Blog Archive - Page 5 of 7 - Virtual Productivity Solutions

The top 8 ways small business owners can benefit by outsourcing

Imagine having the access to experts for every aspect of your business.

Imagine that this access is reasonably priced.

Imagine that these experts can help you from anywhere in the world and that your business can go on even when you are sleeping.

Outsourcing gives you all the above. It can be used as a strategic tool for making any business more productive and profitable. Outsourcing means that you entrust the processes of your business functions to external vendors.

The main advantages for small business owners are:

You only need to do the tasks you are competent at and love doing. Imagine not having to dread coming to work because you hate doing all the peripheral duties that are essential to your business success. You will be happier and more productive if you outsource these. You can, for instance, rather focus on building your brand, developing new ideas, or developing wonderful customer service.
You save money and boost your profits. You save money by paying for productive time only, and you don’t need to worry about employee taxes, office space, equipment, vacation time, etc. Outsourcing helps you to improve your continuity and customer service, while freeing you to pursue profitable activities in your business.
You can achieve a better work-life balance. A person loses a lot of their creativity when they are stressed and overworked. Outsourcing frees you to take time off from work, knowing that the work or customer service does not end just because you are not there. You and your business will benefit.
You have access to world-class capabilities. You have access to new skills and highly trained professionals at a lower cost, without having to manage them directly. You can supplement resources that are not available internally. You therefore have the same advantages as a large company who has these resources in-house.
Focus on core activities. Often small business owners are consumed by the non-core activities at the expense of core activities. Back-office operations and administrative functions take time and energy. Outsourcing helps you to have more time and opportunity to grow your business.
Staffing flexibility. There are some times during the year that you may need more support than others. Outsourcing allows you to increase and decrease support for your business according to demand.
Time zone advantages. You can get your work done while your business is closed at night. This allows you to provide customer support even when you are not working. Through outsourcing you can service your customers faster, provide better quality and decrease turnaround time.
Boost your productivity and efficiency. If your business goals are properly aligned with the deliverables in outsourcing, you will increase productivity. Outsourcing providers with the right expertise and experience can actually help streamline business processes and contribute to the bottom line.

What can I outsource?

You are basically only limited by your imagination as to what you can outsource. To get your creative juices flowing, consider the following ideas:

Website creation/maintenance. Instead of spending hours figuring out how to do things or fix mistakes, you can pay someone to maintain your WordPress blogs (setup, periodic backup, etc)
Content creation. This is a process that takes a lot of time, and can be outsourced.
Video creation. There are people who can create a high quality video at very reasonable costs
Graphics are great to outsource if you are not good at it, or it takes too much time.
Customization and management of key business systems, for instance having Standard Operating Procedures compiled and revised regularly, database setup and maintenance, etc.
Project management support.
Human resource management support.

Your success and freedom as a small business owner depends on your ability to focus on what you love and what you do well, and eliminating or outsourcing everything else.

Ask yourself: what is the first step I need to take to become a prosperous small business owner?

Make 2012 the year that you allow your business to grow more rapidly through outsourcing. E-mail Virtual Productivity Solutions to start enjoying the benefits of outsourcing. Not only can we do work you’d like to outsource, but we can help you determine your priorities and what you should outsource for optimum productivity. Your business will thank you.

Just your basic SOP!

This post originally appeared as a guest post on Small Business Fundamentals.

What are Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)?

One of the most useful systems to streamline your business is having a Standard Operating Procedures manual. It is a working document (accessible to all staff) that provides detailed instructions on specific recurring work processes. It communicates who will perform the task, what materials are necessary, where the tasks will take place, when the task must be performed, and how the person will execute the task.

This forms the backbone of an organization.

Standard Operating Procedures should be designed to achieve specific results. Management must decide what business goals will be achieved through better management with SOPs and how those goals will be measured.

The purpose of SOPs is to assist employees in the daily operations of the workplace and to ensure that critical company policies are followed. It provides written documentation of best practices. It also provides the foundation for

Job descriptions
Employee training
Corrective action and discipline
Performance reviews

Why does a small business need Standard Operating Procedures?

It provides the basis for communication. Employees work better when they are well-informed, able to perform their jobs autonomously, and are able to feel effective in completing tasks. Management can feel confident that daily operations are running smoothly.
It provides clarity. It decreases errors and mistakes, conflict, and enhances the feeling of fairness and equity in the workplace.
Because of its clarity, it reduces training time, provides direction, and improves work uniformity.
It protects employers in areas of potential liability and personnel matters. A SOP ensures that all employees have access to those policies.
It maximises smooth operations. The ideal is that the SOP will ensure that employees know the policies, rules, regulations, and standardized methods for accomplishing specific tasks and goals. It also makes it possible for the work to go on when key personnel are not available.
It promotes consistency and reliability within the workplace to maintain quality control and assurance.

