5 Instances Where Creating a New Business Strategy is Worth the Investment

For some middle market business owners, the thought of creating a new business strategy makes them want to pull their hair out. The last strategy took months to finalize and ultimately created little change; the company is small enough that formalizing a business plan may feel like a waste of time; and doing business as usual has always worked well in the past. So why bother shaking things up now?

But what happens when “business as usual” creates some unusual—and undesirable—results? Your efforts to align your team are no longer as simple and effective as they once were, and it suddenly feels like everyone is moving in different directions.

Sometimes, it’s worth it—and even necessary—to create a new business strategy to remain viable. Here are five instances where a new business strategy is worth the investment of time and resources.

Profits are stagnant or declining

If sales or profits have been stagnant or declining for months on end, it’s time to figure out why and course-correct. Your leadership team may be considering a number of ideas on how to pivot, but they aren’t in agreement on the best path forward. Or perhaps they have identified initiatives to implement, but no action has been taken and you’ve entered a cycle of ideation and inaction. The only way to break the cycle and increase profits is to build and implement a detailed strategy for growth.

The next generation is taking control

New leadership requires a new strategy. When control of a company is handed off to the next generation, strategies should be reviewed to ensure incoming leadership has the tools to maintain the elements of the company that are working while identifying processes, technology, and products that need to evolve to keep up with the times. New leaders will also want to bring their own ideas to the table. And if they have a new direction for the company, a new strategy will be needed.

You plan to buy, merge with, or sell to another company

Whether you’re preparing your business for sale, considering merging with another business, or planning to acquire another company, a detailed and thoughtful strategy will be needed to ensure the deal is successful. When selling your company, you need objective, external recommendations of changes that will maximize the value of your company.

Alternatively, if you plan to merge with or acquire a company, you need a plan for integrating the new company into your organization. How will you handle redundancies? Is your staff capable of managing operations in multiple states? How will you market new products to your existing customers or expand your efforts to reach new markets? All of this and more should be covered in your pre-purchase or pre-sale strategy.

You’re pursuing new markets

You won business in new markets and are entering an exciting growth phase, but this also means substantial investment—and risk. Or worse, your new market initiative is eating up more time and resources than anticipated. To successfully launch your new market—or change your approach in a rocky market launch—you need a new perspective and new strategy.

A new threat has disrupted your business

Whether it’s a new technology, capabilities, or a company with deep pockets entering your market, any new threat to your core business model needs to be analyzed quickly so you can develop a strategy to respond to it. Your strategy should cover both short- and long-term initiatives that will help your company regain and maintain its competitive footing.

If you find yourself in any of these situations, the experts at FortéOne can help get your business back on track.