​Running a nonprofit takes more than passion; it takes structure, strategy, vision, and systems that actually work. Many organizations start with a clear purpose but struggle to grow because they lack strong board development, strategic planning, efficient operations, or a clearly defined mission and vision. 
 
That’s where AGDA Consulting comes in. We help nonprofits transform their passion into long-term impact through customized consulting services that strengthen governance, streamline operations, and sharpen focus. 
 
Whether you’re a small community-based organization or a national nonprofit, AGDA Consulting provides the tools, training, and strategy you need to build a thriving, sustainable organization. 
 
Nonprofit Board Development: Turning Passion into Purposeful Leadership

A strong board is the backbone of any successful nonprofit. But too often, boards are filled with well-intentioned members who lack direction, structure, or clarity around their roles. 
 
AGDA Consulting specializes in nonprofit board development, helping organizations recruit, train, and engage the right members who can truly advance the mission. 
 
Our board development services include:
- Strategic planning assistance and evaluation 
- Board Retreat facilitation
- Strategic recruitment and onboarding plans 
- Board governance training and role alignment 
- Policy and accountability frameworks 
- Engagement strategies for active participation 
 
By building a skilled, purpose-driven board, your organization gains not only oversight but also momentum and a clear purpose. 
 
 
Nonprofit Strategic Planning: From Vision to Action

Many nonprofits have a vision statement but no roadmap to get there. AGDA Consulting helps transform those big-picture ideas into realistic, actionable strategic plans that guide daily operations and long-term success. 
 
Our consultants facilitate collaborative planning sessions that bring staff, board members, and stakeholders together around shared goals. 
 
We help you:
- Define measurable goals and key performance indicators (KPIs) 
- Align programs and budgets with strategic priorities 
- Develop 3–5 year strategic frameworks 
- Create systems for progress tracking and accountability 
-Analyze the current landscape and look for opportunities
 
With a clear strategic plan in place, your nonprofit gains focus, direction, and confidence to make informed decisions that drive measurable impact.
 
 
Nonprofit Operations Consulting: Building Sustainable Systems 

Behind every impactful mission is a strong operational foundation. AGDA Consulting helps nonprofits create efficient systems that support growth and reduce burnout. 
 
Our nonprofit operations consulting services focus on streamlining workflows, improving communication, and implementing modern tools for day-to-day management. 
 
We can help with:
- Workflow and process mapping 
- SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) development 
- Financial and administrative systems improvement 
- CRM and data management integration
- System analysis
- Market analysis
- Landscape analysis
- Technology advancements 
 
 
When your operations run smoothly, your team can focus on what matters most, delivering programs and serving your community. 
 
 
 
Clarifying Your Mission and Vision: Reconnecting with the “Why” 

Over time, nonprofits can lose sight of their core purpose. Funding pressures, program expansion, and shifting community needs can cause “mission drift.” 
 
AGDA Consulting works with leadership teams to redefine mission and vision statements that inspire action and align with today’s challenges. 
 
Our approach includes:
- Mission and vision clarity workshops 
- Messaging alignment across departments 
- Stakeholder engagement and feedback integration 
 
A clear mission and vision keep your team inspired, your donors confident, and your community connected to your cause.
 
 
Why Nonprofits Choose AGDA Consulting

AGDA Consulting blends business strategy with nonprofit values. We understand the unique challenges nonprofits face, including limited resources, high expectations, and the constant need to prove impact. 
 
Our team provides hands-on, customized consulting designed to strengthen your foundation, improve efficiency, and amplify your impact. 
 
Key benefits of working with AGDA Consulting:
- Proven expertise in nonprofit strategy and operations 
- Customized plans built around your organization’s needs 
- Ongoing support and implementation guidance 
- A focus on measurable, sustainable growth
- Leadership workshops and coaching 
 
 
Build Your Nonprofit’s Future with Confidence

Your nonprofit deserves more than good intentions; it deserves the structure and support to make lasting change. At AGDA Consulting, we help organizations like yours align their boards, strategy, operations, and mission for maximum impact. 
 
