Adopting a Business Builder Approach for Long-Term Growth

Despite the pandemic, a recent report finds business owners are remarkably resilient. As tax advisors round out the tax filing seasons with the June 15, 2021 filing deadline for proprietors, it’s a good time to have a high value discussion about what it takes to build long term growth taking root now. The secret may be how effective advisors are in counseling for business growth.  There are certain steps you can follow in the process.

First, business builders need to plan strategically position themselves strongly in a new economy - something many are optimistic about according to a March 15, 2021 Scotiabank 2021 Canadian Business Outlook Report. This report found that eight in ten businesses are feeling optimistic about the future of their company, with half (53%) anticipating that their business will change for the better in some way.

But how can business owners take a business building approach?  A business building approach recognizes that effort is required to establish a company that has the capability to do what the leader can achieve, but on a larger level.  This is known as scaling.  It’s required to provide the capacity and knowledge base to support growth, as well as to create an entity that is not dependent on its leader.

You do also have to thing out of the box:  well beyond that of products, services, and customers. Business building includes the company as a whole, not just delivering products and services.  Key functional areas include finance, sales and marketing, human resources, production, and corporate administration, among others.

In short, the business leader must give thought to both strategic and operating plans in a new environment.  More attention must be paid to the long term.  In other words, business leaders need to understand where the company is going over time, including the necessary resources to get there, as well as the anticipated financial results.

Industry, market, and target markets must be well understood, in terms of trends, opportunities, and challenges, as well as what the company should be doing to generate success. 

Once business leaders take the time to understand each of these important areas, their behavior and practices must adapt to a point that incorporates them on an ongoing basis.  Put another way, it’s not sufficient to think strategically for a day or two; it needs to become part of a business leader’s ongoing mindset and practices.

Advisory assistance.  Unless a business leader has been through the process before, building a company can be challenging, frustrating, and fraught with setbacks.  This is not unusual; the process is difficult.  Experienced advisors can help to put the situation in context, as their experience is derived from a range of companies that have faced the same types of issues.

Advisors can help to advance the process in a more efficient manner, by discussing proven strategies, problem solving, specialized knowledge, network connections, and implementation tools that have already been developed and tested. 

At the end of the day, business leaders will have to decide where they want their company to go in the future and what their desired outcomes are.  It’s important to recognize that these can change over time and adopting a business building approach is really the only manner in which a leader can keep most, if not all, of their options open.

To learn more, take the MFA™-Business Growth Designation Program