Foundation: CEO Advice & Management Tips

Hello CEO’s! Some of you might be resistant to accepting that you are the heads of your businesses, but you are.

So again, Hello CEO’S! and you say “Hello Syama!”

In the final week of Launch My Brand we go over CEO Advice & Management. This topic is so critical, and it is essential that you develop an approach towards the management of your team, even if it is a one person team.

As a new CEO my first piece of advice is to think of yourself as a consultant to your own business. If someone were asking you how to run their business what would you tell them? Would you suggest they just work around the clock and plough through as much as they can? Probably not. A calculated approach is always the best. You are the boss and need to have plans, schedules, and budgets for new hires, production costs and operating costs. This means you should set aside at least 3 hours per week to do management related tasks.

Management Tips:

1. Set goals and expectations for any project you are hiring for in advance. When you do interview for the position make sure you know exactly what your needs are and make them clear.
2. Plan for the year and the month, and make sure you and whomever else you work with is clear on the goals so you can make progress towards it.
3. Don’t be afraid to say no, play hardball or negotiate. This is your money and your business, you cannot assume that everyone is going to give you a fair price or has your best interest in mind. However…you do get what you pay for. So if someone doesn’t budge on their price, there might be a reason why they are charging it!
4. Implement smart tech tools to optimize operations. Some of my favorites are Basecamp for project management, Boomerang for email scheduling and Streak for tracking email opens.
5. Don’t over schedule your time. There is a tendency to jam pack things in down to the minute. Trust me, I know, sometimes I do it too! But, the best days are the ones where I have 30 minutes set aside for a lunch and a hard stop at the end of the day.

Alright CEO’s, here is to your success!

To read the other posts in the Launch My Brand Series, check out the list below:

Launch My Brand is a 6-Week Program on Fashion Business Basics for the Startup Fashion brand. Each week I go over important topics that are essential for success in launching your brand smart.
Week 1: Cash Flow
Week 2: Assortment Planning
Week 3: Customer Demographics
Week 4: Competitive Matrix
Week 5: Sales (Wholesale & Ecommerce)
Week 6: CEO Management Tips (we are here)

Syama Meagher is the CEO of Scaling Retail- the consulting firm for start up and growth stage fashion businesses. Email hello@scalingretail.com to set up a consultation.