WAYS TO SCALE YOUR BUSINESS

There are many reasons that entrepreneurs start their own business: working to your own time, using your skills
and knowledge to drive you to success quicker, focusing on exactly what you want to do. Something that is not
always considered at the beginning of this journey is how you will grow your business.

When you get to stage where you need to consider growth you may not feel that you know where to start
(according to the British Business Bank, 33% of smaller UK business owners who want to grow feel unsure of
how to do it) and barriers can present themselves that mean you prevent this growth.
Barriers for small businesses can include regulatory compliance, domestic market conditions, access to funding
and the global trade environment.

Success as a result from business growth will look different for every business depending on it’s stage in the
business lifecycle. Many smaller businesses measure growth by increases in both profit and customers but
other factor may come into consideration such as internal expansion. When it comes to focusing on business
growth there are various ways to achieve this, here we have listed the top five recommendations.

Define the purpose and vision of the company.
Your business may have a strong vision and clear purpose from it’s conception but if you haven’t got this in
place then here is the best place to start. Define values that will drive employees and adopt a company culture
that will increase commitment and establish foundations that will remain during periods of growth.

Create a management team
A strong management team has a mix of skills and experiences, a diverse team will be more equipped to deal
with challenges a business will face within it’s lifecycle. Creating a strong management team can be a difficult
thing for founders who want to keep control over all aspects of their business but having the right team in place
is part of a winning formula for a growing business.

Integrate finance
The finance function should understand the organisation’s wider goals and find ways to add value across the
business. Handing over administrative tasks like payroll, credit control and management reporting to a specialist
accountant can be a cost-effective solution for small companies, which can also benefit from their strategic input
and advice for a lower annual outlay.

Find external advice
Companies trying to scale up can improve their resilience by obtaining professional advice from an expert
business network.

Build a funding network
Although small businesses usually presume external funding is not for them, research shows that high-growth
SMEs are more likely to have obtained advice on external funding.