Making Your Business Better

Starting and building a business begins with a great idea. At this moment, there are millions of ‘great ideas’ seeking attention and success. Some of those ‘great ideas’ may be very much like your own. To make your idea not only stand out, but to take root and grow a sustainable, successful business, you need the right team, tools, and expertise.

After you complete this course, you will be able to:

• Understand positioning and the supply chain.
• Recognize and work with elements of pricing.
• Identify your ‘business culture’.
• Create and implement essential marketing tools.
• Learn and practice techniques of selling and negotiation.
• Create effective responses to requests for proposals (RFPs).
• Identify the essentials of project management and create a management plan.
• Learn and implement elements to enhance workplace teamwork and productivity.
• Create your own strategic plan.

Course Topics:

Session One: Course Overview

• Learning Objectives
• Pre-Assignment
• Pre-Course Assessment

Session Two: Positioning and Pricing

• Knowing What You Sell, Part One
• Knowing What You Sell, Part Two
• Knowing What You Sell, Activity
• Examining the Positioning
• Supply Chain Activity
• Elements of Pricing, Part One
• Elements of Pricing, Part Two
• Elements of Pricing Activity

Session Three: Marketing

• Your Business Culture
• Elements of Culture Activity
• Understanding Your Customers
• Customer Values
• Marketing Essentials, Part One
• Marketing Essentials, Part Two
• Marketing Essentials, Part Three
• Your USP Activity Part One
• Your Marketing Outline

Session Four: Selling and Negotiating

• Making the Sale
• Seller and Contact Activity
• Relationship Model of Selling, Part One
• Relationship Model Activity
• Elements of Negotiation
• Social and Emotional Intelligence, Part One
• Social and Emotional Intelligence, Part Two
• Styles of Negotiation
• Negotiating a Style Activity

Session Five: Request for Proposals (RFPs)

• Understanding Proposals
• Responding to an RFP
• RFP Activity

Session Six: Project Management

• Elements of Project Management
• Creating a Project Plan
• Work Structure Breakdown
• Work Structure Breakdown Activity
• Organizing the Tasks, Part One
• Organizing the Tasks, Part Two
• Work Breakdown Structure Revisited

Session Seven: Team Building and Productivity

• Individual Relationship Skills
• Healthy Workplace Culture, Part One
• Healthy Workplace Culture, Part Two
• Core Values
• Core Values Activity
• Building a Team
• Leadership Skills

Session Eight: Strategic Planning

• A Strategic Plan
• Ingredients of a Good Strategic Plan
• Detailed Description Products/Services
• USP Review
• Core Values and Guiding Principles, Part One
• Core Values and Guiding Principles, Part Two
• Core Values Revisited
• Strengths and Opportunities
• Guiding Principles Revisited
• Assembling the Action Plan
• Assemble the Strategic Action Plan
• Personal Action Plan
• Starting Point
• Where I Want to Go
• How I Will Get There
• Course Summary