How Align Helped Magia Solutions Build to Sell

When we first talked to Surend Dayal in 2020 about his vision for Magia Solutions, the goal was to become the world’s leading company in implementing Oracle SaaS.

Surend joined Magia in 2019 with the ambition of scaling the company to the top, and the next two years were full of monumental growth. In November 2021, Magia officially joined Deloitte.

Building the base

Magia Solutions is an Australian Oracle Cloud consultancy that found Align through the Scaling Up performance platform. Scaling up focuses on the Four Decisions methodology that says your business will be successful if you get these factors right: People, Cash, Strategy and Execution. It all starts with hiring the right people and establishing a solid cultural foundation.

“The first thing I really like about the methodology is using culture as the bedrock on which to build,” Surend said. “As humans, culture is the thing that binds us together.”

Establishing a strong culture is the beginning of aligning your team – and aligning your team around a common goal is necessary to keep everyone motivated and on the same page. Surend credits the One Page Strategic Plan (OPSP) with helping him do just that.

The purpose of an OPSP is to provide a way for all employees in a company to know what goal they are reaching toward and what needs to be done to get there. Having a succinct way to share your company vision and strategic plan brings better alignment, accountability, and execution to your organization. Your OPSP is unique to your company and is based on your core values and purpose.

According to Verne Harnish, creator of Scaling Up, the key benefits of an OPSP are that it:

1. Provides a framework that details your corporate vision.
2. Provides a common language with which to express that vision.
3. Provides a well-developed routine for keeping the vision current.

Once Surend and his team used Align to develop and implement their OPSP and discovered other one-page tools, it was like a lightbulb went off. 

“There’s no doubt that our methodology depends a lot on the use of Align,” he said.

Launching a methodology into action

Surend believes in practicing good business habits to make sure his team is collectively striving toward a common goal. After establishing a foundation, he successfully aligned his team around the goal of becoming the world’s leading company in implementing Oracle SaaS. He was able to begin executing his strategic plan with the help of Align’s technology.

Surend and his team have found great value especially in Align’s “huddles” feature. Huddles allow you to easily set up recurring meetings and stick to an efficient format, so you can ensure every meeting is productive. At Magia, Daily Huddles became the easiest way to debrief with all team members about their priorities for the day. Team members can easily view each other’s “huddle updates” to see what everyone is working on, adding the value of individual accountability to your culture. 

Align is designed with all your most important metrics are right in front of you, so you don’t have to keep up with multiple spreadsheets and it’s easier to remain focused on your strategy and goals. Most business leaders need a more efficient way to run their team, and Surend was no exception prior to Align. He said the visibility of the dashboards in Align and having the Critical Numbers front and center for all to see have helped him stay organized.

“I’m a big fan of choosing one metric to measure your business because it takes a lot of thought to do that properly. And if you get it right, the results are amazing,” he said.

Align recommends starting with one main goal to rally your team around. It’s easier and more efficient than trying to keep up with multiple goals that overlap or are not as important to the success of the company. Keeping everyone focused on one objective is what keeps the team on track.

Seeing results 

When Surend first joined Magia in 2019, it had 34 employees. By 2021, it was a 100-person company. The business grew exponentially in size and revenue, and it didn’t take long to see lasting effects. Surend is now a consulting partner at Deloitte, and was able to bring 100% of his full-time employees at Magia over with him. 

“If you set a big goal and take small steps, it’s amazing what you can achieve,” Surend said.

Surend’s strategy is simple – “Step 1 is to pick a methodology to grow. Step 2 is to pick a SaaS product to implement it.”

Your ability to scale your business depends on your approach to growth and knowing which steps you need to take to make it happen. Align is simply a tool that guides you in the right direction and makes it easier to implement that approach to growth.

Deloitte Australia is now one of Australia’s largest Oracle services providers since acquiring Magia.

Most business owners dream of building to sell one day, but several never get the chance. If you are looking to achieve the same success as Magia, Align can help you do it. Schedule a demo with us today to get a closer look at the software.