Happy New Year! Hopefully you were able to take a rest during Christmas break and are back to work recharged and with renewed purpose. With every new year comes a fresh perspective, and your business is ready for some fresh energy.
The main dials of your business
To ensure your business runs as smoothly as a well-oiled engine, it is important that all the functional areas within a business work together seamlessly. All of your business functions are interdependent on each other, and each can only complete their individual functional activities efficiently when all other functions are in tip-top performance.
For most businesses, the main functional activities are organized into four main functional areas, namely: finance, human resources, operations, and marketing. And, depending on the size of the business, you may wear all four of these hats.
Finance
Nothing is possible without some form of capital. Apart from funding all other functions, the finance department manages all the income and expenses attached to all areas of the business. Activities around the finance function of a business include preparing financial management reports like budgets, books of account, and of course raising financial capital for the business.
We make no claim to being financial wizards and being able to help with your books other than helping to strategize a marketing plan to increase the money coming in. But, marketing aside, make sure that your books are ready for a new year. A “year in review” is a good time to see if your prior annual plan went as it should or if you need to make adjustments to meet your business goals.
Human Resources
The human resources department is responsible for managing the entire workforce that serves the organization and maintaining cordial relationships between the employer and the employee. This department oversees many aspects of the employees’ lifetime within the company, including:
- headhunting and hiring process
- induction and training
- remuneration and any other compensation
- industrial relations
- health, wellness and safety
- exit behaviour
It is important that you streamline your human resources in order to have all your employees’ best interests taken care of. Remember, a happy employee is equal to a productive employee, which directly results in amazing numbers for your company revenue.
Like finance, we don’t specialize in HR, but we have a favorite Business Consultant that specializes in HR needs that we love to refer people to. Tonya with Sowles Business Consulting is awesome to work with and can help make sure your HR department is running smoothly and your employees are thriving.
Operations
Operations as a business function cover all the stages taken in developing a product or providing a service. This is the department that ascertains the quality of the product or service you put out to your customers meets (or even better, exceeds) acceptable standards. Apart from quality assurance, other activities under operations include production or development, procurement of raw materials, managing stock, and other day-to-day activities that keep the business running and making money.
Many times this is where “kinks” can happen: money or time can be wasted and customers can become unhappy with your product or service. Strong leadership within your operations functions will turn your entire company into a winning team. Make sure you’re empowering team leads and having regular full team meetings where everyone is able to have a seat at the table.
Feeling shaky in this area? A good Business Consultant like Tonya Sowles can help, or if you’re more of a DIY type of person, there are a ton of great books on building strong leadership which leads to a strong company and improves overall management from an operations perspective. One of our personal favorites is Dare to Lead by Brené Brown. If you’ve got a favorite, we’d love to know what it is!
Marketing
The marketing department is concerned with presenting and positioning your business in a way that makes it appeal to your target audience. A product of market research and internally engineered efforts, the marketing function of your company is your channel for interacting directly with your customers. It enables you to remain abreast of your customers’ needs and also promote your company’s products or services.
Marketing is more than just posting to social media or sending out an email newsletter to your list. In order to be effective in these activities, there is a lot of groundwork that needs to be done.
Marketing carries out a variety of activities during the different stages of product and customer cycles, including: market research, advertising, promotion, selling products, and after-sales services.
So, as you start your marketing engine this year, remember to include all aspects. Through marketing, you can observe market trends and find out how your products or services are performing, both as solutions for your customers and also when pitted against your competitors.
As you identify trends or performance, be ready to adjust your sails so that your sales reach your goals.
Talk to us!
Did you know that your website touches all of your business functions? Of course, it should drive sales and leads (Finance and Marketing), and sell the product that the Operations department oversees. But it can also be used as an effective recruiting tool. Some businesses also create a “members only” area of their site as an employee resource area – providing them access to all the various documents they need.
With a well-thought-out website, the online aspect of your business is in full sync with your core business functions, giving you time to focus on more ways to improve your business.
At Design by Kiltz, we understand the importance of having efficient systems rolling for your business, which is why we have well-designed web solutions to support all your business needs. We pride ourselves in making sure your website serves your business at full capacity, taking each of your visions and converting them into reality. We don’t use “cookie cutters”, but put together a package that covers your unique needs. Whether it is only web design, or inclusive of web hosting, web maintenance, marketing and SEO, we’re here to “take care of you online”!
Your Online Partner… for Success
Now more than ever you need a website that is more than a pretty business card. You need one that has its sleeves rolled up and working for you. We’re here to make sure your website is working just as hard as you are. Take advantage of a free 30-minute session with Christy to explore ways to take your site to the next level.