Choose your starting point

Build the foundations. If every decision comes back to you, document one recurring job, choose a number to track and decide who could take on the work. Make a 90-day plan or prepare for your first hire.

Expand what works. If demand is growing, check whether cash, people and suppliers can keep up. Compare funding options, explore a new market or review pricing and customer value.

Prepare for a transition. If you want to step back, identify what a successor would need to run the business. Explore succession, franchising and valuation.

Growth guides and planning resources

Open a topic for its planning resources and templates, or choose an article below it.

Hiring and team building

Decide what work to hand over and what you can afford to pay.

• Work out the true cost of a first employee
• Compare remote and on-site team structures

Funding and cash reserves

Estimate how much cash growth will use before choosing a funding source.

• Build a cash reserve for lean months
• Compare bootstrapping and venture capital

Planning the next 90 days

Turn one annual goal into a quarterly milestone with a named owner.

• Break annual goals into quarterly steps
• Close the gap between planning and delivery

Entering a new market

Check whether your suppliers, delivery times and margins can support another location.

• Prepare your supply chain for multiple regions

Growing customer revenue

Decide whether the next growth dollar belongs in acquisition, retention or a better offer.

• Balance retention and acquisition
• Offer customers a useful upgrade
• Increase customer lifetime value

Succession, franchising and sale

Explore how the business could operate under another owner or in another location.

• Understand what buyers look for in a business
• Assess whether your model is ready to franchise

Five numbers to bring to your next growth decision

Revenue growth rate

How much did sales change compared with the previous month or the same period last year? For a seasonal business, compare like seasons.

Customer lifetime value

Estimate the value a customer brings across the relationship. Be clear whether you’re measuring revenue or gross profit before comparing it with acquisition costs.

Customer acquisition cost

Divide acquisition spending by the number of new customers it brought in. Which channels bring customers back for a second purchase?

Gross profit margin

After the direct cost of delivering a product or service, what share of each sales dollar is left? Check whether discounts or higher supplier costs are eating into it.

Cash conversion cycle

For a business carrying stock, add inventory days and customer payment days, then subtract supplier payment days. A longer cycle can leave cash tied up even as sales rise.

Explore the finance calculators or browse the small business toolkit.