What is the next big decision in your business?
The order is worth winning. But you will be paying wages and suppliers long before the customer pays you. Do you take it, change the terms or leave it for someone else?
A spreadsheet can show the cash required. You still have to decide what the business can take on, what your people can deliver and how much you are prepared to risk.
I work with owners and management on decisions like these, and on the financial and operating work needed to make them hold. That may mean putting a cash plan in place, working with the bank, improving the information managers use or helping someone take responsibility that still sits with you.
Before hiring another senior person, I would ask what you need off your desk. If responsibility arrives without authority, you may add another salary and still have the same problem.
What are you trying to achieve—and what do you want to preserve?
What do you want for the business? What matters to you about how it gets there? You may want to grow, give your managers more responsibility or have more time for yourself. I want to understand what a good outcome looks like to you—and the people involved—before suggesting what to change.
I will ask questions, look at what is happening and tell you what I think, including where I would be cautious. You should be able to question my view too. Once we agree on the work, I take responsibility for my part alongside your people.
Michael Cooper
Middle East operations
Michael brings forty-five years in operations, including thirty-eight in the Middle East and North Africa. His work covers operations, negotiation and contracts, with experience at ADNOC and ADWOC.
Michael Yeung
Debt and financing
Michael’s debt and financing work considers what the business can support and how funding should fit its needs. His practice is his own, engaged and billed separately.