Business success is like white water rafting down a raging stream without getting impaled on the rocks. At its core, our success depends on our business skills to navigate.
“We are swamped with work and struggling to keep up. I know, it’s a good problem, but it is still a problem! Accounts Receivable is at record highs so that is great but I don’t have ANY cash RIGHT NOW so that is stressful as well.”
We owners always have problems. If we didn’t, anyone could run a business. And then our talents would be common and rewards minimized, so we must be problem solvers.
CPrint helps owners learn business navigation skills and then help apply them to real situations through our board program which is why many stay with our program for so long. It’s not just about financial performance. It is about business navigation.
Six Companies Facing Real Business Success Challenges
Beth and Jack have been affiliated with CPrint for twenty years now, their retirement target is 2026 and their retirement funding is 3 on a scale of 10 not considering money they may get from the sale of the business. That way they may retire with or without a business sale which gives them the most options. The good news is that they finished paying for children’s education and now can start accumulating significant retirement savings. So beyond the fact their board keeps them focused on the end game, they get help in navigating their current challenges. And there’s still a lot of navigating to do. Like what? They’ve just completed conversion to an all-digital shop with the help of their board and are now focused on moving to smaller quarters, cutting costs and improving efficiencies. Their board also spotted some significant financial reporting issues which, if solved, may help in that retirement funding. Good news is they have time which they may not have had if they didn’t undergo regular business reviews. Another meeting with their financial planner is scheduled for this week.
Jim and Beverly have been affiliated for eighteen years now and have always run a successful business by any standard although that wasn’t always the case. Their children are also grown and retirement funds are on track for a 9 and the plan is that by 2017 they’ll be fully funded so they won’t need the business sale proceeds. But that’s an “if” and not a certainty. So they must navigate the immediate challenge of recruiting and training a new staffer as well as replacing/upgrading digital equipment. Moreover they would like to transition to a long-term and loyal employee and as such are working on the successor’s training to assure their plan succeeds. In the meantime, they are taking some time off after the meeting to visit their grandchildren. A well run business allows them to do such things and they attribute a lot of that to participating in the board process.
Mark has been affiliated with the board for five years and his retirement date is 2026. His primary focus is educational funding which is a 9 right now. Retirement funding is a 6 but there’s time. One of Mark’s main issues is that he has significant interests outside of his business that requires his time and attention. As a result, he looks to his board to assist him in keeping focused and rejuvenating his own business motivation. Time management is an issue as he bounces from business to outside interests that take up some of each workday and in order to navigate between the two, has to hire a CSR, make sure they are trained as well as refocus on basic marketing and selling tasks. He was able to use his time in the last board meeting to firm up the training plan as well as detail his selling steps. As many do, Mark has strayed from his core business but uses the board to help him with mid-course corrections.
Nancy and Paul are winding down their business with an exit plan which probably will occur within next 12 months. Retirement is a 6 although they have commercial property and other money making interests which they will continue to oversee. They see their current marketing niche of basic business printing going away they are working on developing another one which, if lucrative, will extend the business life for a number of years and enable them to sell it as a going concern. Otherwise, they will prepare to sell it for “parts.” So they are navigating the implementation of this new market while, at the same time, planning how they can turn their current business assets into other uses.
Carol, who has been a member of the board for nine years, is set for retirement. She’s in an enviable position of having her retirement fully funded but then life reared its ugly head. Her husband, a retired career civil servant, has recently contracted a disease for which there is no cure or treatment. Although uncertain, the statistics say his life expectancy is two to five years. She’s facing decisions on life afterwards. Her short term navigation issue is to keep the business running without putting retirement money into it so she might return to it after caring for her husband. Immediately though, she needs to recruit and train a CSR, exert more effort in marketing and deal with a significant customer whose business may be closing while, at the same time, having time for her care giver role. Her navigation issues are tricky although she credits her board with helping to keep her two roles balanced.
Tim’s retirement target is 2034 but you can forget about retirement funding for survival is the immediate issue. This company, as many we have helped over the years, was facing immediate demise a year ago. By facing the issues through the help of his consultant and board and adopting an emergency budget based on the best information available; he has solidified his ownership of the business through negotiating a deal with an uncooperative co-owner. He’s also sorted through a morass of financial garbage to get closer to real facts, made difficult personnel decisions, focused as much as he could on selling and has lived.
He’s nowhere close to being out of serious trouble but he’s had a couple significant sales wins recently which will pump sales these next few months. The fact he has reduced costs and streamlined operations with the help of his board gives him a good chance although there is much more to do. Heavy into the high-cost trinket business (many transactions with low margins requiring many people to process) he is navigating his way to sustainability.
While it’s obvious he should get away from low margin transactions, he must attract higher-margin work first for the low-margin work provides him with current cash. Once he turns the corner, then he can focus on longer range issues such as retirement. Right now, he is navigating to survive.
So board meetings aren’t just about finance although they are about finance. These are real people who happen to be printers navigating real life. And regardless of where we go, we still have to navigate to get to our next stop before we achieve business success and arrive at our final destination of retirement. And that’s really why we see people staying with the CPrint program for significant periods of time. It is knowing what to do, but also having help to navigate.
If you are interested in getting help navigating your business and achieving business success, you may want to consider CPrint International. Message me at tom@cprint.com and I’ll be glad to chat with you at a no cost or obligation.
Tom Crouser
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