If you are making a plan for 2020 one of the components of your business plan should be your employees. Some business people label this human capital.
3 Gates of Focus
In business there are three gates of focus. These are the three things you must always pay attention to. One is Profit. If you are not making money you are not going to be in business for very long. A second is Process. Process is how you do things from marketing and sales to production, etc. The third focus is on People.
People Focus
People are a key competent of every business. Without people you have no business. It is people who create the products or deliver the services. In most businesses, wages are a significant or even the majority of operating expenses. Another reason to focus on your people is this. The more employees a firm has, the more complicated the business becomes. Think of a firm with 15 employees vs. one with 65 employees. As the founder of Pizza Hut once said “Employees are the agony or ecstasy of managing your business. You either hire smart or manage hard.” (The latter is not much fun.) The bottom line is this, your people (your human capital) need to be a key component of any business plan.
Filling Vacant Positions
A major USA firm I know has created an approach that has worked exceptionally well in filling vacant positions. You may want to consider testing it. Here’s their how and why. They fill half of the open positions by promoting people from within their company. This provides their employees with the opportunity to move up in the company. Their requirement is that the person prepare for the new position by learning what is necessary to carry out the duties and responsibilities. The other half of the openings they fill with people from outside the firm. This lets existing employees know they are not guaranteed the open position. Existing employees know they must compete to fill the open position. Likewise, by hiring people from outside the company, they bring in new talent and new ideas. With no company history, these people question policies and procedures that may no longer be appropriate.
The Balancing Act
By filling half of open positions from within and half from outside, the company is providing for upward mobility while at the same time opening itself up to people being able to question existing procedures and consider new ways of doing things. Achieving this balance can be a challenge. I like what Albert Einstein said. “Life (including business life) is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving ahead.” Maybe this approach to filling vacant positions is just what your firm needs to keep growing and moving head.
Help for Planning for 2020
If you are looking for a new approach to planning for 2020, I have an approach that isn’t a theory. It is based on research by James Fischer from interviews and working with 650 CEO’s in 35 different industries. As a result, he was able to identify 7 Stages of Growth that firms pass through as they grow from start-up to 500 employees. In this research, he also found that businesses face 27 different Challenges as they grow through these 7 Stages. For each stage of growth, he also determined the appropriate Builder: Protector Ratio. And, for each stage of growth, he identified 5 Non-Negotiable Rules. This approach can help you obtain a clearer vision for 2020.
Getting Started – A FREE Test Drive
If this approach is new to you, you may want to investigate it further. As stated, James Fischer identified the top five challenges at each stage of growth. You can take a FREE 27 Challenge Assessment and compare your answers to what Fisher found in his research. It will not only give you better insight into your Top 5 Challenges, but you will receive a Special Report for your Stage of Growth. The Report will provide you with the following:
- 5 Biggest Challenges for your firm’s stage of growth
- Tools to Build Your Business
- 5 Non-Negotiable Rules for your firm’s stage of growth
- Business Building Blocks
- Getting Ready for the next Stage of Growth
To take the FREE 27 Challenge Assessment go to https://www.trwconsulting16.com/ and click on Take 27 Challenge Assessment.