Unlocking Business Growth: How Data Drives Smart Decisions

As a business consultant, I've seen countless companies struggle due to one critical factor: lack of business insights. In today's information age, data is the lifeblood of any successful organization. You will likely collect tons of information if you have a CRM or a POS system. Unfortunately, collecting all this information is only helpful if you have a process for converting the information into actionable insights. The ability to collect, synthesize, and find insights from customer data is one of the most significant competitive advantages a company can build.

Why is good data so important?

Good data is important because it allows you to make informed decisions. Imagine making crucial business decisions based on guesswork or hunches. Not ideal, right? Good data provides insights into customer behavior, market trends, and operational performance. These insights allow businesses to make confident decisions backed by evidence, not just intuition.

I recently worked with the owner of a print shop looking to grow their sales. The first thing we did was look at his current roster of customers, identify who was generating the most revenue, and then develop a strategy to attract more clients like that customer. You can only analyze your data in this way if you have a solid system for tracking sales by customer.

How does good data help with strategy?

Good data is necessary to develop good insight, which is needed to create a good strategy. Data helps businesses identify opportunities and minimize risks. By analyzing customer demographics, purchasing patterns, and competitor activity, companies can tailor their strategy to target the right customers, develop effective marketing campaigns, and stay ahead of the curve. One of the most challenging decisions a company must make is where it wants to be located.

I recently worked with a baker looking to open her first brick-and-mortar location. We discussed variables such as population, demographics, existing businesses, traffic drivers, and the likelihood of people outside the select area visiting the potential locations she was considering. Analyzing this data allowed us to develop a hypothesis around where we believe her business would be most successful. 

How does data analysis help improve efficiency?

Analyzing your data can help you to identify operational efficiency: Good data can reveal inefficiencies and bottlenecks within your organization. Businesses can streamline processes, optimize resource allocation, and improve efficiency by analyzing sales figures, production costs, and employee performance data.

Last year, I was working with the owner of a marketing company who was looking for a way to grow her earnings. After a detailed data review, we identified that she was spending too much time on activities she could hire someone else to do. By investing in adding additional labor, the owner was able to free up her time to acquire additional customers. While her earnings went down in the short term due to the extra payroll, she quickly grew overall profitability because she had more time to network and attract new business. 

Summary

Running a business is tough. It is even more difficult when you do not have good data or a method for converting your data into insights. Taking the time to ensure that you are collecting good data, analyzing it, and developing insights will enable you to improve your business's efficiency and profitability. 

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Thank you for reading this blog

As an executive coach and small business consultant, I guide small business owners and business professionals in achieving their professional and business goals.

Whether you want to start, transform, or improve your business or career, I can help you magnify your strengths, minimize weaknesses, identify threats, and take advantage of opportunities.

Let's talk about your goals.

Have Feedback  Send me a note at

Email: dcunion@yourpathexecutivesolutions.com

The Secret Weapon of Retail Store Success: Healthy Store Culture and Happier Employees

Last year, a client came to me with a problem. He was frustrated because his retail store was not performing as well as he wanted. Despite his efforts to drive higher levels of accountability within his retail stores, he felt that little progress was being made around improving cleanliness, organization, and customer service. He would often have conversations with employees about job assignments. They would address the items he talked with them about but put in no extra effort to address other problems in the store that were visible and impacting customer satisfaction. He came to me seeking a way to transform the culture within his stores.

We spent some time talking about his current approach. On a typical day, he would walk into the store, observe job assignments that had not been completed, and challenge the employees on why they were not getting more done. He would do this before saying hello, asking employees how they were doing, or acknowledging any progress they made since his last visit.

This conversation prompted me to ask the store owner, 

"How do you want your employees to feel when interacting with you?". 

After some thought, the owner said he would like them to feel motivated after interacting with him. He talked about his previous experience as an employee and how he worked hardest when he had a good relationship with his boss. He shared that his relationship with his boss was based on trust earned over time because his boss genuinely showed care and respect for him and the rest of his teammates. With this insight, we crafted a new approach to engaging with employees.

Four actions to improve retail store culture.

1. He brought civility to the workplace. Instead of the owner coming in and jumping straight into business, I encouraged him to take things slower. He began to say hello to employees, ask them how their days were going, and about their families and life outside of work.

2. He began to recognize small wins. Instead of focusing on all of the things the employees did not get done, he started to thank them for the small improvements they were making. The employees began to feel more appreciated and took more pride in completing tasks.

