“Business boils down to one simple formula: Processes + Resources = Success.” – Clayton Christensen, Harvard Business School
Over the years, we’ve sat across the table from countless business owners who are fueled by what they do and energized by the opportunity to grow but also absolutely exhausted.
They’re balancing so many different responsibilities, no one on the team seems to be on the same page, things slip through the cracks, and suddenly that passion that was once there starts to fizzle, and instead, they just try to get through the day and feel like they’re constantly putting out fires.
Sound familiar? It’s okay. We’ve all been there. We start our businesses because we’re experts at something or feel purpose around something. As entrepreneurs, we’re driven, motivated, and willing to roll up our sleeves and get the job done, but without taking a moment to pause and create necessary clarity, our businesses can feel cluttered, dysfunctional, and disjointed.
Professor Christensen’s formula – Processes + Resources = Success – seems almost too simple, but it cuts through the noise and gets right to the core of each business. Through the years, I’ve used this formula to “declutter” our own business, and have three instrumental tips that any business can use to streamline and – ultimately – experience long-term growth and success.
- Gain clarity around your offerings.
Especially when a business is newer, we see entrepreneurs trying to be all things to everyone; saying “yes” just to get the job and see some revenue. This approach may give you some short-term wins, but can have a negative impact on the quality of work you do, resulting in a constant uphill battle.
Instead, dial it in. What are you best at? What makes you stand out to your ideal target market? And, who is it that you really want to serve? The more clarity you can get around your offerings, the more you’ll enjoy your work and, in turn, your customer experience, and quality will be so much higher.
It’s better to be known for that one thing than to be not known at all because your message and offerings are unclear.
- Process, process, process.
We’ll keep this simple: Every single thing you and your team do should be driven by process. From how to greet customers to how to execute tasks, develop processes for everything. This not only supports efficiency and profitability, but also creates clear expectations for everyone on the team so that you can celebrate wins with each other and objectively address opportunities when they arise.
- Invest in the tools.
Make sure that you and your team have the resources you need to maintain organization and efficiency at all times. For our team, we utilize three core tools to get our work done:
- Project Management – We use a project management tool called Monday to manage all of our work and collaborate with each other. From completing revisions for a client’s digital ads to building out comprehensive strategic plans, everything we do is built and managed in Monday. This allows us to manage significant workloads efficiently, supporting both team satisfaction and company profitability.
- File Storage – All of the work we develop is saved in our cloud storage tool, Dropbox. From internal documents to client work, we use this to save everything, which also gives everyone on our team direct access to work instead of having to hunt things down on individual’s computers.
- Time Management – Finally, we all utilize time blocking to map out each day. While we each do this a bit differently, this is a completely free way to increase efficiency and productivity.
Ultimately, the most important thing to keep in mind is to always be open to new ways to further refine your organization’s unique “formula” to streamline, increase productivity, and support your business goals.