Small Business Development Blog

Systematization Process - Phase 6: Making it Happen

Making Business Systematization Initiatives Stick

How to ensure that your efforts to systematize your business (so that it is more self sustaining and automated to be less reliant on you) don't fade... 

Phase 6, the last phase of the mimosaPLANET^TMSystematization Process is; Making it Happen. This is completely about making sure that this systematization process is not just a one or two week initiative. It is about putting in place a structure that will see it through to completion of a first run through the entire process and place value on business development in perpetuity. This is where I have seen countless business owners get frustrated. Learn how to keep the momentum going, momentum that leads to critical mass, critical mass that supports change and produces results...

What are the strategies used in this Phase?

The Making it Happen phase is all to do with taking action or activity... but the key point to remember is activity must be justified, it must be worthwhile... activity for activity sake leads you and your team to doing pointless tasks or doing the tasks that are unimportant first and leaving the truly important tasks that aren't urgent never to be completed. To make sure activity and busyness is worthwhile we must do two vital things .... Record & Report! We must highlight the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for each area (and/or role) in your business. If you and your team then know what it is that truly matters, and these KPIs are recorded and reported on, you and your team will instantly find your activity and behavior (the decisions and actions) you take on a daily basis will instantly be more effective.

Once you and your team have a good understanding of what is important (the KPIs), then you can set a course of action to improve them, ‘action' points or ‘doing' points if you like. Below are the basic strategies I recommend that will yield fast results in the short term and... continued growth & automation (business systematization so you as the business owners aren't needed as much) in the long term. This long term (by long-term why not 6mths or 12mths instead of 5 years, what's stopping you?) automation goal comes about only if a regular schedule is adhered to, too many business owners will set weekly development meetings, they happen once or twice then two people are away the next week so it doesn't happen, then the week after "we are busy and have no time"... or some other lame excuse (admittedly, excuses that I've in the past used). The point is when something is set as just part of the routine, like dinner ... it always happens!!! While we are on meetings...the second point to make is; meetings don't work! Huh, meetings are crap time wasters... well they are for most people unless you and everyone in that meeting leaves with a clear list of decisions, and actions points to be achieved by who & by when.... Oh, then it's vital they actually do them and are held to account at the next meeting. Here are those strategies in phase 6;

6) MAKING IT HAPPEN

The Basics

• Weekly Role Based KPI Dashboard (Activity and Results)
• Weekly Team Business Development Meetings (Not WIP (Work In Progress) Meetings)
• Monthly KPI Reports (Executive KPIs, Marketing KPIs, Sales KPIs, Operations KPIs, Finance KPIs, HR KPIs)
• Monthly Directors Meetings (KPI Target vs Actual review, Actions as a Result of)

More ...

• Quarterly KPI Reports & Individual Evaluations
• Quarterly 2 Page "DOING" Plan (KPI Targets, Strategy Selection)
• Yearly Plan (Directions, Goal, KPI Targets, Quarterly Milestones, Initiatives/Projects)

For KPI examples see Record & Report

It's that simple...

It's too easy to over complicate things, so keep it simple...

"Everyone, here's a visual representation of our team, it's called an organizational chart.... Bob this is you, and these are the two points that are important in your role, they are called key performance indicators or KPIs, they let you and everyone else know if you are doing a good job, a crappy job, or an excellent job . If we focus on making sure you all improve your specific KPIs we can all have a lot more fun. Here's an example of one of Bob's KPIs.... This is what we are going to do to improve results in this area...."

There are much better methods to ‘train' people, than telling, but the above statement is the basic message you want to get across. Better training methods include asking specific questions to get them to come up with the answer rather than just telling them... which doesn't get your team to use their own brain.... Oh, this is a huge point, if you tell your team how to do everything, how can you EVER expect your business to be systematized?! To automate your business so that it runs without you, you must setup systems and empower your team to make decisions by trusting them, mistakes cost way less than you might think to fix.

This week's Action Points...

The key is one; your belief and resolve, and two; the schedule.... I talk with clients weekly at the same time, we finish with a list of action points... we move forward. Set a schedule for your internal report completion and for meetings... then stick with it!

 

Systematization Process - Phase 5: Knowledge Base

Build a Knowledge Base for Operations Manuals

Create Manuals for your business so that anyone can fulfill the roles and tasks in your business... 

Phase 5 of the mimosaPLANET^TMsystematization Process is; Knowledge Base. This is all about pulling together the collective knowledge that you and every member of your team have about all aspects of your business. In other words, it's a way of protecting the ‘know-how' of your business, to make sure that if someone learns a lesson we transfer that knowledge from their mind to a company knowledge base; an operations manual, a policy manual, a technology manual, a troubleshooting database, etc. Learn how to get your own knowledge base setup so; new employees get up to speed faster, you ensure processes are followed, you protect and build company knowledge, and add value to your goodwill, plus more...

What is a Knowledge Base?

A knowledge base by definition is simply a database for managing knowledge. It gives you the ability to collect, organize and retrieve knowledge. They are most useful in training purposes because they allow people to retrieve specific knowledge and use it. For businesses, some of the best uses are for; user manuals and troubleshooting.

What structure and content can form a Knowledge Base?

Anything can form part of an organizations knowledge base. One of the most important aspects of making sure the knowledge base can be used is the ability for people to easily find the information they are looking for... so the format in which the content is organized is of primary importance. You'll need to ask yourself, how am I going to classify the data? Here's just one suggested classification system:

User manuals

• Operations Manual
  • Marketing Department
    • Marketing Manager
    • Marketing Assistant
  • Sales Department
    • Sales Manager
    • Sales Person
  • Operations Department
    • Operations Manager
    • Team Leader
    • Team Member
  • HR Department
    • HR Manager
  • Finance Department
    • CFO/Financial Controller
    • Office Manager
    • Office Administrator
  • Executive Department
    • GM/CEO
    • Director
    • Personal Assistant
• Policy Manual
• Technology Manual
• Marketing & Sales System Manual

These user manuals are basically just user guides. They use written words and associated flowcharts and/or images to give people assistance to use a particular system, task, or to fulfill a role. More and more often video can be used, and should be used, to capture these 'how-to' experiences. You can use software to record the screen of a computer to capture a computer task (this is much easier and quicker for people to learn that trying to make sense of just plain text or plain text with screen shots). You also can use a camcorder to record just about anything else.

