Start-Up
Process for a New Team
Includes - Projection
Requirements and Exit Ramps for Failure
Exactly what the spawning ground is for new ideas
can not be defined or limited. Good ideas can come from any number
of locations. How a new idea gets selected or considered to be a
new team remains somewhat of a mystery.
At a minimum, a preliminary business plan with a
business model outline, a defined market, strategies for success,
3-5 years of projections (sales and profit), plans on how to meet
those projections, etc. should be completed at some point in that
process. Some of the components of this Start-up Plan can be reviewed
in that process as well. However, this plan is intended for use after
the decision to move forward on a new idea has been made. If the
new team cannot meet some of the requirements outlined herein, the
move forward decision can and should be revisited.
Team Formation - How the team is put together
At
a minimum there will be a Business Leader (BL) and a Technical Leader
(TL). One of those two must be responsible for Sales as a primary
function or the team must be established in the preferred way with
a Sales Leader (SL) in place. Standard Clean Air team dynamics are
established with ultimate team responsibility and authority in the
hands of the BL. All team leaders are required to participate in
the Pain & Profit Program.
The
BL should come from within Clean Air, and must apply for the position.
The Board of Directors (Board), whose decision will be based on who
will best lead the new team to success, will select the BL from the
applicants. If no inside candidates come forward, or the Board cannot
find a suitable candidate from the ones that do, an outside candidate
may be considered. Note this is not a desirable situation, since
no inside support is apparent. If an outside BL is chosen an inside
Business Leader Mentor (BLM) must be assigned to the BL and remains
in place until the Board removes the requirement. The BL of all new
teams will report directly to the President for at least one year,
and maybe longer. It is recommended the BLM not be the President.
The
TL is also selected from a group of applicants, both inside and out.
The TL selection process is similar to the BL selection except that
the chosen BL is also involved with the Board. This combined effort
will select the TL. The Board and the BL must agree on the TL selection.
If there is disagreement between the Board and the BL the BL has
final say.
If
a Sales Leader is included he/she will be chosen by the BL and anyone
from which the BL wants input. The SL position will be advertised
and applicants both inside and outside of the organization will be
considered. If no SL is a part of the team either the BL or TL must
be responsible for Sales as a primary function.
The
remainder of the team will be chosen from applicants responding to
advertised job openings. These job openings must be well-defined
positions with the understanding that small teams can't afford specialists.
Everyone on a small team can be expected to perform tasks outside
their well-defined position.
Plan for Success - The Business Plan
The
team has 30 days to present a final business plan to the Board that
should resemble the preliminary plan in most respects. Fine tuning
of projections, business model adjustments, changes in strategy and
sales approach are all incorporated at this stage. The Trading Company
Team Leader must approve all first year financial projections before
the plan is submitted to the Board. In addition, corrective measures
to be taken when and if the actual performance deviates from the
projected performance must be included. The entire business plan
must be revisited at least on an annual basis for the first three
years. With very few exceptions, profitability must be projected
from quarter six and on or sooner.
All
new teams will be held to the same performance criteria. Except in
cases of YTD profit at least 10% before overhead, two consecutive
quarters of financial performance below projections will put the
new team into a probationary status. A third miss in the next two
quarters will result in the team being disbanded. The team may continue
if it requests and is granted a special "grace period" by
a majority vote of the Board. The request must be made in writing
by the BL and must include a revised business plan. If a team survives
the "grace period" and is removed from probationary status,
the revised business plan will act as the standard for future performance
comparisons.
Capital
expenditures and building space requirements must all be addressed
in the same 3-5 year projected plan. Capital purchases must still
be approved on an as requested basis to allow Clean Air the most
flexibility. Building space requirements that utilize currently vacant
locations will be subsidized in a ramping fashion as follows. First
two quarters of operation charged 10% normal rate, third and fourth
quarters charged at 25% normal rate, the whole 2nd year
of operation charged at 50% normal rate and 3rd year and
on at 100% normal rate. Using any building space that is currently
utilized by another team or is in their immanent expansion plans
will be charged at 100% of normal rate, if you can get it at all.
Space outside the existing buildings and all the associated costs
is entirely the responsibility of the new team.
No
special treatment of inter-company labor will be granted. Each BL
will negotiate shared labor on an as requested basis. Shared assets
will also be negotiated between BLs.
Shortly
after the final business plan is accepted a meeting will be scheduled
and attended by representatives of all the existing business units
including other branch offices, accounting, MIS and the Trading Company.
This meeting will make everyone aware of the new team's formation
and brief everyone on its focus, its business plan and introduce
the new team members. The very basic information including what to
call the new team, where they will be located, who fills what rolls
within the new team all will be covered. There should be a discussion
about how each of the existing groups can help the new team be successful.
Details - Housekeeping Issues
All
members of the leadership group for the new team must be participants
in the Pain & Profit Plan. Inside transferees will transition
to the new team following the same sliding schedule outlined in the
plan, whether or not they were participants before. New hires will
enter the P&P Plan as they become eligible.
The
new team will pay the costs of any significant changes or modifications
to the subsidized building space. Once the subsidization period is
complete, building improvements will be handled in the same manner
as any other building occupant.
