Financially Simple LogoFinancially Simple LogoFinancially Simple LogoFinancially Simple Logo
  • Home
  • Pandemic & Business
  • Starting
    • Start Here
    • Starting a Business Article Series
    • Podcast
    • Essential Advisory Team
      • Financial Planner
      • Certified Public Accountant
      • Lawyer
      • Insurance Agent
      • Banker
      • Business Coach
    • Supplemental Articles
      • Business 101
      • Taxes
      • Debt
      • Insurance
      • Finance
      • Laws
  • Growing
    • Start Here
    • Business Value Growth Series
      • Foundational Articles
      • Planning & Strategy Articles
      • Leadership Articles
      • Sales Articles
      • Marketing Articles
      • Personnel & Staff Articles
      • Operations Articles
      • Financial Articles
      • Legal & Insurance Articles
    • Podcast
    • Supplemental Articles
      • Business Taxes
      • Finance
      • Debt Reduction
      • Insurance
      • Legal
  • Exiting/Selling
    • Start Here
    • Building a Sellable Business Series
    • Podcast
    • Supplemental Articles
      • Business Finance
      • Taxes
      • Debt
      • Insurance
      • Legal
  • Personal
    • Start Here
    • Personal Finance for Business Owners Series
      • Foundational Articles
      • Cash Flow Articles
      • Insurance & Risk Management Articles
      • Investing & Retirement Accounts
    • Supplemental Articles
      • Retirement
        • Retirement Planning
        • Estate Planning
        • Income for Life Series
      • Accumulation Planning
      • Investing
      • Tax Planning
      • Personal Financial Planning
      • Insurance
      • Tax Tips
      • Savings
      • Education Planning
      • Debt
      • Most Popular Articles
  • Multimedia
    • Books
      • The Ultimate Sale
    • Courses
      • NEW! Comprehensive Strategic Planning
      • Debt Pay Down System for Business Owners
    • Podcast
      • Listen on Spotify
      • Listen on iTunes
      • Listen on Stitcher
      • Listen on Libsyn
      • Listen on Google Play
      • Listen on TuneIn
      • Listen on PlayerFM
      • Listen on RadioPublic
    • Newsletter
    • Video
      • Video Blogs
      • Our YouTube Channel
      • Subscribe TODAY!
  • Free Resources
    • Get Control Workshop
    • PPP Expense Tracking Calculator
    • SWOT Analysis Worksheet
    • Strategic Planning Worksheet
    • Business Entities Cheat Sheet
    • Pro Forma Example Worksheet
    • Personal Budgeting Calculator
    • Financially Simple Newsletter
  • Work with Us
    • Work with the Financially Simple Advisory Team
    • Speaking & Training Opportunities
    • Have Justin Educate Your Team
    • “Ask Justin”
    • Awards & News
    • About Justin
Build Business Operational Systems for Maximum Growth
Build Business Operational Systems for Maximum Value Growth
March 1, 2019
Operational Issues that Weaken Your Business
3 Operational Issues that Weaken Your Business’s Infrastructure
March 6, 2019

Operational Steps Service-Based Businesses Should Take

March 4, 2019
Operational Steps Service-Based Businesses Should Take

To effect growth in your business, having well-defined steps in your business operations is a must, no matter how big or small the company. Even the smallest improvement to the management of a process will yield positive results. Since I work with more service-based businesses than manufacturing-based businesses, I want to give you the operational steps you need in place in your service-based business. 


Podcast Time Index for “The Operating Elements of a Service Business”

00:46 – The Operating Elements of a Service Business
01:14 – What is a Service Business?
01:56 – The Master Blueprint
03:29 – Design & Engineering
05:09 – Account and Order Management
06:10 – Project and Production Management
06:56 – Procurement
07:48 – Materials and Inventory Management
08:42 – Facilities Management
09:11 – Tools and Tech
09:45 – Resourcing
10:56 – Quality and Risk Management
11:59 – Field Operations
12:40 – Distribution
13:44 – Packaging
14:05 – Work on Your Business, not in Your Business
15:43 – Managerial Systems
16:40 – Customer Service
19:11 – Management Reporting
19:49 – Master Data
20:23 – IT
21:05 – Talent Training
21:20 – Closing

Be sure to listen and follow my podcast on Stitcher, Spotify, iTunes, and Libsyn.


12 Business Operational Steps You Need to Take

As an owner of a small business, you tend to be the operational guru, or the Chief Operating Officer, among many other titles you carry. Your job is to provide a service to your customers, clients, or patients from start to finish. Inevitably, there are several steps your company and employees must take along the way. Therefore, I want to go over the operational steps you need in place to make your job easier and your customers happier.

#1 – Design and Engineering

First, you need to design your offering. Determine what exactly you are giving your customers. Design and Engineering is not just for manufacturing.  Even service business must design the specific offering for their customer base.

