Business basics: Talking lean business strategy

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

By Reggie Moore

In the early history of many business startups, the basic operative was to start a business on a shoestring budget. Today this is referred to as a lean business strategy. The key word is “lean” that purports to avoid waste and keep business in an economically beneficial strategic process.

Business basics

Attempts to start a business requires several basics that include:

– Design

– Planning

– Financial management

– Marketing and sales strategies

– Advertising

These basics should be thoroughly researched and crafted into a comprehensive business plan. It is important to know what a business plan is composed of and should be timely and focused on cost-effectiveness.

Components of a business plan

A business plan has two major components, marketing and competitors along with several sub-components within each category.

The marketing category includes:

– Target markets

– Market trends

– Products

– Services

– Pricing

– Distribution

– Risk factors

The competitor category includes types of competitors, industry competition for specific products and/or services and strengths and weaknesses of competitors versus strengths and weaknesses of the business.

In addition, other components specific to the type of business can be added as well as the expected duration of the business plan’s implementation. By incorporating business basics into the business plan, a well-developed enterprise is assured.

Fortunately, pre-conceived business plans can be found online, should writing a business plan be difficult for those new to business. However, for existing businesses, a regular review and update of the original business plan is essential to implement lean business strategy.

Lean business and a lean business strategy

It is possible to create a lean business strategy that projects an extravagant image. It is all in the manner in which a lean business is presented.

A lean business strategy should take each phase of business into consideration and ensure that the business works smarter, not harder and works better, not costlier.

Simply put, lean business strategy should highlight quality rather than quantity. It is more advantageous to present highest quality than to confuse buyers with an overloaded menu of products and services.

Spend time researching the cost of quality as it specifically applies to a business. The cost of quality has three main parts that include: cost of good quality, the cost of poor quality and cost of non-conformance (failure).

Mapping useful lean business strategy

There are many daily clues that can reveal a loss of lean business strategy. In most cases, losses due to lack of attention to detail seem to exacerbate loss of quality.

Back in 1986, American process engineer, Bill Smith introduced a set of tools and techniques known as Six Sigma. In Six Sigma, 99.99966% of all opportunities to produce some features of parts are statistically expected to be free of defects. This may be a benchmark for assessing quality for a lean business strategy. Lean six sigma is a growing trend in business strategizing and is worth considering as an option for your business plan.

Cutting corners by reducing quality almost always results in loss of the customer base. Thus, it is important to take the time to study personal buying habits within the target market. Know what each client needs and wants.

When you know what customers prefer, you also know their expectations of quality.

Management’s role in lean business strategy

Map a useful lean business strategy by applying careful review of daily business and reducing waste and loss of time and labor. This should include management’s role in decision making and goals of excellence in management style.

As with any strategy, beta testing is a helpful tool. Create a testing model of the desired lean business strategy before implementing it. Coordinate staffing, business transactions and strategy results as a roll out project.

A roll out project is a beneficial lean business strategy that will reveal weak areas as well as strong points. It allows management to view strategy workability while focusing on a tight business plan of action that cuts waste and unnecessary expense.

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Reggie Moore is a professional writer and proto-entrepreneur. When not trying to tinker with a new thing, process, or idea, Reggie can usually be found saying the words “Well, actually…” to an unsuspecting bystander.

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