optimize your business

Optimize Your Business TM

How to Achieve

Better Results with Less Effort

Stephen A. Saenz

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OYB Business Optimization Defined

An optimized business is one that…

GROWS FASTER

with…

LESS EFFORT

which in turn, makes it…

MORE FUN

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OYB The Power of Business Optimization

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OYB

Business Optimization Process

OYB Process: 30,000 Foot View

REALIZE MINIMIZE ORGANIZE SYSTEMATIZE OPTIMIZE






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OYB OYB Process: 15,000 Foot View

STEP 1: REALIZE – We identify the performance barriers that are keeping your business from

achieving its full potential. We help you uncover the root causes of why certain things are

happening or not happening in your business. This critical step is missing from most consulting

processes and training programs.

STEP 2: MINIMIZE – We help you minimize the performance barriers. We help you to stop doing

counterproductive activities and start doing productive ones. This step clears the way for resuming

and/or accelerating the growth rate of your business. Think: "Preparing the runway for take-off."

STEP 3: ORGANIZE – One of the biggest performance barriers is NOT having the proper team

structure and/or the right people in place to operate your business at its full potential. In this step,

we assess your existing team and help you develop roles, responsibilities and accountabilities.

STEP 4: SYSTEMATIZE – Well designed systems and processes enable you and your team to

deliver predictable and consistent results in the key functions of your business. This includes

attracting new clients, delivering solutions and managing ongoing relationships. It also includes

the internal functions such as financial and team mgmt. This step is where most training begins.

STEP 5: OPTIMIZE – Your business is now working for you instead of the other way around. The

ultimate goal of business optimization is to get your business to grow faster with less resource

utilization. A significant by-product (dividend) of going through this process is that it increases the

value of your business and makes it more transferrable.

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OYB Food for Thought

“The significant problems we face

cannot be solved at the same level of

THINKING

we were at when we created them.”

Albert Einstein

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OYB In other words…

“It takes

BREAKTHROUGH

thinking to get

breakthrough results.”

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OYB Results vs. Effort*

Business Optimization (Effort vs. Results)

Red diamonds represent actual wealth advisors from major brokerage firm

* This should remind you of PORTFOLIO optimization (minimize risk / maximize return)

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OYB Step 1: REALIZE

WHAT IT MEANS…

To become aware of the

barriers that are preventing our

business from performing at its

full potential. To identify the

root causes.

WHY IT’S IMPORTANT…

Performance barriers are not

always apparent. We cannot

solve problems we are not

aware of. Step 1 leads to

breakthrough thinking.

KEEP IN MIND…

The OYB Process says we must identify and eliminate the

root causes before new solutions can take hold.

This may explain why previous training programs and other

initiatives have not had a lasting or meaningful impact on our

business.


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OYB What is there to REALIZE?

1. Performance Barriers are keeping our business from achieving its full

potential. There are two types of Performance Barriers:

EXTERNAL – things that happen TO our business

INTERNAL – things that happen IN our business

2. Our mission is to identify and prioritize the barriers that exist in our

business. You will eliminate them in Step 2.

3. As we work through the REALIZE Phase we should distinguish

between symptoms and root causes.


“Change happens NOT by trying to make yourself change, but by becoming aware of what’s not working.” Shakti Gawain

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OYB Step 2: MINIMIZE

WHAT IT MEANS…

To reduce or eliminate the

barriers that are preventing our

business from performing at its

full potential. To pave the way

for faster & better growth.


Our business needs to be in

good shape if we want it to run

efficiently. We will be focusing

on the health of our business

in Step 2.

KEEP IN MIND…

There is more to minimizing than reassigning smaller clients.

The purpose of this step is to reduce or eliminate ALL of the

serious barriers that are holding us back.

Having too many clients is just one of many Performance

Barriers we will be dealing with in Step 2 of OYB.a


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OYB How do we MINIMIZE?

1. As noted in Step 1 of the OYB Process, Performance

Barriers can explain why certain (bad) things are happening

in our business. They can also explain why certain (good)

things are NOT happening. We must address both!

