Upscaling

Welcome to a New Year – have you set out and actioned your resolutions for 2017?

We’ve set our strategic theme for 2017 as “scaling up”.  I read, with interest, that the definition of a business that is upscaling is one that evidences 20% year-on-year growth over a minimum 3 year period.  We have more ambitious metrics and are aiming high for 2017.

In his book, Scaling Up, Verne Harnish share practical tools and techniques for building a leading business.  These focus on 4 major decision areas: People, Strategy, Execution and Cash.  As part of a basket of tools, we are using this framework to test and verify our own journey.

People

We’re pleased to have Andrew Moore join the business.  Following a phased integration into the business, Andrew joins as a Director and brings a wealth of local and regional experience reinforcing our Project Management offer and specialist Building Surveying / Facility Management services.  I first met Andrew in 2007, when we worked together at Waring & Netts.  Ever since that time, I’ve valued Andrew’s ethos and core values, his approach to supporting and managing team members and a drive for excellence in service delivery.  For both personal and business reasons, its great to have Andrew in the team providing leadership and engagement here in the North-East.

Chris Jenner joined us in October last year, as a day-release apprentice.  Chris is currently undertaking a part-time (day release) BTEC HNC at Sunderland College and already receiving terrific feedback on his coursework.  Chris is synchronising his college work with the project work that he is supporting involving both civil infrastructure and residential development.

In addition to our own resource requirements (http://www.atorusconsult.com/careers/), we are actively engaged in sourcing 7 positions ranging from Associate to Graduate.  Confident that we will secure these individuals over the next 6-months, we are currently preparing new office space that will accommodate this growth, with a fresh, sustainable and dynamic look and feel.

Strategy

From a strategic perspective, we recently secured investment from InnovateUK for a new disruptive technology business stream.  The financial investment is also supported by a Knowledge Transfer Partnership with the University of Sunderland and will provide a full-time Associate being placed within the business for the next 24 months.  We will be developing and bringing to market, at least two new products in 2018.  We are really excited about this, the culmination of many years of research and development.  More of this to come.

Execution + Cash

With our strategic business plan refreshed and our people strategy being executed, we continue to collaborate and work with great teams and clients.  Our pipeline for 2017/18 underpins our scaling up strategy and continues to provide the opportunity to refine and develop our service offering.  From this, we are also ensuring that our debtor days are reduced to provide the fuel (cash) for our scaling up engine.

So, we have set our strategic theme for the year – scaling up.  Our business is our people and we continue to grow our team aligned to our values and vision.  2017 provides the platform on which to scale up our business, leveraging the relationships and projects that we are currently engaged to support our strategy.  We are inspired and motivated with our eyes focussed on the prize.  We know that this year will demand significant levels of stamina, grit and determination.  However, we also know that the satisfaction of delivering success, with all of the why to’s, will provide the mental strength to realise our ambitions – both business and personal.

Happy New Year!