Some golden rules need to be followed for sustained growth in a business
There are no short cuts to prosperity in business. Those who retain the trust of their customers are the ones who grow and sustain their business. Ensuring a holistic growth plan is also equally important for a successful business venture. Here’s how you can make sure that these objectives are met.
Don’t compromise on price: Never cut costs to rake in orders as it is not a good practice. It’s better to say, “No” to orders for which the customers are prepared to pay too little. Delivering nothing is better than quoting low and compromising on the quality of your product.
Be transparent with your clients: There is a strong correlation between long term business success and long term customer relationships. Ensure transparency and honesty in dealings with your clients. It is always smart to admit mistakes and move forward with improvements.
Financial credibility is important: One of the ways to succeed as an entrepreneur is by creating confidence and trust among your lenders, investors and shareholders. Most entrepreneurs are so focused on the marketing, selling and the operations side of their businesses that they end up neglecting the financial side. So, in order to build credibility in the market, make sure you have a sound financial management system.
Empower your employees: Assemble the best people into your business and empower them. As a leader of an organisation, your role is to encourage and support the decision making environment, to give employees the tools and knowledge they need to make their own decisions and act upon them. By doing this, you empower your employees to achieve their full potential.
Gain trust of your buyers: Follow the WWPIWWG rule, which simply means, ‘What we promise is what we give.’ This will make you a dependable partner. If you live up to the expectations of your customers, they would not bother about the prices offered by your competitors as it is the trust and dependability that matters to them.
Plan for backward integration: Backward integration is a strategy employed to increase profits and gain greater control over the manufacture of a product by purchasing or building a business that will increase its own supply capability or lessen its cost of production. The advantages of backward integration include assured pricing, quality and availability of supplies, apart from the efficiencies gained from coordinating the production of supplies to keep pace with their consumption.
Go for strategic inorganic growth: Inorganic growth takes place through mergers and acquisitions, whereas business expansion with the help of the business’ core competencies and sales is referred to as organic growth. Choosing the inorganic route is often seen as a faster way for a company to grow compared to organic growth. Firms that choose to grow inorganically can gain access to new markets and fresh ideas through a successful merger or acquisition.
Treat employees as assets: Employees should be seen as assets, not expenses. Entrepreneurs should take good care of their employees by creating a workplace that does more than just improve productivity—they should aim to build a strong, vibrant organisational culture that supports the company itself.
Major contributor to this article: Kalpana Naagaraj, director, EMS operations, Micron EMS
By Nitasha Chawla
