Our Anniversary

11 November, 2010

Today marks the seven year anniversary of Markstone Group. Since our establishment, we have met many wonderful people and had our share of success.

Looking back, it would not have been a journey if we didn’t learn a few lessons on the way.  Going into small business is probably one of the most optimistic things an individual can do. Especially if that business is based on consulting – the art of selling yourself. The belief in your own abilities mixed with the excitement of being your own boss, is a mix that can sometimes leads to downfall.

One of the key learnings I take out of the last seven years is that it is easier to commit to an expense than to secure revenue. Over the last year, talking to other owners of small businesses, a theme has emerged whereby the owners admit that during the good times there was a buzz in hiring people, based on the expectation that revenues would keep rising, and the costs would soon be offset.

The downturn has abruptly brought home the reality that additional costs should only be borne when they are directly linked to revenue. This is not to say that investment should not be made for the future, but that investments need to be justified in relation to a direct revenue return. The only way for a business to survive a downturn is if it was profitable during the good times.

The key to remaining profitable besides a focus on costs is business relationships – both internal and external. Markstone has only been able to get to the point we are today through our relationships with our clients, business advisors and importantly our past and present staff. We would like to thank all of you who have assisted over the years.

The future is looking good for Markstone and associated companies. Early next year we will be revamping the website and taking a slightly different direction, which will carry us forward into a very bright future.

Communications in a multi channel age

27 October, 2010

These days we can communicate with our family, friends, colleagues and clients using a wide variety of channels – from a formal letter to the highly informal tweet, over the phone, and face to face.

This variety of choice creates the opportunity to keep up to date and in touch far more easily than in the past. In business, the growth in SMS, email and social network creates further ways to communicate with employees, suppliers and customers.

This can create good avenues for flows of information, but if the right approach is not taken, can also lead to misinformation, disputes and breakdown of relationships.

A letter, as the only form of written communication, was seen as a formal document so great care was taken in the construction to ensure that the right message was delivered. Emailing and texting is now often seen as the first and quickest way of delivering short bursts of information.

People write with no thought of where and how their message will be delivered. This can turn a joking email or text into an aggressive piece of communication. Without the visual or verbal clues it is hard for the recipient to interpret irony or sarcasm as being friendly or aggressive.

The greatest danger is when the sender relies on existing relationships and assumes that their email will be taken in good spirit. I’m sure most of us have received emails when we are not in a good mood, and sent a scathing reply back to the sender, only to find out later that we had misinterpreted the intent of the original.

Given that emails are admissible to court and the potential of misinterpretation is high, I am trying to move my communications back into letter form.

While attaching a Word doc to an email may seem redundant, I find that the psychology of constructing correspondence on a company letterhead makes me consider carefully what it is I am saying, and the audience I am writing to.

Gaining attention in a cacophony of sound

22 September, 2010

You only have to pick up the newspaper to known that Government is constantly being harangued by individuals, businesses, community groups and others to look after their special interests.

At the start of our establishment as a unique consultancy offering government relations and other services, we had a client desperate to see a Minister. Our client’s view was that he held a proposal of State significance, which the Government really had no choice but to support.

The meeting was duly arranged and our client put forward their case. At the end of the meeting the Minister asked our company’s Government Relations Director Terry Cuddy to stay behind. Once the client left, Terry was told the Government had done its research and that for the financial year they already had 1,560 proposals in front of them. If the State was to proceed with all of them it would cost a whopping $38 billion. The entire State Government revenue for that year was $34 billion.

There was no chance of the Government doubling taxes, just to get the projects going. Those proposals that got support were the ones that closely aligned with the objectives of the Government.

Most companies/organisations understand that they have to align their proposals with these objectives, and pitch their projects in a way that meets these objectives. Some are often puzzled when they do not succeed, even though they believe they tick all the boxes. It is at this point they come to Government relations/lobbying firms seeking the silver bullet solution.

The days of just having a discrete word into the appropriate person’s ear are gone. The public rightly expects Government to act fairly and transparently.  Governments these days actually do take these responsibilities seriously. However, as stated above, given the high number of worthy proposals and limited resources Government does prioritise according to its agenda. The goal of a good Government relations firm is to understand the agenda, and work to get their client’s issue/proposal onto the priority list.

Getting an issue/proposal on the priority list involves utilising the understanding of government agendas and seeking champions within any level of government.

Ensuring this, along with assisting out clients by getting their communications pitch right, and articulating a clear desired outcome, is a tough job – but someone has to do it – and luckily we love it.