Is Your Business Prepared For Falling Rocks?

I'm sure most of us have seen or have heard of the falling rock signs posted on the roads up in the mountains. I wonder how many cars had to have been hit before we started to make those signs?

So, how does this relate to your business? Well, let me tell you:

Consider these rocks to be the most important pieces of information needed to manage your business. Now think about one of those rocks crashing down on you. After it hits you, it's too late to react and you can only hope for the best. Could you have avoided the rock? Could you have prevented the rock from falling? Could you have devised a tool to turn the kinetic energy into sell-able energy? (Yes, rocks can be opportunities). Determine the important rocks of your business and come up with your "Falling Rock" warning signs and systems. Here are some suggestions

• Don't start with rocks that are hard to quantify on a regular basis.

• Bring your team in on this.

• Break down your company into smaller sections and come up with 2 or 3 rocks per section. Here are a few examples:

• Corporate rocks - Based on the long term goals of the business

• Acquisition Pipeline

• Valuation of the Business

• New Market Penetration

• Financial rocks

• Cash and Cash Forecast

• Performance vs Plan

• Sales/Marketing rocks

• Leads

• Sales Pipeline

• Customer Satisfaction

• Operations rocks

• Product/offering Enhancements

• Gross Margin

• Worker Productivity

Monitoring the important aspects of your business will help you identify the warning signs, and potential opportunities. Without this, you may be crushed.