The book that started it all (and available at Amazon.com)
The HPE best practices are based on almost 20 years of ongoing research with owner-operated businesses and over 75 combined years of consulting. They include the best practices of experts in banking and finances, human resources and operations, marketing and sales, accounting and many other disciplines. They also cover the whole range of industries from services, to manufacturing, to high-tech.
We began the process by considering why so few entrepreneurs achieve the success they originally anticipated. It became clear there are a core set of best practices that successful entrepreneurs and their advisors develop, often through years of trial and error. It became even more clear that high-performance entrepreneurs adopt these best practices before growth and crisis happen. Over time, we also saw the best practices change and evolve. The results are businesses with sustainable growth and profitability that far exceed the norm and can outrun their competition.
The HPE best practices are an expansion of the process presented in The Family Business: Power Tools for Survival, Success, and Succession, co-authored by Russ Allred, MBA and Roger Allred, CPA. The original Power Tools approach utilized a method of prioritizing “best practices” for systematic improvement.
The next innovation came from Corey Hansen, who added organization development and financial best practices to the Power Tools system, including the importance of setting high-performance goals and focusing on owner income and equity. A study of business revenue showed that survival rates increased 500 percent when small businesses passed the $1 – $5 million level of revenues. The actual revenue needed depends on industry margins. Self-employed professionals are a little different but even they need high-performance goals. High-performance goals require owners of even very small business to make significant and immediate changes and can lead to dramatic growth and sustainable success.
The main lesson from our high-performance entrepreneur clients is that you are in a race with your competition and you have two alternatives. The first is to do like most entrepreneurs and take about 20 years and four major setbacks to develop your own best practices, if ever. The second is to put in place high-performance best practices now and get where you want to be up to 90% faster. Either way, your race is already started.
“Best Practices of High Performance Entrepreneurs is the best blueprint, best road map, and best advice I’ve read.”
Jay Conrad Levinson, The Father of Guerrila Marketing
Author “Guerrilla Marketing” Over 15 million sold in 43 languages
