For some businesses the festive season is the busiest time of the year. For others, things slow down to the point of shutdown, or it remains the same except for disruptions of public holidays and closed suppliers.
The key to a successful festive season for all of these businesses is planning, says Heslé Labuschagne, Area Manager for Business Partners Limited in Cape Town. Planning for downtime might seem unnecessary to many business owners, but the way in which an operation winds down makes a huge difference to the efficiency with which it starts up. And if a review of the year’s ups and downs and a thinking ahead to the new year can be built into the downtime, it might just be one of the most productive things a business owner can do.
The best time for businesses to look ahead is the quietest period of the year. If, on the other hand, the festive season is your busiest time of the year, the need to plan for it is self-evident, yet surprisingly few business owners go through a proper planning process. This is partly because many business owners feel they have no time for planning. Or it may be because “planning” feels too much like a corporate exercise, ill-suited to the intuitive style of owner-managed businesses.
But planning is any form of systematic thinking about the future, says Heslé. It helps to write some stuff down and to look at the business numbers in a spreadsheet, but it does not require any corporate PowerPoint slides or any hefty documentation.
Instead, Heslé recommends a simple framework to order your thoughts: Think of the period ahead as a road-trip that you’re going on, and follow the basic steps just as you would if you were planning a journey by car:
- Start with your previous trips: If it’s a repeat trip that you’re planning, your most important source of information that you’ll be using for your preparation will be your previous experience. Likewise, tap into your experience over your last festive season. What can you learn from the levels of your sales, advertising, supplies, staff and resources of last year? What worked and what didn’t? Review it and adjust it with changes in the market that you’ve seen over the last year.
What if it’s only your first or second festive season? Just as you would check TripAdvisor online for the experiences and comments from others who had undertaken the journey, gather as much information as you can from peers and associates in your industry on what to expect.
- Check in with your fellow travellers: In business, you will be travelling along with your clients, suppliers and staff. Make sure they are on board. Listen carefully to what they need and communicate clearly so that they know what to expect. For example, let everyone know if your turnaround time lengthens because of an increase in orders. Or if you are shutting down completely for a week or three, make sure the dates are posted on your marketing channels.
- Is your vehicle ready for the trip?: Check the systems in your business – are all the cylinders firing? Are your staff trained and ready? Is your operational capacity really what you think it is? Are your website, ordering system, and stock levels capable of handling an increase?
- Budget for fuel: Cash flow is so important that it can be compared to the fuel that you need to get you to a destination. Check your budget, and make sure you will have enough cash to tide you over the disruptive season. If you can, line of additional sources of emergency credit in case something goes wrong. The Business Partners Limited Short-Term Finance solution might just be what the doctor ordered, if you require funds for a short-term need fast.
- Pack carefully: Check that you pack everything you need. Once the festive season starts it might be too late to find supplies and other resources. Don’t overstock either – it makes for a very uncomfortable journey.
- Prepare for setbacks: Careful travellers check their spare tyre, insurance and alternative routes before they set out. Likewise, think about what can go wrong in your business, and try to arrange back-up supplies and resources.
About the Author: BPL Admin
