SCBA Mildura Blog

CHANGE THE PEOPLE or CHANGE THE PEOPLE

2012-02-05T18:50:00.001-08:00

Are you having problems with your team. Sometimes it is a simple scenario to solve.

You can either CHANGE THE PEOPLE who work for you to operate/act in the way that you want as a business owner or manager;

OR

CHANGE THE PEOPLE to those that will operate/act in the way that you want as a business owner or manager.

You already know the right decision. You just have to act!

Cheers

Peter O'Donnell
Business Architect & Motivator

HAS SOMEONE WRITTEN A BLOG ABOUT YOUR BUSINESS??

2012-02-05T18:48:00.001-08:00

As many of you would know I am always on the lookout for a different Business Model. Recently I had the opportunity to attend a meeting in Brisbane. The hotel we stayed at was Chester's Boutique Hotel in Fortitude Valley.

There was some clear differences about this hotel including:

A rooftop bar based on an honour system.
A breakfast area that was set up like a kitchen in someone's house.
A small number of rooms (I think about 10 rooms in total).

Beyond the physical differences the service offering was a different feel. Welcoming, comfortable, safe and homely come to mind.

All up it was a very good experience and one that I will certainly take advantage of again.

Are you in a business where someone would write a blog about their experience? Surely that means you are getting it right!!

Cheers

Peter O'Donnell
Business Architect & Motivator

STRIVE FOR SUCCESS NOT PERFECTION

2012-02-05T18:46:00.000-08:00

It is easy in the world of a business to target perfection. The danger is that this idealistic outcome may come at a price too great.

" I don't want to unveil my website until it is perfect!"
" A need a new team member but I just can't get the perfect person!"
" I am not going to do the presentation until it is perfect!"

All the above might mean that you never actually get anywhere near what you need, when maybe 70% of perfect is a pretty good outcome.

Perfect is important in a life and death situation (E.g. A parachute manufacturer, Brain Surgeon, etc.). However, for most of us in business a less than perfect product or service will still achieve success.

Sometimes you need to release a less than perfect product or service and allow it to grow and evolve.
So the goal should be built around achieving a successful outcome. Perfection is often just one persons idea that might be viewed differently by others.

By the way, if your business culture believes in continuous improvement then by definition you can't ever achieve perfection. In fact, if you think you have achieved perfection in your business my advice is simple - It time to sell!!

Cheers

Peter O'Donnell
Business Architect & Motivator

Protect the brand you have worked so hard to build.

2012-01-17T13:56:00.000-08:00

Brand is often confused with logo. You can protect you logo by taking a copyright or registering it, but protecting your brand is a lot more difficult.

Your brand is your identity. It’s what you stand for and reflects the type of experience you will provide to those who have contact with you. It’s more about perception than something physical and depending on the experience you provide, can be either positive or negative.

Aligning your brand with other organisations or events that generate a positive emotional response with the public will do wonders for you. Supporting the Children’s Hospital Appeal or the Royal Flying Doctor Service is great because they are icons and the cause is worthy.

But your brand can be torn down in the blink of an eye by the smallest mistake or a careless action. Imagine a restaurant that has served great meals for years and then has one batch of bad ingredients that causes food poisoning to some of their patrons. The reporting isn’t about the years of success but focuses on one bad experience and their brand will be damaged beyond repair.

Many business owners let their employees use company vehicles after hours. This is a great incentive but must come with guidelines, especially if the vehicle carries your company logo. Parking outside a church all day Sunday may be fine, but would parking outside a hotel all day project the image you want?

Peter Harrison

Business Coach & Facilitator

True Commitment = Great Outcomes

2012-01-12T06:45:00.000-08:00

Seth Godin is a wonderful thinker. I subscribe to his blog that comes out at least once a day. I don't always read it and when I do, I don't always agree. That's what makes it such a good read. It challenges your ideas.

Recently he delivered a blog that compared the success of providing efficient tools with true commitment. His point being that regardless of how efficient you work, unless there is strong commitment it will not optimize the outcome.

Prior to Christmas as Southern Cross Advisers we set our teams targets for November and December. These were targets that had to require an increase in work to last year nearly 40%. The reward was an additional 3 days annual leave across the board.

We measured the progress daily by using an odometer graphic.

The result was that we exceeded the target by 5%!!

The lessons for me:

Make sure everyone understands the goal.
Make it a challenging target to achieve.
Shut down negativity quickly.
Update visually often.
Meet regularly to check in.
Provide a reward that will make a difference.

The challenge now is to embed this culture of commitment into the way we operate day by day. I will let you know how we get on with this.

