Do you have what it takes to make it in business?
Let’s face it, not all who tried it, made it.
Running a business takes a special quality in a
person to start and grow a business to a sustainable level.
And it takes business acumen to make it.
Do you have it in you?
Here’s how to find out.
First you need to know and understand what business
acumen is all about.
Dr. Raymond R. Reilly, Associate Dean and Professor at the University of Michigan, and an expert in
the study of business acumen, says that “business acumen is keenness and
quickness in understanding and dealing with a business situation in a manner
that is likely to lead to a good outcome.”
Doing so requires basic understanding of
some aspects of business such as marketing, finance and other business
functions while having the ability to make good judgment and quick decisions.
People with business acumen:
- · Have deep understanding of the scope of business issues
- · Can simplify complex situations
- · Can see through an uncertain future
- · Are aware of the implications to other people of their decisions
- · Are decisive
- · Flexible to change if needed in the future
Business acumen operates in the mind and those with
it are able to use it effectively without reliance on organizational support and
even formal education.
It is the reason why we see the likes of Bill Gates,
Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg and many other business greats who, even without the
benefits of a college education, achieved outstanding feats in enterprise
development.
They are instinctively aware that they possess
business acumen and utilized it to their advantage.
What are the elements of business acumen?
Dr. Reilly
says that strengthening business acumen requires understanding and focus in
four critical areas:
- Understanding one’s thought processes. Business acumen provides frameworks and direction to organizing one’s thoughts and deciding how to allocate attention to the most important issues.
- Developing business knowledge. One’s acumen is developed by constant exposure to business situation partly through case studies provided by business schools as well as actual experience in a real business environment.
- Effective use of management processes. These are the tools, procedures and ideas that give shape to one’s ability to think, analyze and to communicate.
- Management and leadership skills. This aspect of business acumen is the ability to manage the various people relationships essential to enterprise success. This skill must also apply to managing relationships with customers, suppliers, bankers, investors and other key influences.
Can business acumen be learned?
Certainly it s a learned skill.
There are those who are quick learners and are able to learn easily than others.
You can learn the basics in school and also through experience working for others. If you are lucky enough, you develop it by being exposed to it through your family business at an early age.
Finally, you can work to improve on your business acumen with regular practice and training until it becomes just second nature to you.
Do you know the the 3 Ps of success of outstanding performers in sports, theater or music?
Practice! Practice! Practice!
It makes one perfect.
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