Lifetime loyalty

I've been reading Terry Leahy's book - 'Management in 10 words'...and very good it is too. Terry Leahy was Chief Executive of Tesco for 14 years up to 2011. He presided over a period of the company's greatest growth and expansion, overtaking Sainsbury's and Marks and Spencer as the UK's largest retailers and expanding internationally on a massive scale. I was at Tesco for 16 years up to 2003 as a middle ranking finance executive so it's interesting to read about how the big decisions were made during some of my time at the company.

Terry is a marketing man and his success was built around listening to and looking after customers. A key decision was to introduce Tesco Clubcard, Almost all the big retailers have loyalty cards now but Tesco gained a major advantage by being first. Clubcard data enabled Tesco to understand customer shopping habits better and customers liked being thanked and collecting points for money off their shopping bill. Other examples of listening to customers were leading on the lobby for Sunday trading, the introduction of 'Value' lines, customer panels and store design.

Perhaps Terry's biggest legacy is introducing Tesco's 'Values'. These are a few short statements covering how Tesco looks after its customers and how people in the company work together to achieve this. The values were developed by staff at all levels and are complementary to Tesco's core purpose, 'To create value for customers to earn their lifetime loyalty'. Lifetime loyalty...now that's powerful.

The thing about the values is that they reinforced and also developed the culture at Tesco. Terry says it helped make Tesco a gentler environment. A move on from the masculine, macho culture of the 60s and 70s. The values helped guide decision making from senior management to the shop floor. If an employee was unsure how to deal with a customer query or complaint, the values steered them to 'follow the customer'

I left Tesco in 2003 and since then have run my own accountancy practice. I now deal with accounts and tax for a number of my ex Tesco colleagues, most of whom have gone on to run highly successful consultancy businesses. So why did they come to me for help? Well it may be that they think I'm a great accountant. More likely, it's the Tesco culture of loyalty to an ex colleague and they know that as an ex Tesco man I will always do my best for them as my customers.

So although retailing is a million miles away from accountancy, something of the Tesco culture and values has stayed with me and has shaped my current business. If that helps me to focus on gaining lifetime loyalty from our customers, that's no bad thing.

www.base52.co.uk

On blogger's block...

This is my first blog post of the new year and my first for some time. I have been suffering from a bad case of 'blogger's block' but new year, new motivation. So I'm going to TRY and blog about something useful (or at least interesting to me) every now and then over the next 12 months.

This is the time of year when things are generally a bit manic for accountants. The self assessment deadline is 31st January and inevitably a good chunk of this work gets wedged into December and January and it all gets a bit intense. But not this year. We are busy but its certainly not manic and for the first year in many we are not having to work weekends or late nights at this time of year. We even have some additional capacity and are taking on new clients for self assessment and other work.

So what's changed? Well we did make a concerted effort to encourage our clients to hand in their personal tax records a little bit earlier this year. We also have an experienced member of our team who has been focussing solely on self assessment work since last April. So better communication and better resourcing...and it seems to have worked!

So it has been very nice having a long Christmas break for a change and also having a bit more time to deal with other client work and even think about business development...and a bit of blogging.

I'd like to wish all our clients, suppliers and other contacts a happy new year and best wishes for a successful 2013.

www.base52.co.uk

Time for YouTube

Company video time. We are on Facebook, we are linking in and we are occasional tweeters and bloggers. So time now to embrace YouTube and add some content about our accountancy practice. But what to do?

Firstly some research. YouTube is the second most used search engine after Google so it is a great way of increasing exposure for a business. Not much on there from accountancy firms though. Most from the US as you would expect. Some having quite a formal, corporate feel. Some using wobbly cameras and Powerpoint slides. One memorable one showing a firm of auditors doing a really bad (and quite lengthy) rap. Then to the UK. Not much video content even on the web sites of the largest UK firms. One or two smaller firms with quite awkward looking accountancy types talking about their firms in little sound bites. All felt a bit scripted and formal.

So my producer and director is my son James who is involved in video production at his University television channel. He is quite clear about the brief. 'It needs to be snappy and punchy as people will switch off after about 90 seconds'. 'It needs to say a bit about who you are, what you do and how you help your clients. The personality of you and your firm needs to come across. That's it.' It was all very painless. The results have been uploaded to YouTube and we will add to our website shortly. Initial feedback has been positive and I am hopeful this will be a new way of engaging with prospective customers.

www.Base52.co.uk

Decisions, decisions...

A recent study has found the secret of true happiness. Apparently its all about following your gut instinct, making your mind up and being satisfied with the choice you have made. People who make decisions on this basis are called 'satisficers'. At the other end of the spectrum are 'maximisers'. They agonise over decisions and are terrified of making the wrong choice. Even when they have chosen a course of action they then stress about whether they have made the right decision and waste time and energy thinking about what might have been.

So that's easy then. Follow your gut and stay happy. Yes well, but I guess that depends to an extent on how effective your 'gut' is. If your instinct is right most of the time things should work out well in the longer run. But what if it's not? It could be a downward spiral from one lousy decision to another.

My first thoughts are often a bit 'off the wall' and its only when mulled over and bounced off a few wiser counsellors that the eventual more sensible options take shape. I find that the older I get the more I dislike making poor decisions. Maybe that makes me a 'maximiser' but I don't feel unhappy or lack commitment (which is another trait of maximisers). Gut feel is also not terribly collaborative. What if your gut suggests a different path from your colleagues or workmates? Unless your persuasive skills are very strong you may end up unpopular, lonely, or both. Collaborative decision making is partly about reaching consensus but also about trying to achieve the right decision - maximising one might say? So each to their own I think. The initial 'gut feel' can often be right but there is no harm in my book with a bit of mulling, consulting and dithering before the final decision is made.

www.Base52.co.uk

Franchising for everyone?

I'm an avid reader of business books. In the 8 years or so I've been running my business I must have averaged about one a week. That's a lot to take in. I have to admit that I don't get to the end of every one and only a few manage to make it into my personal 'hall of fame'. High on this exclusive list is Ron Baker, the Value Pricing guru. Also on the list are Michael Gerber of E-Myth fame, Felix Dennis, Michael Denny and Julian Richer. So you can imagine my excitement (or maybe you can't?) when I heard that Michael Gerber's new book is called, 'The E-Myth Accountant'. A book by one of my favourite business authorities about my own business sector. If this doesn't appear in my Christmas stocking I think I will be treating myself to it to browse during the quieter moments of the Christmas break. A bit sad I know, but each to their own as they say.

I believe this book will highlight some differences between Mr Gerber and Ron Baker. The basic premise behind the 'E-myth' is that any business can and should be run like a franchise - standard processes and an operating manual to run the business efficiently. Ron Baker speaks of 'effectiveness' rather than efficiency and believes that professional firms should focus on developing their intellectual capital. He also advocates getting rid of timesheets and eradicating the 'billable hour'. It will be interesting to see how the E-Myth Accountant deals with these issues.

Despite the possible differences in approach I think both gurus will keep their place in my hall of fame and help to shape my business development in the coming years. The E-Myth gives a great roadmap to any business owner to move towards working on their business rather than in their business. I will still pick this up every now and then and check I am not getting too bogged down in the nitty gritty of my business. Ron Baker's message to professional service firms to develop their knowledge and deliver value to their customers is becoming more relevant as my business moves from adolescence to maturity. So there is room in my world for both Mr Gerber and Mr Baker and I'll keep looking for other business authors to add to my shortlist.

www.Base52.co.uk