My head of operations had a less than positive annual physical. Nothing life threatening, but the warning about physical health was a wake-up call for all of us. Things should be in place in case something happens to her or anyone else in operations. Our clients depend on us to deliver as promised. It”™s important. What do you suggest?
Thoughts of the day: Get organized by laying out the chain of command and who does what. Document processes and standards. Get people trained. Practice by removing key players.
The first question to ask is: Is there an organization chart for operations and is it detailed enough? Put down on paper who reports to whom. If responsibilities overlap, show every reporting line and why people go to one person rather than another.
Map out the functions that happen in operations, from the time a customer places an order until the order is out the door and the customer is satisfied. Put each activity in a box with arrows showing the progress from one box to the next. Indicate who typically deals with the tasks described in each box.
Define individual jobs. Which person does what? How do people hand off tasks that are described on the operations map? Who is responsible for quality assurance? Customer communications? Who do people go to if there”™s a problem?
Define the standards. What is an acceptable error rate? How long should it take to complete specific processes and tasks within processes? What”™s the minimum and maximum order range for materials that are kept in inventory?
Perfection is usually not worth the cost. Some degree of error is usually acceptable, as long as there”™s also a recovery process laid out that gets implemented whenever errors happen. If things need correction, show the return route they would take through the Operations Map.
Consider doing time-and-motion studies, including pictures. Document what people do to produce the goods or services that the company delivers. How long should each step in the process take to complete? How long is too long?
Write out the answers: Who purchases materials? Who are the preferred vendors? What price list, or price history, gets referenced when placing an order? What materials have negotiated deals?
Define how inventory gets counted and who”™s responsible, where inventory is kept, who has access to it and how it”™s organized. Take pictures of inventory storage and put them into a book. Make it easier for the next person to visualize what inventory should look like.
Document key contacts outside the company. Some vendors and customers are contacted regularly. Make sure there”™s a list of who to go to, for what purpose, including phone, email and snail mail addresses. Remember to include auxiliary vendors, such as banks, trucking firms and IT support.
Once you have everything mapped out and documented, it”™s time for training. Make sure every person, up through the top dog, has a back up. Have the back up shadow the person they”™re replacing. Then have the primary person take a day off and leave their job in the hands of their replacement.
Regular meetings of all players involved in operations can speed communication and reduce gaps if someone is suddenly called away. Meet weekly to discuss overall operations. Meet daily to plan how the day will go, to recap the previous day and to address problems and other open items. These meetings are where you can share information, brainstorm and catch small problems before they become big ones.
Consider a weekly quality meeting and another to discuss customer relations. The meetings don”™t have to be lengthy, but holding them regularly is important. Include more people from operations, rather than less, and consider inviting people from other areas of the company as well.
Build an operations manual, documenting everything that happens. Make it a bible. Train people to use and update the manual as they learn tasks and take over responsibilities.
Looking for a good book? Try “The Disaster Recovery Handbook: A Step-by-Step Plan to Ensure Business Continuity and Protect Vital Operations, Facilities, and Assets,” by Michael Wallace and Lawrence Webber.
Andi Gray is president of Strategy Leaders Inc., strategyleaders.com, a business-consulting firm that specializes in helping entrepreneurial firms grow. She can be reached by phone at (877) 238-3535. Do you have a question for Andi? Please send it to her, via email at AskAndi@StrategyLeaders.com or by mail to Andi Gray, Strategy Leaders Inc., 5 Crossways, Chappaqua, NY 10514. Visit AskAndi.com for an entire library of Ask Andi articles.