Schedule your consult to learn how we can help your nonprofit grow stronger, work smarter, and achieve more, without losing sight of your mission.  

Nonprofits are built on passion, people who see a problem in their community and decide to do something about it. That drive and compassion are what make the nonprofit world so powerful. But passion alone does not always translate into long-term success. 
Many nonprofits struggle with board development, strategic planning, operations, and keeping their mission and vision front and center.


Board Development: Great People, Wrong Roles 
A good board can take a nonprofit from surviving to thriving. But many boards are built from either friends, family, or early supporters who care deeply about the cause but may not know the board's purpose or how to make it strong. Or are made up of members that are there for self-serving purposes that do not align with the organization's mission, and in some cases have been asked to serve on the board for reasons that do not align with basic board fundamentals.  

Without clear roles and expectations, boards can become hands-off when leadership needs guidance, unsure of the actions required of members to support the mission and achieve the strategy, or overly involved in daily decisions that should remain with staff. Additionally, they may be tasked with an ask that is beyond their capabilities and counterproductive to the general responsibilities of a board member. Either way, it leads to frustration and burnout for all the stakeholders.   

To mitigate this risk, try to recruit board members with specific skills, such as finance, fundraising, marketing, strategy development, legal or community engagement. Give them training and a clear sense of purpose for their roles on the board, and utilize their expertise when the situation arises. The best boards are partners in progress, not just names on a website.
 
 
Strategic Planning: Working Hard Without a Roadmap 
It is easy for nonprofits to get caught up in the day-to-day, putting out fires, running programs, and chasing funding opportunities. But without a clear strategy, it is like driving without a map; you might be moving fast, but not necessarily in the right direction. 

When there is no plan, goals get forgotten, and it becomes hard to measure impact or stay focused on priorities. Staff can feel like they are spinning their wheels, and donors start to wonder where their money is going. 

The board is there to help create a vision and mission-driven strategic plan. It does not have to be a 50-page document, just a clear roadmap with measurable goals and regular check-ins to keep the organization on track and mission-focused.
 
Operations: Big Hearts, Small Systems 
Here is the truth: most nonprofits start small, and operations come last. The focus is on helping people, not managing spreadsheets or workflows. But as an organization grows, weak systems can start holding it back. 
When processes are not documented or tools are outdated, staff end up doing everything manually. That leads to mistakes, stress, and burnout. Eventually, even the most passionate teams can not keep up. 
Treat operations like a backbone, not a burden. Invest in simple systems for accounting, data, HR, and communication. It might not feel "mission-driven," but strong systems make mission work possible.
 
Mission and Vision: Losing Sight of the "Why" 
Every nonprofit starts with a strong sense of purpose, but over time, it is easy to drift. Maybe you add new programs to chase funding, or shift priorities to please different partners. Before long, your team and your community are no longer quite sure what you stand for. 

When your mission and vision get blurry, everything else follows. Communication feels inconsistent, fundraising gets harder, and staff lose motivation. 
 
Keep your mission and vision front and center. Revisit them every year. Ask, "Does this still represent who we are and what we do?" When you stay true to your "why," it is much easier to say no to distractions and yes to what really matters. Your mission and vision should also guide who you add to your board. You ask, "Does this person help to achieve what we stand for, and how can they do this?" Having leadership that aligns with the mission and vision makes attainment much more feasible than swimming upstream against something the organization could have controlled.
 
Forward Movements​
Nonprofits do not struggle because people do not care; they struggle because they are juggling so much with limited time and resources. The key is finding balance, keeping the heart of the mission alive while building the structure to support it. 

With the right mix of leadership, planning, and clarity, nonprofits can move from constantly catching up to confidently moving forward and make a bigger impact than ever before.  

By Dr Chris Ardueser, DBA

When people think of business competition, they often picture the rivalries of billion-dollar corporations battling for dominance in massive global markets. However, competition is not just a phenomenon of big cities and Fortune 500 companies; it plays an equally vital role in mid-sized markets. In fact, for communities and businesses in these regions, healthy competition can be a powerful driver of business growth, innovation, economic growth, resilience, and quality of life.

