Are you taking advantage of CEDIA’s Survival of the Fittest Webinar series? As the moderator for this program, I’ve had the pleasure of working with some of the brightest business owners in our industry. They’ve provided solid solutions to help us keep our businesses viable and sustainable in today’s market.
During the April Webinar, Marilyn Sanford, of LaScala, shared with us a valuable tool she uses in her business every day. She walked us through the components of a One Page Strategic Business Plan. She explained the value of creating short-term and long-term goals and using metrics to create accountability and measure progress against those goals.
Sanford outlined the fundamental barriers to growth: 1) the ability to delegate and predict, 2) the need for systems and structure, and 3) the need to navigate the increasingly tricky market dynamics. Using those challenges, she went on to show how to use a SWOT analysis to determine your company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. She explained how to incorporate your company values and purpose in developing a plan.
“The one-page strategic plan is a tool,” said Sanford. “It helps distill and align your vision for the whole organization’s use.” She added, “Keep it simple; develop relevant priorities; ensure accurate timely data, and conduct regular meetings.” She explained that using this tool in her own business has helped her weather the current market, and she challenged us to do the same.
During May’s Webinar, Offensive & Defensive Strategies in Today’s Market—One ESC’s Perspective of Survivability, Scott Sullivan, of SoundVision, said, “This downturn may not be over soon, and if you lag behind your revenue with your expense management, you will not be likely to survive. This is a great opportunity to pick up market share, but this may not necessarily mean growth in revenue.”
Sullivan shared with us the changes he has made in his own business. He also sees the value of creating a strategic plan. He has worked on creating a staffing plan for various revenue levels and developing a forecasting method for future revenue (short-, medium- and long-term), and he continues to keep staffing levels in line with his plan.
Sales and expense management are the two areas he has focused his attention. Renegotiating his lease for reduced rent is just one way he has reduced his expenses. Concentrating on sales, he continues to review and improve his company’s marketing, prospecting, referral and closing process. He also stressed the need to minimize call-back and rework when margins are tight.
During the April Webinar, Marilyn Sanford, of LaScala, shared with us a valuable tool she uses in her business every day. She walked us through the components of a One Page Strategic Business Plan. She explained the value of creating short-term and long-term goals and using metrics to create accountability and measure progress against those goals.
Sanford outlined the fundamental barriers to growth: 1) the ability to delegate and predict, 2) the need for systems and structure, and 3) the need to navigate the increasingly tricky market dynamics. Using those challenges, she went on to show how to use a SWOT analysis to determine your company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. She explained how to incorporate your company values and purpose in developing a plan.
“The one-page strategic plan is a tool,” said Sanford. “It helps distill and align your vision for the whole organization’s use.” She added, “Keep it simple; develop relevant priorities; ensure accurate timely data, and conduct regular meetings.” She explained that using this tool in her own business has helped her weather the current market, and she challenged us to do the same.
During May’s Webinar, Offensive & Defensive Strategies in Today’s Market—One ESC’s Perspective of Survivability, Scott Sullivan, of SoundVision, said, “This downturn may not be over soon, and if you lag behind your revenue with your expense management, you will not be likely to survive. This is a great opportunity to pick up market share, but this may not necessarily mean growth in revenue.”
Sullivan shared with us the changes he has made in his own business. He also sees the value of creating a strategic plan. He has worked on creating a staffing plan for various revenue levels and developing a forecasting method for future revenue (short-, medium- and long-term), and he continues to keep staffing levels in line with his plan.
Sales and expense management are the two areas he has focused his attention. Renegotiating his lease for reduced rent is just one way he has reduced his expenses. Concentrating on sales, he continues to review and improve his company’s marketing, prospecting, referral and closing process. He also stressed the need to minimize call-back and rework when margins are tight.
