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Business development insights and tips from PricewaterhouseCoopers, on what it takes for entrepreneurs to succeed in the current economic climate:
I think to be successful you have to have something unique. That doesn’t necessarily need to be the product or service that you’re providing. It could mean the way that it’s delivered. And i think that delivery is absolutely essential in the current environment, in terms of actually maximising that customer satisfaction – that experience that the customer has in term s of what they’re receiving from you.
With very entrepreneurial businesses and strong entrepreneurs that are leading them, financial literacy is second to almost the flair, the creativity in the business. What we find is that when the business reaches a certain capacity. And especially when, maybe external financing is required, the actual providers of that finance are very insistent on making sure that there is that financial rigour, that financial literacy around the business. So at some stage, it does actually become a pre requisite and it actually can inhibit the business from growing if it’s not in place
I don't think people running a business don't need to be accountants. They don't need to understand all the ins and outs of accountancy and finance. But they have to have a good grasp of numbers, a good grasp of whether or not they're making a profit. How much cash they've got at any point in time. Understanding what a basic P and L and balance sheet looks like. Understanding what their cost base is, what their fixed costs are, what their variable costs are, and what their profit per customer is. So having a good grasp of finance is important, but you don't need to be a qualified accountant to do that.
A lot of businesses have a huge amount of information that is produced weekly, monthly. And just sits there either on the hard drive or in hard copy on the desk. So making sure, what your key metrics are in terms of measuring success. But also, what are the key metrics in terms of operational efficiencies as well. And actually, that could be just a handful – that could be literally four or five key metrics. And they’re the ones to actually focus on. I think then, in terms of as the business evolves, they are the ones to focus on. I think then, in terms of, as the business evolves, it’s making sure that the measures and the way that data is collected is in line with the business as well. So that you’re measuring the right thing, especially when you’re going down new product lines or new markets.
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