When we refer to a mid-sized market, we are talking about a city or metro area that is large enough to sustain a diverse economy and multiple competitors in most industries, yet small enough for business owners to know both their customers and their competitors.

Typically, a mid-sized market will have a population between 100,000 and 500,000 in the city and up to 1 million in the metro area.

One key aspect in these markets is word of mouth. Word of mouth matters, community ties run deep, and the success of local businesses has a direct and visible impact on the overall economy and quality of life.
Competition among businesses raises the bar for the quality of service. In a mid-sized market, customer relationships matter. Word-of-mouth spreads quickly, and reputations are built or broken faster than in larger, more anonymous markets. When multiple businesses compete, each is motivated to improve its offerings, whether that means better customer service, higher-quality products, more reliable delivery, innovation, or differentiators.

This creates a "race to the top" effect. Consumers benefit, and businesses learn to meet or exceed expectations consistently. Over time, the entire market's standard of excellence rises, affecting businesses, consumers, and the community.

Healthy competition fuels innovation and fresh ideas among the business community. Without competition, complacency can creep in. Businesses may feel less pressure to innovate, try new methods, or improve efficiency. In a mid-sized market, where customer preferences and trends can shift rapidly, competition forces business owners to adapt or risk losing market share.
This can lead to creative problem-solving, the introduction of new services, and even collaborative partnerships between competitors to better serve the community. The result is a more dynamic, future-ready marketplace that is poised to welcome economic growth, has a strong foundation and presence when larger companies consider entering the market, and supports a high quality of life for both current and future citizens.
 
Innovation helps expand consumer choice, resulting in variety, which is more than just convenience; it is a catalyst for economic health. In a mid-sized market, having multiple businesses in the same sector means consumers can choose the one that best fits their budget, style, or priorities. This variety not only keeps buyers engaged but also allows niche players to thrive alongside larger competitors.
When customers have options, businesses are encouraged to carve out unique identities instead of racing to the bottom on price alone, which will tyclaly result in the creattion of a gap in the market allowing for outside companies to take advantage of the faliures of the local market, weakening what many find to be attractive in smaller markets, the mom and pop shops.

In mid-sized markets, competition often prompts business owners to invest more in their communities, whether by creating jobs, sponsoring local events, or sourcing from nearby suppliers. A vibrant, competitive environment attracts outside investment and keeps more money circulating within the local economy. This results in a stronger, more supportive local economy that benefits everyone, helping to keep money in the community and preventing it from leaking out into the pockets of larger corporations.

The reality is that competition toughens businesses. It forces owners to understand their market, streamline their processes, and be proactive in responding to change. When challenges like economic downturns or supply chain disruptions arise, these businesses are better equipped to pivot and survive. When outside competition looks to enter the market, these businesses are already strong and able to resist and prosper from the entrants of new players that may have more tools and assets to succeed. In other words, competition acts like a training ground for long-term success.
Healthy competition does not just have an impact on the business community, as we mentioned earlier, it also helps drive long-term economic growth and enhance the quality of life for the community's citizens.
When competition thrives in a mid-sized market, the benefits ripple far beyond individual businesses; it boosts the economy as a whole, by affecting a variety of aspects:

• Job Creation: Competing businesses hire more workers to meet demand, from entry-level staff to skilled professionals.
• Higher Productivity: Businesses continually improve their processes to stay ahead, thereby increasing overall market productivity.
• Increased Tax Revenue: More thriving businesses mean greater local tax contributions, which in turn fund infrastructure, schools, and public services.
• Attracting New Investment: A healthy, competitive market signals opportunity to outside investors, who may open new branches, factories, or service centers in the area.
• Economic Resilience: When multiple strong businesses exist in a sector, the market can better absorb shocks if one fails, thereby keeping jobs and services stable.