3. He started to delegate more responsibilities to his manager. Instead of being the primary person holding employees accountable, he began to have more conversations with his manager about store performance and the manager's role in ensuring that employees were completing tasks.

4. He invested time in training employees how to execute tasks to his expectations. When he observed that job assignments were not being completed to his expectations, he would check with the employees to understand if they knew the best way to complete the task. He would teach them how to complete the task efficiently and effectively if they did not.

The impact of happier employees.

These simple behavioral changes lead to cultural change within the store. Over the course of four months, the owner reported that the overall feel of the store changed. Employees seemed

• happier to come into work

• improved their execution of job duties

• began to greet the owner by showing him what they had accomplished while he was gone

This change happened without the owner having to fire any employees or implement special incentives. He was able to start store culture change by

• treating the employees with more dignity and respect

• demonstrating appreciation for small wins

• empowering his employees to take more responsibility for store conditions

• ensuring they were adequately trained

By changing how he interacted with his employees, the owner was able to transform the culture within the store, which led to improved customer experience and higher sales.

Summary

Being a store owner is challenging. It is especially difficult when the employees who work for you are not motivated to perform at a high level. One of the secrets to success as a business owner is to manage your employees based on their potential. Your employees are capable of exceeding your expectations when you provide the resources and environment they need to thrive. Just like a rose will not grow with proper water, soil, and sunlight, your employees need direction, training, and positive reinforcement if they are going to reach their potential. The time you dedicate to building a great organizational culture will unlock the potential of your employees and organization.

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Thank you for reading this blog

As an executive coach and small business consultant, I guide small business owners and business professionals in achieving their professional and business goals.

Whether you want to start, transform, or improve your business or career, I can help you magnify your strengths, minimize weaknesses, identify threats, and take advantage of opportunities.

Let's talk about your goals.

Have Feedback  Send me a note at

Email: dcunion@yourpathexecutivesolutions.com

How to Make New Year's Resolutions that Stick: 3 Questions to Ask Yourself.

Are you planning on making New Year’s resolutions? Around 37% of Americans typically say they make New Year’s resolutions. This year, Forbes reported that fitness is the most common goal, with improving mental health and finances being the second and third most common resolutions. If you are looking to change jobs or start a business, there are a few questions you should ask yourself before making a New Year’s Resolution.

Why is this resolution important? 

The first question you should ask yourself is why this resolution is important.  In Simon Sinek’s book Start with Why, he explains how tapping into your why can help you find the motivation to do difficult things. Around 8% of people typically give up on their New Year’s resolutions within the first month of making them. Being grounded on why making a change is important can help you keep your resolution. I recently worked with a retail business owner looking to establish better boundaries with his employees. We discussed how establishing better boundaries would help him improve his relationships at home and give him more time to do things he enjoyed. He could push past discomfort and set better workplace boundaries by grounding himself in the anticipated benefits.

 

Who will support you in making this change?

The second question you should ask yourself is who will support you in making this change. In Professor Kay Milkman’s book How to Change, she talks about how important it is to have the right people around you when you are trying to change. One of the first questions I ask business owners looking to improve their business is who around them challenges them to evolve and grow. The people we interact with influence our expectations, thinking, and actions. When you spend time with peers, mentors, advisors, consultants, or coaches who can provide insight, guidance, role modeling, and support, you increase the likelihood of achieving your goals.

How will you position yourself for success? 

The third question you should ask yourself is how will you position yourself for success? In management consultant Jim Collins’ book Great by Choice, he tells of the importance of pacing yourself. He shares the wisdom of moderating effort to ensure that you can make consistent progress towards your goal. For example, last year, I worked with a consultant looking to increase their business through social media marketing. They were putting so much pressure on themselves to post every day that they hated to think about social media and would hardly ever post. We redefined the definition of good. Instead of setting the standard of good as posting 7 days a week, we aligned that posting at least once a week for a month would be good. By establishing a more realistic goal, he was able to reduce the stress related to social media posting. Eventually, he was able to work up to posting 3 to 4 times a week.  

Committing to resolutions can be challenging.  Applied Neuroscience Psychologist Dr. Hela Boschi states that our brains are wired to love routines and avoid uncertainty. Whenever you try to establish a new habit or make a life transition, you fight against learned behaviors, emotional triggers, and inertia. To overcome this, it is essential to start small, be grounded in why change is important, and seek out help from others. So, make your resolution, but also take the time to develop a plan and seek the support you need to achieve your resolution goal.

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