As I work with clients to discover the low payoff activities performed by their team and the best ways to reallocate that wasted time to high payoff activities, I’ve uncovered a critical gap that needs to be addressed to increase revenue and decrease costs in order to drive more profit.
Most clients do not know the right questions to ask when developing an operations blueprint to serve as your step-by-step plan to improve business processes, standard operating procedures, operating systems, and team member development. You and your team should always be asking these types of questions to enhance your revenue and profitability:
- How do I maximize profit with minimum resources?
- What I am doing right now, and does it help us achieve our company goals?
- What systems and processes can I implement so our cus- tomers can ‘self-serve’?
Here’s an overview of my Entrepreneur Operations Blueprint that I regularly utilize during my client consultations. It is de- signed to help improve your communication, increase produc- tivity, and ultimately increase your profitability.
- Ensure everyone understands your mission.
- Establish and document your guidelines. Ask, “What must be done to consistently support your mission?”
- Ensure key processes are clearly outlined, answering the “who,” “how,” and “when” of these processes, so the critical tasks that must be completed actually get done.
- Try to make sure the right team members are on the right bus and in the right seat.
- Communicate and measure what is being managed.
Remember, it is always worth the time to provide feedback to your team members! If you want them to do their best, it is im- portant for them to know when you think they’re at their best!
“What is your best resource for improving your business processes, standard operating procedures, and operating systems? If you said, ‘My people,‘ you are right!“
Davy Tyburski
The question that must be answered by each team member is: “How do I know I was successful today, this week, and this month?”
When I advise clients that invest thousands of dollars to tap into my guaranteed profit enhancing strategies and techniques, I often use that last question during my team interviews. It’s one of my all-time favorites. Sadly, about 80% of the time, team members cannot answer it. So now is the time to get to work making sure that your team members can.
What is your best resource for improving your business pro- cesses, standard operating procedures, and operating systems? If you said, “My people,” you are right! This is why every one of your team members should be thinking about your company’s profitability and acting like owners.
If you’re not completely sure whether or not you’re getting the full potential out of your team members, ask yourself this question: “Are all of my team members thinking about the company’s profitability?” If your answer is “no,” take two aspirin and call me in the morning because we have some work to do. If your answer is “Yes,” congratulations!
“Productivity is being able to do things that you were never able to do before.”
Jim Manzi
