Profitable Growth

Profitable growth

The point is not to grow a business, but rather to grow a profitable one, And to do that a business needs firm foundations, inspirational intentions, a strategy to stick to and execution, execution, execution. Julia Bickerstaff will look at some of the very real challenges to profitable growth and provide some practical advice.

I’m so busy that I’m not spending enough time with my employees and customers. Help!

Author: Julia Bickerstaff on 16 March 2010

I'm so busy that I'm not spending enough time with my employees and customers. I know I need to connect with them but how can I fit it in?

Is your business a “why” business or a “how” business?

Author: Julia Bickerstaff on 10 March 2010

Last week was bookended by opposites. I spent Monday with a visionary, energetic, but largely undisciplined business, and Friday with an efficient, busy yet somewhat lethargic business.

I've given my employees the opportunity to do a fun project in work time, but no one has submitted an idea. What's wrong?

Author: Julia Bickerstaff on 3 March 2010

To jump start innovation, I've given my employees the opportunity to do a fun project in work time, but no one has submitted an idea. What's wrong?

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How can we keep on top of reviewing our pricing?

Author: Julia Bickerstaff on 24 February 2010

We're not very good at regularly reviewing on our pricing, how can we keep on top of it?
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We haven’t raised our prices for ages. Should we do it now?
Author: Julia Bickerstaff on 17 February 2010

So when did you last put your prices up? When I asked this question to a couple of businesses a few months back one of them, a restaurant, said they thought they had last raised prices "about three years ago" and the other, a cleaning business, said "not in the last 10 years".
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We set a BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal) for the business a year ago but have made no progress, why?
Author: Julia Bickerstaff on 10 February 2010

A year ago a medium-sized business, let's call it Flamingo, held a strategy weekend and one of the outcomes was a new company BHAG. A BHAG, for those of you wondering what this strange acronym relates to, is a Big Hairy Audacious Goal; a concept created by the eminent Jim Collins of Good to Great fame and essentially it's an "out there" goal the business sets for 10-plus years.
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How do I know if my business is a success?
Author: Julia Bickerstaff on 3 February 2010

I met a guy recently; let's call him Jack, who started a small business about 18 months ago. He was talking about how his business was tracking and he asked me "how will I know if my business is a success?"
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I am thinking of giving some of our employees shares in our business. Should I?
Author: Julia Bickerstaff on 20 January 2010

I am thinking of giving some of our employees shares in our business, would this be a wise thing to do?
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We have opportunities but are low on revenue. Help!
Author: Julia Bickerstaff on 13 January 2010

We have a great business and many opportunities on the go but we don't seem to turn any of these into revenue. Help.

A business I visited this week reminded me of an observation made by David Packard, the co-founder of HP. He said that a great company is more likely to die of indigestion from too much opportunity than starvation from too little.

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I would like to make a New Year's business resolution, any ideas?
Author: Julia Bickerstaff on 6 January 2010

In the spirit of the New Year, here are five New Year's 'business' resolutions you might like to think about. No need to do all five, one done well would be plenty.
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