Cheers

Peter O'Donnell

Business Architect and Motivator

Good Things come to Good People with Good Intentions

2011-12-21T19:39:00.000-08:00

Only a couple of days until Christmas!! Rather than a long winded blog about peace and goodwill to all men I came across a video on YouTube last night. The link is at the bottom of this page and you need to watch it right to the end!!

Hope you all have a wonderful Christmas, a sensational New Year and a Spectacular 2012.

MEEEERRRRRY CHRISTMAS

Peter
Business Architect & Motivator
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qc8ZbVcdHpg&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Speeding up to Christmas

2011-12-10T21:41:00.000-08:00

As we reach the last 2 weeks before Christmas it hits me that this time of year seems to get increasingly chaotic. Even in our business we have created situations where we are encouraging busy-ness and tight deadlines.

The idea is that we all want to have a 'well deserved' break without too many work issues hanging over our heads. The problem though is that the break is 'well deserved' and needed because we have crammed a lot of effort and focus into a small space of time.

Retailers look forward to Christmas as their cash cow for the year. Builders are under pressure to get houses finished by Christmas. Financiers want loans in place. Manufacturers do not want any unfinished jobs, etc etc.

As businesses we create this Christmas pressure - rightly or wrongly. It is a time to succeed, finalise and focus. Hopefully, the outcomes are great for your business at the moment and you are achieving the outcomes.

Most importantly, I hope that you get to Christmas Day ready to enjoy with family & friends.

Peter O'Donnell
Business Motivator and Architect

Effective meetings

2011-11-15T12:34:00.001-08:00

In most organisations (large or small) it is necessary to hold regular meetings because this is how the various departments share information and make sure they are working towards a common goal.

The down side is that in many cases the meetings are disorganised and become nothing more than a discussion group where the participants’ only goal is to demonstrate that they are the most knowledgeable person in the room.

Here are six simple tips to help get the most from your meetings:

Only have a meeting if you need to. Meeting for the sake of meeting is a waste of everyone’s time and the outcomes are usually reflective of this.

Appoint a chairperson. Their job is to keep the meeting on track and to the agenda.

Have an agenda and time frames. If something important is not finalised then schedule another meeting or agree to defer something from the current meeting agenda.

Send the agenda to the participants a few days before the meeting so they are aware and can prepare. Invite agenda items as well.

Always remain outcome focused. I can’t stress the importance of this enough. Conversations should only be about how you reach the outcome, beware the doomsday prophet who can talk for hours about why something isn’t working but doesn’t actually suggest what the fix could be.

Agree on actions, timeframes and responsibilities/accountability (who will do what by when).

Peter Harrison

Business Development Facilitator

What happens to Joanne

2011-11-10T15:18:00.000-08:00

I went into my local Fisher’s supermarket in Merbein on the weekend and assumed my usual indifferent shopper attitude. “Let’s just get this over and done with so I can go home”.

Having gathered my needs I proceeded to the checkout, ignoring all around me and hoping for a quick exit. I’m in luck; only a couple of people in the Express Checkout line.

As I stood waiting, I noticed something different about the young lady “Joanne” working the checkout. Instead of the monotone “how are you” associated with each customer greeting, Joanne actually seemed interested. When it was my turn to be served Joanne looked me in the eye and greeted me with a cheery “hello, how are you today?” As she processed my goods through the scanner we had a brief but pleasant conversation about not much at all, then I realised my rather dull shopping trip had actually turned into a pleasant experience.

As I was leaving I asked Joanne what she liked the best about her job. After giving me a slightly puzzled look she said the best part was getting to meet lots of people and it was usually busy and interesting.

So what happens to the Joanne’s of the world that takes them from happy and interested employees to indifferent and bored? Perhaps it’s because as employers we don’t know how to keep the “new job” excitement there for our staff. Do we spend enough time looking at ways of keeping jobs fresh and interesting for our experienced staff so they can remain enthusiastic and engaged? They were all like Joanne once.

What are you doing to make sure Joanne doesn’t disappear from your business?

Peter Harrison

Business Development Facilitator

3 Important Questions every Business Owner should ask!!!

2011-11-03T22:05:00.000-07:00

When I ask people why they are going into business invariably it is similar response - freedom, independence, control, to make money, etc. The problem is that for many all the things they desired are not achieved. In fact, on many occasions it can be the opposite.

The key to going into business is to ask yourself 3 key questions:

Are you doing something that you are passionate about?
Do you have the ability/opportunity to be the best?
Do you understand the numbers and will you make a strong return?

If you can answer affirmatively to all 3 then you have a chance to come out on top.