Troubleshooting

• Case Solutions

e.g. A help desk operator has a database of all the customer ‘cases' every lodged and the ‘solution' that was used to resolve that ‘case'. Over time, a huge ‘solutions' database is built which ensures that knowledge is collected in a database not just the employees head. This has massive benefits in small business!!!! How often are you, as a business owner or manager, interrupted by your team asking you "how do I solve this problem?". From my experience talking with business owners, they say it's all the time. Having an internal database of the common ‘SOLUTIONS' that you deal with 90% of the time, will help free up your time by empowering your team to handle the issue.

•  External Help

This is the next step beyond having an internal database of solutions (helps anyone in your team fulfilling the role of customer services become capable to resolve 90% of issues by themselves). Having an ‘External Help' system lets your customers try to resolve issues themselves first before calling your business. In big business, this has saved many companies millions, in small business this can be the difference between having 1 administrator and needing 2. It is now possible, through the internet (private or public), to provide ‘external help'. It is widely used in the software industry. Obviously nearly everyone has used Microsoft's Help to attempt to resolve an issue or find out how to do something, but even small providers have been smart enough to give their customers ‘self help'.

•  Internal Help

This is more of a ‘solutions' database for an organisations own internal systems, roles and tasks. It's where anyone can go first to get help to something that might not be covered in the user manuals.

How do I put a Knowledge Base together?

If you haven't figured it out yet, the best place to build your knowledge base would have to be an intranet. What is an intranet? It's simply a private computer network where you can securely share your company's knowledge base and systems. It is built using the same concepts as the internet; basically it's like having a website that only you and your employees can see (you can also give access to others if you like i.e. strategic partners or customers).

Traditional paper based operations manuals can still be printed out and created in ring binders if you wish but there are many advantages to having everything online;

• It is always up to date with any of the latest changes. A printed file changes can become out of date quickly and will need to be checked and updated.
• Anyone from anywhere (with permission) can access the same information. If you have team members that need flexibility to work from home or if you have multiple branches this keeps all the knowledge gained from one location accessible to all the locations.
• It's easy to make changes, update or add to.
• It can be protected and backed up.

There are many different platforms or ways to make this happen.

1)   Personal Computer: At the very base level you can create a Knowledge Base on your personal computer, copy it to CD and upload to each team member's computer. This would simply be your classifications of files saved in folders.... A content tree, if you like.

2)   Networked Computers: The next level of sophistication you can have is computers in the office networked together so people can have permission to view the ‘knowledge base' folder and sub folders. Normally 1-5 users.  

3)   Server Computer: Like networked computers but no user limits.

4)   Intranet Software on a Hosted Server: This is where you and your team can access your knowledge base by logging in to a website. There are many providers of software that is specifically designed to have the basic structure and components that will form your database of company knowledge. All you need to do is upload your content.

5)   Intranet Software on Internal Server: As above but on a server (computer) your company owns.

6)   Client Relationship Management (CRM) Software - Contact Centre Module: This is where you can store a troubleshooting knowledge base of ‘solutions'. And also provide a customer portal for ‘self help'.

I strongly recommend option 4 for small business owners and also option 6.

What about the actual Content?

Once you know what structure your knowledge base will form and what platform you'll keep it on, you'll then have a better idea of what;

• content you currently have and there for just need to upload it to your new ‘knowledge base' system... or
• content you are missing so it will need to be created.

For the content that needs to be created, get each person in your business to contribute. Get them to complete a ‘how-to' for each task they have. Each role in your business should have a list of tasks associated with it. If each role had about 50 different tasks they were responsible for and you got everyone to capture (in writing, with images, with screen recording software, with a camcorder) 2 tasks a week... in 6 months you and your team would have created your company knowledge base!!!!!

I understand that this is often the hard part. Getting a structure and platform set up can be confusing and then creating the content for each task can be overwhelming. So at mimosaPLANET^TM we are working hard to make this easier for people. We are creating a system you and your team can just plug into to form this platform & structure. Plus we'll provide business development tools and templates so you can edit and adapt to use for your business... watch this space... Until then you can create your company specific content as a first step.

This week's Action Points...

Understand the value that transferring knowledge out of your mind and on to a reusable knowledge base will provide you with. A knowledge base of user guides and troubleshooting resources will empower your team and free up your time. It will make sure when key people leave, your down time is minimal. It will increase the multiplier used in the formula to calculate the goodwill value of your business come sale time. So;

1)      decide on a structure and classification system,

2)      decide on an entry level platform at least,

3)      have team meetings and set actions that each person (including you) is to capture the ‘how-to' for 2 of their tasks each week until completed.

 

Systematization Process - Phase 4: Re-Write the Rules

Design Your Future Business

Design what your business will look like when it is finished and map out a path of stepping stones along the way. 

Phase 4 of the mimosaPLANET^TMsystematization Process is; Re-Write the Rules. Who said your business has to look like it does today? Who said your business needs to conform with the industry average? Nobody! Because in business your get to write your own rules. So, what happen? Take back that feeling, that desire for control of your own destiny you had when you first started your business and design what it will look like in the future...when it is delivering on the promise of ‘freedom of choice'. Find out the areas you should be designing and re-writing the rules of your business in...

Earlier in the mimosaPLANET^TMsystematization Process, phase 2) DISCOVER & DOCUMENT, we analyzed and documented the current situation. This included; the work-flow processes, organizational chart, volume capacities, the profit model, and utilization rates. In the 4^th phase, RE-WRITE THE RULES, we focus on taking the new work-flow processes, determined from any technology advantage found in phase 3, to create a clear picture of what the business will look like when it is finished. How do we define that ‘clear picture'? By using the following strategies;

• Our New Company Structure - organization Chart Goals (Now, Qtrly, 1yr, 3yrs, 5yrs)
• Our New Company Structure - Position Descriptions (Roles, Responsibilities, Tasks)
• Our New Company Structure - Position KPIs Identification
• Our New Company Structure - Position Volume Capacities
• Our New Company Structure - Profit Model
• Our New Company Structure - Position utilization Rates
• Our New Company Structure - Position KPIs Specification Targets (Below, On, Above)

Specific outcomes of this process will differ for every business and business owner... you see, it's completely based on your outcomes from phase 1 and 3. A business owner with huge personal goals & business goals is going to need a very different business design (i.e. size, shape, profit, etc) when compared with a business owner with relatively modest goals. Whatever the specific goals of the business owner and business, no matter their size or shape, the process is the same. It becomes vital to build a clear picture of the business in a specifically defined time period.

