Scaling Stage Resources
Your business has grown and you’re ready to take it to the next level! Scaling your business could include expanding your market reach, increasing your number of services or products or increasing your distribution capacity with new equipment or additional team members. At this stage, you are likely thinking about how you can build your team (whether with service providers, contractors or employees) to take some of the tasks off your plate. You’re ready to explore new sales opportunities and looking for ways to keep track of all your accounts and clients. You want to ensure consistency and excellence in your brand across all your platforms. Financially, you need to start thinking about how you will establish funds to reduce your risk and you may even be considering how you can give back to your community. Want to learn more about different stages of business and the milestones? Check out our business growth roadmap.
For more complex questions or a personalized response, we offer one-on-one coaching with our business advisors. Learn more here.
Table of Contents
Leadership & Strategy
How do I define success for my company?
- Every Business Owner Should Define What Success Looks Like https://hbr.org/2019/08/before-you-start-a-business-decide-what-success-looks-like
- How to Create an Exit Strategy for Your Small Business
- https://www.thebalancesmb.com/small-business-exit-strategies-2947988
- 8 Business Exit Strategies https://www.fundercom/blog/exit-strategy-for-small-business
- What is Your End Goal? Defining Success for Your Business https://flagstaffcrafted.ca/stories/what-is-your-end-goal-defining-success-for-your-business/
What are the different ways to scale?
- Nine Strategies to Grow and Expand Your Business https://www.thebalancesmcom/top-ways-of-growing-your-business-2948140
Why should I take time to intentionally grow (aka working on my business vs. in my business)?
- Automatic Calendar Scheduling Software: Calendly
- Time Blocking and Imagining Your Ideal Week https://ashleyjanssen.com/time-blocking-and-imagining-your-ideal-week/ (templates)
- The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Business Don’t Work and What to Do About It by Michael E Gerber — working on your business vs in your business
What skills do I need to manage a team and become a boss?
- The Coaching Habit by Michael Bungay Stanier — Preparing to Manage Employees
- Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni
- Extreme Ownership: How US Navy SEALs Lead and Win by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin
- Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes are High by Grenny, Patterson, McMillan, Switzler & Gregory
How do I set myself up for successful values-based collaborations and partnerships?
- Ask These 6 Questions Before Collaborating with Another Business https://www.fastcompany.com/90359230/ask-these-5-questions-before-collaborating-with-another-business
- How Your Small Businesses Can Give Back to Your Community and Make an Impact https://flagstaffcrafted.ca/stories/how-your-small-businesses-can-give-back-to-your-community-and-make-an-impact/
Operations
How do I embed my purpose and values into my business?
- Values Based Communication: https://youtu.be/MTdsEOdWgPo
How can I grow my team?
- How to Grow Your Team: Understanding Your Options & Preparing for New Hires by Kate McKenzie, Flagstaff Crafted Business Advisor https://www.kathrynmckenzie.org/hiringoptions
What do I need to know before hiring my first employee?
- 25 Tips on How to Build the Best Small Business Team: tips for building your team through the stages of job postings, interviews and onboarding https://www.virtasktic.com/building-best-small-business-team/
- The Do’s and Don’ts of Writing Job Postings for Small Business https://hiring.workopolis.com/article/the-dos-and-donts-of-writing-job-postings-for-small-businesses/
- Writing a Job Description that Attracts Ideal Candidates https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/write-job-ad-copy
- 10 Great Interviewing Techniques for Small Business Owners https://www.skillsyouneed.com/rhubarb/small-business-interviewing-tips.html
- The 16 Steps to Onboarding Best Practice https://hronboard.me/blog/employee-onboarding-best-practices/
- The First 90 Days: Transitioning New Hires into Valuable Team Members https://www.saplinghr.com/90-day-onboarding-plan
When is it time to bring in someone else?
- Amanda Wagner, Flagstaff Crafted Business Advisor — Intentional Hiring course (special offer for Flagstaff members) https://www.thecomplement.ca/store/intentional-hiring-course
How do I document my operations so I can delegate while maintaining consistency and quality?
- Why Your Small Business Needs an Operations Manual https://www.allbusiness.com/create-your-small-business-operations-manual-3872787-1.html
- The Easy Guide to Creating an Operations Manual https://creately.com/blog/diagrams/how-to-create-an-operations-manual/
- The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Business Don’t Work and What to Do About It by Michael E Gerber
- The Ultimate System for Documenting Business Systems https://youtu.be/ddNaAsgFzno (13 min)
How and why should I do product/service testing?
