Production & Delivery Procedures

Matrix Key:  Financial Viability - Production and Delivery - Procedures

"A bad system will beat a good person every time." - W. Edwards Deming

We've often talked about how a good business shares many of the characteristics of a winning sports team.  No team can win the game if they don't know the rules.  As we can see from the WholeLife Matrix, your business will not win if you don't have production and delivery procedures in place. Imagine trying to create a product if your team has no idea how to make it?  You must create specific procedures for all aspects of your production system, and you must review and update them regularly.

Here are four things to think about when developing your production procedures:

1. Systems - Break down your production flow into logical steps.
2. Standards -  Define how to make your product the best it can be.
3. Quality - How will you know if the product meets your standards?
4. Customer Service - How do you respond to your customer?

Developing procedures takes time and effort, but it is time well spent.  The trick is to have specific actions that your employees and staff understand.  They also need to grasp the "why" behind the "how."  If your procedures make sense and clearly make a contribution to the end product and to customer satisfaction, your employees will take more ownership in doing the job right.  When they know the rules, they can win the game.

Are You Ready to Win?

Doing the Right Things Right

“The best interest of the patient is the only interest to be considered, and in order that the sick may have the benefit of advancing knowledge, union of forces is necessary.” – Dr. William J. Mayo

This past week I had the opportunity to visit the world-renowned Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. If ever there was an organization that depended on and excelled at systems and structures, it is the Mayo Clinic. While their primary objective is delivering world class medical care, they realize that the only way to provide that care is to be efficient, well-organized, and completely committed to customer service.

Most of the patients at Mayo Clinic come there from out of town, so it is important that they accomplish a lot in a short amount of time. When a patient arrives at Mayo Clinic they receive a preliminary itinerary of appointments that all occur within the space of a few days. After an initial consultation with a physician, that itinerary may be completely changed in a matter of minutes. The patient will receive a new itinerary and may have up to four or five appointments with the appropriate specialists – that day. There is no waiting for weeks to get an appointment, no long and frustrating phone calls trying to reach someone who can answer questions.

The entire operation is focused on customer service. Patient records are communicated immediately to all the departments the patient will visit. Itineraries carry bar codes so that each department can quickly scan for patient information. The patient fills out forms one time at the beginning of the visit. There is very little waiting, and patients can often be seen early if they are running ahead of schedule.

Additionally, volunteers are in abundance, easily identifiable and very willing to help with directions and information. Never at Mayo Clinic is a patient met with an uninterested shrug of the shoulders or the words “I don’t know, that’s not my job.” At Mayo Clinic, it is clear that patient satisfaction is everyone’s job, and everyone is committed to that objective.

Does your business run like the Mayo Clinic? Are all of your employees putting the company’s best foot forward, committed to customer service even if it’s “not their job?” Can you envision what would be possible for your company if you developed the systems and structures that would enable you to deliver a quality customer experience, every time? Would this kind of efficiency and commitment take your company to the next level?

At Possibilities Unlimited, we support companies in developing ways to work smarter instead of harder. When breakdowns occur in company operations, it’s likely because there is not a clear strategy, or a system for accomplishing important tasks. As companies grow and change, it is imperative to develop clearly documented systems and structures to insure that the business operates at the highest level of efficiency. A smooth running machine has multiple benefits ranging from lower costs to improved employee morale, and, most importantly, customer satisfaction.

If you are ready to make some changes to the way your company operates, and would like some help crafting the procedures that will deliver on your company’s vision, we’re happy to help. The coaches at Possibilities Unlimited can give you winning formulas that will transform your company from average to world class, and set you apart from the competition.

Are you ready to win?

Production & Delivery - Running With The Ball

"You are never really playing an opponent. Your are playing yourself, your own highest standards, and when you reach your limits that is real joy." - Arthur Ashe, American Tennis Player

Production and Delivery – this is where your company runs with the ball. This is where you make your product, develop your service, and get it out to the public. You’ve got to have an energized, efficient production and delivery system, or you’re never going to win the game of business.

The Four Elements of Production and Delivery are:

· Measurements of Performance
· Resources
· Procedures
· Team

Measurements of Performance are essential to any business operation. They provide the specifications to employees so they can know if they are winning in their job. If you give someone a task, and you do not define what you want, that person has no means of determining what will satisfy you. It’s like going into a restaurant and asking the waitress to go get you something to eat. Who knows what she might bring from the kitchen? You do not want to take that chance. By defining your measurements of performance, you eliminate the guesswork. The specific, measurable results clearly explain what you expect and give the employees benchmarks for success.

Resources are the building blocks you use to produce your product. They include your facilities, equipment, inventory, labor and management. You combine these ingredients in various amounts to create your product. You must manage each carefully. You must control the purchase and distribution of each. How well you manage the cost and use of these resources determines the profit of your business. Setting up systems to control, manage and reduce the cost of resources is a great way to increase profits.

Procedures set up the flow of your business. When you move from a business that has all the information in people’s heads to one that has the procedures on paper, you will have matured into a company with the potential for more growth. It also creates potential for a business that can grow without the owner there on a day-to-day basis. That is the sign of a growing business. Putting your procedures in writing is often the limiting factor. Once companies take this action, the door opens up to a lot of new opportunities. More people can be cross trained to more jobs, creating more efficiency. Employees can deliver a more uniform product that meets the company’s written standards.

Team is what is present when your company is aligned on a purpose. People work together as a high-performance team when they are aligned on a common goal. If you look at your business as a sports team, you will see that all the elements that are present in sports are present in your business. Goals, rules, scoreboards, penalties, coaches, celebrations, winning, losing, and deciding what to do next time. You must create team spirit in your company to get the turbo boost that happens when people work together. When all their efforts combine the whole is greater than the sum of the parts and you win the game of business.

Are you ready to win?