Over time I have found people work well with a 5 year goal for when the business is to be finished (i.e. the business is delivering the owners written personal goals of money (pa income to live the lifestyle desired) and time (free time available to live the lifestyle desired)). Let's look at how 3 different people might approach phase 4 differently based on their desired outcomes....

3 Examples of Business Owners 5 year Goals

Name	Yearly Disposable Income	Hrs worked each week	Notes
Person A	$500,000	0 hrs	Willing to work hard for the next 5 years to sell business and have the option of not working again while still living a lifestyle of $500,000pa.
Person B	$300,000	32 hrs	Happy to work 4 days a week, leaving 3 day weekends for spending time at the holiday home with the family.
Person C	$200,000	20 hrs	Only wants minimum input has a General Manager looking after the day to day. Must have the ability to take 3 month holidays.

 

How Will This Affect Our Thinking When We Design Our Future Finished Business?

Let's look at Person A

Person A, wants to have the option of not working ever again so they are looking to sell their business and let's assume they can get 10%pa return on the invested funds from the sale of the business. They will need (assuming no other assets or investments, & that 10% is after inflation...so they are really getting 13%pa) to sell the business for $5 million. A business that has a goodwill value of $5 million is likely to be producing $1 million pa EBIT (Earnings Before Interest & Tax).

So everything that is ‘designed' in this phase (the organizational structure, all the different roles and volume capacities, etc...) needs to be from the view point of what does the business look like at $1 million pa EBIT? You see, most people work from a sales or revenue figure and then ask... ‘what profit is left?'. Challenge that way of thinking. Build the shape, size and structure of the business based on what profit you want.

Person A's current business could be something like this:

 

Revenue	$1,750,000
COGS	$1,105,000
GP	$700,000 (40% - GPM%)
Exp	$400,000
NP	$300,000 (17% - NPM%)
# of Total Team	15
# of Admin Team	2
# of Production Team	12
# of Managers	1
Goodwill Value	= $900,000 (EBIT x Multiplier)
	= ($300,000 x 3)

New Business Design

Let's say during phase 3 Person A found a new way of doing things and through a series of calculations based on volume capacities of each person in the team doing their job they determine the following design for the business in 5 years time so that they can sell in for $5 million....

Revenue	$4,000,000
COGS	$2,200,000
GP	$1,800,000 (45% - GPM%)
Exp	$800,000
NP	$1,000,000 (22.2% - NPM%)
# of Total Team	26
# of Admin Team	4
# of Production Team	20
# of Managers	2
Goodwill Value	= $5,000,000 (EBIT x Multiplier)
	=($1,000,000 x 5 (better systems))

All this can only be determined by running numbers on different structural options then reworking the numbers again and again until you find the right mix.

The tools to do this are the same as the tools highlighted in the phase 2 article Discover & Document

Simply start with the end game... 5 years from now, get a really clear picture of what your business will look like then... work backwards and set a picture for 3 yrs, then 1yr.... and I highly recommend breaking the 1yr into Qtrly goals. Now you have the setting stones... a path if you like to map out your growth.

This week's Action Points...

If you did phase 1 and set the vision of where you and your business want to be; if you've done phase 2 and you have faced the facts about your current situation and whole business model and structure and determined things have got to change; if you have looked into phase 3 and realize the opportunities you have to do things dramatically better.....if you have done all this you'd be mad not to do phase 4 because this is the point you get to see the future. Never under estimate what clarity can do for you... good luck...

 

Systematization Process - Phase 3: Initiate a Revolution

Revolutionise Your Business With Technology

Find your new Technology Advantage, the Edge that will see you leap frog the competition! 

Phase 3 of the mimosaPLANET^TM Systematisation Process is; Initiate a Revolution. Revolution? Strong word? Yes, you bet it is... "Kaizen", the Japanese philosophy of continuous improvement that helped propel Japan from post WW2 ruin, to become the worlds' most prolific manufacturer till the early 1990's, is old news and no longer enough. In 2008 and beyond we live in a world where a company can find new technology and go from nothing to a giant in years, with it changing and effecting the very environment in which everyone operates. Your options are to embrace it and find your own Technology Advantage to thrive or cling to what you know now and start to struggle as you watch your business become extinct.

Quantify This Word Dribble Please....

Ok, where's the proof? It's all around you! I can see two ways this is happening currently;

• Current Industry Revolution: In every industry there are companies creating a revolution, going against the status quo, doing things in a new way, delivering better solutions. Think Dell in the 1990s. Before Dell, IBM sold heaps of PCs through the normal distribution channels, you know, things like... a direct channel for big corporates, a merchant channel (retailers) for Joe consumer, and partner channel for companies. Dell came along and totally revolutionised the distribution model by providing mail, phone and internet ordering abilities to ‘build your own pc' and have it shipped to you in days at a fraction of the cost.
• New Industry Creation: This is a fascinating area, companies that are creating the industry, not just doing things in a new way, but actually creating value where previously there was nothing. Think Microsoft creating the software industry when IBM was the king pin of the computer world. Think Google creating the paid-per-click search advertising industry and becoming the biggest threat to Microsoft and the big 4 Advertising Agencies and media companies.

Methods To Find Your Technology Advantage

• Surf the Net; when it's focused on strategic research it's not a distraction.
• Take an interest in new ideas, concepts, & technology; if you continue to learn new things you'll be much more prepared to do battle in the present and future, if you don't learn anything new, well you're perfectly equipped to handle a world that no longer exists!
• Talk with ICT people; many information and communication technology people get to see the future often years before others, shouldn't you be at least having interesting business discussions with people like this?
• Network with other business owners from outside your industry; chances are you'll find someone doing something cool, then... just ask; "how can I apply this idea, this concept to my business to get a huge edge?"

Warning, this can all be very hard at first. Sometimes ICT people and technology websites seem to speak another language, heck they actually do, but if you persevere and learn enough of the basic jargon you'll start to build a picture of new possibilities, of new concepts, of different applications of these concepts and capabilities.... Once this happens you'll start to "get it"..... you'll start to get the huge value to be had from finding your own technology advantage. A technology advantage that will have you and your business revolutionise your market... whether your market is your suburb, your city, your country or the world. Heck there are even enough ideas going on around the world for you to just apply them in your local market and see a huge advantage over your local competition... you don't even need to revolutionise the world if you don't want to, just revolutionise your business and you'll do way better than before.

