Section 9: Setting benchmarks for performance

It is important to set benchmarks to work towards, this will enable you to control costs and make sure that you are working towards a profitable business.

You must recognise what your performance benchmarks are in your P&L to establish performance. As shown above monetary variances can often lead to misinterpreting overspending therefore you should consider setting benchmarks as percentages to allow you to compare trends.

Key benchmarks that you should be aware of and tracking include:

• What is the required percentage for your gross margin?
• What are your consultant fees?
• What should your payroll costs be?
• What is the required percentage for your profit are you budgeting for?

The above will all be individual to your business. It would be good clinic for you to review your P&L and discuss with your accountant to establish current performance and set benchmarks for performance and to allow you to track the ability to meet your required profit budget.