Investing in your Business Operations can feel scary. but taking the first step doesn’t have to look like a huge financial investment or a long-term commitment. There are tones of small, simple things you can start implementing in your business today that can get the ball rolling and start creating a positive impact within your business operations.
Planning
Having big goals is great. But unless you have a plan as to how you’re going to achieve those big goals and make them your reality, they will always feel unattainable. Planning is an incredibly underrated tool in the online online space. You see all the time people talking about their marketing and their sales and their strategy, and it always feels very elevated and sexy. But nobody ever talks about good, old fashioned planning anymore. However, in my opinion planning is one of the most important things you can do within your business.
When starting with any new client, the first thing we do is carry out a full business audit. In this process we establish our clients goals and then do an as long as it takes, deep dive into the entirety of their business, getting clear on exactly what they’re currently doing, how they’re doing it and the results this is getting them. We then do a gap analysis, comparing how their business is operating at present with how it would have to be operating in order to make their goals a reality. Establishing all of the changes that need to occur in order to create the desired shifts in their business. The final piece to this process is reverse engineering a plan, using all of the information gathered in the deep dive and gap analysis. We do this by breaking down each goal into actionable steps, considering the potential for automations, delegations etc, and we add realistic time frames to each of these action steps. Finally we present the results of the deep dive, gap analysis and action plan to the client in the form of a neatly configured audit package, which they can then take away and use as a blueprint for making their big goals a reality. (Explore an audit with us)
Having a plan like this does so much more than tell you what you need to do and when you need to do it (which by the way is incredibly helpful on it’s own). It makes your big, scary goals feel attainable. It allows you to visualise the journey to achieving your goals. It creates a tangibility to something that before felt untouchable and induces a true belief that you are capable of achieving anything you put your mind too. And getting to the stage where you truly, whole heartedly believe you can do it, is typically half the battle.
Clean Up
This sounds like an obvious one. But one of the top comments I get from new clients or people looking to work with us is “I’m embarrassed, the back end of my business is such a mess”. This is nothing to be ashamed of, every businesses backend is a work in progress and no matter how tidy you get it, when it comes to operations management there’s always more to be done. And when experiencing rapid growth within your business it’s easy to wrapped up in the sales and delivery. In the mad rush you tell yourself you’ll go back in and organise it later and before you know it you find yourself trawling through 100’s of unnamed downloads & google docs everyday just to find what you need.
If you’re constantly forgetting to go back in and keep things tidy for yourself then consider what you can do that works with you to promote you keeping things in order. If you simply forget to name and organise things as you go because you’re so immersed in the call, perhaps this looks like a form or template that already has everything titled and organised for you. If you always find yourself using the toolbar to search for things in ClickUp because you don’t remember where you put it, you probably need some more structure in your space. If you prefer to do your organising in bulk, then try scheduling a block in your calendar each day/week to go through and do it all at once. However you choose to manage your business operations, the most important thing is that you do it and in a way that works for you.
Automations
Automations are everything. We all have a limited number of hours in a day and so if you want to scale, you have to start looking further than the realm of what you’re able to complete yourself. And the options are hire help, which is; costly and adds to your workload in the form of advertising, interviewing, onboarding, training etc. Or look at what you can automate which; costs little & can take a bit of time to set up initially. But has the potential to return hours back to your schedule that you can use for scaling the business further, pursuing different passions or just taking time for yourself.
We like to use Zapier for our automations. However many platforms such as ClickUp have their own automations function, so it’s always smart to keep an eye out for this and to make sure you’re making full use of the platforms you’re already paying for before looking elsewhere.
Document
Documenting everything you do may seem like an unnecessary drag, especially when it’s just you, building the foundations of your business from the ground up. It can often feel like “what’s the point, it’s just me and I already know this?” However documenting as you go is something your future self will thank you for down the line. Because not only are you a human being, who isn’t immune to forgetting things, you’re also an entrepreneur building your empire. Meaning further down the line you’re going to want to hire, take on more clients, maybe invest in coaching or mentorship. And all those details you’re keeping stored in your brain are going to need to be clearly laid out and accessible to others.
We always say “build it before they come, not when they come” and this is because documenting everything you’re doing may seem like a drag now. But how do you think it’s going to feel in 6 months time when you’re; micro managing your clients because you don’t have any of your policies or guidelines outlined for them, paying for a team member you can’t utilise because they need training and you don’t have the time or the training documents they need to thrive in their role, exhausted from doing everything and unable to outsource any of your workload, because with the time it would take you to communicate what you want doing and how you need it done, it feels easier to just do it yourself.
By documenting everything you do as you’re doing it now, by the time you get to these milestone moments in your business like hiring, signing new clients, investing in support etc. you’ll have everything you need to make the changes and transitions as smooth as possible, meaning you can stay grounded, enjoy the process and focus on what really matters.
Memberships
When you decide you want to invest in your operations it can become quite overwhelming OBM’s, COO’s and Agency Retainers can feel like too big of a leap for your first step. Therefore if you’re at the point you’ve decided you want to invest in your operations and you don’t have room in the budget for a huge investment, but you want an extra helping hand. Somebody who; has the operational know how to point you in the right direction, helps brainstorm solutions to your bottlenecks, holds you accountable to your progression and is there to celebrate your wins with you. Then memberships can be an excellent option.
Most people either; don’t consider memberships when thinking of operational support because they don’t know they exist, or are deterred from the group aspect of a membership. However, memberships can be the perfect first step if you’re looking to dip your toes into the world of operational support. They aren’t a long-term commitment, they don’t put a huge dent in your bank account and they do give you everything you need to get started with tightening up your operations.
If you’re anything like me then the idea of group support may be off-putting to you. When I first started investing in my business I was super focussed on my lane and my lane only. The blinkers where up and I wasn’t hugely drawn to the idea of group support. However, for all of the reasons listed above it was the investment that best suited my needs and circumstances at the time. I wasn’t sure what to expect going in; was I going to feel supported? Was I going to be heard? What if I was overlooked? But I’m so glad I didn’t let my hesitations stop me as not only did I get the support I needed and more, I got a community. I was able to share any issues I was facing, hear about issues cropping up for other entrepreneurs within their businesses, celebrate wins, debate on business decisions, build lasting connections and so much more. It turned out to be everything I didn’t know I needed at that time. I’m so grateful that I was able to experience this that I now look to create this space for other CEO’s in the space through my own membership Lead With Operations.
Making The First Move
Whether it’s joining a membership or cleaning up you google drive, the first move is always the hardest. If you’re still sat here feeling overwhelmed and you want to start you’re just not sure where to begin then checkout The Shop where you can access all of our masterclasses and templates.
