How To Achieve Revenue Growth x 10 – And Survive Scale Up

Revenue Growth

When it comes to revenue growth, our Chairman Colin Mills says the best advice he ever received for doubling the size of a business starts with making a list. 

1. List the top 20 actions that could increase your revenue x 10 

1. Identify the top 3 options  

1. Concentrate on those 3 for the next year 

 So let’s say you’re a $4million business. Spend a few hours listing out the 20 things you could do to turn this into a $40million business over the next 12 months. This will force you to think outside the box and away from small incremental changes you can make. 

I suggest you then spend another hour or so considering the Top 3 activities. These will be the activities that are most likely to get you towards your goal of $40m. 

You then have the top 3 activities to focus on over the next 12 months that may well enable you to double your turnover. 

For each of those top 3 activities, develop clear action plans on how you are going to achieve results. 

That, he says, is how you achieve significant growth – if you set out clear, realistic plans for each of your top three, working with your management team. And make sure you identify and mitigate any risks.  

But scaling up brings its own challenges 

It’s great seeing your revenue rise but fast growth sometimes gives you growing pains. We wrote a blog about the 6 basics you need to have sorted to grow a company successfully, which are: 

1. A clear, well-thought-out vision shared with everyone  
2. Goals that translate into growth strategies 
3. Top-performing talent, either employees or outsourced 
4. Systems for attracting and retaining good clients 
5. An understanding of the hazards when you scale too fast 
6. A strong focus! Backed by objective advice from an expert 

 A part-time CFO might well be that expert for you. We helped Bellrock Broking identify their key success factors and get everyone on the same page, feeling motivated to achieve those objectives. 

 As Managing Director Mark Chiarella told us in his video testimonial “I feel organised and [confident] that the priorities of the business are in order.” 

Not to forget, the 2 Cs! 

 On top of those 6 basics, there are two more we need to mention. 

 Your company’s capability and capacity to deal with revenue growth. 

 If workloads go up, orders go up and costs go up, will your business systems, technology, infrastructure and people cope? Can you still deliver on time? Will performance suffer? This blog goes into more detail. 

 It’s likely you’ll need to do some planning and organise some funding to get your ducks in a row. Our client, music reporting specialists Soundmouse, had a serious growth spurt over one year. One of our CFOs helped them raise money so they could be more comfortable in that rapid growth.  

 “Knowing the numbers helps everything. It builds confidence, happiness – and as a result, more money,” says Soundmouse founder Kirk Zavieh. 

 That’s a lot to take in. 

 You’re right, it is a lot. And it requires some objective thinking. 

 One of the toughest challenges for owners of SMEs especially is to be able to stand back, look at your business through a wide-angle lens and identify what it is you really have. Especially when you’re being distracted by the day-to-day of your business.  

 That’s why there’s real benefit in using a qualified CFO as a sounding board, whether they’re an internal hire or a part-time resource from CFO Centre. They can help you make better decisions, take advantage of golden opportunities – and turn revenue growth dreams into plans. 

 Contact The CFO Centre about a free 60-minute discovery session. Or head to the website for more tips.  

 

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