Many of my clients are business owners with already established businesses. They have begun their coaching journey to improve their businesses, themselves and their teams. The tools we use at ActionCOACH Liverpool through our business coaching programmes, (whether one to one coaching or group business coaching in Liverpool), take the owners and team through various processes. These build profitability, increase team morale, expand knowledge and very importantly, make clear where and what they are working towards.
One of the main processes we work through is the 9 Steps to systemising a business which has one clear goal for the business owner:
Save Your Self Time Energy Money = SYSTEM !
So how do we do that? Let’s break it down:
Step 1. Define the Vision.
Ask yourself: where are you going? Why do you do what you do? What do you want to achieve and where do you want to end up? Is your vision to build a profitable business and sell? Or is it about growing a family business? A vision needs to be aspirational and a statement that resonates with you and your team so that they embrace and work towards the vision.
Step 2. Set your Mission.
After you have set your vision, you need to define and work out how you are going to get there. What is it you are going to do and for who. It is the road map to the vision.
Step 3. Create a Culture Statement.
A great business has a great team behind them. They are great because there is a clear and consistent culture within the business which defines how the team need to act, be and work together. A culture statement or “rules of the game” sets out what the culture is.
Step 4. Set SMART Goals.
A business needs smart goals so that everyone within the team knows exactly what the business goals are, and what their individual goals are. The goals must be SMART – Specific, Measurable, Achievable, a Result and Time-scaled.
Step 5. Organisation Chart.
Develop an organisation chart to provide clarity to each person’s role, who they are accountable to and what they are accountable for. The chart should include each team member’s roles and responsibilities – it may be that one or a few team members appear in each box to begin with. Part of the development of systemising the business is to develop the processes and systems for these roles.
Step 6. Positional Contracts
This takes the organisation chart to the next level. A positional contract should include the key specifics for each role, the activities and tasks it is responsible for. It will be helpful to do an organisation chart for your business as it is now, and how it will be in the future.
Step 7. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Each role within the business should have a number of KPIs set for them. These will define what is expected and what the role needs to achieve. These KPIs should be linked to the overall SMART goals for the business. They need to be trackable and be able to be monitored.
Step 8. How To Systems
This is often the biggest task within systemising the business. Start with making a list of every routine task for every position. These could be manuals, videos or checklists on how to complete and deliver the specific tasks and activities. These procedure manuals will assist with staff training and ensure there is consistency and that the team and business is efficient.
Step 9. Management Systems
Once all the systems and processes are in place, the business should be working efficiently and be able to operate and work without you. However, one of the last steps is to create an overarching management system which details the day to day running of the business.
Want to systemise your business?
Systemising is a core part of how we work with owners in our business coaching programmes, and the first step is a free review of where your business is now and which of the nine steps would make the biggest difference first. Book Your Free Business Review.
