When did you last spring clean your business?

Last weekend marked the beginning of the new Premier League football season. The opening match kicked off on Friday, with my beloved Villa playing their first match of the season against Brighton on Sunday (We won’t mention the score). Now, I promise I’m not going to bore you by droning on about football too much, but this time of year is always an interesting one for footie fans, and there’s some powerful business lessons to take from it. You see, the start of the new season doesn’t just mean the start of a new competition, it’s a whole new fresh start. Premier League teams go through huge “clean outs” and transformations. Managers are fired and hired. Players transferred. New squads created. New sponsors, new kits, new coaches, new pitches and even new stands in the stadiums. It’s like a mammoth spring clean for football teams. 

It got me thinking, when do normal, non football businesses give themselves this level of makeover? How often do business owners truly step back, evaluate every element of the business, team and operation, and then make the ruthless changes necessary to improve it? As a Premier League Manager, you don’t get to sit on your laurels, not pulling your weight. If your team isn’t delivering results with you leading them, it won’t be long before you’re out the door and a new manager is brought in. But how many business owners keep hold of underperforming staff? Too many. Some for years on end! 

Now, I am not at all suggesting you go into the office and fire poor “Bob from Sales” tomorrow. But I am suggesting that you take a little time before the end of the month, just to step back and cast a “Premier League eye” over your business, and make a new plan for your next upcoming season. If you do, it might just be your best year in business yet. 

What do you think of the idea of “spring cleaning” your business? I’d love to hear your thoughts.