2013 bring it on!

So, as we have just recently said goodbye to 2012 and welcomed in 2013, I thought it was a good opportunity to reflect over the summer holiday on our first year and what we wanted from our second year of operation.

I suspect that many businesses do not take the time to reflect; they are so focused on the ‘doing’ that they miss the opportunity to change, redirect and enhance their businesses - thereby potentially missing opportunities to maximise productivity and profitability. Businesses are constantly evolving as a result of the economic environment, legal changes & the employee mix, to name just a few and I feel that those that lack the ability to evolve, to adapt and to change quickly, will struggle and many will fail. Some businesses may also develop a certain level of false comfort - think Kodak, Arthur Anderson and Goldman Sachs and this reticence can be lethal.

We started the New Year with a review of our business plan, originally finalised in Dec 2010. It was a fascinating and sometimes funny experience to review our original forecasts and assumptions. For example, we were 49% off our revenue forecast largely due to the delay in launching our website, although we have still been profitable just on a smaller scale. Let’s face it entrepreneurs are optimists by nature - otherwise we would never attempt a start up.

We reviewed and changed our Vision which was too long - so much so, that even I could not remember it. Imagine, if I can’t remember it, how can our team or our clients possibly do so? It was reaffirming to see that we had achieved a lot of our original goals but we needed to adjust our prices and focus on getting costs down.

We then set about developing our Business Plan for 2013; this was much easier with a year of experience under our belt. It was great for Mark and I to, in a sense, 'get on the same page’ - which assists with the day-to-day operations of the business when you are busy. So what are our three main goals in 2013?

1.       Systemisation

2.      Consolidation

3.      Growth

This will help us, in the flurry of activity, to stay focused on the bigger goals for Employee Matters this year. We wish you and your business every success in 2013! 
 

Natasha Hawker owns Employee Matters Pty Ltd; an HR Consultancy that assists small to medium businesses with their HR functions to make them more efficient and profitable. Their offering includes HR Management, Recruitment, Training, Coaching, and Exit Management – find them at www.employeematters.com.au