The Growth Mirage
Winning bigger and bigger contracts feels like progress. But if your commercial controls can’t keep pace, chasing turnover is the fastest route to collapsing margins.
Where does it go wrong?
Securing large projects without the systems to manage them.
Teams stretched thin across too many packages.
Cash flow swallowed by extended payment terms and higher working capital demands.
Margin traded away to “buy” growth at bid stage.
The Root Cause
Turnover is seductive – it looks good on company reports and wins headlines. But unless profitability is protected through strong procurement, cost control, and risk management, growth simply scales problems, not profits.
One client case study:
A contractor doubled turnover year-on-year but saw profit fall by 60%. Why? They underbid to secure pipeline, absorbed massive prelim overruns, and lacked the reporting systems to flag issues early.
Profit Before Pride
The best leaders measure growth not by revenue but by controlled delivery. They:
- Stress-test commercial systems before scaling.
- Focus on cash-positive projects, not headline numbers.
- Reward margin discipline, not just turnover wins.
- Build scalable processes that protect as project size grows.
Final Thought
Turnover makes headlines. Profit pays wages. Growth without control is just risk in disguise.
