Many businesses have modified their operations since the beginning of this year. Purchases are handled differently, inventories have shifted, and business models have changed just to name a few. Adapting your business model during the pandemic is a necessity to remain relevant in today’s business environment. Change and new challenges create an opportunity for growth.
“Work on your business, not in your business”: take a high-level look at your personal skills and processes and ask yourself if there is room for improvement.
- Business management skills: Can you delegate some tasks? Have an employee shadow you so they can learn new skills to complete
these tasks. This will reduce your workload so that you can attend to more pressing concerns for your business. - Organizational skills: Could a process be more efficient? While working, find what could be fine-tuned so the process runs smoothly.
- Leadership skills: Set expectations for you and your employees to follow during times of pressure and uncertainty. Be the example that you want your employees to follow.
- Decision-making skills: When making decisions about your business, make sure you are thinking objectively. Creating a clear mission statement will help you make future decisions quickly and easily.
When business is slow, take the opportunity to focus on areas that you normally do not have time to review. Spend this time looking over your website, reviewing your financials, and creating a contingency plan.
- Website: Can your customers easily access the information they need from your website? Does your website reflect your company’s brand, value, and product/services effectively? Take a moment and see how your competitors are using their websites to communicate with their customers. What is working well?
- Financial literacy: Have someone look over your bookkeeping software or spreadsheets and give you a brief report. Take time to learn how to interpret the numbers. Project your future cash flow to create a working financial plan for your business.
- Contingency plan: Has your business created an emergency plan that it can implement if there is an economic downturn or natural disaster? This may seem too late to implement but the best time to create a future plan is while the current pandemic implications are fresh in your mind.
If you need business training and/or support, the UMW Small Business Development Center provides a variety of training opportunities so you can continually adapt your business to the current business climate.
Take a look at recorded webinars offered by the VSBDC that will contribute to new learning skills for you and your business.