The Importance of Process Whether you are running a retail store, an accounting firm, or a large corporate entity, you

cannot avoid the process of doing business. The companies that get it right tend to have high efficiency, lower operating costs, reduced waste, and proper utilization of human resources. on!t let the size of your business lead you into a state of opulence. "arge companies can and often do, hide their lac# of process in their ability to access capital to cover the cost of inefficiency. $maller companies however, cannot afford to ignore intricate processes that ma#e their business operate. There is a process involved in every aspect of your business from ac%uiring and retaining human resources, mar#eting a product or service, supporting a product or service after the sale, or researching new mar#et opportunities. & company will not understand the details of their business processes until they are well documented. Without proper documentation, individual teams tend to wor# in independent silos. In other words, the right hand does not #now what the left hand is doing. In addition, a business does not own their process until it is well conceived, documented, and archived for future review, alteration, and'or enhancement. ocumenting your business process, regardless of the size of your company, will help establish a turn( #ey operation. In a turn(#ey operation employees re%uire minimal training, have shorter learning curves for new hires and create a highly efficient operation through economies of scale. The following are benefits of how the proper documentation and design of business processes can help your business Increased )fficiency. *ompanies can increase their efficiency through fine(tuning the way wor# is performed. +aving identified #ey processes to your business and the methods which to deliver them will reduce operating cost and increase profit margins. ,nderstanding -oles and -esponsibilities. With clearly defined processes employees will fully understand their roles and responsibilities along with those of their co(wor#ers. -educed "earning *urve. Through the ac%uisition of new employees or the promotion of e.isting employees into new roles, documented business processes will reduce the learning curve and set e.pectations. ).pansion. *learly defined processes create the ability to e.pand operations into new locations. &s your business grows, a fully documented operating procedure will allow the company to operate out(of(the( bo.. +aving processes fully defined and documented can allow a company!s operation to e.pand more efficiently. $peed to /ar#et. 0rganizations that have defined processes can build new products or services faster by leveraging their efficient operations. 1endor -eduction. *ompanies reduce the need for consultants and outside vendors by leveraging repeatable and measurable processes within the organization. -eplicable through 2ranchising. 3our business processes are the most valuable intangible asset of your company. The proper documentation of operations will position your business model to be franchised. Positioning for &c%uisition. *ompanies or investors that loo# to ac%uire other businesses, whether in an attempt to e.pand their service offerings, strengthen their mar#et position, or reduce competitors in the

mar#et, are shopping for companies with finely tuned business models and operating efficiencies. The investors are buying profitable systems that are clearly defined through well documented processes. -educed 0perating *ost. Through economies of scale, an operation becomes better as it becomes more familiar with the standard repeatable procedures of the organization. )mployee -etention. &s employees become more familiar with their roles, they become confident and efficient. The implementation of processes set the e.pectation for an employee to e.ceed in terms of performance. The proper identification and documentation of business processes is imperative to an organization!s success. *learly understanding the business of your business will eventually assist your company in overcoming the short(term obstacles of mar#et competitiveness, capital shortages, employee retention in order to obtain the long(term ob4ective 5 profitability. 0f course humans are not machines. There are times when an individual will have to deviate from the normal procedure to get the 4ob done. +owever, properly defined and documented business processes set a bench mar# from which an operation and organization can grow.