One day you wake up and think, “That’s it. It’s time for a change”. As a business owner, there comes a time when you must decide if you want to continue coming to work everyday, facing payroll every two weeks, or perhaps, working through another string of holidays. Just because its time to sell your business does not mean you’re throwing in the towel. Many times small business owners are ready to move on to other things; retirement, a new job, a new venture, more time with family, a focus on personal health, or any combination of factors. Remember, one person’s headache can be another person’s stepping-stone to success. Anyone looking at a business opportunity always thinks they can do a better job. That’s just human nature. And who knows, sometimes it takes a fresh point of view, along with the inevitable fresh influx of capital and elbow grease, to cause a change in direction that will place the business on the fast-charging path to success. As a business owner, you might find yourself running out of steam, or perhaps the business has taken a down turn, but don’t despair. You are what you think about. Sing a song, get out in front of that crowd and, by George, lead the parade to sell your business. Selling your business is an important decision, second only to having taken the original step of buying or starting up in the first place. You would never embark on a new business venture without extreme optimism and enthusiasm, the same energy should exist when it comes time to sell your dream-- don’t sell without giving it 110% effort. Here are the recommended steps to realize your dream of moving on; 1. Decide to decide. 2. Be sure your books are in good order so as to be easily understood by someone who is not familiar with your operation. 3. Clean up the property, after all we’re not considering a “Going Out of Business Sale”; we’re proposing a “Going Into Business Sale”. 4. Decide on a marketing plan and establish a budget to accomplish it. Some directions to consider; (a) classified advertising (b) a direct mail program (c) postings on Internet sights that promote the greater area (d) advertise outside the immediate area (e) post on web pages that sell business opportunities like BizBen.com & USABizMart.com 5. Or avoid the above steps and retain the full marketing services and expertise of a commercial real estate or business brokerage firm. Let them do all the time and money-consuming promotions, advertising, pre-qualifying appointments, and detail management that go into locating quality prospective buyers. There will always be someone out there willing to trade places with you. Just think positive. It’s been said that you achieve a powerful peace of mind once you decide to sell; you’re just taking your hopes and dreams and moving on to a new level. Happy selling! The Article source is: http://www.bizben.com/blog/posts/793-business-isnt-fun-anymore.php
The Financial Management Planning For Small Business
Studies overwhelmingly identify bad management as the leading cause of business failure. Bad management translates to poor planning by management. All too often, the owner is so caught up in the day-to-day tasks of getting the product out the door and struggling to collect receivables to meet the payroll that he or she does not plan. There never seems to be time to prepare Pro Formas or Budgets. Often new managers understand their products but not the financial statements or the bookkeeping records, which they feel are for the benefit of the IRS or the bank. Such overburdened owner/managers can scarcely identify what will affect their businesses next week, let alone over the coming months and years. But, you may ask, "What should I do? How can I, as a small business owner/manager, avoid getting bogged down? How can I ensure success?" Success may be ensured only by focusing on all factors affecting a business's performance. Focusing on planning is essential to survival. Short-term planning is generally concerned with profit planning or budgeting. Long-term planning is generally strategic, setting goals for sales growth and profitability over a minimum of three to five years. The tools for short- and long-term plans have been explained previously in this section: Pro Forma Income Statements, Cash Flow Statements or Budgets, Ratio Analysis, and pricing considerations. The business's short-term plan should be prepared on a monthly basis for a year into the future, employing the Pro Forma Income Statement and the Cash Flow Budget. Long-Term PlanningThe long-term or strategic plan focuses on Pro Forma Statements of Income prepared for annual periods three to five years into the future. You may be asking yourself, "How can I possibly predict what will affect my business that far into the future?" Granted, it's hard to imagine all the variables that will affect your business in the next year, let alone the next three to five years. The key, however, is control - control of your business's future course of expansion through the use of the financial tools explained in this section. First determine a rate of growth that is desirable and reasonably attainable. Then employ Pro Formas and Cash Flow Budgets to calculate the capital required to finance the inventory, plant, equipment, and personnel needs necessary to attain that growth in sales volume. The business owner/manager must anticipate capital needs in time to make satisfactory arrangements for outside funds if internally generated funds from retained earnings are insufficient. Growth can be funded in only two ways: with profits or by borrowing. If expansion outstrips the capital available to support higher levels of accounts receivable, inventory, fixed assets, and operating expenses, a business's development will be slowed or stopped entirely by its failure to meet debts as they become payable. Such insolvency will result in the business’s assets being liquidated to meet the demands of the creditors. The only way to avoid this "outstripping of capital" is by planning to control growth. Growth must be understood to be controlled. This understanding requires knowledge of past financial performance and of the future requirements of the business. These needs must be forecast in writing - using the Pro Forma Income Statement in particular - for three to five years in the future. After projecting reasonable sales volumes and profitability, use the Cash Flow Budget to determine (on a quarterly basis for the next three to five years) how these projected sales volumes translate into the flow of cash in and out of the business during normal operations. Where additional inventory, equipment, or other physical assets are necessary to support the sales forecast, you must determine whether or not the business will generate enough profit to sustain the growth forecast. Often, businesses simply grow too rapidly for internally generated cash to sufficiently support the growth. If profits are inadequate to carry the growth forecast, the owner/manager must either make arrangements for working growth capital to borrowed, or slow growth to allow internal cash to "catch up" and keep pace with the expansion. Because arranging financing and obtaining additional equity capital takes time, this need must be anticipated well in advance to avoid business interruption. To develop effective long-term plans, you should do the following steps: 1. Determine your personal objectives and how they affect your willingness and ability to pursue financial goals for your business. This consideration, often overlooked, will help you determine whether or not your business goals fit your personal plans. For example, suppose you hope to become a millionaire by age 45 through your business but your long-term strategic plan reveals that only modest sales growth and very slim profit margins on that volume are attainable in your industry. You must either adjust your personal goals or get into a different business. Long range planning enables you to be realistic about the future of your personal and business expectations. 