From Idea to Initiation

What will likely happen is you'll end up finding 10 new ideas that are really cool and you can see huge advantages in implementing them in your business. But the challenge is resources to get the project started and implemented... you'll need to decide which of these ideas will turn into a project that ‘improves' things and which ideas will ‘revolutionise' things. Focus on the one project that is earth shattering .... The ‘MIND-BLOWING PROJECTS'... and ditch the rest.. see what I mean by reading my previous article on MIND-BLOWING PROJECTS >> .

The Main Point!

Technology changes everything! It always has done and it always will do. Year after year the way of doing things changes, results change, outcomes change.... This means businesses that do things (read, all businesses) must change. The biggest difference now is that phases on planet earth in the past were thousands of years; the Bronze Age, then hundreds of years; the industrial revolution, then decades; the plastic age, now it's years.... We are beyond the Information Age now and everything is speeding up... above all else FIND TECHNOLOGY TO REPLACE PEOPLE & YOURSELF... this is technologies role to do people out of a job!!! This is a GREAT thing, it means your business has become efficient, that person should be put to work in your business doing higher value work... adding value in a way that a machine cannot. Machines have taken over dozens and dozens of blue-collar roles in the last 200 years.... so as humans we respond ... we re-focus ourselves in higher value jobs (white collar) ... increasing the education people have to make decisions... now we are seeing machines make these decisions for more and more white collar jobs... so we start to see another refocusing of people... in the area of design and innovation and creation of new concepts... in the area of development.

This week's Action Points...

Embrace it and thrive!

 

Systematisation Process - Phase 2: Discover & Document

Build Business Systematisation From The Truth

Get Visual Representation & Confirmation Of Your Current Workflow Processes, Organisational Structure, Volume Capacities, Profit Model, and Utilisation Rates! 

Phase 2 of the mimosaPLANET^TM Systematisation Process is; Discover and Document. Discover and Document is all about facing the facts! It's about taking a good look at what you are currently doing and writing it down in a way that it stares you in the face and shouts ... "this is the truth about our current situation and the results we are getting, and if we continue to use ‘this way' of doing business what is the best result we can expect based on our current and future resources" . Get the facts so you can make great decisions about ‘how' you will achieve your business (and ultimately personal) goals...

systemBOOST^TM

 

 

Discover & Document

The whole idea in this phase is to build understanding and clarity of your current situation. It is also vital to remove the list of excuses or ‘reasons' you and others may have about why things are the way they are. Ditch the denial and face the cold hard truth. Nothing does that better than taking stock of where you are currently and actually determining what the capabilities (and limits) of your business are. Here's a list of the tactics in this phase...

• Our Current Work-flow Processes (Flow-chart and time delivery)

We do this by first documenting flowcharts of your current work-flow processes... you know, the steps from phone call to sales, from order to delivery, from invoice to cash in the bank, etc. It is also about getting copies of the different forms and paperwork involved at each step (or software functions), and the different classification types of work (or options) involved... that each cause a different series of events, tasks, steps, and outcomes.

• Our Current Company Structure - Organisation Chart

Again we simply record the current Organisations structure, every company has a CEO, a Marketing Manager, a Sales Manager, an Operations Manager, a Finance Manager.... (and assistances' and team members in each of these ‘departments' .... The real question you need to ask yourself is "who fills each of these roles?" Do you, as the business owner, have the title of Managing Director but really, like many businesses, you have most of your team focused in the operations area (doing what it is your business does) so you are also the; Marketing Manager, the Sales Manager, the Operations Manager and the Finance Manager?

• Our Current Volume Capacities

Now that you have documented your Work-Flow Processes and Charted the Positions and who owns them in your business... you can start to determine, based on past & current workloads, what the volume capacities of each person, role and then the organisation is in the businesses current format.

• Our Current Profit Model

We can input into a ‘Profit Model Spreadsheet' some basic financial details (found in your Statement of Financial Performance (Profit & Loss)), plus sales & marketing KPIs (Key Performance Indicators like; conversion rates, number of items/units/transactions/ or invoices for the period etc). This data will help to serve as a base model. We can then simulate what different results are possible with increases or decreases in each of the recorded areas. This is a very powerful visual representation tool every business owner should have & review, get your copy in Profit Margins & Pricing Strategy

• Our Current Utilisation Rates  

By asking questions we can then run some calculations to determine how efficient we are currently from different perspectives; over all, at each position level and for each of the tasks. This information gives valuable insights into HOW to get better results and WHERE to focus your energy. It also raises big questions about the viability of the whole structure and model of your business and challenges the ability of your business structure & model to become the vehicle that delivers you the results required to meet your personal goals and lifestyle dreams.

i.e. If we are only running at 50% utilisation we can be sure that we have lots of capacity to increase sales or production or output with our current resources. Whereas, if we were running at 95% it is fair to say we are running at, or close to, maximum capacity so if we want to increase sales and profits we would have to first invest in additional resources (another team member or perhaps a new machine or new premises). This assumes we will be running the same ‘way' of doing things.... The next phase of the mimosaPLANET^TMSystematisation Process is to ‘Initiate A Revolution'. Basically... to challenge your whole way of doing business, because chances are that you could be doing things the hard way! After all.... you don't know what you don't know.

Details

I have covered all of the above strategies in more detail in previous issues of the mimosaWEEKLY TIP^TM , follow the below links for more details...

Systematize Your Business Processes

•  
  • Our Current Work-flow Processes (Flow-chart and time delivery)
  • Our Current Company Structure - Organisation Chart

Profit Goals

•  
  • Our Current Volume Capacities
  • Our Current Utilisation Rates

Profit Margins & Pricing Strategy

•  
  • Our Current Profit Model

Now is the time for you to link the thinking of each of these strategies together to really drive the systematisation of your business. Remember strong systems can be the difference between; working 60 hours per week with no chance of a holiday ... and ... working 32 hours per week taking 8 weeks holiday a year.... Or not working at all even. It is also the difference between selling your business for 2 times EBIT and 4 times EBIT. If your EBIT is $300,000, that's the difference between selling for $600k and $1.2m. It's the difference between, settling for average results, and reaching your desired personal goals.

This week's Action Points...

Set aside 5 hours a week for the rest of your business ownership life and use this time for Business Development, the oldie cliché could never be more relevant .... Working ON your business not IN your business. Why not move the cliché from empty words to reality by quantifying it?.... 5 hours per week is what I ask of my clients. If you needed more inspiration or proof and want to see some of their successes and results (from taking this approach of working ON their business)... 