Cashflow Pain

2011-10-27T17:36:00.000-07:00

I often have discussions with business owners about their “cashflow pain”.

Cashflow pain occurs when you are paying more cash out than you have coming in. This is clearly a one way street and if not addressed can only lead to the inevitable outcome where you completely run out of cash.

So how do we normally deal with the pain?

Use up our cash reserve, thereby forfeiting other important purchases.
Slow down our payments to suppliers, putting our own reputation at risk.
Visit our finance provider and endure the inconvenience and expense of borrowing more cash.
Spend lots of time contacting debtors to chase up money owed, (usually the last step).
On a personal level, get stressed and frustrated which takes your focus away from running and growing your business.

In an established business you will inevitably have some clients that cause you cashflow pain. If you want to reduce your cashflow pain significantly then try these simple suggestions.

Act early and address the issue head on. Personal “face to face” contact with those causing you the most pain is the only effective solution.
Establish a realistic repayment arrangement, plus get a cheque in part satisfaction.
Any new orders are cash only until the debt is back under control.
Finally, when things are back on track make sure you and your client agree on the future payment terms and that credit will be stopped if the problem occurs again. Remember, good clients do not cause you pain.

But why not prevent cashflow pain in the first place? The best way to do this is when you win a new client. How many times do you agree on the supply terms and price you will charge for your product yet don’t discuss your payment terms?

So make sure that you reach an agreement and understanding about how you will be paid at the start, I would even go to the extent of confirming this in writing if you don’t have formal supply contracts in place. And if the payment terms are not honoured, stop credit until they are. After all, you are simply operating within your agreement.

Peter Harrison

Business Development Facilitator

Great Conversations

2011-10-26T14:44:00.000-07:00

I am not sure where I heard it first but a theme that has resonated with me for many years is surrounding Great Conversations.

The Quality of your Relationships are built on Quality of your Communication. If I was to extrapolate a little more you could say that 'great relationships will develop from great conversations that are built on great questions.'

Some 'killer' questions that we ask our clients and you could ask yourself are:

If one thing in your business had to change before Christmas what would it be?
When you lie in bed awake at night thinking about business what are you thinking about?
What are the pressures that your customers are suffering at the moment?

What you should be looking to do is to drill into what the REAL problem might be.

For example, I have recently had a client in who said that there biggest problem in their business was cashflow. (You have never really been in business unless you have suffered some cash flow crisis!!) After some further questioning the real issue is that they had not put up their prices for 4 years! The reason they had not was a feeling that they were not worth any more than what was being charged! My response was that they were talking Bull%$#@

It turned out that in comparison to competitors there was scope to increase prices by 30% which they have now done. And guess how many clients they have lost? NONE!! So the REAL problem for this business owner was not cashflow, it was their own perception and confidence in themselves.

So in your business today why don't you come up with a whole list of new questions that you might ask your customers. Some small examples might be:

FROM    Can I help you?
TO Is this the first time that you have shopped in our store?

FROM    How is business?
TO What is the best thing that you have done in the last month?

FROM    How is the weather?
TO You look a bit hot. Would you like a glass of water?

Great Questions = Great Conversations = Great Relationships = Increased Revenue

Cheers

Peter O'Donnell
Business Architect & Motivator

The Power of 30 Minutes. Avoiding Paralysis by Analysis!

2011-10-20T17:20:00.000-07:00

As we rush around our business, professional and personal lives it often strikes that we spend more time considering and worrying than doing. For those that have children as much time is spent telling your kids what to do as it takes them to do!!

It made me start to think about the power of 30 minutes and what can be achieved in that time if you focus complete attention to one task. To use the line from great AFL football coach - Allan Jeans you "DO!!! Dont think just DO!!"

So what could you do in 30 minutes? Here are a few examples:

6 phonecalls to your best customers or clients to see how they are going.
A meeting with one of your team members to see how they are going and to tell them what good things they are achieving.
Shoot some hoops with your kids.
Think about one new idea for your business. (30 minutes could see 10 new ideas!!)
A 30 minute walk to clear your head and think.
Write a blog that you have being putting off because you have no time.
Sit down and talk to your life partner.
Mow the lawn or pull some weeds to make your house look nicer.
Read something of interest and inspiration.
Plan a holiday.
Pick up that thing that has not been done and just do it quickly.

OR YOU COULD DO THE FOLLOWING:

Watch some rubbish TV.
Worry about what needs to be done.
Walk around your business and find someone doing something wrong so you can tell them off.
Tell your kids off for fighting.
Check you bank balance to see if $1m dollars has suddenly appeared.
Go to the fridge and grab a soft drink and a packet of chips.
Jump on facebook and tell someone that you are bored and your job is crap.
Make some excuses and sit on your backside doing nothing.

