In my earlier Insights columns, I’ve described the benefits of what I call the Performance Culture System, which I created for Cornerstone Business Advisors. It has four core elements: Effective Leadership, Niche Strategy, People Management and Process Excellence. Implementing these four elements in your business is a process itself and requires discipline and commitment. In the short term, this may mean working harder, but your work/life balance will improve and you will have higher profitability.
 
I’ve developed the Performance Culture Coaching Process to help you get there. One of things I enjoy most in my work is coaching people one-on-one, but you can also follow the do-it-yourself approach that I’ve outlined here.
The Performance Culture Coaching Process begins by first understanding your personal vision. Your personal vision  should define your personal goals and provide an outline of what you personally want. You start with your personal vision because it will impact the direction you take your company (assuming you are the business owner or key leader).

After defining your personal vision, the next step is to evaluate the leadership effectiveness of yourself and other key leaders. During this step, you will validate what’s working well and identify areas for improvement. Defining your company’s vision and mission should be a part of this process.

With your company vision and mission in place, you should evaluate your niche strategy. If you already have a niche strategy and solid competitive advantage, you can quickly move on to the next step. If you don’t, the Performance Culture System Marketing Strategy templates will help you identify ways to create a competitive advantage in the market place. These are in my book, Performance Culture – Drive Culture and Create a Great Workplace.

http://www.amazon.com/Performance-Culture-Workplace-PERFORMANCE-simplified/dp/1478295929/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1392829617&sr=8-1&keywords=Dallas+Romanowski.

Smaller companies have an advantage over larger competitors because it is easier for smaller companies to carve out niche value propositions focused on very specific target markets.

The next step, people management, begins by defining the right seats and evaluating your current team members. This evaluation not only measures performance, but also behaviors. Once you are satisfied you have the right seats and right people identified, you will create a 90-day plan. The 90-day plan includes Critical Success Factors  (CSFs) and action plans to achieve them. To gain traction, you can use the Performance Culture System Weekly Leadership Team Meeting Agenda in my book to structure your meetings. This structure ensures the meeting time is productive and wisely used.

The last step is process excellence, the essential element to build a scalable organization that can continue to grow without day-to-day operational involvement from the owner or owners. Process will improve quality, decrease operating costs and provide Key Performance Indicators to gauge company health. Once implemented, you will find it much easier to focus on strategic initiatives to grow your business.


Cornerstone Business Advisors provides access to experts in business strategy, management, process and finance. The Cornerstone team includes former C-Level executives, successful entrepreneurs and advisors who offer unmatched experience in delivering advanced, custom-tailored, results-oriented solutions for business leaders. Cornerstone has worked with hundreds of companies that range from fast-growth start-ups to Fortune 500 corporations.  It developed the Performance Culture System™ to help clients implement best practices and drive high performance throughout their organization. For more information, visit www.launchgrowexit.com, call 910-681-1420, or email [email protected].