By George Otte

Not all of the challenges that you’re likely to face as an entrepreneur are avoidable. However, most can be contained or surmounted with foresight, planning, and resolution.

Here’s how to mitigate or avoid six of the most common risk factors for startups.

1. Lack of Understanding of the Market

Before you formally set your business idea in motion, you need to make sure you’re pursuing the right idea at the right time.

One of the most common causes of early-stage business failure is a lack of due diligence: market testing, product research, and especially competitor analysis. Your due diligence may reveal that you’re entering a crowded, fiercely competitive marketplace — or that you have a tailor-made niche practically to yourself. This alone could be the difference between success and failure.

2. Nonexistent or Unclear Growth Strategy

Once you have a clear understanding of your market, you need a clear understanding of how you’ll grow into that market.

“Growth strategy” sounds intimidating, but developing one is actually a straightforward proposition. Start with a pre-made template and fill in with specific, relevant information based on your understanding of your business and your market research activities.

3. Unclear Value Proposition

“Your company’s value proposition is the clearest possible distillation of its mission, values, and objectives.” — George Otte

The value proposition is a compelling message that answers the question posed by every prospect who considers giving you their business: “What can you do for me?”

If you can’t answer that question clearly, concisely, and persuasively, you may struggle to gain traction with your target audience.

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By George Otte

One of the hallmarks of a successful business is a clear chain of command through which tasks are effectively communicated and delegated.

Effective chains of command must be anchored by decisive leadership at the C-level. However, depending on the size and structure of the organization, they rely on honest input from employees, along with efficient workflows and delegation channels through the organization. Imagine a matrix, with ideas and insights flowing, and concrete strategies and directives emanating clearly to all personnel.

Here are 5 proven tips to make sure your business strategies are flowing and being delegated efficiently throughout the organization.

1. Know Your Personal SWOT Analysis

First, you need to develop a deep personal understanding of the opportunities and challenges that are presented to you and your team. This is an essential step in determining where to put your energies and talents to best use within your organization. This is a good step-by-step primer on conducting a methodical, objective assessment of your and your team’s professional capabilities.

2. Assess Your Current Workload

Next, look at your current workload. Make sure you have a healthy work life balance. Having the time to unwind has a direct relation to your productivity and creativity. Never sacrifice quantity over quality. It is important to trust and empower your team and delegate projects that will help managers focus on core activities while team members assist in task completion.

Use your strengths and weaknesses assessment to identify non-core or non-ideal elements of your workload. Set them aside as you work through the rest of this process.

3. Identify and Groom Trusted Subordinates

Now it’s time to identify trusted subordinates and prepare them to take on non-core parts of your workload.

“For each task that you plan to delegate, you need to identify the very best person within your organization. It is also critical that you empower them and provide them with confidence.” — George Otte

Delegating only works when you can trust your subordinates to do a great job.

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George Otte, Miami Entrepreneur

George Otte, Miami entrepreneur has more than a decade of multi-faceted business operations experience. He is the founder and chairman of the Otte Polo Group, a diversified firm that does business internationally.

Entrepreneurship runs in Otte’s blood. He founded his first company, a South Florida computer repair and support service called TSS, in 2002 when he was just 21 years old. He successfully ran TSS while enrolled full-time in college, building a network of more than 100 clients by 2005.

Otte took the next step in his entrepreneurial journey in 2006 with the acquisition of Geeks on Site, a comprehensive technical support company. Throughout the late 2000s, Otte built up Geeks on Site to become a premier coast-to-coast provider of on-site tech support, remote computer repair, and other value-added technology services. Geeks on Site now works with local technicians in more than 150 US metro areas.

As George Otte’s business grew, he recognized the need to integrate superior customer service with flexible, on-demand product fulfillment. Staying true to his vision, he launched Responsive Call Center, a U.S.-based call center and telephone answering service that provides a range of live call center and answering solutions for clients in healthcare, legal, property management, general contracting, and other industries.

Responsive Call Center is now has a network of six independent answering businesses operating nine different facilities throughout the United States. As he pursues his vision of building Responsive Call Center into the United States’ top privately held call center and telephone answering service company, Otte continues to look for acquisition opportunities throughout the country.

Shortly after Responsive Call Center was established, George Otte turned his attention to product fulfillment and acquired Fort Myers-based Phase V, a fulfillment and shipping operations center with a diversified portfolio of customers, including work dating back to the early 1980s.

Under Otte’s expert guidance, Phase V has grown into Florida’s top fulfillment company. Its diverse capabilities include warehousing, flexible order processing and fulfillment, direct mail, and contact services. Otte is committed to expanding Phase V’s innovative fulfillment and business support model to business clients in every corner of the United States and is actively seeking acquisition targets to support his goal.

Both Responsive Call Center and Phase V work with businesses of all sizes, from sole proprietors and small startups that can’t afford in-house fulfillment and answering capabilities to enterprise firms that trust Otte’s companies to provide impeccable service under the most challenging conditions.

George Otte was born Jorge Otte in Lima, Peru. He moved to Florida with his family at age seven and enjoyed what he calls a “fairly typical American childhood”. Though he maintains distant relations in Peru, Florida is home to Otte’s immediate family, business and social networks, to Otte himself. Although he devotes the vast majority of his time to overseeing his successful business ventures, Otte does manage to find time to relax. His hobbies include boating and fishing in the waters off Miami, spending time at the gym, and traveling to out-of-the-way destinations in Europe and Latin America.