The other day there were a bunch of nasty geese in our yard. (after being attacked by three geese decades ago, I have no love for these flying, pooping beasts 😝) I let our crazy dog, Dylan, out the door to chase them away. What I hadn’t noticed were the neighbor’s cats hanging out next to their house. Yep – Dylan ignored the geese and instead made a beeline for the cats. The cats ran into their house and Dylan followed, running up on the neighbor’s porch and trying to get in through the luckily-smaller-than-an-80-pound-dog cat door. Eeks! I hurried over there myself to find his butt hanging out that door and yanked him back to me. Great way to ingratiate ourselves to our relatively new neighbors, eh?

The geese enjoyed the show and didn’t move an inch.

I know better. When I let Dylan out, I normally hook him onto a long lead so he can run around, play, even chase squirrels up our big tree. He can’t go over the edge of the yard into the lake, take off wandering the neighborhood, and he certainly can’t make his way into the neighbor’s house cheerily ready to play (I like to think) with their pets.

We have a system we follow that works for everyone. Once we figured it out and when we use it.

* * * * *

Hopefully, you’ve never endangered a neighbor’s pet 😬 but, how many times have you:

• Searched for a previous email so you could cut and paste the language into a new one?
• Wondered what to post on your business social media pages?
• Spent hours searching for invoices, receipts, bills, and statements to prepare your monthly business statements?

You’ve probably heard the statistic that only 50% of businesses will survive their 5th year and only 30% will see the 10th.

There are many reasons for this. One important cause is most businesses don’t know how to control the overwhelm and chaos. As organizations grow, so do challenges and complexity. Without well-structured systems and processes in place, no organization – even a small microbusiness (under 10 employees) – can survive for very long.

WHY ARE BUSINESS PROCESSES SO IMPORTANT TO YOUR BUSINESS?

They:

• Eliminate workplace inefficiencies,
• Save you, your team, and business time and energy, and
• Make it easier to train others.

HOW DO YOU CREATE BUSINESS PROCESSES AND SYSTEMS?

1. Identify where processes are needed. Where do you find yourself repeating tasks or projects on a regular basis? Create your list!

2. Identify key persons. Who is going to be using the process? It may just be you as the solo business owner/employee but often it involves others in your organization. Who better to help guide the development of a process than the people who are going to use the process in the end?

3. Research and invest in the right tools. By researching and investing in the right tools to automate parts of your processes, you can save your business time, money and effort—and make sure your process is as efficient as possible.

4. Document – Document – Document – the entire process from beginning to end. Try it out to see how the new system works. Tweak the process until it works like a well-oiled machine.

5. Implement. Once your new process is documented, it’s time to apply the process.

6. Evaluate and revise. Rarely are new systems perfect when first implemented. After an adequate period of implementation, take time to evaluate the system and revise it, if needed. Think continuous improvement.

WHAT AREAS OF YOUR BUSINESS ARE IDEAL FOR PROCESSES?

Consider the following:

• Marketing
• Sales
• Accounting
• Project management
• Product Research & Development
• Quality Control
• Product/Services Delivery
• Inventory Management
• Customer Service
• Recruiting, Interviewing and Hiring
• Employee Development and Training

🌟Where could YOU most use a process right now?🌟

Watch my Masterclass: Creating Business Systems to Help You Work Smarter for more detailed information

For help determining the best systems for you, let’s get on a call and chat!