Growth Strategy Case Study
Business and Growth Strategy Case Study
1.0 Overview
A private health care company specializing in oral surgery in the Washington DC Metro Area found themselves having a hard time keeping up with customer demand. With 8 offices and revenue in the millions, their business model was based on “always put the customer first” along with providing specialized services was the core of their success since their inception in 1967. As their customer volume increased, there became a larger demand to expand locations and open a new product and service line for cosmetic surgery. The practice expanded its footprint opening 4 additional offices and offering a cosmetic surgery line at its headquarters.
2.0 Situation
After an eight month period following the expansion the company found itself in financial trouble. The cosmetic surgery line didn’t grow as anticipated and was operating at a loss. Three of the four offices weren’t profitable siphoning off over 50% of its monthly revenue to keep all offices operating. The end result was the practice found itself operating at a loss for the first time in company history.
3.0 Solution
LeadIT Consulting came in to evaluate the situation. They first focused on how the new offices were operating. After assessing how their headquarters operated they evaluated how each of the new offices ran and found very little consistency in day to day operations among any of them. They uncovered that the management teams at each of the new offices were spending up to 75% of their time reviewing and fixing the mistakes of their staff along with spending 10 – 20% of their time resolving conflicts. It also discovered this problem was prevalent within 11 of the 12 offices as the company as a whole had a turnover rate of over 60% a year. Two teams came in to help resolve these issues. Team 1 came in to ensure all offices ran in a consistent manner. After the evaluation period was completed they assessed the roles and responsibilities of each employee to define how critical they were to the day to day operations and determine the impact if they left. They were also able to determine if any employees were currently hurting the practice. Based on the assessments, the practice documented all critical processes and procedures to eliminate any single points of failures while building efficient teams for long term success. To ensure continuous process improvement they trained the staff how to document all new processes and procedures. To ensure long term consistency they audited all practices on quarterly basis for the first year to ensure all offices were following, documenting, and trained on all policies and procedures correctly.
Team 2 fully trained the staff on customer service ensuring they practiced their core principle “always put the customer first”. Second they focused on internal interpersonal communication skills to ensure the teams understood each other better and learn how to deal with conflicts internally and how to deal with difficult customers better. Lastly they implemented a hiring process that ensured the practice was hiring the right candidate the first time and they better fit their overall team dynamics.
After improving operations and the communication dynamics within the offices they focused on improving sales. Their sales strategy focused on making the entire staff were more proficient sales professionals. This started by creating a mindset that helping each customer is a potential sale. The staff was trained on product introduction, benefits and features, and recommendations the staff could fully explain key products and services that helped the customers make better decisions by building trust and rapport which lead to increased sales almost immediately.
After resolving operational, communication, and sales issues the practice focused on a marketing strategy that would provide maximal exposure to the new offices and their new product line. They developed a 3 tiered solution that focuses on an internal, external, and online marketing strategies. They were easily able to meet their financial goals by focusing on existing customer up sells, expanding their partnerships, and increasing online marketing to generate new customers.
Their financial strategy was simple in words and but difficult to achieve without the right team as they wanted to increase revenue by 35% in 6 months. This strategy included marketing, sales, and cost cutting measures to achieve their goals mentioned above.
Final they looked at long term strategy. Along with an increasing revenue by 35% in 6 months, they wanted to see a sustainable increase by 20% a year for 5 years and a decrease in turn-over by 80% within the first year. Lastly they wanted to create a complete turn-key solution that could be implemented in any new office expansion.
4.0 Results
Focus Area | Results |
Finance |
Exceeded total financial goals by >20 within 6 months Company was debt free within 4 months
|
Sales |
Increased sales by >40% within 6 months
|
Operations |
Increased productivity of entire staff by >87% within 6 months
|
Communications |
Repeat business increased by >50% within 6 months due to better customer service Reduced office conflicts by >90% within 6 months 90% of staff felt like they had clear direction on weekly basis
|
Marketing |
New product in services sales increase by >23% within 6 months due to new marketing efforts
|
Strategy |
Created a customized turn-key solution for expandability
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These results are consistent with our other clients in the health care field.
5.0 Benefits
Focus Area | Benefits |
Finance | Able to make smart financial decisions
Able to ensure they meet or exceed quarterly goals Able to identify and mitigate financial risk in the early stages |
Sales | Staff able to help customers make better decisions
Staff has the in-depth knowledge to explain products Staff able to recommend additional products or services that will help customers |
Operations | Company operates in a consistent manner
Company is process driven Able to minimize mistakes |
Communications | Staff able to have a more peaceful work environment
Staff able to save time by screening employees properly and hiring the best candidate the first time Staff know how to deal with difficult customers in a professional manner |
Marketing | Reaching more customers within budget
Able to create new customers Allow existing customers to market for them |
Strategy | Ensures the company has a clear picture for success in the future
Able to clearly measure progress to stay on track Ensure the company is marching to clear achievable goals |
These benefits show how our clients utilize our services to maximize their result and achieve their goals.