- How to Get Great Customer Feedback on your Business Idea https://www.com/s/jh0ev5pesgjlodl/research-worksheet.pdf?dl=0
- How to Host a Design Sprint https://www.thesprintbook.com/the-design-sprint
- Testing Business Ideas for Market need by Steve Blank Before You Start Designing – It’s Time to Get Out of the Building | Interaction Design Foundation (IxDF) (interaction-desorg)
- How to Get Customer Feedback on your Business Idea by John Zeratsky Getting out of the building isn’t enough
- Continuous Discovery Habits by Teresa Torres
What should I look for in a new location?
- 30 Question Checklist to find an ideal location https://canadianentrepreneurtraining.com/try-our-30-question-small-business-location-checklist/
- Growing with a Second Location by Kate McKenzie, Flagstaff Crafted Business Advisor https://www.atb.com/business/good-advice/operations/growing-with-a-second-location/
- How to Expand My Small Business into Other Cities? https://www.invoiceberry.com/blog/expand-small-business-cities/
Financial
What are the pros and cons of investors and how else can I fund my business?
- The Pros and Cons of Raising Cash in Different Ways https://mailchimp.com/courier/article/different-fundraising-strategies/
How can I start to financially plan for team expansion? (savings and payroll options)
- When Can I Afford to Hire My Next Employee https://medium.com/the-crunch/when-can-i-afford-to-hire-my-next-employee-part-ii-ec11fddb540d
How do I set aside money for profit, equipment upgrades, emergency funds, etc.?
- 13 Tips for Building Up Your Business’ Emergency Fund https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesfinancecouncil/2020/02/12/13-tips-for-building-up-your-business-emergency-fund/?sh=14b2dd932120
- How and Why to Budget for Equipment Upgrades https://flagstaffcrafted.ca/stories/how-and-why-to-budget-for-equipment-upgrades/
- Profit First by Mike Michaelowicz — cash management solutions, making your business profitable, managing finances https://themoneypanel.co.uk/putting-profit-first/
- Putting Profit First with Mike Michaelowicz https://themoneypanel.co.uk/putting-profit-first/
How and why should I do weekly cash flow assessments?
- Why Every Business Should Build Weekly Cash Flow Forecasts https://cfo.university/library/article/why-every-business-should-build-weekly-cash-flow-forecasts-mooney
- Common Mistakes with Cash Management https://www.dryrun.com/blog/common-mistakes-with-cash-management
- Pandemic Cash Flow by Blaine Bertsch — Cashflow, managing finances
- Profit First by Mike Michaelowicz — cash management solutions, making your business profitable, managing finances
Marketing & Sales
How should I engage in business development?
- Understanding Business Development by Seth Godin, includes six real-world examples of business development and 12 tips on how to do it. better https://seths.blog/2009/09/understanding-business-development/
How do I expand beyond my region? (prospecting)
- Four Marketing Strategies for Rural Small Businesses https://cfmanitoba.ca/blog/4-unbeatable-marketing-strategies-for-rural-small-businesses
- How to Expand Beyond Your Region in a Thoughtful and Efficient Way https://flagstaffcrafted.ca/stories/how-to-expand-beyond-your-region-in-a-thoughtful-and-efficient-way/
How and why should I use a Customer Relationship Management program? (CRM)
- How to Make a Spreadsheet CRM: The Basics https://nethunt.com/blog/spreadsheet-crm-the-basics/
- Do Small Businesses Really Need CRM? https://nethunt.com/blog/do-small-businesses-really-need-crm/
How do I establish secondary sales platforms? (e-commerce, niche events)
- The Digital Economy Program (DEP) — This free service is designed to help small businesses in Alberta take their businesses online. Get assistance in adopting eCommerce practices including training and advisory support towards digital strategy development. Learn about Google My Business assistance, social media posts and taking awesome pictures for your businesses. https://dep.businesslink.ca/about?gclid=EAIaIQobChMInN3CsJn5-AIV78LCBB0E7AStEAAYASAAEgKyf_D_BwEhttps://dep.businesslink.ca/about?gclid=EAIaIQobChMInN3CsJn5-AIV78LCBB0E7AStEAAYASAAEgKyf_D_BwE
- How Event Marketing Can Benefit Your Niche Business https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-event-marketing-can-benefit-your-niche-business-sushmita-das/
What do I include in my brand guidelines?
- Brand Guidelines Downloadable Templates: https://www.smartsheet.com/content/brand-style-guide-template
- 14 Examples of Good Brand Guidelines (+ What to Include in Yours) https://piktochart.com/blog/brand-guidelines/
What are the best practices for customer newsletters?
- Hubspot: Newsletter Lookbook — how to make a customer newsletter & examples