Have You Changed Your Business Purpose?

Many businesses will have been through a tough and transformative period through 2020 and into 2021. In some cases, companies have had to update, change and pivot just to survive – and this means having to rethink the core mission behind your enterprise.

Having gone through the pandemic, your business is faced with a new kind of business reality. It’s a world where buying habits have changed, consumer expectations have evolved, online shopping has boomed and e-commerce is now a far more dominant force. To cope with these changes, it’s likely that your business has had to evolve. But do you know where you’re going and how it’s impacted your underlying business mission?

Embracing the need to evolve and change

Being able to react to changing circumstances and to evolve your business is one of the key capabilities you need as an entrepreneur, business owner, or CEO.

The ability to articulate your new business objective is a fundamental need. And having a clear outline of how you’re pivoting, will help you to understand the evolution of your business – and where you’re likely to go next.

Some key questions to ask yourself will include:

Have you changed your business purpose? – did your company change direction to move into new markets or new products? If so, do you have a robust plan for pivoting and continuing this evolution? Do you have the resources that are needed to back up this change?
What is your new business purpose? - What is your updated vision for the business and what do you want to achieve? Do you have this formalized in an updated mission statement or business plan? If not, you need to get this written down and communicated to your executive board, your team, and all other stakeholders.
Who are your new target customers? - If you’ve pivoted, it may be that your target customers have also changed. Are your sales, business development and marketing activities now focused on a new customer demographic or do you still need to update your sales and marketing strategy? Think about who you’re selling to, what their needs may be, and how you can service these needs.
Are any operational changes needed? - Can you successfully adapt to the new change and direction of your business with your current systems, processes, and resources, or do these need to be updated? If you’ve increased your e-commerce footprint, then your production, logistics, and delivery operations need to scale up to cope with this increased demand.
Do you have the right people on board? - Do you need new staff members to help you meet your goals? Or are some employees no longer required? If your purpose has changed, it’s likely that your talent may have to change as well. Reassess your key human resourcing requirements and think about the people you need onboard for this next chapter.
Do you have enough funding? - Do you have enough working capital behind you? If new equipment, plant, or premises are part of your pivot strategy, it’s likely that you’ll need additional funds. Think about approaching your bank manager, business adviser, or funding provider of choice. Check-in with your accountant for your financial planning.

Nothing stands still in business, so there’s always value in taking the time to step back and reassess your business direction. Fairing in the post-Covid market, taking the time to review your business purpose and planning is time well spent.