Action Coach Portsmouth

Action Coach Portsmouth

Chloe Smith

Havant Sheet Metal’s journey

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Hearing about someone’s coaching journey is invaluable. Everyone has a story. A story of when they decided that something needed to change, and why they chose to invest in a business coach.

And we can keep telling you the reasons why investing in a business coach can change your life, but we know hearing someone’s first-hand experience can mean so much more.

So, we’ve asked our clients to tell you their journey into coaching with us and the impact its had on not only their business, but their personal lives too.

First up, Havant Sheet Metal…

When did you decide you wanted a business coach?

Both directors acquired ownership of the business late 2009 and for many years we operated at breakeven, marginal profit or marginal loss. We realised that our business had more potential than we were achieving and the current financial performance was not sustainable in the long term. Following advice from our bank manager in 2017, we started to research business coaching.

Why did you choose to work with us?

Following discussions with a few business coaching providers, we were impressed with the consultation process from ActionCOACH Portsmouth.

What impact has business coaching had on your business, and your life?

At the early stage of coaching with Gary, both directors were tied up working ‘IN’ the business rather than working ‘ON’ the business. Our goal was to enable the business to operate independently of the directors as much as possible, something we are now progressing towards.

Benefits of coaching to date include:

  • Directors are more accountable for business performance, working together ‘ON’ the business
  • Business restructured allowing management team more responsibility
  • Understanding the importance of recruiting the right people
  • The benefits of annual & 90-day planning, setting goals & achieving targets
  • Pricing strategy & having the confidence to increase gross margin %
  • Identified our ideal core customers further increasing margins
  • Created core values for our team to support each other
  • Improved scheduling & work throughput allowing us to achieve our sales targets
  • The directors have more confidence in the team to be able to work less hours

All the above improvements have returned a significant increase in profit over the last two financial years enabling easier investment planning.

For those who don’t know, tell us about your company

Havant Sheet Metal are an established, progressive & forward-thinking company with over 75 years of sheet metal experience based on the south coast, near Portsmouth.

Since 1939, we have been specialising in the manufacture of high-quality sheet metal components and fabrications in stainless steel, mild steel & aluminium. Our expertise encompasses fine limit sheet metal, fabrications, welding, machining, tube forming, assembly, powder coating and stove enamelling processes.

The management team, along with our skilled and versatile workforce, operate under stringent quality controls enabling us to produce quality products efficiently and on time using the latest CNC machinery.

We manufacture components to our customers designs and our broad base of clients include defence, health & safety, handling equipment, pharmaceutical, electronics, audio, aerospace, telecommunications and marine.

What is the next step for your business?

To improve our marketing so we can attract more core customer business and sustain our profit margins. We also want to introduce lean thinking throughout the company.

Havant Sheet Metal's logo

If you are interested in achieving any of the above outcomes, we’d love to hear from you. Please feel free to give our team a call on 02392 454 111 or complete this form.

Developing an action plan

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You want your business to be successful and probably have many ideas on how to improve certain aspects of its day-to-day organisation, but unless you can act upon your vision those ideas will unfortunately never take shape.

Taking action – with a plan in place – enables you to prepare for challenges and to successfully implement your vision. Today, we’re going to discuss some key principles to developing an action plan.

What is an action plan?

Quite simply, an action plan outlines the steps you need to take in order to achieve goals. It plays an important role in project management as it helps teams communicate effectively and reach an outcome within a given time frame.

Why do you need an action plan?

You’ve probably heard the famous quote – ‘By failing to prepare, you’re preparing to fail,’ but how relevant is it to you in your business? As action coaches we’ve certainly noticed that one of the reasons behind any project failing, or objectives not being met, is lack of planning.

Planning in advance gives you a clear strategy on roles and responsibilities, obstacles you need to overcome and resources, etc.

What should an action plan include?

Your action plan should include tasks and the steps needed to complete them. What does your team need to do each week to ensure you stay on track? Do you have a document which you can hold people accountable to?

The detail

The success of an action plan lies with the detail within it. For instance, let’s take a scale of 90 days. What key steps do you need to take within the next 90 days? Focusing on too many long term goals can be distracting. Instead, we’d recommend you create a list of short term actions which lead to you achieving your goals. Break things down into 10-15 steps and write them down. It will help keep you on track.

What key actions do your team members need to take to achieve these goals? Make sure you have an accountability plan and a management plan in place for them to achieve specific goals.

By breaking tasks down into smaller, more manageable steps, you’ll soon get to your higher, long-term goal.

Remember – Rome wasn’t built in a day. Neither was any successful business.

If you’d like to learn more about action planning, or you’d be interested in coming along to one of our planning events, feel free to call us on 02392 454 111 or get in touch. We’d love to help you achieve your goals.

What is your business rhythm?

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If you think about it, our personal life revolves around rhythm; the change from day to night, season to season as well as the natural rhythms of the day. Your business life should be the same – rhythm should be embedded within your organisation to ensure efficiency.

