Systems. The backbone of business.
According to BusinessDictionary.com, a business system is:
Methodical procedure or process, used as a delivery mechanism for providing specific goods or services to customers in a well defined market.
In simple terms, its a defined set of known things you do and do not do in your business. People buy McDonald’s Franchises because 1) it can make you a millionaire in a year or two and 2) the system has been refined to the point that you can make a million bucks from a store that is almost exclusively run by teenagers.
We can’t all be a McDonald’s, but we can all have a system in place. Start with the basics:
– Payroll system (accounting software, checks, scheduled payments, etc)
– Human resources system (application, screening services, filing system, employee handbook)
– Sales system (customer management software)
– Marketing system (advertising, referrals, networking, etc)
After that, whats your business really trying to do? Can you adopt another companies system for operations? Same for your business model? Do you need to create your own system?
No matter what, if you don’t have a system or several systems in place, then you are missing out on the opportunity to grow, be more efficient, and lead a company without you doing all the work yourself.