Traction & Strategic Planning Session One: What I Learned

This fall I am reading Traction by Gino Wickman and am a mentor for the COSE Strategic Planning Course. I plan to share with you what I am learning.

I was reminded of two things immediately that will help my business:

#1: Forecast Time Once Again

It is October and I should have a forecast in place for 2016. Time flies. Last year’s forecast is a year old; time to be thinking about next year. Sadly I found the process to be much harder than I expected. I figured out how much I want to grow and why. After overcoming the first hurdle, the rest of the process was easier. Still, the process took a couple hours.  

A couple takeaways:

• A very small growth each month produces a huge growth for the year. Just 2% a month results in a 60% growth year over year. WOW! 2% is just a couple new clients a month for a 60% growth rate.

• One of the most rewarding times each month is when I compare my forecast to actual results. With my forecast in place for next year, I am increasing my possibilities for success.  Companies with a forecast grow 30% faster than companies without a forecast.

#2: Hire to the Corporate Values

I am in the process of hiring right now. When reviewing my interviewing questions I realized that the questions needed to be more focused on the BudgetEase corporate values. For example, one of our values is stressing clients’ needs and wants. How do I interview for this? I added the question: 'When you are out to a restaurant, when are you pleased with the service?' I am looking for team member who knows excellent service and can define it – like not hovering around, anticipating needs and respecting clients’ time.  

What are you doing to work on your business? Please share you successes and stay tuned for more Strategic Planning updates.