When a company is planning to buy another company the most important consideration is the strength of the management team. Warren Buffet makes the strength of the management team his most important consideration before investing in a company for his funds. Venture capitalists estimate that 60% of the success of an investment is based on the strength of the management team while 20% is based on the strength of the technology and 15% is based on the market acceptance for the new product. The biggest reason for this breakdown is that the technology will not have a chance to fail if the management team and management process are not competent. Management will make fatal mistakes that will sink the venture long before the technology even has a chance to fail. This occurrence is much more prevalent than most managers believe.

With all this emphasis on management competence, way too many companies feel that management is not a key component to their success. It is very difficult to gauge competence from within the management of the company. The two things that most people feel they do well without training or guidance include sex and management. Manufacturers take the best workers and bump them up to foreman. Retailers put the salesman with the longest tenure on the floor as sales manager. Even the owner often has a technical knowledge, extra cash or a family history in the business rather than any real management training or outside experience.

This dichotomy raises a lot of questions about the value of your business. Would it be more valuable if it were more profitable? Most everyone would answer yes. Would it be more profitable if the management process and team were more proficient? It seems logical that yes would be the answer but the truth is that many independent businesses function as if the answer was a resounding NO. They can’t envision a return on the investment in a management consultant or hiring a proven manager. A consultant is normally a less expensive solution than hiring a proven manager. A consultant can be removed easily if there is not a fit or competence. A hired manager is much more difficult to remove.

Amazingly, the most common objection we hear to bringing in a management consulting team to improve the skills of the management and implement a management process that provides more effective results is that we don’t have the people or the time to do any more than we are doing now. That is really a crime. Your business is what you depend upon to send your children to college and provide for your own comfort and retirement. Your employees depend on your business for their livelihood and your customers depend on your business for your expertise, products and or service. Not providing the resources to make that business more profitable, stable and significant is being pennywise and pound foolish as the British say.

Another reason many owners put off the decision to bring in a consultant to improve the management team and the business is that they are confused about how to choose the right consultant. Admittedly, that is a daunting task. There is no organization that polices the consulting industry or that licenses consultants to be certain that they have the skills required to do the job. Almost every manager has or has heard of the horror stories that were brought on by a consultant. Our approach at Management One® is to train and certify all of our consultants to assure that they will provide the help to clients they expect. Most Winning@Business™ engagements include more than one consultant since we know that every consultant has certain areas of expertise. We have experts in marketing, finance, business management and other areas that are critical to your success.

Finally, every owner is wary of the cost of a consultant. At Management One® we understand the financial limitations of independent business owners and work with our clients to bring the guidance they need in a way that minimizes the time and people commitment they must make. Our affiliates are independent which minimizes overhead costs. Our marketing is primarily word of mouth so you will not be paying for fancy advertisements and you won’t see a Management One® sponsorship of the SuperBowl. The return on investment in Winning@Businessâ„¢ that our clients normally see is generally greater than 5 to 1 and as much as 50 to 1!

What does a management team need to do to be successful? (Notice I said management team. Gone are the days where a single manager can be as successful as a management team working together to solve problems, seize opportunities and manage change.) The following entries in this blog will identify some of the key factors with which a successful team deals.

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