 
Additionally, a thriving, competitive market does not just benefit existing businesses; it can also put your city on the radar of outside companies looking for their next expansion site.

By having healthy competition, the market has established a proven demand. Competition reveals a strong and active customer base willing to support multiple businesses within the same sector. There is a reputation for a skilled workforce, which often leads to healthy competition and the retention of skilled workers, making it easier for incoming companies to hire locally. The strength of the business community, derived from competition, has helped establish effective supply chains. Multiple competing businesses have helped create robust supplier networks, lowering barriers for newcomers.

Furthermore, the competition has helped improve the quality of life for residents. Standards are higher, businesses are more innovative, responsive, and reliable, setting the norm for other civic services. This is a key driver for economic growth, as attracting outside companies is not just about the business climate; it is also about the quality of life. In today's economy, companies recognize that talent is mobile, and they seek cities that can effectively recruit and retain top employees. This means that there needs to be affordable housing that does not sacrifice safety or convenience. They will be looking for good schools that appeal to employees with families. A place with healthcare access to ensure a healthy workforce and family care. Recreation, dining, and cultural activities make life enjoyable outside of work, providing opportunities for children and families to create lasting memories. This is complemented by clean, well-maintained infrastructure that signals a community invested in its future. These are all driven by a successful and competitive business environment.
​
When a mid-sized market fosters both strong business competition and a high quality of life, it becomes a magnet for outside investment. The arrival of new companies then further increases job opportunities, tax revenue, and economic diversity, creating a cycle of sustained, long-term growth.
In a mid-sized market, competition is not something to fear—it is something to embrace. It sharpens your edge, keeps you relevant, and benefits the entire community. Rather than viewing competitors as threats, forward-thinking business owners view them as motivators to improve and evolve continually.
After all, in a healthy market with a high quality of life, there is room for everyone willing to put in the work, adapt, and deliver value, and that is precisely the kind of environment that attracts both customers and outside investors.



 

​Introduction
In today's competitive and fast-paced business environment, consistency, efficiency, and quality control are crucial for long-term success. One of the organization's most effective tools to achieve these objectives is the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP). SOPs are detailed, written instructions describing the steps necessary to perform tasks or processes consistently. Their value extends across various industries and organizational levels, from ensuring safety in manufacturing plants to maintaining compliance in healthcare and streamlining operations in customer service.
This document explores the importance of SOPs by examining their role in promoting consistency, enhancing training and onboarding, ensuring compliance and accountability, and fostering continual improvement. It argues that SOPs are indispensable for organizations seeking to operate with reliability, efficiency, and a strong foundation for growth.
 
1. Promoting Consistency and Quality
One of the most significant benefits of SOPs is that they promote consistency in operations. When procedures are standardized, tasks are performed the same way each time, regardless of who is carrying them out. This consistency minimizes errors, maintains product or service quality, and ensures that organizational standards are upheld.
In industries such as manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, and food production, to name a few, where quality control is critical, SOPs help reduce variability and ensure compliance with regulations. Even in less regulated sectors, standardized procedures improve reliability and customer satisfaction. For instance, a customer service department with a well-defined SOP for handling complaints will deliver a more uniform and satisfactory experience than one that relies on individual discretion.
Moreover, consistency enhances brand integrity. Customers come to expect a certain level of quality from a company, and SOPs help deliver that experience every time. By eliminating guesswork and ensuring that best practices are followed, SOPs support a company's commitment to excellence.
 
2. Streamlining Training and Onboarding
SOPs are invaluable tools for onboarding new employees and facilitating ongoing training. A well-crafted SOP serves as a reference guide that allows new hires to understand their responsibilities quickly and efficiently. It provides them with a clear framework for completing tasks and who to turn to for guidance.
For existing employees, SOPs act as refresher tools, helping them stay aligned with organizational practices. In rapidly evolving industries or roles that involve complex procedures, even experienced staff benefit from having documentation to consult. This reduces reliance on oral instructions or tribal knowledge, which can lead to inconsistencies or knowledge gaps.
Furthermore, SOPs enhance cross-training by making it easier for employees to step into different roles when needed. This agility is crucial for small businesses or teams that must allocate resources flexibly. By democratizing access to operational knowledge, SOPs reduce bottlenecks and promote resilience.
 
