As the calendar turns to fall and our attention moves to baseball playoffs, football, corn mazes and hayrides the enterprise value specialists want to remind you that it is also a perfect time for a “fall reset.”
“A fall reset is not just about adapting to a new season but also about leveraging the season’s natural themes of change, preparation, and reflection. It’s a strategic pause, ensuring the company remains agile, efficient and client-centric,” said Tom Fochtman, Ceibass CEO. “Get your management team together and make a deliberate effort to recalibrate, re-evaluate, and make necessary adjustments to operations, strategies, and goals. You are about to enter the 4th quarter, finish the year strong with thoughtful planning.”
What aspects of your business might you consider resetting? The Ceibass team offered these ideas for your rumination:
- Operational Priorities: Assess what tasks and services are most critical during the fall. This might involve shifting focus from mowing to leaf removal, aeration, or fall planting.
- Budget Adjustments: After a review of the year’s financials so far, make necessary tweaks to the budget. This could involve reallocating funds based on service demands or upcoming equipment needs.
- Service Offerings: Introduce new fall-specific services or packages. For instance, bundled services for complete lawn winterization.
- Equipment Rotation: Rotate out equipment mainly used in the summer, servicing them before storage, and bring forward equipment more suited for fall tasks.
- Staffing and Roles: Redistribute roles or reassign teams based on the fall service lineup. This might also be a time to consider additional or specialized training.
- Goal Re-evaluation: Reflect on the company’s performance against set objectives and adjust any targets for the year’s end.
- Client Engagement: Reset your client communication strategies. Consider a campaign educating them on the importance of fall lawn care or special promotions. Also contract reviews and upcoming renewal strategies.
- Supplier Negotiations: As the high season winds down, it might be a suitable time to renegotiate terms with suppliers or explore new vendor relationships.
- Marketing and Branding: Refresh marketing materials, focusing on fall themes and services. Consider a “fall special” or early bird discounts for winter services.
- Safety Protocols: Update safety guidelines to accommodate fall’s specific challenges, such as shorter daylight hours or slippery conditions from rain or early frost.
- Employee Feedback Loop: Establish or renew a feedback mechanism. Engage with your team to understand ground-level challenges and make necessary adjustments.
- Technology and Software: Fall might be the right time to update software, explore new tech tools, or optimize existing digital systems to streamline operations.
- Inventory Review: Reset your inventory. Stock up on fall necessities and clear out summer-specific products.
- Quality Control: Re-emphasize quality standards and perhaps introduce a fall audit to ensure consistency and excellence in service delivery.
- Environmental Initiatives: As concerns about the environment continue to grow, consider introducing or enhancing sustainable practices in your operations.
“A reset is built on what you have already accomplished during the year, on what you have going on,” added Tom. “Re-evaluate, fine tune, re-commit and kick-ass the rest of the year.”