 

Systematization Process - Phase 1: Direction

Starting Your Systematization Process With Direction

Gain Personally Clarity & Huge Buy-In From Your Team Through Defined Company Values, Vision, Mission And Goals! 

Systems only work if people use them or implement them or set them up in the first place. People are the gateway to great systems and for you and other business owners and managers, people means you and your team. People get enrolled and inspired to do great things when they have a clear direction and understanding of why we are doing something and what we are aiming to achieve. A great place to start your systemization process is with your team. Get you and your team firing today...

So, in last week's issue of the mimosaWEEKLY TIP^TM we listed strategies (grouped in phases) which effectively mapped the mimosaPLANET^TM Systematization Process. In this article we are going to focus on the first phase in that process, DIRECTION. Under DIRECTION we have;

• Owner Clarity (Goals & Purpose)
• Our Company Values
• Our Company Vision
• Our Company Mission
• Our Company Goals (1,3,5 yr)

Background, Definitions, Understanding & Examples

Let's get a clearer picture on each....

Owner Clarity (Goals & Purpose)

Read "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People"..... just do it! If you don't know clearly where you ‘personally want to go, what you personally want to achieve, want is personally important to you, and why you feel like that' then.... you'll likely just drift from day to day, and year to year without achieving your dreams. You get to design your life.... and your business is simply a vehicle which you can use to live your dream life. i.e.

Person A: Wants to spend all their time with family and friends. They want to be remembered as a trust worthy, honest, and family focused person. Likes fishing with mates and kids, holidays in a holiday home during summers. To live the life of their dreams they require $200,000 pa in income and only 20 hours per week for work.

Person B: Wants to spend their time experiencing new things. They want to be remembered for changing the world for the better. Like fine things from architectural homes to exotic holidays...a designer lifestyle. To live the life of their dreams they required $800,000 pa and 0 hours per week for work, thus require an approx net worth of $8m+ based on $8m invested to return 10%pa.

Quite clearly person A and person B have different personal goals and driving purposes in life. To achieve what they want to, using their business as the vehicle, both require different outcomes...and with that different businesses. Person A is happy to continue working but for the most part the stress is removed and someone else is likely to running the day to day operations so they can take holidays and days off often. Person B on the other hand wishes to not work at all and perhaps is more willing to work hard for a number of years to then sell their business for the $8m+ figure. Obviously person B needs a significantly bigger business in annual revenue and profit and perhaps likely team structure to fulfill such profits. As such, the company Vision is likely to need to be much bigger than person A's vision.

Design your own life....then as we said... Grow Your Business and Have a Life^TM

Our Company Values

Values define what is important to your organization. Is it quality at any cost? Is it affordability? Is it tried and tested? Is it innovation? Values guide the way your team interact with your customers, values guide your decisions from strategic focus to the way you handle a customer complaint. Ultimately values will define the ‘get feeling' people get when they see, hear or experience your brand. Believe me your customers and prospects have this ‘get feeling' already....shouldn't you and your team be concerned about what that is and define how you want it to be.... after all how you and your team interact with your customers will determine what your customers experience and feel about your organization.

I like to pick out values and group them together in 3, 4 or 5 groups then define each group.

(Companies sometimes refer to this listing and grouping of headings and meanings as The Company Culture.... I feel these are really in fact Values, as Values drive Culture.... Values are an internal function to drive an external outcome, Culture. You can't define Culture and expect it to happen.... Culture is the result of peoples Values being experienced)

Our Company Vision

Vision is a short and inspiring statement of what your company intends to become or achieve at some point in the future.

Vision defines your company's great big goal; it should be large... almost unobtainable or at least a 10 year super stretch goal. It describes the collective big goal that everyone in your company is striving to achieve. Many examples from companies include vision statements like "to be the number one retail clothing company in the US" or "to be the preferred provider of home cleaning services in the greater Auckland area".

Over time I've come to believe that the best Company Visions are the ones that don't state what the company wants to become but what the company wants to achieve. He's an example from Microsoft - "To enable people and businesses throughout the world to realize their full potential". Vision's which state what they wish to achieve highlight a change an organization is trying to achieve in the environment in which they wish to operate. A vision should enroll and inspire all stakeholders.... customers, employees, managers, shareholders, and suppliers. A great vision will drive everyone in the same direction.

Our Company Mission

What is the difference between Vision and Mission? Simply, where Vision is the goal, Mission is the guide that defines how you will achieve your visions...and it can be made up of 4 parts. 1) Who you are as a team, 2) What business are you in, 3) Who are your clients, 4) What makes you unique.

Our Company Goals

Company Goals reflex directly back to the Vision, they are the road map ahead and the milestones along the way. Using our person B from above, they could start off alone these lines below then drill down to become more specific and tangible....

• Current: NP = $100,000. Rev = $1m @ 10% NPM. 10 Production Team. 2 Admin Team.
• Year 1: NP = $200,000. Rev = $1.5m @ 13.3% NPM. 10% Price Increase + 13 Production Team. 2 Admin Team. Invest in re-brand and position.
• Year 3: NP = $400,000. Rev = $4m @ 10% NPM. Invest heavily in Launching 2 Overseas Markets. (hence NPM erosion).
• Year 5: NP = $600,000. Rev = $6m @ 10% NPM. Install GM. Begin Margin Focus.
• Year 10: NP = $1.6m. Rev = $8m @ 20% NPM. Goodwill Value 1.6m x 5 = $8m.

Creating & Executing

Most business owners and managers attempt to create a vision on their own then force it on to the team buy telling them "this is our new Vision, now get inspired". Naturally the team is skeptical and believe that this vision only serves the interests of the business owner, buy making them more money..... "why should I work harder and get inspired by you making more money and working less" ...is the common employee reaction from such a misguided approach. From working with business owners over the years we have found the best results come from involving the team in the whole process. This way they come up with the company values & vision, and they can take ownership and accountability for their behavior and actions toward it.

You can still guide the overall direction and outcome of this by either a) being the KNOCKOUT LEADER you should be, or b) getting a specialist facilitator to run some of your team workshops.

Any new potential employees are told right at start of the interview process about your company's Values & Vision and you can hire those that are enrolled and inspired buy it and leave more skilled candidates if they aren't excited by your company's direction.

Buy getting you and your team 100% clear on the direction you will get buy-in to transform your business... because odds are that to achieve your vision you will need to get everyone on-board to continue, or really ignite, the systemization process which will greatly assist you to achieve your company vision.... and in turn your personal goals.