3. Ensuring Compliance and Accountability
Many industries are subject to legal, regulatory, or safety requirements, and SOPs are critical in meeting those obligations. For example, healthcare providers must follow strict procedures to protect patient safety and privacy. Financial institutions need documented protocols to ensure transparency and prevent fraud. In these cases, SOPs are not just helpful—they are mandatory.
Well-documented SOPs demonstrate due diligence and provide a paper trail for audits, inspections, and legal inquiries. If an issue arises, organizations can show that they had a clear, standardized process in place and that staff were trained to follow it. This can significantly mitigate liability.
SOPs also support accountability by clearly defining roles and responsibilities. When tasks are documented step-by-step, tracking performance and identifying the source of errors or inefficiencies becomes easier. This transparency fosters a culture of accountability and continuous improvement, as employees are more likely to adhere to procedures when expectations are clearly communicated.
 
4. Supporting Operational Efficiency and Continuous Improvement
SOPs contribute to operational efficiency by eliminating ambiguity and reducing time spent reinventing processes. Employees can focus on executing tasks rather than figuring out how to complete them. This clarity accelerates workflows and minimizes the risk of delays or miscommunication.
Moreover, SOPs serve as a baseline for process optimization. When procedures are documented, it becomes easier to evaluate their effectiveness and identify areas for improvement. Teams can regularly review SOPs to reflect technological advancements, updated regulations, or more efficient practices. This proactive approach fosters a culture of continuous improvement and innovation.
In crisis situations, SOPs provide a roadmap for consistent action, enabling organizations to respond swiftly and effectively. Whether handling cybersecurity breaches, equipment failures, or customer service escalations, having a pre-defined process reduces chaos and enhances resilience.
 
Conclusion
The value of Standard Operating Procedures cannot be overstated. They are vital for ensuring consistency, improving training, maintaining compliance, and fostering operational efficiency. Organizations that invest in developing and maintaining SOPs position themselves for greater reliability, scalability, and success.
Rather than being static documents, SOPs should be living resources—reviewed regularly, improved collaboratively, and aligned with organizational goals. As companies face increasing complexity and competition, the structure and clarity offered by SOPs become not only beneficial but essential for sustained performance and growth.

The internet has changed how we do business, connect with consumers, and the speed of communication, among many other things. This technology and adaptation reshaped how processes and businesses would be run. Even though the process of adaptation and innovation seemed fast at the time for the use and development of the internet, it is nothing compared to how the Artificial Intelligence landscape is shaping itself. Artificial Intelligence is the next technology that will allow for business innovation and shape the way businesses operate, customers buy, tasks are completed, and the way we do things. More and more companies are integrating AI into their business or learning how to benefit from AI. If you are not aware, AI has already touched the way you do business in one way or another, some at elementary tasks and others more complex tasks, it can be internal or external, but either way, they have already influenced your business.
 
2025 is set to be the year of AI advancements and adoption. Microsoft has an outlook investment of around $80 Billion in AI data centers that will train and deploy AI. An investment of this size from a leader in IT, which we all use, should be a tell-all sign of where things are going.
Big and small companies can benefit from AI. Companies like Wekare Ai have already started to embark on this journey in healthcare where they are working with Agentic AI to automate workflows to increase productivity, decrease errors, centralize information, eliminate barriers and silos, creating a much more positive experience for providers, support staff, and patients. 
Understanding how AI works is complex; if you are not in the field, it may leave you scratching your head. Currently, we are adapting and using Gen AI, which creates content and documents as chatbots and performs simple but complex actions. The future of AI is Agentic AI, which can act in a much more complex manner by making decisions, analyzing, processing workflows, adapting, and working with complex multi-step processes. To simplify it, Agentic AI will be able to replicate human actions in operational workflows, making more consistent SOPs that are transferable and universal across diverse users when we examine it for operational purposes. It is almost like taking each human in an office responsible for multiple tasks and making them into a digital worker. This ability benefits businesses by increasing productivity by around 30% conservatively, with some models showing up to 70% just by taking a task that may require many timely steps, having multiple inputs allowing for error, and making it happen almost instantly and consistently with trained AI agents.
​
Can you imagine what opportunities there could be for a business? Making scalability for a small operation within reach, allowing the use of human staff for more useful value-driven tasks, increasing customer and product turnover, and having better operational effects, just to name a few.
As 2025 starts to roll out and companies start to develop strategic plans, one must examine AI as an initiative for 2025. We must note that AI is not just limited to operational tasks but can be used in things like digital twins, in asset management, predictive analysis, repairs and maintenance, education and training, document preparation, marketing, customer engagement, and many other aspects.    

