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here: Step
2: Current business viability > Your business
viability checklist |
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Your
business viability checklist
These
are some of the questions you need to answer: Be honest -
if you are not honest with your answers, you are only hurting
yourself. You may also want to get one or two other persons
to complete this checklist (perhaps another person from inside
the firm and someone outside the firm that you know well
and that knows your firm well, and that will give you an
honest evaluation).
In this checklist, we have listed the questions
that you need to consider on the left-hand side. In the
"score" column, you must give your firm a score
of 1 to 10 (with 10 being the highest). Under the "yes/no"
column indicate a "yes" if you think that your
firm can answer "yes" with confidence to the
questions, otherwise leave it blank if it is a "no"..
Under the additional explanation heading you need to justify
the score you have given yourself with a small explanation
- you need only write down a sentence or two for the sake
of clarity. At the bottom of the checklist, add up all
of your scores, as well as all the "yes's". Your
total score should at least be above 60 and you should
also have a "yes" for all of the questions -
if not, then you need to first focus on improving that
area of operation of your current business before going
into exports.
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Questions
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Score
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Yes/No
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Additional explanation
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| 1 |
Is your firm successful?
This is broad judgement based on your gut feel.
You are suggesting that your firm is growing, is
profitable and is cash-flush. You are able to compete
against your best competitors and you have a unique
product range that you sell nationally. Your firm
also has areas of excellence that sets your firm
aside from its competitors (e.g. excellent customer
services, excellent product quality, innovative products,
good administration, etc.)
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| 2 |
Are your sales growing?
If you look at your sales over the past three years,
have they been growing? Is this growth better than
that of your competitors? Is this growth likely to
continue?
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| 3 |
Is your firm profitable?
Do you make profits? Have you do an extensive costing
exercise to identify all of your costs. Are your
profits in line with those of your competitors?
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| 4 |
Do you have a positive cash flow?
Do you regularly go into overdraft to pay for your
day-to-day operations, or are you able to pay your
own way? Do you currently have cash in the bank?
Are most of your capital goods paid for?
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| 5 |
Does your firm operate nationally?
Do you sell your goods throughout the country regularly
or in one or two regions only? If you are not selling
nationally, why not? Do have branches or representatives
in other parts of the country that can sell and service
your products?
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| 6 |
Does your product have unique features?
What makes your product stand out from the competition,
besides for price? Is the quality exceptional? Do
you have an innovative design, perhaps?
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| 7 |
What are your firm's competitive advantages over
the competition?
What aspects of your firm make it different and
unique, when compared with the competition? Are you
an innovative company? Are you an extremely efficient
company? Are you very good marketing company or is
your product processes extremely efficient?
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| 8 |
Has your firm exhausted all of its opportunities
within the local market?
Are there unexplored opportunities still present
in the home market?
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TOTAL
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If you can answer "yes" truthfully
to all of these questions, then you are ready to export.
But only then!
Getting help to turn your company around
If you cannot answer "yes" to these
questions, then you should leave exports well alone and
get on with ensuring the success of your current business.
But you may ask, "who will help me with this"?
On the next page we provide a list
of actions that you could follow to help you improve your
current business, as well as organisations you could turn
to for help.
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