Introduction
Fast growth can be catastrophic if it is not properly implemented. Making quick, uninformed decisions can be incredibly costly to your business in both the short and long term. For our client, fast growth lead to a second location with almost triple the workforce… and the operating expenses.
Story
Our client was operating a small call center with 20 employees and experienced rapid growth in their first year of operation. Payroll was well covered and profits were exceeding expectations. In the call center environment, growth equals profit and expansion furthers that growth. It makes perfect sense, when properly executed.
After a stellar first year, a large office was leased and outfitted for 75 employees with additional room for growth. New workstations were added at a reasonable cost and hiring began. Within 30 days, almost 40 new employees were hired and working.
In the following months, revenue continued to rise but profits began to stumble. Operating expenses had now climbed and the business was found in a less stable position. By the end of the year, the bottom had fallen out and jobs were at stake. A profitable business was now in debt.
How We Helped
With a solid understanding of our client’s business and operations, a full Cash Flow Analysis was completed. We identified both critical and non-critical costs that had increased considerably due to the expansion and determined our client’s monthly cost per employee
We recommended that salaries be adjusted based on the last 12 months of performance and made modifications to processes in the daily operations to optimize both efficiency and accountability.
Over a period of 30 days, we researched, recommended and deployed new services. A VOIP phone system was installed, new operational software was integrated and payment processing services were changed.
The cost-reduction strategies we implemented lowered operating costs by over 60% annually. Over a period of 90 days, these strategies not only saved jobs but also brought the company back to a profitable state.