 

​Who or What are you supposed to be leading? Not all levels of leadership's focus should be directed at leading the people, it sounds crazy, but it is true. Depending on your role in the company or where you are positioned, your leadership may need to focus on a different subject area that does not directly involve people; but instead involves processes, thoughts, analytics, and strategies.
 
What we are talking about is the leadership of the company itself. Why would you want to direct your focus on leading the company, and how would you do this?   The company's leadership focuses on different aspects of the company, for example, where the company is now, where it wants to be, and how it will get there. You will want to look at where the company is now and analyze what is going on both internally and externally.   You will need to ensure that you can define the company and make sure you have built the foundation of how you will get the company to where it needs to be. If this is done right, the results of leading the company will set the standards for management teams so that they can lead their teams effectively, efficiently, and, more importantly, within the parameters of the company to reach the goals set forth.
Leadership is about inspiring, encouraging, and ultimately goal achievement. We have to remember that a company is an entity, and without actions taken, molding, or inputs, it will not grow, change, make movements forward, have a set standards, or defined goals. Just like a team or people, it has to be treated like a living, breathing thing, just as you would your employees and teams.
When leading the company, the focus changes; one is no longer directly motivating people to achieve a common goal, but instead, we are defining the goals, identifying what is important to the company, and setting the standards so that down the line, leaders can be motivating and inspiring to achieve the common goals. This is accomplished in various ways; the starting point to this leadership attacks the tasks given to the company by analyzing the company's strengths and using them to identify opportunities and then capitalize on them. It is about acknowledging the company's weaknesses and improving them. We can not forget about combating both internal and external threats. 
Additionally, you will need to ensure that your mission, vision, and values are true and accurate to the company. These are reference points and foundations for how and why the company does what it does. They are also guiding points for strategies, cultures, and the future.
 There are many leadership styles; each type has a purpose, a time to be used, and individuals with particular skills and traits that can execute.   When discussing leading the company and specifically the points listed above, a strategic leadership style will help to accomplish this. Because leading at this level is about being strategic. Additionally, strategic leadership has a focus at the executive level and a pass-through to the line level.
Strategic leadership of a company is designed to produce multi-fold results at the business level. It will increase productivity, optimize processes, create a clear understanding of company goals, how to get there, define the company, and identify what is good, where opportunities are, and how to execute. By doing this at the company level, the effects will trickle down and set the standards that will allow others to lead the people, encourage them to meet the goals, define the culture, and enable employees to be independent within the company parameters to use their thoughts and ideas to accomplish goals allowing them to execute their roles to get the company where it wants to be. 
 
You see, the company is the foundation for everything. It is the leader of everything that it encompasses. The leaders in the company cannot lead to the common goal if the company is not defining, analyzing, finding, and executing opportunities so that others have a direction. 
 
AGDA Consulting
 
 

Inflation is at an all-time high, gas prices are skyrocketing, stocks are dropping,
interest rates are up, and my dollar is not going as far as it used to. So what happened, and how am I
going to get through this?

