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.

Now a business is a set of systems and sub-systems that all work together, much like the human body. We have the oxygen intake system, the oxygen pumping system, the food processing system, the waste elimination system and a host of others. These systems are run by key organs, such as the lungs, heart, liver, kidneys and so on. They’re all interrelated and if one breaks down, or stops, we’re in serious trouble.

Think of your business as having the product or service delivery system, the customer fulfillments system, the marketing system, sales system, or the financial payment and collection systems. If the sales systems breaks down, there’s no new business coming in. It’s in trouble. If the invoicing system shuts down, there’s no money coming in. If the bill payment system falls apart, supplies are going to dry up. You get the picture? All your business systems are interrelated and interdependent so to keep your business healthy and growing, you need to keep your eye on all of the systems and if something breaks down, you must address it quickly.

Now you might say, “My business doesn’t really have any, or many, written systems and it’s going along quite well.” I’d ask you how your stress levels are, I’d ask what happens when someone leaves and they’re the only one in the business who knew how to do a particular set of systems or tasks, how often do you as the owner have to step in and fix stuff, and what happens when you’re not there for an extended period of time? Your business is going really well if you can leave it for that extended time and new business continues to come in and if someone leaves, a new person can be recruited and simply step in and follow systems seamlessly.

If you’re going to create a successful business, you have to be able to create successful systems and systems within systems. This series of articles lays out a simple method for designing business systems.

Next week, we will explore the principles of systemizing a business.

Until next time…

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