Tag Archives: systemic thinking

Anatomy of a Foolproof System – Part II

business planning, business strategy,

Composite image of thinking businessman

In this part of the anatomy of a foolproof system, I will discuss the Principles of Systemizing a Business.

• A business is a system of systems.
• To create a system – start with the end in mind.

1. Establish the results the system must produce.
2. Determine what work is needed to get those results.
3. Decide what resources are necessary to do the work.

You must know exactly what result you want to produce and you must be precise about it.

The end result is what is produced by the system. The results come from one system and their outputs and they can be the inputs to other systems.

The work is the processes. The work steps – the timing, the coordination, the standards, people, equipment, and procedures necessary to produce the required results.

The resources are the inputs. The supplies, equipment, time, information, machinery, tools, etc. for the system to operate successfully. Continue reading →

The Anatomy of a Foolproof System – Part I

business planning, business strategy,

nlu 1

Today I’m discussing the thing that everybody knows they need, but few know what they really look like or how they work. I’m talking about systems.

I’m going to demystify this for you. How to develop systems that add to the productivity of your business. We’re going to learn what they are and how you can create them, and the thought process that helps you develop effective, trouble-free systems in your business. To do this, we first look at the definition of a system.

In business, a system is a way of getting the same result or outcome repeatedly. If you want five different outcomes, just ask five staff members what you want and leave them to it. They’ll all put their own slant on it and you’ll more than likely get five different results. Not because they’re not bright. Actually they are. But they’ll all hear and interpret something different and put their own spin on it, or they’ll fill in the gaps as they see fit. If you want five people to do the same thing with exactly the same outcome consistently, then you need to develop a written set of instructions with clear steps, standards and timing. This is a system. Some people call these things systems, others call them active plans or processes. For the sake of this topic, I’ll call them systems. Continue reading →

No Blame Problem Solving – Part III

business planning, business strategy, ,

Blue glowing jigsaw piece on puzzle

Last week, I discussed spotting, or identifying, the problem or problems. This week, I conclude with identifying what is causing the breakdown and showing why the system approach to problem solving is the best solution.

Now it’s time to check on the cause of the breakdown. We check in on a number of areas. The system, the resources, the conditions.

The questions to ask are:

Is, or was there, an existing system? As in, a documented system that needs adjusting. Every business runs on systems. However, most of them in most businesses are informal. What I mean by a formal system is one that’s documented. There is actually a documented way of doing this.

If there was a system in place, is it written down, or is it in people’s heads? Is it the actual steps of the system, the timing or the standards?

Does the system have the right resources that it needs to produce the results and meet the standards? Resources could be money, time, information, equipment, staffing, supplies, or facilities. Continue reading →

No Blame Problem Solving – Part II

business planning, business strategy, ,

nlu 1

Last week, I left off with the steps of no blame problem solving. This week, I focus on spotting, or identifying, the problem or problems.

Spotting problems early puts the advantage in your court. Is there a problem, or what’s bothering you? You can’t do anything about a problem unless you know about it. The big problems are easy to detect and you don’t need any help detecting those. Or do you? Often, in fact, usually a big problem is really a tangle of interrelated, smaller problems. And a small problem can be bunch of even smaller problems. The way to deal with them is to untangle them and solve them one at a time. And the question is, how can you untangle a complicated mess of problems so that you can solve one at a time? The key to the puzzle is results. You identify the results that are unsatisfactory. A great question here is…what’s the result I’m not getting? If there’s a result you want that you’re not getting, then there is a problem.

Here’s how it works. A business is a system of systems. Systems within systems within systems. Each system produces a result. And that result feeds into other systems. The first step is to identify the system where the unsatisfactory result shows up in the business. And then you trace back through the systems feeding into that system until you find the one that’s operating as it should be and is producing the results it’s supposed to be producing. Continue reading →

No Blame Problem Solving – Part I

business planning, business strategy,

Business Background and symbol

Moving the people away from the problem and looking for the missing system. What is this going to help you do?

It’s going to help you sharpen your detection skills in the business. It’s going to allow you to see every problem as an opportunity and to make every situation better than it was. If having these problems is situation normal for you, then rather than exceptions to a smooth running business, you’re constantly running into these. So, if you find yourself in that permanent state of reaction rather than pro-action, it’s time for a healthy change. And a good place to start is to sharpen your problem detection skills so that you identify problems earlier, when they’re easier to deal with. And you can do this by adopting this no blame, system first approach to problem solving because it results in permanent solutions and fewer recurring problems. And, of course, an even better place to start is to build your business with well-designed systems that rarely break down in the first place, but few of us have that luxury. So this is the next best approach. Continue reading →