It is difficult to get someone to understand something when their salary depends on them not understanding it.

DATELINE: BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA

This week’s focus is Productivity, explaining a useful element of my Capacity Engine framework to help you objectively monitor how efficient your team really are.

👉 This is a crucial measurement in uncertain economic times.
👉 Work will always expand to fill the time available, so when there is less work to do … expect your team to magically be just as busy. 

I saw this coaching businesses through the GFC in Australia and the Great Recession in the UK and USA:
👉 Companies are a hive of activity
👉 The business owner realises too late that their profit margins have been destroyed and they’re bleeding cash at a time they need it most.

So What is Capacity Planning, and how do you Calculate “Capacity” and “Utilisation” for your SME?

Read on, but first…

Every 2023 discussion on Productivity needs to include “Artificial Intelligence”. But most AI events focus on solopreneurs (have time) or big corporations (have budget).

So I’ve teamed up with another topic expert, Ben Watts CEO of wattsnext, to run this webinar next Tuesday @ 10am Brisbane time: focused solely on AI solutions for privately-owned SMEs, and helping save your precious time and money.

• You can learn more and register here.
• If you can’t attend but want to help, please consider reposting or commenting on the LinkedIn invitation here.

Blackboard Fridays Episode #34 – Calculating Your Business Capacity (WARNING Inside)

“Knowing your numbers” in advance usually leads to having higher numbers at the top of your bank account, and the bottom of your P&L statement. It’s why financial reporting is a key part of the Como coaching rhythm.

Your journey to greater profit and improved cash flow begins by understanding the real capacity of your business, your team, to generate revenue.

Not some mythical “perfect world” scenario. And definitely not whatever level of mediocrity some of your team consider “business as usual”.

In fact, this is one of the greatest risks in professional firms and other service companies I work with – they assume and accept a level of productivity, without ever seeing if it’s good enough. And that means it only takes one bad quarter (or, heaven forbid, a recession) to strip away any financial safety net they’ve ever built.

Knowing this one number – your Capacity, and therefore your Utilisation Rate – can open your eyes to new opportunities. And it provides an objective real-time KPI, to see when productivity slips, and respond BEFORE problems multiple.

It all starts by calculating your capacity in one of the three ways I explain, in simple terms, in this week’s episode.

Click to watch it here or read the article version.

With love,

Jacob Aldridge
International Business Advisor

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