By the time you read this we will be almost half-way through the calendar year. This half-way point is a great opportunity for you to evaluate the past six months and plan or recalibrate your plans for the remainder of 2023. It is also a great opportunity to re-energise your team, review your offering and plan out the second half of your year.
I have set out below a general outline of what I recommend to include in a practice owner’s half-year review. By carrying out such a review, you will be able to assess the company’s progress toward its goals, identify areas of improvement and make any necessary adjustments to get you back on track; or better still, set tougher objectives if you feel you can step up your performance.
Financial performance
Produce your six-month profit and loss report, including revenue, profitability and key financial ratios. Carry out a stock take as you would at year-end, so you can correctly assess whether your profit margins are in line with your plans. This is something that can ‘drift’, especially in times when inflation is running at higher levels than usual, as has been the case. If you have access to industry trends, carry out a benchmarking exercise to compare your performance to the average.
Operational review
Review your systems and processes to make sure they are delivering on your goals. This may include checking that your patient journey is still working as you wish and that any changes you made this year have not gone back to the old ways. If they have, get the team together to discuss how to reset your objectives for the rest of the year. It may also pay to evaluate the efficiency of your processes and identify any areas that have either changed or where other circumstances have impacted on those processes.
Key performance indicators
At the beginning of the year, you may have set out a plan of campaigns and initiatives to promote your business. Your half-year review is the ideal opportunity to see how well these campaigns have gone. This may include things such as patient recall, new patient acquisition, patient loyalty rates or other practice performance data, including diary efficiency, staff engagement, average dispensing values or whatever key performance indicators you use to measure your business.
Long-term goals and objectives
Evaluate the progress made towards the longer-term goals you have set. For example, if you have a three-year plan, you are now a sixth of the way through. How is your progress towards these longer-term goals?
Competitive analysis
Now is also a good time to take another look at the competitive landscape and, more specifically, how your company is positioned within the local market. Identify your competitors’ strengths and weaknesses. Has anyone closed down or have any new practices opened up, had a revamp or expanded? Are there any new opportunities in the local market that you can take advantages of?
Employee performance and development
A six-monthly individual and team performance review is a great way to make sure everyone is on the right page. People’s personal and professional lives change over time and assuming nothing has changed can be a dangerous assumption. Re-evaluating your team’s training needs and career development opportunities will ensure that your team continues to grow and develop while maintaining their enthusiasm. It is also a golden opportunity to ask them what they feel could be changed in the business. Many of the best ideas are there, you simply have to ask.
Risk or crisis assessment
Every business should have a crisis plan that kicks in upon the event of a disaster. In optical practice, disasters are obviously not as serious as a construction company, for example, where the risks are higher. However, while you may not spend much time on this, it still should be addressed and reviewed periodically. Keeping your strategies to mitigate these risks and ensure business continuity up-to-date is both sensible and will help you sleep better at night as a business owner.
In conclusion, spending some time at the half-year stage to review and improve is well worth the time and effort to get you back on track and keep you there.
- To discuss your half-year review further, please message mentoris58@gmail.com.
