You might think you have a people problem.
But you probably have a process problem…stick with us, this will make sense.
People can't do good work following bad processes. Time has taught us that the value of good processes is often not well understood. This means that there are lots of bad processes out there driving good people crazy.
Bad processes increase the need for higher skilled staff.
Our 'good outcomes' diagram shows that the worse your processes are, the more skilled your people need to be.
Skill takes time to develop. Good processes are quicker. And they last longer. (How's the churn rate in your industry?) It must seem obvious now that the better your processes are, the less skilled your staff needs to be. Another way to look at it is that good processes mean that you need less of your skilled staff. Bonus, you can have them doing higher-value work.
Good processes reduce the need for skilled staff.
But good processes are so much more than pretty documentation or cute video captures. Developing good processes depends on an expert understanding of the production process and some fairly basic detective skills. Fortunately, the people you think are the problem are likely to be the experts you need because they know all about the process that isn't working for you. And there are some simple tools we can share with you that will help your people develop their detective skills.
But maybe you don't think you have a production process. Bzzzt, wrong. Every process is a production process.
So stick with us here. Now you know that you have production processes and that faulty results are likely to be caused by badly designed processes. This means the problem has shifted from your people to your processes. And your people have become your expert detectives ready to help solve your process problem.
But you don't have to take our word for it. This concept – stop blaming your people – has already been explored and proven, back in the last century.
Fortunately for us, in this time, the proof on this concept was filmed. It makes for interesting viewing.
Because we learnt this stuff back in the dark ages, before most things were invented and before today existed. Back then, we both worked in manufacturing which was the hotbed of quality management. There was no better place to learn how to manage quality using process design.
And we are madly passionate about what can be achieved when you work on the unsexiest part of your business – after the accounting department that is.
A quick read, deceptively brief. None of the usual formula of using several examples to support a theory. This is a story about every business which you will be thinking about long after you close the back cover.
Business books are significantly more effective* when they are read in hardcopy. With its bright yellow cover, this one will be visible on your desk or dropped on the coffee table – it will be calling you to read it and implement the wisdom within!
*Big claim, based on donkey's years of experience.
We want to help as many entrepreneurs and business owners as possible to build profitable and enduring businesses. There will be training, some sort of community and possibly cake. But you need to be on our mailing list to find out about it.
