Operational resilience for startups - Cognition Shared Solutions LLC

So, you've started a business, got the cash flowing in, and are now ready to expand?

Most people think that startups that got their first sale or first contract or first round of funding are now in the clear waters, past the dangerous rapids of creating a business from scratch. That is why, at precisely this point, nine out of ten still fail.

Creating a startup and bringing an idea to life with a couple of your friends is an exhilarating experience. However, transforming a startup into a company is not straightforward, and for many founders, this is an eye-opening moment. Suddenly, informal meetings, agreements, and ideas need to be appropriately organized and documented. As more people need to be brought on board, you"ll need to establish policies and processes for your staff. You need to present a professional front for external stakeholders to take your business seriously. Still, to do this successfully and scalably in the long term, your back office also needs to be organized.

According to research, startup owners can spend around 40% of their working hours on tasks that do not generate income, such as hiring, HR tasks, and payroll. As you grow, you want to maintain the passion and momentum that drive you to start the business and make it gain a life of its own within your company.
There are different ways to deal with the issues arising when transforming a startup into a long-term business:
- Teaming up with experienced business partners could provide you with the necessary expertise. However, you'd have to share your company (and your profits) with others who may not necessarily share the same vision.
- Incubators and accelerators are popular ways to provide growth to startups but require a time commitment and may also require sharing equity in your company.
We can help you get your company on the path to scalable growth without having to split the ownership. We will work with you on a fixed fee basis, sharing our expertise gained through working with our medium and large clients (including Fortune 500 companies) to transform your business into a future- and growth-proofed operation.

With our startup clients, we usually focus on the following three areas:

Documenting business processes and policies

Preparing all the necessary documents can be tedious and time-consuming. Additionally, most documentation becomes obsolete when it is saved down, as businesses change almost constantly. We will help you create accessible knowledge stores that are useful and alive, able to adapt together with your business to the ever-changing markets. You will also be able to train your new employees quickly and efficiently, so they can become more productive and, most importantly, share your vision and goals.

Establishing the critical systems

Setting up effective collaboration systems is vital, as many startups since 2020 (especially in the tech and services sectors) opt for working from home for their employees. Additionally, having such systems opens you up to hiring talent from all over the world, as you can effectively run your business entirely online.

Implementing a risk management framework

Any serious venture needs to be prepared for the unexpected, and yet, in practice, risk management is often either done at a very general level or is not done at all.

Furthermore, risk management is often associated with putting restrictions on the operation and therefore is viewed negatively.

We want to show you how to implement the "protect and enable" style of risk management, which will help you in reaching your goals, not hinder you while ensuring that you and your business are prepared for the difficulties that invariably occur in the real world.

The above list shows only the most common areas, and each startup is different. We always work with you based on your specific requirements rather than trying to fit you into a mold. This way, you can maintain a laser focus on your goals, and we will provide you with the assurance that your operations will be able to keep up with the required expansion.