Today I’m going to discuss the rhythm in your business and how it can dictate the pace of change. How fast you want to see results comes down to rhythm and how communication strategies are implemented. There are a number of tactics you can adopt, and we’d encourage you to put in place as many as possible. So, let’s explore the rhythm in your business and what it looks like.

Annually

Meeting once a year for an AGM is an example of an annual rhythm. You meet with shareholders to review objectives and progress. Whilst you’re keeping on track with strategy, any change process is going to be relatively slow.

Quarterly

Quarterly meetings speed up the rate of momentum as you’re now meeting every 90 days. That’s four times the level of the annual meeting, so the business rhythm starts to intensify.

Monthly

Meeting on a monthly basis takes the business rhythm to a higher level. You set goals, schedules, discuss progress, spot problems as they arise and end up with a faster pace of change.

Weekly

A greater investment in time, but potential problem points can be ironed out before they begin to impact other aspects of your business. Weekly team meetings inject a real sense of pace. You can monitor progress better and keep track of challenges because there’s a continuous weekly rhythmic procedure in place. For instance, what have we succeeded in this week? What challenges do we need to overcome this week, and moving forward?

Daily

Short, five to ten minute daily get togethers with your team give everyone an opportunity to ensure things are moving in the right direction, and also check that everyone’s using their time wisely. If you think about it, if we do something daily, that’s 365 more chances than doing it annually! As your business grows, you’ll need to respond to faster and faster change. You’ll have to think about what the rhythm of your business looks like and the fundamental structures which sit alongside it.

Mastering The Rockefeller Habits

We recommend reading through ‘Mastering the Rockefeller Habits’ by Verne Harnish. It’s a great book packed full of action steps, visuals and case studies to help you implement a cohesive rhythm to your organisation.

However, if you’re looking for a more tailored approach, have any questions or would like to know more about how speeding up the rhythm could work for you, please get in touch. We’d love to share our insights and help you speed up both the rhythm and results in your business.

Is a business coach for me?

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Whether you’ve heard the term ‘business coaching’ before or this is the first time, you may have your own ideas as to what it is and who it’s for. This is where we come in. We’re going to clarify what a business coach is, 5 reasons why you might invest in one and how much they cost. And you might be surprised to read that it doesn’t cost the earth!  

What is a business coach? 

Quite simply, a business coach is someone who works with business owners to help them achieve their professional and personal goals.  

We often hear from business owners who know they need support but aren’t sure where to go. It can be lonely at the top so having someone who will help you realise your potential and hold you accountable can be invaluable. 

Your business goals may be to: 

  • Increase your profits 
  • Reduce business costs 
  • Open more locations 
  • Build a better performing team 
  • Develop a successful sales and marketing strategy 

The ultimate goal for a lot of business owners is to run a business that runs without them. To be in a position where they’re reaping the benefits of being a business owner and taking a well-earned break knowing their business will run successfully without them.  

Imagine being able to earn the same money whether you turned up for work or not! And that’s where business coaching comes in.  

5 Reasons for investing in a business coach 

You want your time back 

Do you feel like you’re spending too much time at work? Are you working in your business rather than on it? You wanted to run your own business for the benefits such as taking time off whenever you wanted, but couldn’t imagine not having to go into work. Is the stress affecting your family life?  

If the answer to any of these are yes, you’re not alone. It’s what we hear on a daily basis from business owners who are burnt-out and resenting their business. 

You want to make more money  

You’re ready to grow the business, increase your profits and achieve predictable cash flow but don’t know how. Or you’ve hit a glass ceiling with where you think you can take the business and need help taking it to the next level.  

You want a better performing team 

Your team have their strengths but you need more from them, including working better together. You want to establish a better team structure and develop managers you can trust to run the business for you. Or you don’t know why you keep turning over staff.  

You need to implement systems and processes 

Are you relying too much on the people who work for you rather than systems and processes?  

Ever wondered why in every McDonalds around the world you get exactly the same product in terms of look and taste? It’s because they’ve got the right systems and processes in place.  

Business coaching helps you identify where you can implement processes and introduce new systems that mean you rely less on staff whilst also making your operation more efficient. 

You want the business to run without you 

Whether this is something you’re certain you want, or it’s an idea you’d like to find out more about, business coaching gives you this option. And who doesn’t like to know their options? We work with clients who have been able to take that dream trip they’ve always wanted since becoming a business owner but didn’t seem possible a year ago.  

How much does a business coach cost? 

Just like with any product or service, business coaching can range in price from a few hundred pounds to thousands depending on your business structure, the growth you want to achieve and the program you choose. 

We hold regular events, planning sessions and workshops that range from free of charge to £149 + VAT per person where you can sample our coaching, work on your business plan and network with fellow business owners.  

Our coaching programs start from £495 and we have a range to suit different needs. Many of our clients who made this initial investment have increased their turnover from less than £1 million to over £3 million and a net profit increase from 2% to 10% with the help of our business coaches. And don’t just take our word for it, hear how business coaching has changed our clients’ businesses and lives. 

And our guarantee to you is that we guarantee to get results. You’ll be able to “Find our Fee” in your business within 17-weeks of us coaching your company, or your coaching is FREE. 

