Scaling your services business – a way forward

Only 2-4 percent of SMEs achieve scale. That is because many SMEs do not plan and implement with intention. When growing your business, consider the following.    

Inspiration, vision and purpose

• It starts with your thoughts and what you believe – this is the inner work you must do. Skill in relationships improves the overall quality of our lives – but you are accountable first.
• Your purpose and vision – ask the big questions. Why do you exist, your passions and motivations, why did you get started – your big WHY? 
• Your values, what you truly believe in and how your beliefs connect with your values.  This should engage you, or it will not drive you. Notice your habits – are they driving success?
• Does your purpose have a feeling, a sense of cause and service or even a calling. A compelling purpose should energise, challenge, and emotionally connect.

People and focus

• When we seek others to connect to the business then connection with team talent is important, the business wants people who are better than their role statement. Do your team members believe in doing better, exceeding requirements, and adding more value?
• When considering others for the team assess how they think and process information. How do they persuade and influence? Attitude and character either foster success or hold them back from success.
• Then it is about how you execute, where you choose to focus, identifying the highest value work for you to focus on (and plan to delegate the rest). Demonstrate every day your alignment to vision and purpose and CUSTOMER SERVICE.

Planning and execution

• Our results are a direct reflection of where we focus our thoughts and attention – so the plan does not have to be extensive, but it should represent priorities and underpin the direction.
• Coach others to evaluate logically but connect emotionally – belonging is emotional for both team members and customers but deal with your own emotions first.

Process and performance

• Processes and systems play a role – always think about reducing complexity and automating or deploying systems where you can. 
• Performance starts with you – when you optimize your performance each time you show up, you inspire and motivate others.
• When you want to get better, research the market (that means asking customers and people who might be customers).
• Make assumptions, document assumptions and measure assumptions (in real world testing). Then project and measure revenue – a winning move should bring revenue growth.

The eye of the customer

• Communicate constantly about the desired future state so that everyone knows where their daily activities fit the long- term vision. 
• Accelerate the value proposition (once proven) – that allows the business to aim high and grow more. Growth is limited when the business owner’s available billable hours represent the highest value work. The work capacity and will of the business owner is finite. Growth requires high value sales and services delivered by others as well.
• Scaling also requires all who collaborate with you to lift perception, language and customer engagement to so that it is sharply focused on the work you wish to attract.
• Become a rewarding business to deal with – likeability is a function of the emotional intelligence of the marketing message and of your people.
• Do not forget social proof – a record of customer appreciation that is visible for all to see can be an important influence in future buying decisions.

Partnerships open doors

• Partnerships like Business Network International (BNI) referral partners (and others) can critically place you into new markets especially when you stay attuned to what customers want and intentionally get great results for new referrals. 
• But be intentional about your time – your time is a critical resource, spend it wisely. Outcomes matter, so take care of those who need your care (team members, partners and customers).
• Partner also with your customers – what do they want? Do that!

Keep the fires alight!

• Set high standards and stick to them, instil a culture – highlight good behaviours and call out (then redirect) any negative behaviours. 
• Build accountability for actions and culture and build that into team and client relationships.

 The eye of the timekeeper

• Encourage positivity and work the financial expectations to achieve:

1. more sales / billable hours on services that matter to customers;
2. recruitment to roles that find and support customers while creating more billable hours;
3. watch expenditure and the value that it is adding;
4. create targets for new client acquisitions and the capacity to fund more client results and more client hours;
5. review performance, results, hourly rates to align with the clients you want to attract;
6. repeat steps 1-6 again and again.

If you do not do the change work, nothing changes (unless it is driven by luck and some of that can be bad). Align through habits, connect through hearts and minds & connect people through purpose. If results are not what you expected – rethink, replan and make sure you measure.

Failure is not the name of a business, or a person and it is not habit forming unless people allow it to be. You owe it to your customers and partners to get better – better systems, processes and habits measure even more success.