The first step is always to make sure you have a solid, clearly defined business foundation you really understand because it is this clear foundation structure which will form the foundation of your operations systems.
Good systems – good for business?
So, what makes a good business operations system?
I don’t just mean the detail seen in a well written page of instruction, easy to comprehend fast and get the job done – although that is an important part of the whole and definitely something we will be looking at.
But now I mean why are well-structured systems so important for business performance.
And the answer lies in the words – well-structured systems.
Because you can’t have well-structured systems without a well-structured business.
I believe, to get your systems working well, the first task is always examining your business to really understand:
- What you do
- For whom
- How you do it
- Who does it
- And how will the person doing the job be supported to get the job done well
The first step is always to make sure you have a solid, clearly defined business foundation you really understand because it is this clear foundation structure which will form the foundation of your operations systems.
All of us in business tend to add stuff. We tend to have an entrepreneurial spirit, a love of learning about the new and shiny. Great for keeping us up to date and relevant in the market. Great for keeping us interested in business. Not so great when it results in overwhelm and lack of clarity about who we are selling to and why because adding bits of new and shiny creates a bloated business with no clear definition.
I learned this lesson when I first became involved with Brian in the franchise world. Whether we are assisting a client to franchise a concept or an existing business, the first step is always to restructure the business to the franchise business model. Simple though this sounds, it never is.
Most businesses that come to us look like this…
While, to succeed as a franchise, what they need to look like is something like this.
In a business like this, there is a very clear idea of what the Franchisee/Company Manager will be selling and or delivering to bring in the money. Associated there is a very clear idea of what is needed to support the people in the delivery/sales roles so they become as successful as they can be in bringing in the money.
All tasks outside the money generation roles are just there for support.
Anything outside of this central role must go.
From this you can see, it is the sales/delivery money generation roles that are duplicated to generate business growth.
And a system like this based on duplication of the money generation roles, franchised or not, will only work if there is consistency:
- In the product
- In the sales processes
- In delivery processes
- In the way the sales/delivery units are managed
Consistency can only be achieved as these sales/delivery units are expanded if you have very clear instructions for staff, so your business looks the same, feels the same, operates the same –everywhere. Your customers must know they will get the same service whether in Texas or London. It all depends on the people to whom you give control to look after your product.
So, systemise your business and make sure the groundwork is solid, your operations are successful, and you have savvy staff to follow your operations and look after your clients as well as you would.
