When my husband suffered a stroke in October 2014, we were left with a business that he had owned and operated for 41 years with no plans for his actual retirement In March 2015, we were introduced to Cogent Analytics.
After three days of meetings with Cogent, it became painfully clear that we were in need of a project plan to analyze and access the financial, sales and organizational branches of our company. Furthermore, it became clear that, while my husband was making remarkable progress recovering from his stroke, he could not continue the day to day operation of the company and its specialty construction crews.
Cogent was thorough in her investigation and analysis of our company background, growth, marketing, finances, staff, etc. Their work included in depth interviews with every permanent employees, as well as my husband and me. They questioned us thoroughly about our vision for the company’s future as well as our future in terms of actual retirement. Basically, they made us think about “where we are” and “where we want to be” and, finally, “‘how will we get there”. We realized we really needed the expertise of Cogent Analytics!
It was our good fortune that Paul Howell was assigned as our Project Director!
Paul has been working with us since early April, 2015 and has thoroughly examined the cloudy, sometimes murky, financial records with which we had been working for some time. He did thorough interviews with every employee, learning their job descriptions and identifying their strengths and weaknesses; and, while working with us from our kitchen table (we downsized last year to drop burgeoning operating costs), he learned about my husband’s past strengths in developing our company and operating it successfully as it grew. He further realized the struggles we are having as Glenn recovers from his right-brain stroke and finds himself challenged to continue daily operations of the company. Paul’s work was cut out for him!
After walking us methodically through the steps used by Cogent Analytics, Paul helped us identify the weaknesses in the existing structure and future of the company. He helped to identify tough steps which needed to be taken to turn a profit at the lower revenue levels realistic in today’s market.
Working strategically with us, he helped us to realize that our employees were being overpaid for the level of profit in which the company operated. He walked us through steps to cut unrealistic compensation to our employees. He guided us through financial strategies and necessary organizational changes to improve managerial effectiveness. And equally important, he has encouraged the entire team to understand that we can no longer survive with our old “bread and butter” customers alone. Thanks to Cogent Analytics and its methods of working with struggling small companies, we are now looking at a profitable year, thanks to decreased expenses and reorganization of employee compensation.
We are now focused on broadening our market for new customers, without ignoring the established customers. As our time with Paul comes to a close, it is important to say that without Paul and the method of project planning developed by Cogent Analytics, my husband and I believe our company would be near bankruptcy at this point.
Instead, we are reorganized with a COO who is working under the guidance of my husband, my husband no longer suffers with the frustration of being unable to operate our company as he recovers from his stroke, our employees have seen the light at the end of the tunnel and know it is brighter than it has been in a long time! Also, we are looking forward to our first Board of Directors meeting in August 2015 at which time we will be focusing on our vision for future growth!
We know there will be future challenges, but we anticipate handling those challenges efficiently and effectively – thanks to Pam, Paul and Cogent Analytics!
Carolina Specialty Contractors
