Strategic Management

At some stage of running your business you are going to encounter problems.  The level of impact that they have on your business will depend to a large degree on what contingency plans you have in place to deal with them.

Strategic management is all about dealing with new situations.  You may be planning to expand your business or planning your exit strategy.  You may be launching a new product or service, or you could be facing financial difficulties with no plan on what to do next.

Problems will not just be financial.  They could be non-financial as well but have just as devastating an effect.

According to a recent report most firms have no proper plans in place to protect their assets and staff in the event of a major change or disruption to their business and this is an essential area of strategic planning that is often ignored.

Problems can be minimised before a crisis occurs, mainly through forward planning.  You will need to devise and implement everyday business procedures to minimise the chances of a crisis occurring in the first place.

You will also want to work out what you should do in particular crises so you have a ready made action plan which you can use immediately rather than having to make quick decisions in times of stress.

The important part of planning is to take time to identify the possible opportunities and crises that may affect your business.   Think through why they might occur and how they would affect you.  What would need to be done to put things right if they happen out of the blue or despite your precautions?

For example, what would you do if:

• Your premises caught fire and your equipment was damaged beyond repair?

• A key member of the management team goes on long-term sick?

• Your competitor goes out of business and you have a great opportunity to quickly step in?

• Your IT system is affected by a computer virus and your customer database or financial information is deleted?

• Your biggest customer defaults on payment causing severe cash flow problems?

It is absolutely essential that you have some form of strategic or contingency management plan which can be put into action as soon as a crisis occurs.

Le Marinel Consulting can help by working through the potential sources of opportunity and crisis that could affect your business and help you develop a Strategic Management Plan which gives you peace of mind and sensible business procedures to follow which have already been tried and tested.

We're always happy to talk through options and solutions which will put your business in a position of strength, so contact us now for more information.