Quick video updates of recent client topics.
The idea of this vlog area is to give visitors to this site a little taste of some of the things that are actual session topics and areas for discussion in real-world businesses. There is a disclaimer up-front that these are topics for discussion and that actual financial advice, legal advice, and the ultimate business decisions are made by the business owners and their qualified advisors.
I hope you will find the content interesting and that it helps to initiate discussions in your business. Nothing in these pages or videos constitutes legal or financial advice, please do your own due diligence and consult your own qualified professionals.
These videos are hosted in Zoom and will also become available on YouTube.
The Connection of Culture to Profitability
Although the idea of shifting an embedded culture is a daunting task, it can be done. Working with a blue-collar business over the past three years, it is simply awesome to see the change in attitude and results that can come from an engaged team keen to continue to lift all areas of their game.
One of the items we wrote in as a goal in the business plan two years ago was:
“By creating the team culture to enable great performance we also become first choice to attract and retain great staff.”
This has now come to fruition by attracting “A-Grade” players, who bring others like them into the business, and by having clear boundaries for what is (and is not) in alignment with the Values of the business. The owner is no longer ‘putting up with’ mediocre performance, and is able to quickly see if a new hire is going to bring these A-Grade attributes to the team. He is also confident that he can now hand over more responsibility to his leadership team and free himself up to work on bigger-ticket areas of the business for even greater freedom and impact.
Addressing Shareholder Agreements and Dividends
The importance of establishing early ‘rules of the game’ and spending time to understand and execute the correct structure and legal frameworks that will reduce the likelihood of stress and extra expense down the track.
These structures and agreements are worth every bit of their expense, please consult with qualified professionals.
Operating Costs and Vehicle Expense Improvements
Discussing the importance of analyzing operating expenses. Comparison of expenses over the past four years and understanding the trends, relationships and comparables that are hiding in that data.
Choose large line items such as vehicle expenses, repairs and maintenance and review this and its impact on costs. Potentially use the analysis to improve vehicle usage policy, or policy to guide fleet upgrades and purchases. There are EBITDA impacts when a large portion of the fleet of vehicles and other assets are new – with higher depreciation – and all of these areas can be reviewed.