Example of mimosaPLANET^TM's Vision, Mission & Values

Our Vision
 "Freedom of choice for business owners across the globe through knowledge and actions"

Our Mission

We will always strive to make further gains in the effectiveness of all people and businesses that we come in contact with. We believe it is business effectiveness that is the key to fulfilling the main desire of people that go into business for themselves, freedom of choice to be in control of their own future and create their life as they wish. Our clients will be proactive and keen to get results. We will service people who are first starting out in business, right through to people that have been in business for years. Our team will always have the highest levels of integrity and thought. We will live our brand values in every decision, interaction, product and service. We at all times give value to all that we come in contact with. We promise to deliver Solutions and not just theory, and to be a trusted source of wisdom the world over.

Our Brand
Experience & outcome focused
Our role is to be the brand of choice with business owners, entrepreneurs, and the self employed. We do this by focusing on and delivering our founding brand values. We created the mimosa brand with these values and principles in mind. It is the underlying depth from which mimosa gets its strength, and delivering on these values is at the forefront of every decision and interaction we make.

Our Brand Values
More than just words

This week's Action Points...

I have said it before, but did you do it? Book out a regular 2 hour weekly team training / workshop session, or fortnightly at least. This is not a once off, "let's create a Vision in this special meeting then move on"... it is a regular commitment to driving business development as there will always be something each week to work on. I suggest starting with the direction phase of the systematization process, so book that time in your diary and LEAD your team. If you believe a third party would be best to help facilitate this change contact us about how we can add value, our focus is the same as any business development you would initiate yourself; to drive the desired outcome and deliver return on investment. Investing $1,000 to gain $10,000 or $30,000 to gain $300,000 is a no brainer, right?

Take action today!

 

Systematization Process - How To Systematize Your Business

Wouldn't It Be A Lot Easier To Systematize Your Business If You Had A List Of Strategies To Work Through?

Check Your Path To Business Freedom! Follow Our Steps To Systematize Your Business...

This week I'll be right to the point. If you are looking for a way to exit your business in the coming years ahead and maximize the value you get come sale time, or you just want to get some of your valuable time back, having good systems isn't enough! Who wants a good business? Don't you want a STUNNING business? For that you need to have STUNNING Systems. Take 5 mins to check your path against our systematization process, see which strategies... in what order... will bring you closer to your goals...

The mimosaPLANET systematization Process

• DIRECTION
  • Owner Clarity (Goals & Purpose)
  • Our Company Values
  • Our Company Vision
  • Our Company Mission
  • Our Company Goals (1,3,5 yr)
• DISCOVER & DOCUMENT
  • Our Current Work-flow Processes (Flow-chart and time delivery)
  • Our Current Company Structure - Organization Chart
  • Our Current Volume Capacities
  • Our Current Profit Model
  • Our Current Utilization Rates
• INITIATE A REVOLUTION
  • Our New Technology Advantage and Work Flow Processes
• RE-WRITE THE RULES
  • Our New Company Structure - Organization Chart Goals (Now, Qtrly, 1yr, 3yrs, 5yrs)
  • Our New Company Structure - Position Descriptions (Roles, Responsibilities, Tasks)
  • Our New Company Structure - Position KPIs Identification
  • Our New Company Structure - Position Volume Capacities
  • Our New Company Structure - Profit Model
  • Our New Company Structure - Position Utilization Rates
  • Our New Company Structure - Position KPIs Specification Targets (Below, On, Above)
• KNOWLEDGE BASE
  • Operations Manual
  • Policy Manual
  • Technology Manual
  • Integrated Marketing & Sales System
• MAKING IT HAPPEN
  • Weekly KPI Dashboard
  • Weekly Team Business Development Meetings (Specific Recorded Actions)
  • Monthly KPI Reports
  • Monthly Directors Meetings (Specific Recorded Actions)

 

To Consider!

You may notice that over the years we have covered many of these strategies individually or in groups in previous articles, what this systematization list above shows is how they can be brought together .... this "recommended order" helps to create a combined outcome and result far greater than an individual strategy executed alone. In the order above findings, actions and outcomes are compound to great effect, of course life in small business is not simple enough to always follow this process rigidly, so we need to be adaptive and flexible enough to mix it up too.

Over the coming weeks we will highlight more specific details on some of the focus areas & strategies above that haven't previously been covered. All Small Business Systems Articles!

This week's Action Points...

Complete this below table, it will make you think about your direction!

	Current Situation	1  Year Goal	3 Year Goal	5 Year Goal
Number of Team
Annual Revenue
Annual Net Profit
Ave Hours per Week

 

 

Systematize Your Business - Technology

Are You Truly Taking Advantage Of The Huge Leverage You Can Get From Using Technology In Your Business? 

... Really? How Do You Know? ...
(Part 4 of 4)

The Principles of Business are the same, but the Rules have changed. No longer can you simply seek to get incremental improvements in your business... technology changes everything! Discover why you must rewrite the rules in your business, in your industry, in your world or face up and become irrelevant... To those that ‘get it' this presents massive opportunity to revolutionise your business! (Read: Get Huge Results!)

 

‘Get It'... "Get What?"

Stop thinking ‘Technology helps to improve the system', or the way to streamline the process and get incremental improvements... e.g. 1) improving from a paper/no existent accounting system to a new computer accounting software package, 2) upgrading the 5 year old computers to newer and faster models, 3) Computerised stock control system, 4) phone/fax/eMail/cell phone (communications) upgrade, 5) using a Client Relationship Management (CRM) software programme or database. All these are perfect examples and of improvements that should just regularly happen in your business. We've had all this technology for years, yes years now, it is just part of doing business (doing it well!) these days. It is not enough to keep on upgrading and improving anymore... Stop thinking ‘Technology helps to improve the system' and Start thinking ‘Technology is the System'. Huh? Simply semantics? No, read on and learn...

Here's an example of what I mean...

Some years ago now, I was lucky enough to be in the core team that started at Pacific Retail Finance (PRF) to launch their new Personal Loans company, a business that started with $0 in loan assets, soaring to $150m in only 18 months. How? They reinvented the process and in doing so revolutionised the industry and the owners got rewarded with a $145m price (on $500m in total loan assets, including the Hire Purchase company as well. Most of the $500m were Personal Loan assets) when they sold to GE just four years after the Personal Loans company was started. Talk about creating value! How would you like to create even a slice of that sort of value for your retirement?

