As we enter September and Spring has finally arrived it is a great time of year to tidy up your business.
What do I mean by this? Well I liken this to cleaning out the spare room of the house. For me this is about:
- Reviewing the expenses the business is incurring. Is there any wastage? What do we really need to be spending?
- Do we have any lazy assets that we no longer need? Making repayments or not selling off surplus assets is simply a waste of money!
- Are you over capacity in terms of staffing? Have you stopped to review how many bodies you need to run a successful business and if the answer is yes then have you got the correct number?
- If you are selling stock are you operating at the industry average for the profit margin you generate on the sale of these goods? (eg Restaurant industry and wastage)
The above are some examples of areas where money can be saved in a business and as a result profits improved.
We recommend incorporating the above into a wastage audit/review and budget planning session. The wastage audit forces you to look at all costs you incur and decide whether the spend is critical to the business and if it is are you achieving the best price.
The budget session, like the wastage audit, forces you to look at all of your numbers and review where the money is going in your business. It is a great planning session and can really turn a struggling business around and provide a new focus.
If you would like assistance with reviewing your costs, comparing your business to the rest of the industry or preparing a budget please contact me at scott@cnspartners.com.au or (07) 3188 0232.