Are you frustrated by the lack of growth in your firm, or the effort required to squeeze any up-tick in performance? Are inadequate policies and procedures a root cause? To find out, take this simple self assessment to see if this may be inhibiting real growth at your company.
Q. Can you take an extended vacation without the company falling apart?
A. If you answered "no" then you have a job and not a business. A business must have a system of standard operating procedures to ensure the work gets done correctly, even in your absence.
Q. Can your company handle a ramp-up in sales and production?
A. Hidden inefficiencies are often revealed when sales and production increase. If low turns on accounts receivable and inventory, long sales or production cycles starve your cash flow, then something is wrong. Your policies and procedures should document cycle times for your critical operating metrics.
Q. Can you effectively add more people to your organization?
A. Hiring people is simple compared to ensuring they know what to do and have the resources to accomplish their job. Policies and procedures provide the framework for a management system to oversee new employees and communicate who does what by when.
Q. Does opening a new branch office, plant or facility create havoc?
A. Expanding your operations to new locations will test the limits of your policies and procedures. Did you know that franchises are four times more likely to survive than a start-up primarily because they have a well defined operations manual? Are you running your business like franchises run theirs?
Q. Is your family happy with your work life?ȍA. If your business demands too many hours, too much stress, and too little quality time with your family and friends, then you should do something about it. A well defined system of standard operating procedures can allow you take a vacation without worry, increase sales with ease, add people to fill demand, and open new offices without trouble. Then your family will be the happiest on the block.
About The Author
Chris Anderson is co-author of policies and procedures manual products, assisting in the layout, process design and implementation of the information. He is currently the Managing Director of Bizmanualz, Inc. He holds a Masters in Business Administration from Pepperdine University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from Southern Illinois University.
mail to:chris@bizmanualz.com
Visit: chris@bizmanualz.com
full-service cleaning Mundelein ...I read once that something like 30 percent of all... Read More
Entrepreneurs often give little if any consideration to their computer... Read More
Here is an abstract thought on studying nature and the... Read More
Ask Yourself three simple questions that affect your strategy planning...... Read More
1. Attempt Succession Planning Without Other Strategic Plans. Succession plans... Read More
Diversify - to make diverse, give variety, to balance, to... Read More
The boom of the dot-com era in 1999 brought the... Read More
A recent conversation started with a typical question, "How's business?"... Read More
Running a business, whether it be an offline multi-billion dollar... Read More
Imagine an office without a desk, or lights, a computer,... Read More
It's easy to lose sight of what needs to be... Read More
Would you like to jumpstart your online or offline business... Read More
As a business owner, you've likely created a hurricane plan... Read More
A piano tuner recently moved to Buffalo, NY, and would... Read More
The time when a website was just a simple set... Read More
Much of what we heard in the mass media about... Read More
Want to become more strategic? Add these traits to your... Read More
Every new business owner knows that a business plan is... Read More
"Did you hear what your competitor is doing?" This question... Read More
Does the competition drive you crazy?Are they relentless about taking... Read More
I am not a big fisherman, but I do enjoy... Read More
Microsoft Business Solutions Great Plains serves mid-size and large clients... Read More
Succession planning requires the owner of a small or medium-sized... Read More
As a franchisor it is imperative that you seek, find... Read More
When developing the competition section of your business plan, companies... Read More
detailed home cleaning Glenview ...Diversify - to make diverse, give variety, to balance, to... Read More
Does the competition drive you crazy?Are they relentless about taking... Read More
One of the most important initiatives in the domain of... Read More
One of the most powerful driving forces in human nature... Read More
I've either been involved with or held a process-related role... Read More
One of the quintessential parts to any business is your... Read More
Writing a business plan is an essential part of the... Read More
A recent conversation started with a typical question, "How's business?"... Read More
Obviously, there will never be an actual water shortage since... Read More
If you've ever listened to Warren Buffett talk about investing,... Read More
If you are looking for a partner, funding, angle investor... Read More
The decision to sell, or not to sell your business... Read More
You have invested a lot of time and energy on... Read More
There are no "rules of thumb" in the pursuit of... Read More
With a heightened awareness of opportunity, ideas can often be... Read More
Business rises and falls on leadership. According to business guru,... Read More
A well known, national chain of restaurants discovered that certain... Read More
David E. Gumpert, author of Burn Your Business Plan, often... Read More
1. Attempt Succession Planning Without Other Strategic Plans. Succession plans... Read More
In Ohio: besides the 3-Cs you should look at Akron,... Read More
Running a business, whether it be an offline multi-billion dollar... Read More
If you are a successful franchise of a large franchise... Read More
Business seems to drop, slow or even stop during the... Read More
Every decade we seem to come up with a buzz-word... Read More
When in doubt, cut that out! Yeah, yea, doubting Thomas... Read More
Strategic Planning |