So what does ‘reinvented the process' mean? Well, at previous companies I had worked with, and indeed the industry, the whole process of getting investment money to lend out, and mostly the process to evaluate a borrower and get them the money was so slow and paper based and full of checks and hold ups and sign offs, etc. At best the collective time a finance company would take to take a loan enquiry, to an application, to checking details, to lender approval, to send out documentation, to process documents, to funds transfer would be... let's say 4 human hours of actual doing work, but the main issue is that paperwork and checks took time to place on another person's desk, to get in contact, to receive faxs, to post, and all these factors created massive delays and hold ups and bottlenecks. So much so that people often wouldn't be approved for days, let alone get the money, and what did PRF do to revolutionise? They used technology to be the system, be the process.

Not only did it reduce the actual hours required by half, but more importantly it removed the delays. No waiting, no slow process, what did this mean? Fast process = Huge Capacity = Massive Return!

Want more examples?

Kodak, a huge company for many many years, gone almost over night! No incremental improvements in the delivery of or quality of film could stop the digital revolution... think about it, when was the last time you got film processed!

Trademe, has eroded sales and value from many businesses, (ps I've you're one of them, stop moaning about it and do something about it!) car yards were very profitable, then trademe came along and those yards that will survive and thrive in the trademe years will reinvent themselves in another way.

So, what can you do about it?

Forget everything, I have no 'how to' for this one, all you can do is 'get it', then join the revolution... better yet start your own! Ask yourself, "why do we do it like this?" and "in a perfect world we should do this...". If you don't find out what technology can do for you now, then you will find out how it will work against you in the future, if you do nothing. Start a revolution in your industry, in your business today.

This week's action points...

Challenge everything! What was slow can now be fast. "You don't know, what you don't know". Go back to the drawing board and think the previously unthinkable, because now the impossible is possible!

 

Systematize Your Business (Record & Report) - Do You Run Your Business On Gut Feeling, Or ‘No Bull' Facts?

How Do You Know How Well; People, Processes, Departments, & Everything In Your Business... Are Performing?

Find out how you can take an ‘R&R' approach to your business and reduce its reliance on you dramatically! "And just how can ‘R&R' get me there", I hear you mutter. Well, stop thinking Rest & Recuperation, and start thinking Record & Report!

In Part 3 of 4, of systems, we learn how Recording & Reporting gives you huge gains toward a more self reliant business and a less ‘you' dependant business. Plus you'll learn the top 2 things you should be recording right now and how to get started right away...

Why have you missed the boat in the ‘Information Age'? ... Where's your information?

Knowledge is power. You can't manager what you don't measure. If you don't know the numbers how can you improve the numbers? .... I'll tell you what, I'm sick of repeating these well known phrases. Why? Well, I truly believe 99% of people understand and agree with the logic behind having access to and understanding what is performing well, and what is not, so you can affect change for better results. I mean, the more accurate the information you have, the better decisions you can make, right? ... I don't think anyone would argue with that fact. So what is missing? Why, do equally about 99% of business owners, not arm themselves with the tools, I repeat ‘the tools', to truly know what the hell is going on in their business!

I've got a theory and you may not like it...

It's not, "I just don't have time for that sort of stuff, I'm just too busy". That is bull! We are all busy, absolutely, even next week on holiday I'll be busy, at the beach slowly reading a book, I'll be busy. The point is we all get to CHOOSE how we allocate our time... time to what activity. How do we make that choice?... It's based on what activities you value the most, what activities you believe will get you the results you're after, and for some of you it's also based on your skills and/or habits. If that's the case,  you understand Recording & Reporting in your business is important and would be of value, but you choose not to create and implement Recording & Reporting systems and processes because... why... well, you simply don't value it enough to do it!

Start realising the true value....

We are not reporting just for the information to help you know what's going on. We are reporting so that everyone in your team knows if they personally are doing a great job at each of the tasks that make up what they do. We are also reporting to increase the understanding of how those results of each tasks impact on everyone else in the business and what steps we can take to improve performance in each of those tasks. You see, take the subjective ‘are we doing well feeling' out and replace it with ‘hard tangible facts'!

Facts let you, and everyone in your team, know whether or not each area is performing or not. Consider this... you own a business with eight (mainly operations or admin based) staff, where you personally as the owner also wear the Marketing Manager and Sales Manager hats on top of the General Managers hat. Now consider if you were to keep only the General Managers hat and you replaced yourself as the Marketing Manager & Sales Manager with a new employee in charge of both roles. This is the million dollar question... "How do you know if that person is doing their job/role a) as expected, b) badly, or c) excellently?"

The only way to know is not, "more sales and more profit (money)", yes maybe, but to truly step away from the business, an owner and each team member must understand what key indicators lead to the desired result. It is not higher Sales that is the key indicator of success for a marketing manager (yes Sales is the result, and the result we strive for), but the true indicator, that in turn can lead to more sales, is in fact the number of enquiries or leads or opportunities to make a sale.

If you want to get leverage in your life, you need systems. Great systems come from great business processes. But if you come up with the greatest system and business process in the world it will still need human input at some stage. In order for someone to truly perform they need to understand what is a good result, a bad result, and a great result. To do this we need to 1) RECORD vital information and 2) REPORT on a regular schedule of communication in a simple manner so we can TUNE / TRAIN / IMPROVE the system or the person.

Here what you should be Recording & Reporting on?

1) Monthly Directors Financial Report:

I always recommend reviewing the following Financial Statements on a monthly basis;

• i)The overall tread over the last year by looking at a Multi-Period Profit & Loss (Statement of Financial Performance) Spreadsheet (i.e. Oct'06-Sep'07).
• ii)Last Year's Month (i.e. Sep'06) against This Current Past Month directly (i.e. Sep'07) (or Last Year's Quarter (i.e. Jul/Aug/Sep'06) vs Current Past Quarter (i.e. Jul/Aug/Sep'07), as some businesses will fluctuate their purchases from month to month and depending on recording methods Quarterly reviews can smooth this out for reviewing).
• iii)Multi-Period Balance Sheet Spreadsheet (Statement of Financial Performance)

2) Monthly {Role Specific} KPI (Key Performance Indicator) Report:

This following KPIs could be slightly different of course depending on industry, but it's a good place to start...

