With the summer season starting this past week, most people are looking for some much needed time off to take vacations and be with their friends and families. This is usually a hectic time for the small business owner that wears all the hats in their firm. Summertime can be a particularly challenging time for certain kinds of small businesses. Employees and contractors have their own plans for the summer and it makes it difficult for small business owners to support their clients when staffing is short or even non-existent. These actions can typically cause a cash flow crunch for small businesses and we all know that effective cash flow is the lifeblood for any small business.
To alleviate this problem, small businesses need to live by what I like to call the “5 P’s” of business. The five P’s are:
“Proper Planning Prohibits Poor Performance”
By planning for the shortage of workers in the summer months, small business owners can continue to serve their existing client base and even possibly gain more business. Some ideas for keeping your small business up and running are:
1. Bring on your kids to do some of the grunt work
2. Cross train your existing workers
3. Use the downtime to your advantage by planning for the future
4. Reward staffers with incentives to keep them motivated
5. Be sure to build a cash “cushion” before the summer months hit
Use these tips to keep your business up and running smoothly through the summer months and maybe you can take a vacation when everyone is back from their summer fun.
Let me also take this time to thank everyone that came to our Small Business Solutions Seminar yesterday at the College Park Library. It was a pleasure meeting everyone who attended and learning more about your businesses. Next seminar is scheduled for July 10th 2007. See our website for more details
Keeping your Business N Synergy
http://www.thebricogroup.com/
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