DevelopandImplementaGrowthBudget
Youhavetosetupagrowthbudget—resourcesthatareearmarkedforgrowthinitiatives.Unlessyoudothat,peoplewilljusttalkaboutgeneratinggrowthtokeepthebosshappy,butnothingofsubstancewillbedone.
GrowthBudgetConcepts
■Developalistofprojects—theprojectsyouarecurrentlyundertakingtogrowyourorganization'srevenues,andthelevelofresourcesallocatedtoeachproject.
■Categorizebasedontimetorevenuegeneration—designateeachprojectasbeingeithershort,mediumorlong-termaccordingtotheanticipatedlead-upperiodbeforethatprojectwillgeneraterevenues.Thecriteriaare:
Short-term—willgeneratemorerevenuethisyear
Medium-term—twotofiveyearsout
Long-term—fiveyearsormore
■Setprioritiesforalloftheshort-term,medium-termandlong-termprojectsinthebudget.
■Spreadcosts—thecostsassociatedwitheachgrowthprojectarethenbrokendownonaquarter-by-quarterbasis.Theprojectedcostsmaybeallocatedtocostcentersorbusinessfunctionslikeresearch,productdevelopment,trials,pilotproduction,marketing,advertising,etc.
ConvertBudgetintoAction
Thegrowthbudgetcanthenbeconvertedintoanactionlistbyidentifyingwhichpeoplewillbeassignedtospecifickeycomponentsofthegrowthprojects,whattheiraccountabilitieswillbe,howoftentheywillbereviewedandsoforth.