2. Our mission in Step 2 is to MINIMIZE the negative effects of

the Performance Barriers we identified in Step 1.

3. There are two basic ways to MINIMIZE:

STOP doing the things that are causing bad things to

happen in our business

START doing the things that will make good things

happen in our business


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OYB Step 3: ORGANIZE

WHAT IT MEANS…

To figure out what it takes to

run our business and align our

resources accordingly. To

define, quantify and document

our workload.


Lack of organization leads to

misallocation of resources,

which severely limits business

performance. Organizational

skills are critical for a well-run

business and team.

KEEP IN MIND…

In order to organize our business, we are going to have to roll

up our sleeves and do some very detailed work. Step 3 is not

for the faint of heart.

While it may not be fun, it will be extremely helpful to our

business and team. Pay close attention to the details!


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OYB How do we ORGANIZE?

HOW WE DO IT…

1. Select our business model

2. Identify the primary functions of our business

3. Define the work that takes place in each function

4. Quantify the work that takes place in each function


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OYB Evolution of the Advisor Business Model

Stock

Broker

Financial

Advisor

Investment

Consultant

The STRUCTURE of your business must change in order to

support your new business model. If not, you will experience

declining revenue growth, deteriorating client satisfaction

and/or increasing levels of stress on your team.

Idea

Driven

Advice

Driven

Advisor

Centered

Client

Centered

Financial

Planner

Wealth

Advisor

Family

Office

COMPLEXITY OF YOUR BUSINESS

PE

RC

EIV

ED

VA

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F Y

OU

R O

FF

ER

ING

Your BUSINESS MODEL has been evolving over

the years. For a variety of reasons, including

industry commoditization and increased

competition, you have been adopting higher

value business models.

These high value business models place greater

demands on your firm and team. You now have

to solve complex wealth management problems

and build stronger relationships with your

clients, all of which requires significantly greater

resources.

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OYB Identify Your Primary Business Functions

Marketing Sales

Portfolio Design

Portfolio Mgmt

Financial Research

Financial Planning

Client Service

Portfolio Reviews

A D M I N I S T R A T I O N

a n d O P E R A T I O N S

P r a c t i c e M a n a g e m e n t

T e a m D e v e l o p m e n t

F I N D I N G

G R I N D I N G

M I N D I N G

Sales Relationship Management


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OYB Core Functions & the DISC Behavior Model

D Dominance

Problems

I Influence

People

C Compliance

Rules

S Steadiness

Pace

Co

ord

ina

tor P

ers

ua

de

r

Implementer

Relater

Sales

Marketing

Financial Planning

Portfolio Analysis & Design

Portfolio Management

Financial Research

Portfolio Reviews

Client Service

Relationship Management

Team Development

Practice Management

Administration

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OYB Define Your Work

WHAT IT MEANS…

To identify and document

every important task or activity

that takes place in each

function of our business.


The best way to understand

something is to commit it to

writing. This also keeps things

from falling through the cracks.

KEEP IN MIND…

Most people have a very incomplete understanding of how

much work it actually takes to run their business at its optimal

level.

This can result in a misallocation and/or shortfall in

resources, both of which can cripple our business.


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OYB Quantify Your Work

WHAT IT MEANS…

To figure out how long it takes

to perform every important task

or activity in our business. We

should do this for every

function of our business.


If we can’t measure we can’t

manage. Knowing how long it

takes to perform important

activities is critical to

managing our business.

KEEP IN MIND…

If I underestimate how long it takes to complete important

tasks or activities, I will have a tendency to over-commit my

and/or my team’s time.

At best this will make our team highly inefficient. At worst, it

will cause us to over-promise and under-deliver.


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OYB Step 4: SYSTEMATIZE

WHAT IT MEANS…

To adopt a standard way of

performing the important tasks

and activities in our business.

To make efficiency a serious

priority in our business.


Systems save time and enable

our people to do things the

right way on a consistent

basis. Lack of systems

creates inefficiency.