These are all questions that many businesses and families are asking themselves right now. Despite just
going through a multi-year pandemic, the economy was doing pretty well. Some particulars can be
argued, but in a general sense, things were good, and then this, today we are seeing a different
economy leaving many wondering what to do. An appropriate initial response is to control spending and
budget to ensure that you do not let yourself create debt that could have been avoided. Then is the big
one, the step that will help ensure you remain sustainable and come out of this economic slump in good
standing. That is to make a strategic plan for the next few years. If you own, manage or direct a
business, this is a must and something you can also do for your personal life. This will be a very tough
future for some companies; some will prosper, and others will remain constant through these times.
Each business has its own external factors that affect its internal operations, which will determine your
industry’s future outlook. It is important to remember that the external factors will ever be evolving,
creating new causes and effects on your business, so you have to keep up with what is happening that
relates to your business. For some companies, this might be the first time you start to examine all the
pieces that go into what it is you do and how they affect your outcomes. By reviewing them, you will not
only be able to adapt to the now but will be an even better businessman in the future.

What is a strategic plan? In the simplest terms, it is identifying where you are now and where you want
to be in the future, then creating goals, action steps, checks and balances, and a thought-out plan for
getting there. Everyone’s current position and goals will be different. More importantly, everyone will
have a different vision of where they want to be in the future. Examining and analyzing external factors
or possible threats, like, the stock market, supply chains, local economies, and cost of goods, just to list a
few, will help to identify factors that will influence the steps you will take to meet your goals along the
way to where it is you want to be in the future. You will also want to identify your strengths and
weaknesses to maximize your efforts when taking steps to reach your goals. We must remember that
there are opportunities that can be found in bad situations, which can help guide your company on
where it may want to be in the future.

Most importantly, you must be able to identify where you want to be in the future and how you want
to take your company. Without this, you will not have a target to aim for, and something to be
accountable for, that will help keep you on track. In addition, you will want your thoughts and actions
working with a purpose so that you are not making spontaneous moves that lack reason or a defined
purpose that will not create value. These will help give a foundation for you to ensure you get to where
you want to be in the next few years and a proactive move to what is happening now.

​Knowing the standards in your industry is one of the fundamentals that will keep you competitive. It will help you identify areas of weaknesses, see your strengths and notice any opportunities the company may have. So what are some of the standards you need to keep up with regarding your industry, and where do you need to focus your energy to remain competitive is a good question. There are many places to focus on, and each one will provide you with some insight and give you something to measure against.  Having something to measure against gives you a standard to compare your company to, and two great ones are gross and net profits. These industry standards tell you if you are doing ok and meeting the norm for that industry. This is important for small businesses because they need to know that they are making the money they are supposed to make and are competitive within their industry.
 
The gross profits or gross margin is the remaining money from the total sales revenue after subtracting the costs of goods sold (COGS). The COGS are just that, the cost of what it takes to make your products or provide your service. The COGS typically includes the materials and labor it takes to make the final product. The word gross tells us that no other expenses have been taken from the total revenue at this time and lets you know what is left over to pay additional costs.  The gross profit does not directly tell you your overall profit, but is a significant number to examine and compare to industry standards. We suggest that you segment out your COGS to get a better set of numbers to analyze and look at it as percentages of total revenue. Comparing this to industry standards is very important. It can tell you if you are competitively priced, paying too much for the raw material, your levels of waste from the raw material and labor, and how efficient you are in making your product. When looking at a profit and loss statement, it can tell you if you are sitting on too much inventory and have a poor turnover or bad purchasing patterns. This is because a P&L does not account for inventory on hand. Having high inventory means having money on the shelf, lowering your cash flow, and limiting other opportunities where that money can be doing something else or making you more money.  The gross margin's nature allows an owner to see how well they are doing operationally compared to an industry standard and where they need to focus efforts in the operations to be better and more profitable.  
 