What’s included in business coaching? 

  • Our award-winning coaches have a wealth of experience working with all sized businesses across a range of industries 
  • Expert advice tailored to your business and goals 
  • Strategies that are used by successful companies around the world 
  • We help you discover the potential both in your business and in yourself  
  • Access to the best tools and services designed to get improvements in your business and your personal life 
  • A range of programs that best suit your needs from group coaching to 121 coaching 

If you’re an ambitious business owner who wants more from your business, to finally get the benefits you’ve always wanted, or to be able to take a step back, Gary, Steve or Sarah would love to speak with you to discuss how we can help you. 

Book your call today

If you’re interested in finding out more about how a business coach can help you and your business, book your call today! We’d love to hear from you.

The successful art of delegation

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As action coaches we appreciate just how difficult the working day can become. No matter how hard you work, there’s only a limited amount you can do. A working day only has so many hours and there’s only so much you can fit in.  It’s easy to become stressed, overloaded with work and feeling you’re letting everyone down.

Today, we’re going to talk about the important skill of delegating work to others. If you can do this well, you’ll reap the benefits of not only freeing up your own valuable time, but also increase the skill sets of your team and perhaps build greater engagement and stronger working relationships by doing so.

How and when to delegate

We understand that delegating things to colleagues can be risky. We’re putting our reputation on the line, and we have a lot to lose if schedules and deadlines fall behind or high levels of quality aren’t adhered to. There’s a real temptation to fall into the trap of thinking that if you want things done correctly, you’re going to have to do them yourself. Think like this, and you’re going to burn yourself out and pull everyone else down with you.

Firstly, understanding when to delegate is important. Think – is there anyone else who has the expertise to complete the task? Is there time to hand over and explain the job properly? Or will you be adding to someone else’s stress levels and overburdening them?

Also think about how to delegate. Ultimately, the buck does stop with you, so make sure you give clear instructions, timelines, and offer support and guidance if required. Remember – delegation means you’re helping others to grow and develop within the organisation. So choose the right tasks, delegate them to the right people, and you should soon have a recipe for success.

Let’s start delegating

So, let’s put wheels in motion and start delegating. Sit down and plan out ten things you could delegate over the next ten weeks. List ten tasks or activities you currently do which could easily be delegated to someone else. Then start thinking about who you could train to take over these tasks. Think about the strengths of your team, their positive attributes, talents, capabilities, etc – and then take that leap of faith and start delegating those tasks out.  You never know, that shy, retiring colleague in the corner might even come up with a super-efficient method of getting a job done! Delegation is a process of learning, trusting and working together.

If you have any questions or would like to know more about how to delegate effectively, please do get in touch.

Organisational health – how healthy is your company?

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Have you ever watched athletes prepare for a track race? They warm up, they stretch their muscles, they become mentally tuned in to the task ahead and their health regime is carefully monitored and geared for success.

The runner has a finishing line in sight.

For businesses, longevity and success also rely on maintaining perfect health, but organisational health requires a combined effort and willingness to work together. So, let’s take a look at how healthy your organisation is.

Does your organisation need a health check-up?

Let’s continue the analogy of the athlete and a successful business. Both need constant ‘nutrition’ to develop, function and perform. Just like the human body, your organisation is vulnerable, and needs a programme of regular health check-ups to ensure it operates at full strength.

As action coaches, we recognise the importance of good organisational health. We also notice that companies that prioritise and monitor their organisational health tend to remain successful. Promoting workplace wellness positively affects employee productivity and performance – a healthy culture is vital.

Improving organisational health

Do you often feel that your team members are pulling against you, and each other? They may even seem reluctant to come to the table and openly discuss how they feel. So how do you rectify this? How can you improve the organisational health of your business? When it comes to understanding organisational health, learning from the experiences of employees and their engagement levels are key. How willing are your staff to give accurate feedback, or discuss how they can adapt behaviours to help each other?

Firstly, you’ve got to get your team members in a comfortable position. You’ve got to ensure they’re confident about trusting you and are happy to open up. Remember, the opinions and perspectives of your team really matter. Often there’s a real discrepancy between how management see things and how they come across to staff, so it’s important to see things at grass roots level. You need to keep your finger on the pulse by listening to regular feedback, holding open discussions and being willing to change.

A question of trust

This week’s challenge revolves around trust. Unless everyone has a mutual trust for each other, progress will be limited. Think about the levels of trust within your team or your wider organisation? How much do your staff trust you (and each other) to actually be able to hold frank, open and honest discussions, and then work together to resolve issues? Giving your team a platform to voice their work-related problems leads to greater engagement and, in due course, a healthier workplace environment.

Just like our comparison to the competing athlete, the corporate race is built on long term strategies. Make organisational health wellbeing your goal this week and see if you can implement a few minor tweaks to improve workplace culture, morale, or team engagement.

We’d love to hear how you’ve managed to adapt, transform or make minor changes to the organisational health of your company. Feel free to drop us a line on 02392 454 111 to share your story, or get in touch if you’d like us to help you achieve your goals.