This past week, I listened in on Chris Powers and Fort Capital CEO Jason Baxter’s Annual Review. The conversation highlights the power of a not only good data but a dashboard that is used at a company level to make decisions. If you want to get right to it, listen from 36 minutes in to about 1 hour in, but I highly recommend listening to the whole episode.
At Hadrian, we use a data visualization platform to get real time insights into machine uptime, costs, delivery, and more. The interesting opportunity there for different managers is we can select data sets and manipulate it into a singular dashboard. Having the ability to create your own dashboard with several clicks is a huge time saver.
As the saying goes, what gets measured gets managed.
Looking at data and trends help make decisions or find things you may not have considered. Let’s say you think you are building a scalable business. If your revenue is going up but so is the expenses related to more products/services, you aren’t building a low capex scalable business.
Remember to not go too heavy on the dashboards. Building dashboards, SOPs, and practices that aren’t used will not help your business. Create a space that tracks the various points of data you want to know and be intentional about what dashboards you create. Make them presentable. Dashboards should provide clarity, not need explanations of what each factor is.
A dashboard is only useful if it is up-to-date and accurate. Make sure to regularly update your dashboard with new data and review it to ensure it is still meeting your goals.
We are looking to create more content that will better help operators like yourself. What practices do you have around dashboards and tracking metrics? What questions do you have?
Thanks to Everest Brady for his help, writing, and research in assembling this week’s newsletter.
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365 Holdings Annual Letter
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This Week on Think Like an Owner
Our guest on this episode is Nick Buchanan. Nick and his father founded a data software business called BUCSanalytics in 2007. BUCS builds deep analytical dashboards for CEOs that pull from internal data sources like ERPs, inventory systems, and more. Long-time customer Trevor Flannigan, COO of the Flint Group, introduced us after hearing about my deep curiosity of data companies.
Nick and Alex talk about building the company with his father, building momentum in product development and sticking close to customers, hiring a talented team, and how to find groups and peers to help guide your entrepreneurial journey. Please enjoy this fantastic conversation with Nick Buchanan.
This episode Q&A features CEO August Felker of Oberle Risk Strategies, answering the question, “So folks talk a lot about insurance prices going up, where do you see them going down?” Oberle is the leading specialty insurance brokerage catering to search funds and the broader ETA community, providing complimentary due diligence assessments of the target company’s commercial insurance and Employee benefits programs. If you are under LOI, please reach out to learn more about how Oberle can help with insurance due diligence at oberle-risk.com. Or reach out to the CEO, August Felker, directly at [email protected].
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Ravix Group – Ravix Group isa fraction CFO, outsourced accounting, and HR consulting firm serving small and large businesses alike. Whether you or someone you know is getting started, searching to buy a business, or building out an organization, Ravix will help on the journey. To learn more about Ravix Group, head to their website and tell them Think Like An Owner sent you.
Hood & Strong, LLP – Hood & Strong is a CPA firm with a long history of working with search funds and private equity firms on diligence, assurance, tax services, and more. To learn more about how Hood & Strong can help your search, acquisition, and beyond, please email one of their partners Jerry Zhou at [email protected].
Oberle Risk Strategies– Oberle is the leading specialty insurance brokerage catering to search funds and the broader ETA community, providing complimentary due diligence assessments of the target company’s commercial insurance and Employee benefits programs. If you are under LOI, please reach out to learn more about how Oberle can help with insurance due diligence at oberle-risk.com. Or reach out to the CEO, August Felker, directly at [email protected].
Oakbourne Advisors– Oakbourne is an independent retirement plan consulting firm that helps small companies design and implement great retirement plans for their teams. Whether you already have a 401(k) in place or are looking to start one for your team, please reach out to learn more about how Oakbourne can set your people up for success in retirement at oakbourne.com/think.
