People, Plan and Perseverance

Trying to transform your business today can be a daunting journey. Healthy businesses that are trying to grow and capitalize on their expanding list of capabilities as well as those who are stuck and can’t seem to get past their current position both face these hurdles.

Regardless of your market offerings or whether you are a printer, a mailer, or a sign company - you probably have market opportunities that you have not explored yet. And while your business results may be satisfactory, you may have hit that growth ceiling of complexity. Sometimes it just feels stagnant and no matter what you try, nothing changes. What’s in your way? What’s holding you back?

I’ll be going more in depth on this subject at Print ’18 when I present Transform Your Business - Three P's. My experience has been that there are three levers that companies can explore to transform their business into a company that enjoys a relevant and important position in helping their clients achieve the results they need to prosper. These three keys:

• People – do you have the right players in the right positions or are you limited due to marginal employee performance levels. Remember, you get what you tolerate. Great companies find ways to attract the people that they need to achieve their goals.
• Plan – are you trying to be all things to all people or do you have a plan to leverage your unique abilities that can make an impact on a client’s business. Telling your people to “try harder and do better” probably isn’t enough. And finally, is your company easy to do business with through the lens of both your employees and your clients.
• Perseverance – this isn’t a “seat of the pants” adventure nor is it a one-day excursion! This is about execution, review, modify and re-execute. The lack of discipline in follow through and project completion are two areas that can hamper the effectiveness of any initiative.

Working on your business is not a luxury, but a must-have. If you’re struggling to find the time to do this, it’s probably time to assess how you’re spending your day and which non-critical issues can you either delegate or discard. I’m looking forward to a healthy discussion on this topic at Print ’18 and hope to see you there. Good luck, let me know how you’re doing, and have fun.

Mike Philie can help validate what’s working and what may need to change in your business. Changing the trajectory of a business is difficult to do while simultaneously operating the core competencies. Mike provides strategy and insight to owners and CEOs in the Graphic Communications Industry by providing direct and realistic assessments, not being afraid to voice the unpopular opinion and helping leaders navigate change through a common sense and practical approach. Learn more at www.philiegroup.com, LinkedIn or email at mphilie@philiegroup.com.