Organisational Development | Teik Oh

Financial Understanding starts with the Chart of Accounts

Oct 10 2014

We are about to discuss accounting matters.

Hey, don’t click past, it really is important!

Well yes, a little boring too, but sometimes you need to get into the detail of the boring to get the information you need in order to do all the glamorous stuff like building a vibrant business. In fact often you need to get into details to make sure your product or service delivers its promise. Think of a mechanic – no point creating a culture of caring for the customer if your mechanics fail to bleed the brake valves every time. Or a lawyer who’s innovative and really digs deep for the client – not proofreading and the typos will get him every time.

So, one of the crucial (boring) details in any business is the accounting. You can hire a tax accountant at the end of the year; you can hire a once a week book-keeper; you can even employ a full time accounts-person and buy an expensive accounting software system; but the decision about some detail must lie with you and while you should take some of their advice, you need to decide on some key elements of your books.

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3 things ANY small business can do to grow

Sep 30 2014

There are many small business owners reading this, and they have probably read my earlier posts on business improvement and said “that’s not for me, I’m just a grinder, grinding away day to day in my small business”.

I’m thinking of Dave the floor sander who did the new floorboards at my house. I’m also thinking of Adam the housepainter who did such a good job on my house and Brad the electrician who comes over anytime I call him. These are all hard working small business owners who employ anything from none to 5 people, organising their work procedures, their finances and their people as best as they can, where every day is a busy day just “doing the stuff”.

If you are one of them you are probably thinking that all this “strategy advice stuff” is not for you. And yet, every time I talk to Dave, and Adam and Brad, they are always willing to talk about their latest ideas, about how they improved sales by getting a telephone answering service, about how once a year they take their staff inter-state to watch a football game as a reward and to build team spirit, about how they sit down together to work out priorities during the day. Dave and Adam and Brad are doing this “strategy advice stuff” without realising it because what they are doing is not couched in the language or the texts of Harvard Business School or a suit-wearing consultant like me, out to impress. They are using their experience and their common sense “doing the day to day stuff”.

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6 Things to do before you start your own business

Sep 25 2014

So you want to start your own business?

If you are like all small business people, you have decided to start your small or kitchen table business because of factors such as being your own boss and all that picture entails. Today, this seems even more possible due to the technology that you can use from home or a shared space that allows you to keep costs down in comparison to a bricks and mortar business.

While there are even government websites encouraging you (there’s one that has a header “Open for Business: Simple, Fast, Easy) headlines still exist that shout out nearly 80% of businesses close within 18 months of starting – and you can bet most of these are micro, small, kitchen table businesses. Read More

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You must know detail about your business

Aug 25 2014

I have worked with clients on their businesses and when asked about some detail like ” what profit margin do you make on that product” or “how many hours do your people work on average”, they don’t know.

Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not talking about micromanagement here – I am a firm believer in systems and procedures and a living vision that explain to team members what they do, how they should do it, and why they should do it, leaving you to concentrate on strategic matters that have impact.

However, you do need to know, nay, must know, the detail of your business model and your business functions.

When I was in my thirties, my mother developed terminal cancer and I looked after her palliative care at home because she wanted to die at home. I was assisted by an effective tertiary care medical system – home nurses, oncology visits, medical equipment supplied and so on. Her GP was also mine and once he asked me what medication she was getting and I replied “I don’t know, some large white pills that the oncologist prescribed” thinking that was the affair of professionals whom I had delegated professional care to. My GP looked me in the eye and said:-

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A Branding Opportunity – Hit or Miss?

Jul 30 2014

Here’s something that just happened to me, which I think is a branding opportunity gone amiss, and only somewhat recovered. I am doing home renovations and have to have 2 sensors of the home alarm disconnected, and booked a technician for today (the last day before work starts). I’m waiting and no technician arrives, so I phone the alarm company. I explain the situation.

Alarm: I rang and left a message saying the tech couldn’t come today….

Me: Where did you call?

Alarm: Your home phone.

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Increase your sales through a highly focused marketing plan!

SMART Marketing: In this book, the owners of a small business are led through the SMART Marketing 7 Step Process to produce a marketing plan targeted at their most desirable customers. Any business can use these principles and in 4 to 6 weeks implement a plan to get them through the door! Find out how...

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Category - Organisational Development

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Financial Understanding starts with the Chart of Accounts

3 things ANY small business can do to grow

6 Things to do before you start your own business

You must know detail about your business

A Branding Opportunity – Hit or Miss?