“In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing.” (Theodore Roosevelt)

The scale of economic change in the last few of years has forced many business owners to assess the way they operate and pushed them towards considering new process and technology to improve efficiency and productivity.

But still, despite recognising the need to invest, many business owners are still reluctant to make a decision

The impact of doing nothing

The safe option is always to ‘do nothing’. We all use a multitude of reasons why not to do things, mostly we use the excuse of not having enough time or money.

But what will happen if you choose to do nothing?

When a business finds ways of doing something that works particularly well, they stop searching for alternatives. But these established processes can become rigid, and people follow the process not because it continues to be effective or efficient but because it’s well known and comfortable.

The world around us is constantly changing and the impact of Covid has dramatically accelerated this rate of change. Pre-February 2020, very few businesses used Zoom or Teams for client meetings, now very few don’t.

Companies that do not change and invest in new technology will see the gradual loss of efficiency and effectiveness and can risk:

1: Losing Customers

If it is easier for your customers to buy from your competitors, then your customers will move. Companies that deliver a streamlined customer experience through better use of technology are the ones that are succeeding in this new world.

2: Losing staff

To retain your best people, your Team need to feel valued, challenged and motivated. If they perceive that their employer lacks ambition and is not prepared to adapt and invest in new technology to improve, then they are more likely to look for an employer that does. This problem can be further compounded by the staff that choose to stay, as they are likely to be the ones content within their comfort zone and happy to maintain minimum standards of performance.

3: Reduced profit

If your staff are constantly dealing with workarounds and fixes for ineffective systems and processes, they are not spending time on activities that are more likely to generate revenue and profit. If time is being wasted due to lack of investment to improve process, then you are wasting cash and reducing your profit potential.

What are your options?

1. Embrace and manage risk

In order to succeed, every business must respond effectively to changes in its environment. Therefore, decisions must constantly be made, and with every decision comes an element of risk. But like it or not we cannot avoid risk and the biggest danger to a business is to try and avoid risk by doing nothing.

You need to accept that risk is a part of life, and it is your role as a leader to embrace and manage risk and use it to drive growth and innovation in your business.

2. Challenge everything

A business owner must create a culture where challenging the status quo is encouraged. This means adopting a forward-thinking, growth mindset that constantly looks at ways things can be improved.

The first step is identifying how your business actually operates. What tools and processes are being used. Document and map your main processes and use these maps to interrogate their efficiency. Then look at how you can disrupt, innovate and improve. It might be through adopting new technology, or it might be using the same tools in more effective ways.

3. Review changes

Once you have identified areas of improvement, it is very important to trial and evaluate the impact of the new activity before making the decision to roll it out across the business.

For the review process to have any value, you first need to know what good looks like, to allow you measure the impact afterwards. It is often appropriate to consult with people who have travelled this road before to advise on the best course of action.

Conclusion

No one likes change. It is much easier to simply repeat what we know and be comfortable in the belief that we are good at what we do. But when your environment changes and your competitors adapt, you are putting your business at risk if you choose to do nothing.

Contact us at info@harloworx.com