The latest guide in our Business High Five series, The SME Guide to Conducting a Business Review, takes an in-depth look at how you can assess & improve the operation of your business at any given time.
In this guide, your SME will be able to make use of insights on:
- The Importance of Conducting a business review
- How to conduct a basic business review
- Practical learnings to expect
- Key aspects to avoid when conducting a business review
- Recommendations on steps to follow when conducting a business review
The Importance of Conducting a Business Review
Once your business is set up and has started to run well, most SME owners are inclined to let the day-to-day order of things run as they are.
It’s at this point, however, time to rethink your strategy. Following the critical early stages, you should evaluate your progress on a frequent basis, develop ways to maximise the market position you’ve established and decide where to take your company next. Your business strategy will need to be revisited and updated.
How to conduct a basic business review
According to Lulalend’s CEO & Founder, Trevor Gosling, it’s very important to step out of the day-to-day and review your company’s performance. “Some areas should be reviewed more regularly than others, most notably financial performance, to ensure you are tracking your business goals.”
Many small businesses operate in a reactive, short-term manner. This gives you more freedom, but it can also cost you time and money as you transition from the beginning stages of your organisation to growing and improving it.
Practical learnings to expect
While the main aim of conducting a business review is to figure out how you can redefine your business goals to further your success, there are other key learnings you can gain from this.
“The biggest thing about reviews is that they help shape the future of your business by giving clear indications of areas that need the most attention. Without this understanding, you can be focussing your energy in areas that won’t necessarily make a difference in the way you perform,” says Gosling.
Key aspects to avoid when conducting a business review
It’s easy to get caught up in the execution of a business review but one should also be wary of the common mistakes business owners tend to overlook in doing so.
“Just like spending too much time on day-to-day operations is not healthy for your business, spending too much time on a business review can also be harmful,” advises Trevor Gosling. “Keep a healthy balance, don’t get lost in the details, and when things are not completely clear, don’t be afraid to go with your gut!”
Recommendations on steps to follow when conducting a business review
Gosling stresses that you should “always have a plan or goals that you can track your business against. That’s the crucial starting point and without it, you’re operating in the dark. When you track your performance against your goals, it very quickly highlights where things are going well and where you are missing the mark. But goals are never static and need to be developed/refined, particularly as your understanding of the market improves, to ensure you are setting targets that make sense and are achievable.”
