The key five challenges SME will face in 2017 was nicely summarized in LBL’s article:
- Access to funding – in order to invest in the business, invest into R&D or fancy Marketing.
- Fierce competition – and the highly competitive marketplace with bigger players and new entrants.
- Recruiting a good quality team – attracting the right people for smaller compensation and benefits.
- Leadership – as often the founders or leaders don’t have the leadership capability.
- Regulation – putting pressure on SMEs to comply with the various bureaucratic rules.
At Fortuny, we approach the list of challenges differently.
- Access to funding – is limited, but “forces” the business or its leader from making more conscious and strategic decisions, identifying the smart investments with highest ROI.
- Fierce competition – which we believe can be seen as a synergistic partners, where cooperation is possible, or where one can learn from their mistakes or best practices.
- Recruiting a good quality team – is also not that tricky, considering the current trend to seek smaller businesses or even start-ups as fulfilment and responsibility is preferred against a fat pay check.
- Leadership – if there is willingness, and ego allows, training, cherry-picked hiring, creating a board of advisors or outsourcing is a solution here.
- Regulation – spending less time on questioning the rules or the way around and getting the regulatory admin done fast and in an efficient manner is what we advise.
Still, from our experience, we see a different trap, maybe the not so obvious one, threatening the growth of many SMEs. THEIR FOCUS,…their focus being fully dedicated to their product or services and their clients, neglecting having a sustainable business development plan in place.
Most of the energy goes into making existing clients happy. The energy left goes into not-so-popular client acquisition. The auto-pilot might even support the leaders in executing some of the admin or accounting tasks.
But where is space, time and resources put aside for Business Development (BD)?
Of course, the products or services you offer is a part of BD. So is the customer service and experience you provide to your clients who might then buy more, or recommend you further. Still, all should be aligned with your BD plan, linked to your overall company purpose and vision.
So ask yourself: Do you have a BD plan in place? How often do you review and adjust it? How do you set priorities to focus on?
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