Business Coach #hack1

Imagine this scenario. A leading CEO sits across from you in the middle of a strategic meeting designed to take his 50+ staff business to the next level. He is excited as you map out the possibilities and how the journey could unfold. Then a telephone call comes in. He turns slightly to take the call and proceeds to listen to a junior member of staff who has an invoicing issue with a client. The CEO gives instructions to him on how to re-invoice the client. Ten minutes later, the CEO returns to the last few minutes of your scheduled meeting. His energy is somewhat harried and he gives you breeze about all the invoicing and other small details he has to focus on. The meeting comes to an end and you must schedule another meeting. Essentially, money and time is lost.

How many business leaders, find themselves straddling between working “on” the business and working “in” the business (the “day to day”)? We are sure many feel that just when they finally get a moment to think about the future of the business they are leading and where they want to take it, they are pulled back into the trenches. If hindsight was 20/20, what should they do differently? Let someone else answer the ringing phone about invoicing? The answer is “Yes”. This particular Hack is about understanding the right mix. Where are they spending their time? Is it making their business money or costing the business money?

A Shirlaws Business coach has a simple process for determining where they spend their time. We call it: Red, Blue, Black. Contextualizing the three core areas of a Business into Infrastructure (costs), Revenues (revenues generated this year) and Strategy (future growth). This creates thinking more contextually about where the business should focus and what support each area may need rather than focusing on every little task in the business. When you link it to our Stages Framework you can determine where the client “should” be spending their time based on where the business is on its journey. We explain more about our Stages Framework in a later Hack so be sure to check back. For now, we want to help create some awareness around the current snapshot of a business.

Here are the three Contextual Areas of Business:

• Red: This area is often called Business Support or Infrastructure. It covers all of the essential business activities and functions which are non-revenue generating. Human resources, accounting and IT would be examples.
• Blue: This area is often called Business Operations or Revenue. It covers all of the business activities that will produce revenue within the next year. Marketing, sales, and client delivery are all obvious examples.
• Black: This area is often called Business Management or Strategy. It covers all of the business activities that are aimed at building the business in the future to increase its equity value. Channels to market, product extension, joint ventures and strategy planning are all examples.

The Red, Blue, Black framework enables a coach to quickly get an idea of gaps, potential losses and assets to leverage for an increase in revenue today and future growth. In the example above with the CEO and the invoicing issue, the CEO started spending some time in the Black/Strategy area by focusing on building a strategy for the future of the business, only to be pulled back into the Red/Infrastructure area. Given the CEO’s skills and experience, in simple terms, the business overpaid him to fix a simple invoicing issue. The business lost more than money, it lost time and a potential opportunity for future growth by having to wait for the next scheduled meeting.

It is important to note that at different stages of a business (the Stages framework to come in the next hack) spending certain amounts of time in each area of the business is important and essential for future growth. The example of the CEO was just one person in the business. It is useful to know what other board members and employees are spending their time on.

For your own coaching business, consider the following:

• Do you know where, as a decision maker, you spend your time most? For deeper clarity, map your diary over the next week and find out whether Red, Blue or Black has your focus.
• Do you know where you “should” be spending your time to maximize growth? Would joining the Shirlaws Network answer those questions?

I hope you enjoy the exploration which will allow you to become aware of your current activity. This is the first step in fine tuning your business to enhance your growth strategy. Email me your findings or come to one of our matching events to learn more about becoming a Powered By Shirlaws coach .