How our client grew EBIT by 150% in 3 years
We began working with this financial planning client in late 2018. Coach Phil Little guided the business owner through four key projects, including Project Uplift™ one of our most popular projects. Project Uplift™ supports accountants and financial advisers to understand and communicate their value to clients by improving pricing methodologies and choosing to work with fewer, more ideal clients.
At the start of their coaching journey, this organisation had one principal and two staff members. Predominantly a life insurance firm, they offered simple advice on insurance-related financial issues, turning over approximately $700,000 pa.
Challenges & Goals
This client faced four distinct challenges that drove them to seek business coaching. Each of these roadblocks contributed to the formation of their new business goals.
Challenge #1: Location
Based in regional Australia, the business owner had difficulty finding adequate staffing. The small country town had only around 7,000 workers in the labour force, with just 5% completing university.
Challenge #2: Clientele
As the business owner became more experienced, he desired to serve larger, more complicated clients. As such, he needed a business plan to support this.
Challenge #3: Dependency
As the primary financial adviser for the group, the business owner felt enmeshed in the day-to-day running of the business. He sought a resolution to build a competent team to separate himself. A long-term goal was to take an extended period of leave without the performance of the business suffering from his prolonged absence.
Challenge #4: Growth
The business owner expressed a strong desire to grow the business at a reasonable year-on-year pace whilst achieving a > 40% profit margin.
Projects were assigned in order based on the previously identified challenges and goals.
Executed Projects
Project #1: Project Uplift™
During the 12-step Project Uplift™ process, our coach discovered the business had too many differing fees for his services. This project aimed to help the business owner understand their fee base in more detail to clarify the profitability and sustainability of client categories across the firm.
The solution: Introduced minimum fees for new clients and rolled out the same (higher) fee schedule to existing clients. He was able to exit the existing clients unwilling to pay the higher prices, which created more capacity. The increased revenue from establishing minimum fees was invested into the growth and development of professional staff.
More money, fewer clients.
Download the Project Uplift™ case studies.
Project #2: Create an organisational chart
Before the business could gain the additional support needed for growth, the business owner had first to identify the key areas where support was required. Organisations experiencing fast growth must commit to this ongoing process.
The solution: Designed jobs around the identified support areas and recruited the best candidates to fill those roles. To assist with this project phase, our coach recommended the client relocate their head office to a nearby larger town to increase the qualified talent pool.
Project #3: Eliminate business risks
Eliminating or mitigating the most significant risks to the business was a top priority for this client. He wanted to recognise vulnerabilities across the business and execute mitigation plans.
The solution: Identified risks specific to the business by conducting a risk audit focused on issues like cybercrime, fraud, and staff loss/retention.
Project #4: Identifying the ideal client
Having completed the previous three projects, the final step for this business was to identify their new ideal client. Our coach used the information from the first three projects to help the business owner create the new profile. Moving forward, he would only take clients with complexity that required their high level of financial expertise.
The solution: Targeting fewer, complex clients yielded more revenue. Adding between eight and ten clients each year has allowed the business to meet the new goals whilst maintaining revenue growth objectives and Earnings Before Interest and Taxes (EBIT).
Results & Benefits
Using Project Uplift™, our client achieved their business growth goals whilst pursuing his plans to spend time with family.
The business posted a 150% increase in EBIT between 30 June 2019 ($365,957) and 30 June 2022 ($913,558).
The company also realised a significant year-on-year revenue growth:
- 2019-2020 – 31% increase
- 2020-2021 – 24% increase
- 2021-2022 – 30% increase
Thanks to our coach's guidance and the clients' hard work in the execution, the business owner took six months of extended leave from the business while maintaining the desired revenue and profit margin. He has since returned to the office four days per week, leaving the management of the firm's clients to the capable staff.