Herding catsThis one is my second favorite term, after green weenie. Herding cats is a tough chore. In business, it translates as managing a group of people that are hard to control or direct. Imagine trying to keep dozens of cats all headed in the same direction focused on the same results. I first heard it applied during a discussion of a consolidation of a bunch of mom-and-pop salvage yards. The owners stayed on. They all had their own ideas of how to run the consolidated business.
Though not technically wrong, as most of them had been successful managers, they held sharply different ideas on running the business. Following the consolidation, each previous owner continued running his operation as a freestanding unit and resisted standard practices and directives issued from headquarters. Now that would be a CEO's herding nightmare!
The term can also mean trying to direct employees who don't work well together. My favorite use of the term, however, came in a memo about private stock placements. A decision was needed on whether to offer $1 million either in $250,000 shares to four investors or in $10,000 shares to 100 investors. Investors always have their own ideas about how things should be done, what went wrong and how you could have done better. Each will want to have his or her hand held and get regular progress reports. The business decided that if you're going to herd cats, four is much easier, so he turned down all the small investors. Herding 100 shareholders is impractical, if not impossible, and will definitely drive one crazy.
Herding cats
an illustration by Gahan Wilson from Ron's Book "Green Weenies and Due Diligence"
Strategic Business Planning: Hard Alone, Easy Together
Strategic Business Planning - Raising Money - Reference Letters - Contact Ron
Business Mentoring Groups
If you're running a small business without a strategic plan, you're not alone. Most entrepreneurs haven't done their strategic business planning. They're busy trying to get more business and take care of their existing customers.
Putting a well-thought out strategic business plan together isn't easy, but it is the single most valuable step that any small business owner can take.
If you want to be more successful over the long haul, you need to invest time in sound strategic planning for your business.
Ron Sturgeon has built several multi-million-dollar businesses from scratch and helped his consulting clients create winning strategic plans in an assortment of industries. He's a master at strategic planning for business.
Whether you are just beginning your strategic planning or you need to sharpen and refine your existing strategic plan, you should get expert help.
Strategic Business Planning for Small Business Owners
Individualized Strategic Planning for Small Businesses - Whether you want an objective view of a strategic business plan or help building one from scratch, Ron Sturgeon has over 30 years experience in helping small businesses create powerful strategic plans.
He can meet with you or your team of professionals in person at your offices or in Fort Worth, TX, at his.
Strategic Business Planning Groups
Strategic Business Planning Groups - As a person who has been an active participant in industry associations, Ron knows the value of exchanging ideas with non-competitive business owners running businesses in the same industry or closely related industries.
"Doing strategic business planning with 5-8 non-competitive entrepreneurs from the same industry really produces some of the best strategic business planning," says Mr. Mission Possible.
By attending a Mr. Mission Possible strategic planning group, you'll get ideas that have been tried and work in your industry! Typically, these group strategic planning sessions last a full day.
The principals of non-competitive new car dealerships have gathered to do group strategic planning and discuss financials and operating metrics for many years. These car dealership strategic planning groups are called 20 groups.
Car dealers have done 20 group strategic planning workshops for decades because they are a highly effective form of strategic business planning.
Strategic Planning Groups Using Big and Easy Analysis: Another type of strategic planning seminar offered by Ron Sturgeon will help evaluate the initiatives you're planning to undertake for the coming year. With a small group of other business owners and mangers, you will share your top initiatives.
Using Big and Easy analysis, your strategic business plans will be evaluated, prioritized, and refined. It's amazing how often someone has done what you are considering. Their insights often save you time and money and improve the probability of success. Business owners leave these groups with their initiatives vetted and prioritized.
Even in the toughest economy, some businesses prosper.
Mostly, they're owned by entrepreneurs who have used the best strategic planning tools and execute. Put your business in that group. Call Ron at 817.834.3625 and join a Mr. Mission Possible strategic business planning group.