Why don't you make your own list. Hey you might even have 30 minutes free now!!

Peter O'Donnell
Business Architect & Motivator

Borrowing In a Self Managed Superfund

2011-09-05T22:58:00.000-07:00

Recently we have had quite a few clients contact us about borrowing in a Self Managed Superfund (SMSF). On the face of it, there seems to be quite a benefit by using gearing to create wealth. There are however important considerations that need careful review to see if borrowing in super is right for you. I thought I would share our experience that we have had with our clients.

1. You need to understand the benefits of gearing. Using borrowed funds maximises returns on investments. Gearing is to your detriment if the underlying asset value does not rise.
2. The borrowing laws pertaining to SMSF's is complex. Complexity dictates the price. The legal requirement for super borrowing are substantial and expensive. Setting up the structure from scratch can be up to $5,000. You need to understand the borrowing laws, it isn't like normal gearing scenarios for property or shares.
3. If property is you thing, you need to firstly understand the inherent risk in property investment. Then couple that with the cash flow requirements of the fund. Seek advice in the first instance. Noel Costa at our office has attended high level property courses and can advise in property as an investment. Seek knowledge and understand risk.
4. Caution. Most clients we have advised have ended up with the sole asset of the fund being property. From and early age we were drilled with diversify and spread risk. Make sure that the investment is right for you - see 4.
5. If the members of a fund are close to retirement, I seriously question whether it is appropriate to gear in super. Retirement puts a drain on cash as pensions are paid. Understand the cash flows. Also, as most SMSF's in retirement are tax free, query gearing into a tax free environment unless the fund is seriously cashed up.
6. It is common to purchase you business premises in a SMSF. How closely do you want you retirement savings linked to you business?
7. Beware of personal guarantees.

This is a snapshot of the discussions with our clients - if you are interested in borrowing in SMSF or establishing a SMSF contact our office.

Peter Hartmann
Director

Cloud Computing is here to stay.

2011-08-14T20:42:00.000-07:00

Recently Noel Costa David Gardner and I attended a conference on cloud computing. Many of our clients have been inspired by cloud computing. This now sees their accounting data stored ‘in the cloud’ and not on their personal computer. No more backups, upgrades, crashed computers to annoy them and us. All data is live and available, you just need internet. The use of programs like Xero is the start of something that is not only the latest development in personal computing, it is possible it could be the greatest. The main reason for this is it toys with the notion that we have to store our own data. Instead of storing it on our PC, we can call it up from the ‘Cloud’ anywhere – a net café, a smart phone or more practically an iPad or other branded tablet device. In June, Apple released its iCloud service. All your data will be available from the service regardless of where you are on the planet. The success of this venture is in the fact that it will be offered to users for free. The question now to ask is can I take advantage of this? And the answer is yes. Microsoft have their office suite on line available for an monthly fee – no need to in stall software or subscribe to updates. There are many other cloud based programs that can suit small and larger businesses. We at SCBA are currently researching how to build a ‘Modern Practice’ that relies on a cloud solution that will enable us to improve our business efficiencies and in turn help our clients do the same. Just ask us how.

Peter Hartmann

Director

Welcome to SCBA Social Media

2011-08-02T16:16:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the first official blog from SCBA and it is fitting that the topic of this particular blog is Social Media. Firstly I will try and answer the question – why? Why involve the firm in this? To answer this question I need to explain the history of our exposure to it. My fellow Partners & I attended the Annual Conference of our coaching group in February 2011. A speaker at the conference was Thomas Power. Thomas is an internationally renowned expert on Social Media and explained that there were nearly one Billion people using Facebook. He went on to explain that this form of Social Media was now taking over the business world. An example of this is recently statistics were revealed that more emails were sent within Facebook than via the traditional email channels fro the first time. Facebook is now used by businesses looking to recruit staff and has been used by our firm to assess candidates for prospective positions. Facebook is everywhere and like it or not, it is here to stay. So, how can it be used to help businesses like ours and yours to be better? Part of this answer is in the ‘why’.

1. Our clients use it.

2. Prospective clients use it.

3. To expose to the above what our firm is about via Social Media.

This might seem simple, but it is the ‘why’. We are not seeking to Market to clients, give taxation and coach clients, but tip our toes in the water and show nearly a billion people who we are and what we do. It can’t be that bad, can it?

SCBA have recently reworked our Website, on the site you will find links to follow us on Facebook and Twitter. Feel free to follow us and provide feedback.

Peter Hartmann - Director