!
Every quarter take the company financial statement and tear it apart, not literally, but with your analytical business mind. Keep asking yourself as you work through the numbers:
- What’s working?
- What’s not working?
- Where is there further room for improvement or opportunity?
If you go along thinking everything “will be just fine”, at the end of the year or twelve-month period it will likely be too late. The optimal time for action will have passed you by. The most important thing you have is time. Once it’s gone, it’s gone. You can never get time back. Or make up for lost business.
Every day pay attention to your business – and it will pay you back in yearly business profits. Know what is going on in your business every day, week, month, quarter and year. That’s how you achieve, for example:
- the incredible profit to reinvest in the business
- provide raises to employees
- attain the professional and lifestyle goals you have for yourself
- contribute to the community.
Once you make the money there’s no limit as to what you can do with it. There is always a use for it when you achieve your business profit target.
Remember:
Be in ACTION!
Make it HAPPEN!
To your success!
Business expert and strategist, Howard Lewinter, guides – focuses – advises CEOs, presidents and business owners throughout the United States across a wide range of industries, to MORE success – MORE profit – less stress. Business people trust Howard’s vast business knowledge, practical advice, intuitive insight and objective perspective to solve business problems and issues. Get MORE from your business! Talk business with Howard: 888-738-1855.
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