Business 300

The Lord once told a story where a man, upon doing a good job with what he was given, heard it said to him, “You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much.” Whether we're the owner, manager, or a line employee, if we want to carry the organization, we must first kneel down to put the weight on our backs. We can only move up by moving down.

Instead of concerning yourself with Top-Down vs Bottom-Up hierarchy arguments, ask a much more basic question: Who are your customers and what do they want? That's what it's about, not management versus employees.

Stewardship is an understanding that everything we have, we have been entrusted with in order to be productive. And what is productivity? It's definitely not squandering, nor is it preserving, or hoarding. Productivity is an output of effort that brings value to others. This is the work of a business owner. Taking everything you own and have, and making a profit on it by turning it into value for others. And we can do this when we have worked out the issue of authority.

The constant focus on your deficiencies is not a symptom of humility. One is tormented by his impairments when he refuses to swallow the reality of the situation. One sees his own problem, and instead of accepting the fact and improving it, a self-degrading, proud person simply laments it. The Self-Loather is an egotist because his attention is always revolving around himself. It is a good thing to clearly see your own faults and inadequacies. You know what needs to be improved or avoided.

We cannot faithfully look at a tree and hold tight to our idols of order and tidiness. A tree takes an axe to those idols, as it calmly grows with crooked branches. Don’t get me wrong, it doesn’t romanticize chaos or disorder, for it does strive to hold its shape and structure. It wants order and aims for structure. But it doesn’t simply topple over when its root is introduced to its first boulder. It doesn’t wait to grow until the ground below it and air above it is cleared of all obstacles. A tree reminds us that a fruitful life means growth, and growth is messy. It twists and bends. It warps and grasps. It lives and grows, mess and all. Governed by it’s Maker, a tree grows straight with crooked branches.

What if you ran an ad for your business that started with: “You’ll feel good after giving us your money."

That's catchy. You'd probably get people's attention. But could you say that to your customers with a straight face, and stand behind it?

Maybe you think it sounds presumptuous. Or haughty. Or too on-the-nose. Maybe you wouldn't run that sort of ad because it makes you look self-seeking or money-loving. Maybe you think it misses the point of what you're trying to do with your business.

In the last episode, I mentioned the first 2: Data and Analysis.

This brings us to the 3rd value-add: Insight. With the data collected and turned into information through analysis, now the job of finance is to delivery insight.

In all your undertakings, you want substance, not fluff. We're tempted towards fluff, but, as business owners, we really can't afford it. There's no place for it.

The temptation for fluff is especially true in Finance. Fancy charts and complicated spreadsheets masquerade as substance. Irrelevant ratios and misleading statistics might give a semblance of control. It's easy for fluff to arise from Finance.

So, what should your Finance department produce in order for it's output to be meaningful and valuable?

I have 4 things to work through.

One of the areas where business people are tempted towards irrelevant fluff is in the area of Finance. There are so many metrics that could be tracked, so many numbers that could be calculated, so many ratios and statistics that could be presented. If it wanted to, the Finance Department could be the business BS department. 

The 4 things that the Finance Department should focus on in order to provide value to customers and owners are Data, Analysis, Insight, and Action. 

If you have to scale back and take on roles that you previously delegated while you rebuild, do it.

Yes it sucks. But sitting and moping, wishing it were not so as you wait for things to pan out on their own is not an option for you. All things considered, you have to know when it's time to scale back.