During the early phase of business development or re-engineering, your brainpower and sweat equity should go into the design and creation of your business model and business systems – not into micromanaging. Spend time developing systems and performance standards early on so that you can lead later on. Design an entire business template. Define and organize the work to be done rather than micromanage your employees. The more you systematize your business, the less everyone will rely on you for day-to-day questions and assistance. You will minimize those nagging “got-a-minute” interruptions from your employees. Also, the system you develop takes your place so you can step out of the trenches and function as CEO. Replace yourself with the system!
Your mission is to plan and design the system and then let your employees work the system. Develop the recipe and then let the employees do the cooking! Get out of the hot kitchen. Your employees should understand their roles and function within the system. Once defined and documented, processes, policies and practices should be followed carefully.
With help from employees and your business advisers, identify and document all the processes, procedures and policies necessary to achieve more effective and streamlined operations. You want to get frank feedback at this stage to ensure that you have an effective business model laid out before you start documenting your business system. Start with customers’ perceived needs and work backward re-designing your business so that it consistently and predictably fulfills the promises made to a customer during the selling process. Be sure all your back-office processes (accounting, finance, HR, technology, administration, etc.) are in alignment to effectively support the operations of the company. Design or repair any processes that are missing or faulty.
Routine work should be fully systematized and only exceptions should be dealt with on an ad hoc or improvised basis. A system should eliminate arbitrary work and discretion. Your employees should have the discipline to follow the system and also have the freedom and authority to handle the exceptions that do not fit neatly into the system. Because most potential problems and crises have been properly anticipated and converted into routine processes, “fire drills” should be greatly reduced. At the same time, the system provides a company oriented thought process that employees can utilize when they have to make decisions that do not fit the system.
Once your system is fully documented and your employees are running the system, you need to let go, trust the system, trust your team, and step away from the day-to-day workflow. With this approach, 12-hour days no longer need to be the norm. Once you allow the integrated system to run, the system itself and your employees will do the necessary work to fulfill promises made to your customers. You will not have to work as hard or as long. With effective systems, ordinary employees (properly trained) can achieve consistently extraordinary results.
The system is your solution to more freedom, fulfillment and profits. Again, plan and develop the system and then teach others to operate it.
Quote of the Week: “You alone have the responsibility to shape your life. Once you understand this, nothing and no one can deny you success. There’s no one to stop you but yourself.” (Author unknown.)
Rick Brines is owner of the Growth Coach of Chattanooga. He can be reached at 423-886-6095 or R.Brines@TheGrowthCoach.com.