Communion Architects

Communion Architects Experience:

Alex began to have one to one coaching sessions at Arrivista every 2 weeks. He also began attending Arrivista training courses and regular business seminars where he interacted with other business owners. He talked about the differences. “The group sessions are great for meeting a wider community of business owners and sharing general ideas, although the one to one sessions are where I get the most value as long as I apply the plans we agree.”

The first area that they worked on was to define and set the goals that Alex wanted for the business. They initially set a 5 year plan, and then worked on specific and measurable goals for the next 12 months. This helped to clarify exactly what Alex needed to focus on.

An example of an early success was when Alex was encouraged to increase his charge out rates. This was based on understanding the customers better and the value they put on the services. As Alex remarked “Arrivista coaching helped me develop the confidence to charge appropriate rates by realising the value in the service for our clients. This has had a profound impact on the business.”

Alex's Arrivista coach worked with him to streamline the sales conversion process and even helped him rewrite some quotes and bids. This has shown Alex how to be efficient and confident in his approach.

The whole sales process was looked at in detail, and focus was placed on understanding the prospective customers better. “My coach helped me to see that it’s not about the money, it’s about selling the solution they need.”

They also looked at the marketing strategy for the business. Alex was introduced to a simple but proven marketing approach tailored for Communion Architects. This gave Alex focus and clarity on what he needed to do and importantly enabled him to measure results. They could invest more in what worked and reduce or stop anything that didn’t deliver. As he said “There is still a way to go but this strategy gives me control over what we do and how effective it is.”

Time Management:

Another key area that Arrivista has helped Alex with is his time management, which is vital for a business that sells time based services. Alex did record the time spent on different areas of his work but found he was always being reactive and vague in precisely what he spent time doing, so the coaching has made him become more rigorous and this enabled him to find time that he needed to work on driving the business forwards. He now has a ‘default diary’ that sets out specific times for meetings, planning and other key activities. As he said “My coach makes me more accountable for what I spend my time doing - I now spend at least 6 hours a week working on the business and this is showing positive results.”

As a direct result of the help Alex has received, the business now wins more profitable work. As Alex said “Cash flow has increased and it’s a different, better, business now. We are more product focused and sell what works for us and our clients.”

Support from Other Sectors:

Alex feels that Arrivista coaching has helped him in a number of ways but most importantly coaching has helped develop him as an individual. The setting of clear goals and getting more in control of the business through the use of proven tools and processes has increased his confidence. He remarked, “I am much more motivated, direct and purposeful now. My attitude has shifted and I am a more confident business person.”