2. Set goals and objectives for the company (growth rates, return on investment, and direction as the business expands and matures). Express these goals in specific numbers, for example, sales growth of 10 percent a year, increases in gross and net profit margins of 2 to 3 percent a year, a return on investment of not less than 9 to 10 percent a year. Use these long-range plans to develop forecasts of sales and profitability and compare actual results from operations to these forecasts. If after these goals are established actual performance continuously falls short of target, the wise business owner will reassess both the realism of expectations and the desirability of continuing to pursue the enterprise. 3. Develop long-range plans that enable you to attain your goals and objectives. Focus on the strengths and weaknesses of your business and on internal and external factors that will affect the accomplishment of your goals. Develop strategies based upon careful analysis of all relevant factors (pricing strategies, market potential, competition, cost of borrowed and equity capital as compared to using only profits for expansions, etc.) to provide direction for the future of your business. 4. Focus on the financial, human, and physical requirements necessary to fulfill your plan by developing forecasts of sales, expenses, and retain earnings over the next three to five years. 5. Study methods of operation, product mix, new market opportunities, and other such factors to help identify ways to improve your company's productivity and profitability. 6. Revise, revise. Always use your most recent financial statements to adjust your short- and long-term plans. Compare your company's financial performance regularly with current industry data to determine how your results compare with others in your industry. Learn where your business may have performance weaknesses. Don't be afraid to modify your plans if your expectations have been either too aggressive or too conservative. Planning is a perpetual process. It is the key to prosperity for your business. The Article Source is: http://www.bizmove.com/finance/m3b8.htm |
How to Keep Your Best Ones, The Number One Asset For YourCompany
On earlier posts here, I’ve offered some advice, tips and resources, I’ve found useful in:
- [1] Recruiting the best potential candidates to interview;
- [2] Interviewing thoroughly, consistently, with the goal of hiring only A-Players.
Let’s talk about how to keep your best ones, your best employees and colleagues. These are your Best Ones.
Your employees are the number one asset for your company. And your Best Ones are your leaders, those who set the tone, for and create your brand. They sustain your brand, their brand, through good times and not-good times. ( Your company is thought of as their company if you’ve recruited the best and interviewed to hire only A-players. A-players take ownership. And you want that. You want everyone thinking that it’s their company. )
How do you keep your best employees, your leaders, the ones most engaged in making your brand…their brand?
I’ve thought about this post for a few weeks now. I came across two smart business-thinkers, from different industries, who shared a simple theme for keeping your employees engaged and inspired.
Everybody goes home happy. That’s one of Jake McKee’s mantras. Everybody means everybody: customers and employees. Jake blogs at [3] CommunityGuy and is the Chief Ant Wrangler and Principal for [4] Ant’s Eye View, a Dallas-based customer collaboration strategy agency. You can listen to our recent conversation about building community around everybody going home happy at [5] BlogTalk Radio recently.
Makes sense. Leave a smile on the face of everyone touched by your brand…they’ll come back.
What is the "Small Businesses of the Future"?
Intuit just released the first installment of a report called, “Future of Small Business.” The report forecasts what the small business landscape will look like in the United States over the next 10 years, to 2017.
And it is a fascinating picture:
(1) More diversity – Small businesses are more diverse than ever, with women starting businesses and immigrants refreshing the ranks of business owners. Baby Boomers (those born between 1946 and 1964) — their numbers are rising faster in small business than any other age group. This chart outlines the demographic characteristics of key small business owner segments (click image below to open PDF in new window):
(2) Rise of the Personal Business — The “personal business,” which is a new term to describe a business with no employees, is growing in numbers and in economic influence. These businesses now number roughly 20 million. These personal businesses are a large presence in our economy. “Free agent” working relationships are now seen as more attractive by younger and older workers.
(3) Entrepreneurial Education Grows – Entrepreneurial education is growing, especially at the university level, with over 1,600 higher education institutions offering such entrepreneurship education in some fashion. More people starting businesses will have training in the skills necessary to be successful as an entrepreneur. And it’s a good thing, because with the increasingly complex marketplace, they are going to need them.
I was fortunate to play a part in the development of this report. Last summer I participated in an expert workshop at the Institute for the Future in Palo Alto, California. Professor Jeff Cornwall, over at the Entrepreneurial Mind, also was one of the participants, along with the rest of an impressive panel. It was stimulating and fun to share ideas.
It is good to see that Intuit and the Institute for the Future are releasing the report publicly. Many educational institutions, economic development authorities, and even smaller vendors that sell to other small businesses, can get value out of this report. Download your copy of the first installment of the Intuit Future of Small Business Report.
The Acticle Source is:
http://www.smallbiztrends.com/2007/01/small-businesses-of-the-future.html/
