Happy New Year!

This month we’re chatting about strategy and standardization, two terms that have been top of mind here at PTCFOs.

As you know, our team is 100% remote and always has been. This month, we held an in-person strategy day with most of the team. While we’ve met in-person before, this day was designed to really focus on future planning, not just day-to-day operations. I wanted to share some of the biggest takeaways from our session that I hope can help you as you work forward into 2023.

Strategy and standardization with your team.

This is the most important area, in my opinion. Without your team, nothing else works. During our session we focused on responsibilities. When you bring on people to your team, you give them a job description, but I can almost guarantee that has evolved as the team member has spent time working at the organization. They have either taken on a bigger role, provided suggestions that should be standard in that role ongoing or maybe even shifted into different responsibilities based on their strengths. Job descriptions are ever-changing. Review them, just like you would your expenses and make sure everything matches up and your team has the tools they need to perform their job with success. We spoke a lot about team morale and keeping our remote team on the same page, even though we are all on different screens. How do your employees like to learn? What does their calendar look like to help them be the most productive? Conversations with your team should be continual and it’s up to the leadership team to create the best environment and work culture for their team.

Strategy and standardization with your processes and preferences.

This would include not only the processes within your own business, but also with your clients. Everything should be documented. What does it look like when you bring on a new client? A new team member? Do you have training manuals in place for software? Security? We recently implemented a new security software that helps identify phishing and malware. How do you price your services? Invoice? What happens when an invoice isn’t paid? If every situation has a documented process attached, you and your team have the answers when they need them. I think it’s important to cross-train your team, as well. No one person should be the only one to handle certain processes. Learn from each other. That is where preferences come in. For example, I don’t like my email notifications to be on when I am working on a project, while some of my team does prefer to work that way. We have clients who prefer a text, some a call, others an email and still others in-person meetings. Some like to see printed paperwork, while others would rather view digital copies. Preferences coincide with processes.

Strategy and standardization with your goals.

Growing revenue is always one of our goals and we saw a 23% increase in our revenue last year. We onboarded 21 new clients, putting our total over 100!! I share this because I believe goals are met when the strategy behind them is solid. My role in this company is business development and I’ve spent the last year really shifting toward that and taking myself out of the numbers and spreadsheets, leaving that to my talented and exceptional team. Each goal gives you and your team the opportunity to work together and determine how that goal can be met realistically and what needs to happen for that to occur. Flexibility is always part of that. Funny story, we had to be flexible during our strategy session when our lunch order came in all wrong. Instead of focusing on such a minor problem, we had a good laugh, and ended up getting some free items in the process, so we took it as a win. Some goals won’t be flexible and that is okay, such as only bringing on ideal clients or remaining true to the values of your company above all else. Goals grow and change over time and there is always a new one on the horizon.

We also chatted about the end of year during our session and I know you have been doing the same. 2022 is closed. How did you do? Are your W2s and 1099s sent out? Did you hit the revenue goals you were expecting? Did you hire more people than you thought? Did you implement new software or processes that changed the game for the better? Did you struggle in some areas? Did you see a high rate of turnover? Did your revenue go down? What areas do you need to look at more closely in 2023?

A little suggestion from me to you: close out each month just as you would the whole year. Perform a more detailed analysis of your numbers, your expenses, your clients, your billing, etc. When you get to the end of the actual year, you will be in such a better place with a deeper understanding of your financial and business outlook. We are here if you need help in that area and we look forward to watching you grow in 2023!