Friday Focus: Scaling Requires a Foundation

When starting a new business entrepreneurs often find themselves wearing a lot of different hats: sales, logistics, marketing, finance etc. One can imagine how someone tasked to do all of this will struggle to achieve each objective within these roles effectively which indeed rings true.

In the same way, many businesses often take on more than they can handle. This manifests in many different ways whether an excess of orders or clients without significant logistics in place, or a company offering a wide array of services and/or products while unable to produce or deliver them in a consistent or high-quality manner.

The thinking about scaling your business is indeed the correct and positive mindset, however some businesses do so before they have the proper resources in place whether that be financial or logistical. This leads to their available resources being stretched thin, and for a small business or startup already having to balance many different tasks and responsibilities, a situation like this can quickly lead to a team or resources getting burned out or unable to function altogether. Once this occurs a business starts to neglect the attention to detail on what they can provide or accomplish in an attempt to work on additional elements of their company. Unwillingly, a business slowly starts to neglect their client base and abandon what they are good at all while trying to move forward in a sort of forced expansion.

It's a difficult and confusing position to be in, especially as a newer entrepreneur. The important thing to remember is that timing is everything. The critical part in scaling and growing the business is the ability to do it in a strategic, planned and pragmatic fashion.

How do you know when it’s time to add that additional service, sale or product? The key lies in understanding your company’s capabilities and the investment needed to launch. That means the time, finances, resources and logistics necessary to support the move are firmly in place and tested before making the commitment to scale in a particular sector.

When you try to cover everything, you risk covering nothing. Sometimes mastering one thing first is enough, which leads to more and a foundation to build on. Mastery of something singular eventually leads to the plural and an ability for growth to be sustained.

The main takeaway is to be sure to take an internal audit of your capabilities as well as the potential return/benefits before taking the leap towards adding additional responsibilities. While growth is pivotal to the success and longevity of a business, moving too early or advancing beyond your company’s means or abilities can lead to an unfortunate collapse of a brand often times before it has the chance to get started.

- Vince Calace

Founder - Venture Business Development

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