Strategic Consulting
As a strategic consulting firm, Summit works with you and your organization to help you realize your vision. The services that we provide differ from one company to another, because no two companies are exactly alike and their visions are as varied as the dreams and personalities of their owners. That is why we don’t try to run your business for you; we try to become a strategic partner to give you the resources, guidance, and support to run your business more effectively. That is also why don’t start by trying to give you answers. After all, if we don’t understand you, how could we help you? Instead, we start by asking questions.
What is your vision for the organization?
Sometimes the questions that sound the simplest are actually the most difficult to answer. They are often the ones that we are mostly likely to never try to answer ourselves. All business owners have wishes for what they hope that they can accomplish through their business, but not all of them have established a clear vision for their business. Even fewer have developed a plan or strategy to realize that vision. However, a vision alone is not sufficient basis to develop a strategic plan. It needs to be supported by a strong mission statement and clear communication of organizational values. That is why Summit consultants start by learning what your vision, mission, and values are. In addition, if you are like many business owners and have never established those, we can help you do that.
Where is your organization at now?
A good strategic plan should be a road map for your business to follow to reach its goal destination. We can’t help you develop a map to get there, though, until we learn where you are at now. Unfortunately, most business owners don’t know the answer to that question themselves. If that is the case with your organization, we can assist you with a situational analysis, from conducting internal and external surveys, to completing a SWOT analysis for each facet of the business. Many business owners fail to do a full situational analysis because they lack the time or are uncertain how to start. Summit’s trained consultants can not only take the mystery out of the process, but we can also help you do it as effectively and efficiently as possible. After all, your time is one of the most important resources that you have, and we want to help you protect it.
How do you measure your progress?
Even the best strategic plan needs constant monitoring and adjustment. However, unless you know how far along you are in achieving your long-term goals, it is very difficult to know what adjustments need to be made. Summit consultants take the time to learn what factors are indicators of progress and predictors of future success. It is important that these are measurable, easy to understand, and simple to gather. That is why we try to structure your short-term and long-term goals, and your Key Performance Indicators, around the information that you are comfortable gathering and utilizing. Otherwise, those goals will not be any help in keeping you on track to reach your destination.
What resources and expertise do you need?
To properly executive a strategic plan, four different areas need to be addressed: finances, marketing, employees, and operations. Each of those areas should have their own strategic plan that supports the larger organizational plan. However, every business has different strengths and weaknesses, and each business owner has a unique set of skills, experience, and interest. Because of that, many businesses don’t have personnel with the necessary experience or have access to the necessary resources to develop those strategies. That is where we can help, by helping you develop those strategies in any areas where you lack resources and experience, or to assist your in-house team as they develop those strategies.
Whatever your specific needs are, we are confident that Summit can help you start, grow, and protect your business. Whether you are a new business, a growing one, or a mature business, we have specialized resources and consultants who can customize a plan to meet your needs. We would appreciate the opportunity to show you what we can do for your business. To learn more, we encourage you to give us a call at (866) 435-0268 or send us an e-mail at summit@thesummitweb.com and we can schedule a time to sit down with you for a free assessment. We look forward to hearing from you.