Give your Performance a Check-Up –
Systems Hold the Key to Company Success

By John Lankford

Business success is systemic – so is failure.

Your body is made up of systems: some performing functions related to digestion. Others are in charge of circulation, respiration or immunity.

If you’ve ever had a problem with any of your body’s systems, you know how your overall performance can be downgraded as a result. The same is true in business.

Most people don’t give a second thought to their body’s systems until after there’s been some kind of catastrophic breakdown. Unfortunately, that is also true in business. I define a system as: “A series of steps designed to achieve a specific outcome.” The healthcare industry uses the word “process” instead of “system.” Whatever your terminology, consider it a type of financial health policy to proactively identify all of your company’s systems and map out the way they should all work toward the ultimate outcome – that is to say, success.

An ounce of prevention
Every company, regardless of size, is built with hundreds of system. Problems typically arise when leaders are not systems experts. But even non-experts can position their organizations ahead of the competition by developing some appreciation of how all their systems work – or don’t work – in harmony.

Earlier, I named some anatomical systems the body needs to function. These systems, in turn, are governed by ever smaller and more specialized systems in the form of organs, which are composed of tissues, which are made up of cells, and so on and so on. The anatomical metaphor isn’t much of a stretch. After all, you’ll want to keep a pulse on all the systems and their interconnected parts if you don’t want your business to flat line.

Why don’t more business owners focus on their systems? Many do not know how vital to the bottom line they really are. Among those who do, many would rather avoid the painstaking tasks of documenting how to perform every part of every job in the company to perfection.

The #1 reason people consider buying a business franchise is that all those hundreds of systems are already packaged nicely and are proven to work. (Competent administration of those systems, however, is of course a separate matter.)

Whether you own a SubWay franchise or an entrepreneur running a $2-million-dollar company, your business will operate more effectively if you have:

A) identified all the systems essential to the running of your business,

B) documented every step of every system,

C) saved every system on a computer that is backed up daily,

D) trained every employee how to maintain your profit-generating systems,

E) empowered managers and leaders to hold people accountable for adhering to the systems, and

F) provided positive feedback and recognition to those employees who do support the system.

A pound of cure
Just as a human body needs an effective cardiac rhythm, your business needs organizational alignment. That occurs with an annual organizational plan that links job descriptions and performance expectations to the effective support and appreciation of the company’s systems.

Susan and Barbara McCarthy, owners and founders of Sun Country Cleaners, were recognized nationally as the 2010 Enterprising Women Business Owners of the Year. They recently surveyed their customer base, and 5,000 people responded that their top reason for returning to Sun Country is the friendliness of staff. That feedback is a critical step in the company’s customer retention system.

Businesses like Sun Country, which is one of the fastest growing dry cleaners in Florida, and national chains like SubWay each have a particular culture. For your business, you probably just call it “the way we do things here.” You really do have a lot of systems. But unless you’ve done the requisite assessment, training and documentation activities, your systems are basically a collection of habits, some good, some not so good.

A systematic approach will, by definition, defeat bad habits and institutionalize good habits into the business’ working structure. “As a leader and business owner, my sister and I are always looking to continuously improve our business performance. We now have a process in place; when a new problem pops it head, that is an immediate flag to us that we write a system to prevent the issue from repeating itself. Once the system is written, we then make sure the appropriate employees know what to do next time something similar occurs,” says Susan McCarthy.

Do what your competition probably won’t: think about your systems long before they have a chance break down. Create an effective one-year operational plan, map out your most frequent systems, and hire the right team. Think of it as a success wellness plan. As a business owner, you’ll have more freedom to work on the business. And a well designed system orchestrating every core part of your operations will have your organization running like a well-oiled machine.

About the Author
John Lankford was recognized as the 2007 and 2008 Associate Business Coach of the Year in North America. His business expertise has been tapped by prominent business media such as the New York Times and CBS. John’s keynote speaking has landed him on the elite team that trains and certifies the new Executive Coaches joining the worldwide coaching community. John has recently been named the Chief Executive Officer for the Innisbrook Leadership Institute.  John.Lankford@ThinkInnisbrook.com