• i) General Manager: Net Profit $, Net Profit Margin %, Gross Profit Margin %, Gross Profit $. Shareholders Value.
• ii) Marketing Manager: New Enquiries/Leads/Opportunities to make a sale. Lead Acquisition Cost. Campaign Return on Investment. Returning/repeat Business.
• iii) Sales Manager: Conversion Rates from Enquiry to Lead, From Lead to Opportunity, From Opportunity to Sale. Average Sale Value.
• iv) Operations Manager: Quantity Measure vs Quality Measure, Inventory Days, Work In Progress Days. Budget vs Actual Billable Hours, Budget vs Actual Widget produced. Customer complaints.
• v) Finance Manager: Accounts Receivable Average Days. Government Compliance On Time. Net Assets. Bank Account Balance. Accounts Payable Days.
• vi) Human Resources Manager: Staff turnover rate. Return on training.

Don't hide from the facts, take the no bull approach to business, recording and reporting can be easily done today with the addition of technology, or through your current resources both in-house (the resident MS Excel/IT person) and out sourced (Accountants, Coaches, etc).

If you don't create a system that captures the key information about whether or not each job (role/task) is being done well or not, you will always be needed in your business. If you find yourself saying "the business always needs me, I'm the only one who knows how to do everything", then think.... is this phase really serving me well... or am I serving my ego! .... STOP, think about it!

This week's action points...

If you really don't want to say that phase anymore, start by getting your team to write out there KPIs, plus what is a good, bad and great result for each KPI.

 

Systematize Your Business (Business Processes)

Here's How Your Business Can Do More Work...

...So You Don't Have To...

In Part 2 of 4, in Systems, we look at business process improvement.... Learn what processes you should improve, how to start the documentation and recording of your systems (business processes) and an example of what that can look like....

Nothing occurs in isolation. In fact, I'm reminded of an old principle... for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. From the delicate eco-system of the plant and animal world (one animal dies, so another may live), to the exciting (said very loosely here) world of accounting where every transaction must balance.

When thinking about your business do you and your team treat each task and role within the business in isolation?

Or do you and your team regularly think about the effects of each action on other members of your team and your customers?

Chances are you are in one of three camps... 1) You know your systems and processes could improve but you don't know how. Or 2) You believe you have done this already, and just can't see how they could be improved. Or 3) You're flat out doing the day to day activities of the business, and just don't have time for this.

Tell you what... it doesn't matter what camp you are in, you can't argue with this...

The Japan's principle of Kaizen, which translates to ‘constant never ending improvement', helped Japanese Manufactures improve just about everything, from about 1960-1990 they ambushed the US to climb the productivity ladder to become the  second biggest economy in the world. They improved what exactly?... The business processes (All the steps involved to; source materials, manufacture, deliver, market, etc).  Your business process, is the way in which you and your company do everything that you do... from how you market your business/products/services, how you sell, how you deliver that service or product, how you administer paperwork, how you collect your account receivable.

How you can start to improve each of your business processes...

This is actually very easy and simple. Simply start with a blank piece of paper and a pen, or use a big whiteboard then record with a photo, but ultimately do it in MS Word or PowerPoint so you can change easily later and produce a copy for all. There are two areas to dive into....

1) Flowchart everything. 

This will create your ‘initial' business process. It's as easy as asking every member of your team to flowchart step by step what it is that they do every day (Remember last week's article, we talked about involving the team. It's time to step up... Become the leader!).

This is important for a number of reasons; 1) it'll give you a fall-back position if changes you make don't work, 2) making the process tangible and visible by putting it on paper, you and your team will instantly see ways to improve... "why do we do that in four steps when if we did.... we could do it in three". 3) you can now start to really change the current process, by asking questions of your team... Now, because there are different members of your team doing different roles, (and if your team consists of just you... you still do different roles), this has got to be one of the best questions to ask.... "What do you need from each other person (role) to do your job awesomely?" 

The Marketing Process (how you find leads, get enquiries,) roles into the Sales Process (how you convert those leads or enquiries into a sale), roles into Operational Process (the doing of the work in a service business or the delivery of the product), roles into the Finance Process (invoicing the work and the collecting of accounts receivable). 

Super important point!

 All these processes are backed up by a flow of information.... and it is this flow of information, be it written or on a computer, that needs to be improved/changed/discarded or created and implemented. It is so important that at say ‘step 5' in your process the person who is about to do the task required at that point to move it to the step 6 tray, for themselves or for another person to do, that they have all the information required to do that. And this is where all of your team must be involved so they understand the importance of ensuring they complete each of the tasks at each of the steps they are responsible for. Because if they don't complete ‘step 4' completely before handing it to the next person, the next person will need to contact that person and ask them something, or it gets stalled....

How often do your team ring you asking you questions?

Or, do you have to ask questions about jobs or orders or invoices so you can complete your role? It's totally about information. Improve the process by removing the grunge and improving the flow of information... (ph & sales scripts, questionnaires, forms, quote templates, proposal templates, booking forms, order forms, job sheets, invoices, collection letters, collection scripts, trays, eMails, Diaries, whiteboards, software programmes...). 

Here's a simple flowchart example. Start simple then, get more complex...

2) Create an Organisational Chart

...with Roles, Tasks, and eventually KPIs (Key Performance Indicators - how to know if each role is performing or not). Most businesses logically start to build team members in the area of operations. The owner of a building business gets busy and employs another builder, then another, then another until they need someone to do the administration tasks of invoicing and collecting Accounts Receivable. Quite often a business will have 10 employees including the owner with 7 or 8 ‘doing the work that the business does/sells' and 1 or 2 people to answer the ph and administer.

So, when and who fills the other roles in the business... like the Marketing Manager, Sales Manager, HR Manager, Finance Manager?

Oh, it's you right? So.... do all the tasks get done in each of the 2 - 6 roles you have? Mmmm, of course not, who has the time to do that? The point is... between you and your team you need to divide the roles up, each role needs a name next to it to take ownership of it, that includes you... be accountable to your team, you want them to be accountable and responsible for their role/s in the business, so shouldn't you lead by example and be accountable for your roles?!?!

An Organisational Chart, a List of Tasks for each Role and KPIs, give everyone a clear understanding of what they and the rest of the team do and the importance of getting it done. Here's an example...

 

This week's action points...

It's not that hard to do but the benefits will come fast. 1) Get out ya pen and paper, start drawing! 2) Ask each member of your team to flowchart what they do, show them an example. 3) Use the computer to document and make changes as needed. The examples above are done using a the SmartArt function on MS Office Word 2007, we live in a world where it is now so easy to do this stuff, if you or nobody on your team (inhouse employees or outsourced skills) don't know how, then you are going to be left behind.