3 July 2019
BUSINESS/ENTREPRENEURSHIP SERIES
Title: Entrepreneurial Taxonomy: Business Objectives.
An objective is an intention, a purpose, an aim or intent. So, whatever becomes your purpose will determine the rest of the process. It's so important because it will guide your choice of input and would influence your output/ outcome.
When I talk about business objective, I'm referring to the purpose or the intention of such venture. And do not be carried away to believe that the primary aim of every business is to make profit. That's an assumption. TOPEX BANK may set out to attract, fund and grow 1 million micro traders in Nigeria, while CONSOLE BANK wants to provide easy funding for agricultural value chain business across Nigeria. At the same time, PERES BANK wants to fund exporters and importers in Nigeria. Will they make money, or are they interested in profit? Yes, but it's their objectives that will lead them to revenue (cash).
So, when a business venture begins, part of the cardinal question to ask is; what are we here to do? How are we going to organise our business in such a way to reflect a _working ideology, a vision, organisation, pace and trajectory control_ . This is what makes you stable. Permit me to say that the entire structure of an organisation – which is transferable – is intellectual. So, if you hate the brain work, the business will not work. As a matter of fact this is exportable to all forms of organisations that seeks stability.
So, when you start a business venture with just the aim of making money, earning income, you're a _fragile entrepreneur_ . You're pursuing a consequence rather than the process. This is one of the biggest challenges of today's approach to entrepreneurship development. People are taught to "do something and make money". That's it. But you can see it's not sustainable. Yes, you can do something and make money, but for how long?
Have you ever considered why organisations or businesses fail months or years after the principal/ founder is no more. Or, if he/ she stops going to work for a few months? He/ she is running the business by impulse, not by purpose that influences structures.
So, typically you could have a scenario where staff only knows what to do when the principal arrives at work. Or staff can only act when the principal is around and approves all ideas. There is no Cohesive Organisational Strategy (COS). How long do you think that kind of business or organisation will survive? How about moments of trial?
There is a sense where monopoly of authority within an organisation or business stifles growth. So, someone needs to wait for "oga" or "madam" to come back before decision can be taken. What if that decision was critical to business progress at that moment?
In conclusion, a business objective is an agreed intent of such venture which is shared among stakeholders in the business or organisation in a manner that is understood and is implementable. It guides the inputs and influences the output/ outcome of such business. It also sets the pace for progress evaluation, stability, growth and expansion.
Money is only a consequence. Pursue the process.
NB: the names of the banks used in this article are fictional.
#moneytraction
With love,
IKAKKE BASSEY, amt
Organisational Expert/Business Development Consultant.
