Name:
Title:
Company:
Tel:
email:
1
How long have you been in business?
If more than a year, congratulations!
From here on, luck begins to run out and management skill becomes a
requirement. Good decisions, good planning and good execution.
Success is not an accident.
2
What products or services do you provide?
3
What were your top-line sales
in the last 12 months?
This indicates the overall size and market
share of your business.
4
What were your bottom-line
profits?
This indicates the overall ability of your business to operate, grow
and pay you in the future.
5
How many employees to do you
have?
It's good to know your sales and net
profit per employee. Acceptable ranges for sales per employee
vary by industry and size of business.
6
How many clients do you serve
on an annual basis?
It's good to know your sales and net profit
per customer. Who are your most profitable and least profitable
customers? Are there customers you are losing money on?
7
How often do you have complete financials prepared?
At least monthly
At least quarterly
Once a year, but just for taxes
Once a year for my review
Mostly paper documentation still in boxes
Many small business owners have their
financials prepared once per year with their taxes, and then just file
them away without study. A business unaware of their financial
standing can't manage it, and can't compete against competitors who
do. Business owners should be having accurate financials
prepared at least monthly.
8
How often do you study your financial reports?
At least every week
At least monthly
At least quarterly
Annually
Never, but my accountant does
Never, but I would like to know how
What are financials?
Again, to compete, you need to be studying
your financials on a regular basis and understanding what they are
telling regarding where your problems and opportunities are and what
to do about them.
9
How do you use your financial statements to make decisions?
For most, if not all decisions
For most decisions
For many decisions
Only for some important decisions
I never use them to make decisions
What are financials?
By understanding your Balance Sheet and
Income Statement, and the the ratios derived from these two reports,
you can make better and more profitable business decisions.
10
How well do you understand your financials?
Totally, and know how to find the answers I need in them
Mostly, but have questions about some things
Somewhat, but have many questions
They are greek to me
As a business owner, it's not enough to be
an expert in providing your product or service. You must also be
the profit and growth expert for your business.
11
What is the strongest area of your business?
Marketing - finding and keeping clients
Production-providing the product or service
Accounting-Finance - managing expenses to maximize profit
Every business has three basic areas -
Accounting, Marketing and Production. It's good to know your
strengths, so that they can be capitalized on.
12
What is the weakest area of your business?
Marketing - finding and keeping clients
Production-providing the product or service
Accounting-Finance - managing expenses to maximize profit
It's good to know your weaknesses. These are areas where you
need to eliminate the weak area, delegate it to someone who is strong
in it, or get strong in it yourself.
13
Do you have clear standards of performance in key areas?
Standards are set in all key areas and reviewed often
Standards are set in some areas, but not reviewed
Not sure how to set standards
No standards set
There should be a clear standard of
performance in each key area that acts as a dashboard to manage
against on a consistent basis. We can help you set standards if
you're unclear on how to do so yourself.
14
Do you know how much it costs to make a sale?
Yes
No
Often times owners only calculate in
provision costs, and don't factor in how much it costs to initially
make the sale.
15
Do you know how much it costs to fulfill your average sale?
Yes
No
Often times owners underestimate all the
costs involved in fulfilling the order and providing the
goods/services.
16
Do you know how much your average client is worth?
Yes
No
It's important to understand how much you can spend to acquire a
client.
17
Have you ever felt more like a slave of your business than its master?
Yes
No
Owners are usually expert at providing the
product or service, but not at managing the monster their business can
become. Your own business can be a great servant, but it is an
overwhelming taskmaster if not disciplined.
18
If you stopped working, would your business stop working also?
Yes
No
It's important to learn how to grow your business beyond yourself.
Your ultimate goal should be to work your way out of a job by working
ON your business, not just IN it. Someday it should start paying
you, whether you work or not.
19
Do you know where you stand compared to your industry averages?
Yes
No
You may think you're doing well, until you
see how much better the industry average is. Our assessment will
give you the facts.
20
I would like more guidance on how to better manage my profit and growth.
Yes
No
We can help you understand where you
really are, where you can go, and how to implement the processes that
will get you there.
Based on what I've answered, I'd like a
complete assessment of my business with recommendations on how to make
it more profitable.
YES!
No,
I'd rather not know.
