Community News C
WHEN TO SAY NO TO A BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY
By Dean Swanson, volunteer Certified SCORE Mentor and former SCORE Chapter Chair, District Director, and Regional Vice President for the North West Region I n my experience, it is hard for a small business CEO to say no to a potential opportunity. I often see times when a business leader needs help with making this kind of decision. So when should an entrepreneurial CEO say “no”? To help entrepreneurs with strategic decision making in these situations, Brett Farmloe, Founder & CEO of Markitors (and one of SCORE’s content partners), asked CEOs and business leaders for their best insight. He asked “What is one sign that a business owner should probably say “no” — and pass on an opportunity?” I share several insights from small business CEOs. When You’re Overextending Yourself Sometimes, the timing just isn’t right, and you won’t have the resources to say “yes” to a new opportunity — and you’ll know it. Let’s say you just finished expanding your business premises, and someone approaches you to take part in a new venture or partnership. The temptation may be there to dive in, but you know you’ve nearly maxed out your line of credit and also can’t spare any employees for the new project. Don’t overextend yourself. Just say “no.” -Lily Yu, Oak Springs Realty When Long-Term Costs Exceeds Short-Term Benefits There are occasions when a chance offers a clear short-term benefit — a position with a good title, an investor who offers to save your cash-strapped company in exchange for a 50% ownership stake. However, you are well aware that there will be considerable long-term costs. Perhaps the opportunity with better benefits offers few prospects for advancement and pushes you to focus on a
field you don’t particularly enjoy. Alternatively, you value autonomy and control and see that being a co-owner will only cause you problems in the future. -Randall Smalley, Cruise America When You Are Splitting Too Much of Your Time I have seen many entrepreneurs do this often, with four or five business ideas bubbling away simultaneously. One fantastic business is worth a lot more than several bad ones. Splitting your time, focus, and dedication between many projects is nearly impossible. Focus on one and make it shine As a business owner, it’s important to know what amount of work your team can take on. You will likely have opportunities that will be difficult to pass up, but do a thorough audit of each team member’s capacity for the work they currently do before accepting more responsibility. You want to be sure that everyone has the capacity and the ability to deliver on new commitments and wow your new client. -Nick Santora, Curricula When the Numbers Don’t Support the Decision You can feel great and get excited about a business opportunity, but if a spreadsheet can’t validate a worst-case scenario, a business owner should probably pass. Common examples could be around extending an employment offer for a new role or taking on a new cost at the expense of another opportunity. -Henry Babicheknko, Stomadent When You Don’t Have the Capacity Before saying “yes” or “no” to an opportunity, run the best and worst-case calculations to see what would happen to the business with either route. -Brett Farmiloe, Markitors To read more, visit SCORE’s website at https://bit.ly/3lC7k6d
Advantage Magazine | 13
January 2022
Made with FlippingBook - PDF hosting