In this series of blogs, we will address some of the issues faced by growing owner managed businesses in the brave new world of the UK leaving the EU.
What the future holds remains uncertain, however there’s steps you can take to ensure your business is ready to adapt where and when it needs to. Following on from ‘Seizing the Opportunities of Brexit – Parts 1 & 2’, this Insight will focus on more possible opportunities and solutions for growing businesses.
Who do you know
To quickly understand and act upon changes to customer needs, or to find new opportunities, who you know can be vital.
In order to discover information not yet in the public domain, challenge yourself to dramatically extend your network of usual contacts. How to engage influencers, decision makers or collaborators varies by sector and your level of available resources, however expanding your professional peer group to include people outside of your sector, region or even generation can open doors to innovative ways of thinking and may provide many new opportunities.
North East Growth Hub has an extensive list of networking events listed as well as being an access portal for a wide variety of business support.
What you don’t know
Exploring cutting edge ideas or even business best practice is another means of getting fit for the next business challenge. There’s some great free information available at websites, blogs and seminars hosted by the banks, accountants and law firms. For more specific information, ICAEW qualified accountancy firms will provide smaller businesses a free consultation with a senior professional.
The local universities are another hotbed of knowledge with several low cost or possibly free ways you can tap into their expertise. This could be through a Knowledge Transfer Partnership or hosting an intern, placement student or new graduate. NEL has over the years benefited repeatedly by working with the local universities to increase our knowledge base.
Develop your skills
Steering a business requires leadership and strategy, as well as fresh thinking. When did your thoughts last get a spring clean? Your change management, strategic thinking, people skills or productivity might benefit from a refresh. To steal the lines of a colleague, even the very best like Rory McElroy and Andy Murray work with coaches. Many business leaders feel isolated and could benefit from some peer-to-peer support provided by business coaches and mentors, or organisations such as the Entrepreneurs Forum.
If you want to invest in using your existing or new knowledge to grow your business, contact us us with your growth plan and see if we can make it happen.
For more insights into growing a business see our website.