KEEP IN MIND…

Systems do not preclude or inhibit customization. To the

contrary, systems are the key to providing exceptional service

because they enable our people to exceed our clients’

expectations.

Systems will maximize the efficiency of our team.


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OYB What is a SYSTEM?






A series of steps or activities that work together

to produce predictable and consistent results.

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OYB Intangible Systems

WHAT THEY ARE…

Intangible, or “soft” systems,

are ones we cannot see or

touch. Used by world-class

organizations to deliver

exceptional client experiences.

WHY THEY’RE IMPORTANT

Little things can make a BIG

difference when it comes to

client satisfaction. They also

tend to be the biggest source of

client dissatisfaction.

KEEP IN MIND…

Lasting impressions are made on every person who comes in

contact with our business. Intangible systems ensure that

these are positive impressions.

Our clients and prospects don’t care how much we know until

they know how much we care.


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OYB Step 5: OPTIMIZE

WHAT IT MEANS…

To have a business that grows

faster with less effort. To create

real and sustainable value in our

business. To maximize the value

of our business for succession

planning.


Value comes from leveraging our

core assets, which includes time,

knowledge and relationships. We

will do this in Step 5 of OYB

Process.

KEEP IN MIND…

We reap what we sow. The more value we deliver, the more

we derive. The first four steps of the OYB Process have set

us up to leverage the Law of the Harvest.

The Performance Barriers we identified and eliminated in

Steps 1 and 2 can rear their ugly heads at any time…


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OYB How do we OPTIMIZE our business?

HOW WE DO IT…

1. Choose a Value Creation Strategy

2. Leverage Our Core Assets

3. Leverage Our Revenue Stream

4. Focus on Lifetime Value

5. Build A High Performance Team

6. Be A Stronger Advocate for Our Clients

7. Keep Optimizing Our Business


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OYB Choose A Value Creation Strategy


There are three core value disciplines…

1. Operational Excellence

2. Technical Superiority

3. Customer Intimacy

Which one is best for your business model?

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OYB DNA of Value

INSIGHT

EXPERTISE LOYALTY

VALUE

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OYB Leverage Your Revenue Stream

$10,000

$12,500

$15,000

$17,500

$20,000

$22,500

$25,000

$27,500

$30,000

$32,500

$35,000

$37,500

$40,000

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

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Revenue A

CLIENT A

$500,000

2% fee

8% growth

CLIENT B

$2,000,000

1% fee

8% growth

Time

Revenue B

For illustrative purposes only. Individual results may vary.

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OYB Lifetime Value of A Loyal Client

$10,000

$12,500

$15,000

$17,500

$20,000

$22,500

$25,000

$27,500

$30,000

$32,500

$35,000

$37,500

$40,000

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

An

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Revenue A

CLIENT A

$500,000

2% fee

8% growth

CLIENT B

$2,000,000

1% fee

8% growth

Time

Revenue B

Tim

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$289,731

$144,866

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OYB Build A High Performance Team

WHAT IT MEANS…

The right people doing the right

things the right way for the

right clients at the right time for

the right reasons.


If we want extraordinary clients,

our business must offer an

extraordinary value proposition.

Only a HPT can deliver such an

offering.

KEEP IN MIND…

It is one thing to have the right number of people (capacity)

doing the work. It is quite another to have the right people

doing the right things the right way for the right clients, etc.

We will learn how to create this type of team in our next

program, Building & Leading High Performance Teams.


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OYB Be A Stronger Advocate for Clients

WHAT IT MEANS…

Becoming a stronger advocate

for our clients means always

looking out for their interests

and solving more problems for

them, even non-financial ones.


It is no longer enough to simply

satisfy our clients. We must

exceed their expectations. We

do this by becoming a stronger

advocate for them.

KEEP IN MIND…

Before we can expect a client to become a stronger advocate

for us, we first have to become stronger advocates for them.

We will learn how to do this in our third program, Turning

Clients Into Advocates.


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OYB Keep Optimizing Your Business

Business Optimization Process





