FEATURE
INVEST IN THE BUSINESS TO ACHIEVE CRITICAL MASS
“In care you are inevitably going to lose clients at times – they move to another provider, or go into a care home or may pass away. If you have created a business with critical mass, this will not be too much of a problem. You must invest in key staff to deliver the clients you need to reach that point. Once you have, your revenues will be more stable.”
VARIED RATES ENABLE
CROSS-SUBSIDISATION Greg is slowly moving towards providing more private care. “It’s currently 50/50 private and local authority work but I am aiming for 60/40,” he said. “Charging a bit more for private care means you can still afford to provide care for local authorities and the NHS.
Greg Renk
also reviews all the monthly, quarterly and annual figures for revenue and expenditure. “Analysing them enables you to learn at a lot about performance and to make forecasts,” she added.
TECHNOLOGY WILL HELP “Walfinch offers franchisees the Xero accounting system. It’s linked to Walfinch head office, and to the Zoho CRM system that monitors the hourly rates you charge and calculates how much profit you will make each month. We also use Dext, an accounting system that allows me to upload photos of business expenses receipts, and to forward emails of invoices, to my accounts, where they are transferred to Xero for sign-off. It takes about 30 seconds each time.
“It’s very fast and easy and really helps you keep on top of your finances. Healthy revenues mean good care. You always have to ensure you have enough to pay your carers well, so your care remains top quality.”
Greg Renk
Greg formerly owned a design and marketing agency and then spent time as a business development consultant with clients in the care sector. Now the franchisee managing director of Walfinch Buckinghamshire, he said: “I was confident that I could run the business element of the franchise, as I had already done budgeting, forecasting, staff and customer care, hiring and firing –but care is a complex industry and you can’t run a successful homecare business if you concentrate on money alone.”
BE PREPARED TO SAY NO Providers now commonly have to say no to local authority rates that make no business sense. Greg explained: “You must be willing to turn down clients if there is no benefit to your business revenue. It can be heartbreaking, but you have to be objective and focus on the business.
“I’m not solely driven by figures though. The care industry is the most complex industry I have experienced, and it’s really not all about money. While we have to make money to keep the business going, it’s the good feeling you get from providing exceptional care that is the real reward.”
twitter.com/TomorrowsCare - 23 -
“Running a care business is rewarding but can be hard, even if you have business experience. Starting with an established franchise like Walfinch makes it easier.”
https://walfinch.com
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