Principles for a Successful Charitable Business 

It’s been a joy and privilege to share with you some of my experiences and suggestions for maximising the success of your charity’s commercial enterprises.

I wanted to offer up a summary of my thoughts – I hope it’s a useful reminder of the activities and the mindset which in my experience at least, contribute towards success.

When starting a new commercial enterprise, done is better than perfect.

• Start now, with whatever you have
• It never has to be as expensive as you think, seek out compromises and upgrade as you go along
• Play to your strengths and don’t worry about making every aspect of your offering perfect
• Slow and steady wins the race.

Prioritise customer service above everything else – being kind and attentive will more than likely make up for the fact that you don’t yet have the gold plated offer you want.  Bring them on a journey with you and explain your long-term ambitions for your business (who knows, they might even want to help).

Remember finally that it’s easy to feel excited in the moment and to commit to new or big ideas.  Ensure you have the momentum to follow through.  Pick something you know you and your team can stick to.

Make sure you’re measuring the right thing. 

Remember the General Manager who was incensed by increased expenditure but have failed to notice that profit had increased significantly?

Conversely, the Operating Manager who was so proud if his high sales but had failed to notice his profit decreasing year on year?

• Profit not sales – ALWAYS – make sure you measure the right thing.
• Check the culture.  Is there a history of poor performance and of managers being afraid (because they’re ill equipped/disinterested or both) to tackle it.
• Zoom out so you can see the bigger trends over a longer time period, shot term fluctuations aren’t always helpful.
• Don’t put things off indefinitely – problems will feel less like problems the sooner you tackle them.

In the case of new or expanded businesses, Trialling’ can be better than ‘Doing’. If a project fails during a trial you have all the learning, and that’s a win. This feels very different to a project which has been fully committed to failing.

Ultimately, if something isn’t going well, it doesn’t mean that you’ve failed!  Own the situation, identify the reasons and MAKE A PLAN!

Information is power, be it good or bad.  We cannot change the past, but we can learn from it and use it to make better decisions in the future.

Monsters under the bed

When looking to improve an existing business and / or line managing someone who is in charge of an enterprise, remember:

• If someone is being too enthusiastic about their ‘passion’ and / or using bullshit management speak, they might be trying to hide something
• Listen more than you speak, prioritise compassion and awareness
• Ask them directly about the monsters hiding under the bed (i.e. the things they fear but probably don’t need to)
• Make it safe for them to be honest.

This ties into organisational culture discussed above.  Recognise it’s hard for some to talk about the areas that they personally feel they are failing (they’re never failing, but it often feels like it to them).

The goal should always be to move forwards positively, knowing that there are always things which can be done better / more efficiently. You will get results more quickly if those you’re managing aren’t scared to be open.

You can read more about Monsters Under the Bed here.