#2 – Workflows for Order Taking

Next, you need to develop a workflow for what takes place when customers call and place an order for your service offerings. Which team members answer the phone call? What do they say? What happens after the phone call?

#3 – Project Management

After receiving an order, what do you do next? Who will manage the project and which team members need to help? What type of support will the team members need to fulfill the order?

#4 – Procurement

In step number four, you’re going to formalize the relationship with the customer who placed the order. Develop a written agreement or an online agreement the customer will sign as an indication to begin work.

#5 – Material Management

Once the formal order has been procured, you need to gather and assess the materials and equipment you’ll need to complete the work. Is the equipment you need operating efficiently? Is it in working order? Do you have all of the materials you need on hand, or do you need to order them?

#6 – Facilities Management

Then, you need a workflow to determine where and how you will store and maintain the materials and equipment you need for the order.

#7 – Technology Management

As you’re assembling materials you need for the customer’s order, what technology do you need to make the entire process quicker? Do you need laptops, tablets, etc? Can you take and send pictures for job approvals? Basically, what steps do your team members need to take with technology to make the work more systematic?

#8 – Team Member Management

Speaking of team members, do you have enough on staff to fulfill this order? What about this order combined with all of your current orders? Will you need employees to work overtime, or will you need to hire new team members? Essentially, do you have the people you need to work efficiently?

#9 – Quality Control Management

Additionally, how will you implement quality control when team members are working on the job? In other words, what can you do to ensure team members are doing their jobs? How do you reduce callbacks and complaints?

#10 – Sales Management

While your team members are working on the current orders, who’s out in the field trying to procure more orders? How are you ensuring you’ll have new orders once you complete the others?

#11 – Distribution

Then, you get into distribution. If you’re selling a product along with your services, how will you distribute that product? What does that process look like?

#12 – Packaging

Finally, how are you packaging your products? OR how are you finalizing your service provisions? Will you provide your customers with professional quality pictures of the services you have provided? What will you do to show off what you’ve done?

Why Establishing Operational Steps Matters to Your Business

See, by having these 12 different business operational steps, or workflows, in place, you can build your business to the point where YOU are not necessary to its day-to-day activities. As a business owner, your goal should be to work ON your business, not IN your business. You’re never, ever, ever, ever going to get out of working IN your business until you build and develop these business workflows. You’ll still be putting out daily fires years from now. The only way to keep from working IN your company is to develop these systematic workflows to provide for customer needs.


RELATED READING: Workflows & Systems: Essential Ways to Improve Business Efficiency


For information regarding the managerial systems you need in place to make your business scalable, check out my article Business Scalability…Turbocharging Your Company’s Value.

Share

Related posts

January 14, 2021

The Business Technologies We Use to Help Your Business


Read more
January 12, 2021

How to Calculate Your Income Savings Rate


Read more
January 8, 2021

How to Set Achievable Business Goals in 2021


Read more
Justin speaking

Exit Planning Institute’s Leader of the Year
Exit Planning Institute Leader of the Year

Investopedia Top 100 Advisor
3 Year Winner
Investopedia Top 100 Advisor

Knoxville Business Journal 40 Under 40
Knoxville Business Journal 40 Under 40

Exit Planning Institute’s 2018 Leader of the Year

Special Business Series:

Articles:
Starting A Business series
Growing Business Value series
Building A Sellable Business series
Debt Reduction for the Business Owner
Income for Life Retirement series
Podcast Series:
Starting A Business
Growing Business Value
Building A Sellable Business
Personal Finance for Business Owners
Business Podcast
Get Answers:
Ask Justin
Work with Justin’s Team

Awards & Accolades:

Investopedia Top 100 logo
Investopedia Top 100 Advisor – 2018, 2019, 2020
Exit Planning Institute Leader of the YearExit Planning Institute Leader of the Year
Feedspot Top 10 Business PodcastFeedspot Top 10 Business Podcast
Forbes Finance Council
Top 20 Podcast- Financial AdvisorPlayer FM Podcast – Top 20 Financial Advisor

Educating thousands like you on:

Yahoo Finance logoFinancial Planning AssociationMSN MoneyForbes logoNerdwallet logoFox News logoInvestopia logoExit Planning InstituteKiplingers logoKiplingers logo

Get your copy today!

The Ultimate Sale Business Growth
The Book That Teaches Business Owners How to Sell Their Business for Maximum Profit

For your security:

GoDaddy Verified and Secure
McAfee Secured
© 2021 Financially Simple™
Disclaimers, Disclosure, Cookies, & Privacy | FINRA’s BrokerCheck
Form ADV | Form ADV Appendix 1 | The Mission of Financially Simple & Heritage Investors