Outgoing British Summer Fruits and Poupart chairman Laurence Olins has outlined his ten top tips for businesses looking to succeed.
Olins, who has had a 48-year career that has spanned farming, wholesale, importing, foodservice, pre-packing, general management and non-executive roles across a wide range of fresh produce, is well placed to give a view on what makes a successful business. UK fresh produce firms he is currently involved in as an investor or non-exec – such as Poupart, G’s and Reynolds - have a turnover of more than £1.5 billion.
Speaking at the HOPS conference in Coventry this week, Olins advised family businesses to take on non-executive directors as a way of getting a fresh view and advice from someone from outside.
His other top tips were:
- Don’t be afraid of recruiting colleagues better qualified than yourself
- Employ problem solvers, not problem creators
- Accept and act on constructive criticism
- Honour your priorities and commitments in full and on time
- Serve your colleagues and subordinates rather than expecting them to serve you
- Take a long-term view rather than looking for short-term wins
- Aim to occupy the moral high ground in disputes
- When ending a relationship, be professional and civilised
- Organise and plan well ahead. Don’t leave things to the last minute
- Always under-promise and over-deliver
On the subject of the future of the fresh produce industry, Olins said he was upbeat, despite seeing “little or no” upsides to Brexit. “I am very optimistic - people are buying more of our products,' he explained. 'The big problem is there are so many things we can’t control – labour, climate, socio-economic issues. What we do control is all the factors within our own businesses, so you have to make sure that with the things you can control you are strong enough to deal with the things you can’t.”
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