Succession planning is about protecting your business against the risk of failure should key people - including yourself - leave. People often confuse the practice of business ‘succession planning’ with ‘retirement planning’. They are, of course, very different concepts. Succession planning is a valuable activity for any business, at any stage, regardless of whether the owner is considering retiring, selling or staying with the business for many years to come ..read more

A few years back, we were delighted to partner with business branding experts Richard Amos and Mike Wilkinson to create our ebook: Brand and Corporate Identity for Small to Mid-Sized Businesses. In this cheat sheet we have distilled some of Richard and Mike’s valuable tips for establishing and maintaining a successful brand identity. Click on the image to download a pdf version of the cheat sheet ..read more

In this video I list four components of an annual business plan and drill down a little into some of the business issues you should cover under each of those four elements. An annual business plan should encompass three core concepts: Where is the business now? Where do we want the business to be in the future? How are we going to marshal the resources we have and which we can influence to get there ..read more

From our many years of experience, we’ve identified that some of the most successful business owners are astute risk managers. They systematically apply methods and practices to identify risks and mitigate them, which helps the business take advantage of upside risks and protect against potential downsides. Risk management might sound like a ‘dry topic’, but it’s critical to business success. Our ebookRisk Management Fundamentals is a free resource to help you identify and manage risk in your business ..read more

We created our ebook – How to have a healthy business and a healthy life – to get you thinking about your health and wellbeing, and how that impacts you personally, and, in turn, your business. It’s time to put yourself first. Running a business – whether as an owner or a senior manager – can be hugely rewarding. As well as sharing the financial rewards – and risks – that come from being in business, there is the satisfaction of driving a business to improve performance and deliver to its clients and people. However, all that responsibility can add extra pressure and stress, and take a hefty ..read more

Being able to prove repeatability of earnings – with robust data and a reasonable level of confidence – is key to maximising business value on exit. As a business valuer I often need to have difficult conversations with clients who assume their business value will be based purely on past performance. They look longingly at past results and say: “Based on those fantastic results I think my business should be worth X. Why are you saying it’s only worth Y?” My response is: “I’m sorry, but someone coming into the business will not see the benefit of those past earnings. You’ve had the benefit of ..read more

Cash flow is the lifeblood of a business, and the ability to generate cash surpluses is a critical factor in many businesses’ success. Working capital includes cash at bank, debtors, creditors, short-term credit lines, inventory, and other current assets and liabilities. Having surplus cash that can be used as working capital gives your business more options to grow, invest and change. Taking the longer-term perspective, ability to generate cash is a critical component when it comes to determining the value of the business should you wish to exit ..read more

Every business is different, but it’s still critical for every business to have discipline and a deliberate focus around the key elements you monitor and manage. In our free ebook Tips to improve financial and operational performance we examine the top 4 business elements we believe owners and managers should monitor, review and analyse to effectively manage and improve financial and operational performance. These 4 elements are: Financial performance – utilising the Profit & Loss or Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Statements ..read more

In our ebook Managing Staff for High Performance we explained how to manage staff on a daily basis using our Dynamic Performance Checklist. If this process is working well, there should be minimal requirement for corrective action. However, we're all humans and we're all fallible, so there is always room for improvement, as well as issues that can lead to performance below expectations. The following cheat sheet contains some of our strategies for turning around poor staff performance ..read more

The new year is under way and many businesses are taking stock and thinking about the future. You can use our free online Business Health Check tool to help you: ‘take the pulse’ of your business today, and identify key issues to focus on in the 12 months ahead.  ..read more