The coming year will be difficult for all entrepreneurs, but it will be most difficult for those who have not prepared for it in advance. When times are good, management doesn’t care too much about costs, but over time inefficiencies accumulate. The only real way to deal with inefficiencies is to analyze the whole company in depth.
Importance of contract
Every business, including this one, begins with a good contract. If the goals are recognized and defined at the very beginning, then it is possible to ensure the implementation of all necessary tasks clearly and with monitoring. Many shy away from contracts. As a rule, they are afraid that they will have to pay for something that they were not obligated to pay.
The contract ensures that both parties are satisfied, that the goals are known at the very beginning and that a way is found to successfully eliminate the risk that may arise during the discovery of new challenges.
Also, the contract describes what data may be used and in what way. In addition to human resources, the company’s knowledge is its greatest asset.
Independence of advisers
External consultants bring many advantages to the company. First and foremost, an outside consultant can provide a fresh perspective on business problems and challenges. Internal teams often become so entrenched in day-to-day operations that they cannot easily create opportunities for improvement or innovation. A consultant can provide a fresh perspective on a situation and provide insights and recommendations that internal teams may not have considered.
In addition, consultants bring specialized knowledge and expertise. They can provide guidance on industry best practices, help with specific projects, or offer advice on how to optimize processes and procedures. This expertise can be especially valuable for companies going through a period of growth or transformation, as consultants can help deal with the challenges that come with these changes.
Hiring an external consultant is more profitable than hiring a permanent employee. Consultants typically work on a project or contract basis, which is more affordable than hiring full-time employees and other overhead costs.
Finally, external consultants bring a higher level of objectivity to the situation. They are not influenced by office politics or prejudices that may exist within the company. This is especially helpful when making difficult decisions or dealing with sensitive issues that everyone else is avoiding.
Conducting analysis
Once we have secured the necessary prerequisites, we can begin to analytically disassemble the company into its component parts. Our consultants need to gain insight into all company processes. The first step will be the collection and analysis of all available data. Our consultants will analyze this data using the most modern big data systems. With such a granular approach, it is possible to gain a very precise insight into business operations and revenue trends by individual groups of products and services.
You will see which products are the most profitable, who are your real customers, what they are actually looking for and what they expect from you as a manufacturer or service provider. Suppliers will also be analyzed and it will be clear what their real role is in your business.
Parallel with this data, methods and procedures, personnel, machinery – everything that makes up the daily operations of your company will be analyzed. For these actions, it will be necessary to spend a minimum of 5 working days in your factory and/or office. In this way, we will be sure that we have not left anything to chance.
The quality of the output data here is proportional to the quality of the input data.
After we have collected all the data we need for the tasks you assigned us, we can start analyzing the data. The analysis must be carried out from as many angles as possible. This process cannot be automated – it is based on the experience and great knowledge of our consultants.
After the analysis period is over, a solution and recommendations are prepared. The solution is presented to the client and the pace of implementation of the necessary changes is suggested. Depending on the task, the pace of implementation can vary between 3 and 24 months, with 6 month cycles being the most common.
We must note that 2/3 of the transformations fail. The reason for failure is partial or wrong implementation. Also, it often happens that the management gives up at the moment when it is most crucial, because the results are not immediately visible. With such interventions, the results are visible in cycles of 6 to 12 months.
It is necessary to have enough patience because some companies have been created for decades and it is not possible to turn them around in just a few months. The bigger the company, the longer the change process, but the rewards and savings are also the greatest.