6 Unexpected stories of Business Coaching Success
6 Unexpected stories of Business Coaching Success
Disclaimer: Names and details in this article have been changed to protect client anonymity.
Finding a Business Coach can lead to surprising results. Of course, a Business Coach may work with you on your business to create financial growth or improvements in efficiency. They may provide excellent commercial insights that give your business the edge over competitors.
But sometimes, the things that lead to business success stories aren’t obvious on the budget sheet. Here are some interesting case scenarios-
Case 1
It pays to out-source; even if you’re a small business start up
Sarah worked in a corporate world but had a passion for accessories and decided to start her own business. With great talents for marketing and design, working with a Business Coach, Sarah identified that the vulnerabilities in her skill set lay in distribution and finance.
By contracting a book keeper and outsourcing production through an existing company who could also handle distribution, Sarah was free to work on her marketing and on perfecting the design of her accessories. Her business was set for success, rather than being doomed to oblivion by financial and distribution shortcomings.
Case 2
Shared vision empowers shared goals
A small software company experienced the very typical disconnect between the Sales team and the Customer Support team who had to deliver on the promises made by sales, and dealt with time pressures to get this done quickly. Increasing frustration between the two teams was creating a rift in the business as well as inefficiencies and a lack of delivery on customer promises.
Working with a Business Coach, management identified this as the main barrier to success in the business and implemented a project to find and identify personality types using Myer Briggs testing, then delivered workshops over a number of months which resulted in a clear, shared company vision. Identified staff who needed extra support to get on board with the changes needed in the business to deliver on that vision received one on one coaching. Greater shared vision and common goals made teamwork far more efficient and customer satisfaction increased dramatically leading to retention and added sales.
Case 3
Sometimes, it really is about you
Peter is a highly experienced accountant running a freelance business. Although extremely knowledgeable and adept at his profession, Peter noticed that slowly but surely he was losing clients, and engaged a Business Coach to help him identify how to improve his business offering. Working with his Business Coach, Peter identified his strengths and weaknesses and new opportunities. A new accounting business had opened nearby and was apparently thriving, so a competitor analysis was a key part of this work. The Business Coach also called a number of Peter’s clients including some who had taken their business away recently. Surprisingly, everyone spoken to said that Peter was excellent at his job, which tallied with the results of the SWOT exercise.
The golden nugget was that people felt he was not approachable. They explained that they felt foolish asking him questions or asking if things could be done another way, because of his terse manner. His business gave an impression of being staid and old-school and Peter reinforced this with his short communications. On the other hand, the competitor business used a bright attractive logo and their website was scattered with friendly colloquial lines inviting new clients to engage. A marketing consultant was engaged to revamp the business’s appearance from website language to logo and signage. With Coaching, Peter remodelled his email manner to include pleasantries and clearer lay-mans style explanations. The office was repainted in more welcoming colours and Peter began sending a small box of chocolates to each client on their birthday. Customer attrition dropped and new business walk ins and calls increased, restoring Peter’s reputation as the ‘best accountant in town’.
Case 4
Your workspace matters – a lot
Maxine ran a freelance PR business and had a great portfolio of clients and effective media relationships. Her challenge was that she often felt unfocused, distracted and frustrated working from home. Talking about it with her Business Coach she was able to identify the root cause of her issue- It was her workspace.
By moving her office from her dining room to a separate space in a small portable cabin on the back lawn, Maxine was able to avoid popping to the kitchen for a snack, answering questions from her family and the bustle of a shared space. She set up her desk and computer in nice lighting and added a small worktable for creative brainstorming sessions. She put a second phone line in to the cabin so all calls were business related. By creating a peaceful refuge for work, her energy and focus were revived, and as well as feeling calmer, the results showed in her profit line too.
Case 5
The CBD is not always the heart of business
The MD of a marketing company, Angela worked with a Business Coach to identify ways to reduce her workload without the business losing sales and profit. She was tired, overworked, and stressed.
Looking through the business financials the Business Coach helped Angela identify that rent in the CDB was a huge cost to the business and most of their clients were based further out, and preferred to collaborate by phone or online, rather than driving through heavy traffic and paying high parking costs. By moving to an office in a satellite suburb, Angela’s clients enjoyed easy, free parking, less travel and less hassle – and Angela’s bottom line improved dramatically overnight. Additionally, she spent 10 minutes commuting instead of an hour each way, and had more time for family and rest. Her team effectively got a pay rise of 15% a week as they no longer had to pay central city parking, and Angela bought a top of the line expresso machine for the new office, saving many staff another $50 per week. Staff reported greater satisfaction in their work and reduced stress which long term meant less turnover and lower onboarding and training costs.
Case 6
Working ON a business makes more impact than working IN a business
Max had successfully created a start up business printing tshirts and sweatshirts but was drowning in the detail, answering emails and quoting jobs as well as handling all the managerial tasks, as he was unsure his one staff member could be relied on to be accurate. In his first session with his Business Coach, Max explained how work was taking over his life and he felt so time poor that he knew he was missing opportunities at work, as well as missing family time.
Together they identified that delegating to his one staff member was essential and worked out a way of keeping reporting and communications regular so that he could see that things were going to plan. With more time on his hands, Max was able to plan a 5 year strategy and start working towards reaching his newly set (and now achievable) goals – one of which was to hire two more staff by the end of the financial year to ensure that his new manager was also able to delegate, and increase his strategic activities also.
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