The net profits are the bottom line or the company's money when all expenses have subtracted from the total revenue. This needs to include the owner's pay if you are a sole proprietor.  When it comes to industry standards, the problem is that not all data takes the owner's salary into account and gives some skewed results, but it still provides us with a percentage to compare to and make decisions. Here at AGDA, we typically advise that net profits be as low as possible after knowing a company is meeting the industry standards, because that means that the company is spending money on itself to better the company. That is why it is key to be competitive with industry standards. It tells you that the company is making the correct money and can do other things. Your net profits are what is leftover. That money is what can be used to expand your company or reinvested back into the company to make the company, product, experience, or presence better. It can also be used to beef up cash on hand for additional opportunities.  If this number is below the industry standards and all other areas are in line, it tells us that sales levels are typically not sufficient, and focus needs to be on increasing sales or why the sales are not enough. It can also tell us that costs between gross and net profits are too high or not in line with current norms. Every situation is different, but you want to be able to compare to the industry standard to see if you have a sustainable business and if line items are appropriate.
 
We have to remember that meeting industry standards are measurables that let you know where you stand compared to others in your industry. Operating within the industry norm tells you your performance against the norm, but these numbers can change with innovation and markets. If you can find innovation, you can increase your gross profits. For example, when Ford introduced the assembly line, an innovation was found and increased production time and lowered labor costs, giving a better gross profit, allowing the company to have more opportunities with the remaining cash. On the other hand, when the cost of a product goes up but a market does not allow for the sale price to match or revenue decrease due to an economic situation, and a business does not adapt to meet the industry standard, both the gross profits and net profits decrease. Overall if you know your industry standards and can meet them, you can then make decisions faster to stay ahead of what may happen. You can also find ways to make your company more profitable, whether through reinvestment or increased cash on hand to be used and distributed as the company deems appropriate. Most importantly, you know that you are making the money you are supposed to be making.
 
 
 

​Leadership has become a hot topic amongst younger generations in the workforce. As the need for effective leadership continues to trend upwards in the workplace, so has the rise in social media posts that focus on leadership as the main driving force of an organization's success.

While leadership is essential in all aspects of life, from recreation to business, and is crucial for any team's success, other factors contribute to a company's success that should not be overlooked.

The simple definition of leadership is guiding or influencing others to reach a common goal. One could also view it as a manipulation of group members who lack the strength to achieve a common goal independently. Either way, the goal of leadership is to get a group of people to work together to complete a task that benefits the desired need. Partnering people who lack certain skills with people who have those specific skills can help the skilled persons master styles of leadership that the others will buy into. On the business level, this is the simplest act of leading people for the company’s best interests.

The other side of business success is management. Yes, I said management. "Management" has almost become a bad word in the minds of many because of its negative connotations. Because of this, the term management is often pushed aside and replaced with "leadership," which provides a different connotation. If people think they are being "led," it makes them feel good. However, if they feel they are being "managed," it feels demoralizing, and this is where the problem starts. Being managed still means being led. Someone has to take charge. A manager or boss, has an essential job. When a manager does not do their job correctly, there is nothing left to lead.

Management is the controlling of assets and resources by planning, organizing, examining, thinking, directing, and leading to create success for a business and its shareholders. We have to recognize that without management, there is no leadership. Without a boss overlooking the entire situation, using multiple sources of data, knowledge, and experiences, the leadership has no direction.

The role of management is much more than the leadership of the people. Management is the leadership of the company. People in management are required to examine many different influences beyond simple directional leadership. Managers must see all sides of the process and make decisions that will set the foundation, so that those who lead and follow can be successful.

If management is such an important part of a company's successful operations, and is a foundation for leaders, why is it such an undesirable term? We can dissect generational traits, or blame the organizations for not putting better managers into their roles. We can try to prove that pop culture has helped contribute to some of management's negative connotations. We can also say that the use of social media and freedom of choice has closed our minds and limited our thoughts to expose ourselves only to the media that conforms to our personal views.

We can even blame the people who saw the need to make a good business move while exploiting a specific style of leadership or management that appealed to their followers. Any of these could be contributing factors.
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In the end, everyone in the business world could benefit from being educated on the basic principles of leadership and management to see how everything ties together, and  identify key components to overall business success, rather than just their own personal wants, or goals.