A few points to consider when compiling Standard Operating Procedures

In order to ensure that the Standard Operating Procedures address the goals of the organization, a needs assessment should be conducted to find out which policies and procedures should be included.
Standard Operating Procedures should be written as clearly and simply as possible.
Various formats can be used to enhance clarity. For instance, you can use simple steps, hierarchy steps, graphic images, or flow charts.
The level of detail in SOPs should provide adequate information to keep performance consistent while keeping the procedures from becoming impractical.
Drafts should be made and tested before a SOP is released for implementation.
Make the document rigid enough to document the rules of the organization, but flexible enough to be able to be followed easily.
Get the input of the staff that actually do the job. People are much more likely to accept and use a SOP if they feel a sense of ownership in it.

Revision of Standard Operating Procedures

Once the SOP has been approved, a schedule should be set for reviewing it. Every SOP should be reviewed annually, or, at a minimum, bi-annually to make sure that the practices and policies are still relevant and have not changed.

Does your business have Standard Operating Procedures in place? Do you need to revise your documentation to make is more up-to-date and relevant? Contact Virtual Productivity Solutions to get your business processes mapped out.

6 Reasons Why Things Go Wrong in a Small Business

It may seem discouragingly pessimistic to start the new year thinking about business failure.

However, being aware of potential pitfalls help you avoid them in future.

Areas where businesses seem to most often experience problems:

1. A bad idea from the start

Introducing a product or service for which there is neither need nor demand is the surest route to failure. A good idea must be commercially viable in order to succeed.

2. Unchartered waters

So many small business owners launch into their ventures without a plan or clearly defined goals. It is like starting a journey through unchartered territory, without a map or even a destination. How will you know when you are there?

3. Forgetting to budget

Very few small businesses yield a large profit from day one. You need to budget so that you don’t run out of money just before you make it big. Start-up costs often turn out to be much higher than expected.

Money is the life-blood of your business. A cash-flow squeeze is the single most common cause of small business failure.

Sentiment can compound the problem. Small business owners are often reluctant to charge people (especially family and friends) for the real worth of their products or services.

4. The human factor

Personalities play a crucial part in the success of failure of a small business. Business partnerships are comparable to marriages: tough times, long hours and constant contact can bring out the worst in the relationship.

Small business owners often cannot bring themselves to hire people to do the things they can’t or don’t have time for, or even to ask for help. Others make the mistake of hiring someone just because his/her labour is cheap. It is better to have someone who is competent working two hours a week than a full-time incompetent soul.

You are the driving force behind your business: progress will depend on how much energy and enthusiasm you put into it. If you’re prepared to do whatever it takes to succeed, you will succeed.

5. Falling off the rails

So many small businesses fail because their owners underestimate the importance of keeping up-to-date with simple day-to-day matters, picking up problems only when they have reached serious, even irremediable proportions.

One serious mistake can take you years to recover from.

Expanding too quickly when you don’t have the infrastructure to handle it can prove fatal.

Failure to keep up with what is happening in the marketplace can lead to major setbacks as you lose touch with customer requirements, new trends, and what your competitors are up to.

6. Marketing mishaps

Many small business owners assume that their wonderful product or service will sell itself – and they learn better, too late.

However, there is no surer way to learn a lesson than through your mistakes.

Staying a step ahead

Just because you are achieving what you set out to do doesn’t mean that you can sit back and relax. Some guiding points:

Retain your focus and stick with your original, researched concept. At all costs maintain your planned path, and stay with your market.
Be meticulous about keeping up to date with your financial management and accounting systems. Maintain stringent controls and don’t take too much money out of the business. Outsource this to a reliable VA if you don’t have the time to spend on it.
Customer service is paramount. Develop personal relationships with your clients. Extra special service is something people are prepared to pay even more for. Poor service is the quickest and most effective way of shedding customers and a good reputation.
Keep up to date: ensure that you are constantly aware of trends and take time out to establish what your competitors are doing.
Continuous marketing is a vital ingredient of growth. Never sit back and expect business to keep on flowing your way, even if things are going really well. Think constantly of new ways to improve your marketing strategy.
Take time often to reassess your goals, your direction and your strategies.

May this year be the year that you exceed your dreams for your small business!

The Basics of a Business Continuity Plan

Any organization is at risk for the following:

Natural disasters (floods, tornadoes, earthquakes, fire)
Environmental disasters (like chemical spills)
Accidents
Sabotage
Losing key personnel
Cyber attacks and hacker activity
Theft
IT system crashes
Power and energy disruptions

Sadly, many small business owners never take the time to develop a plan to address disaster striking. It is only once they have experienced first-hand the devastating consequences that they wish that they had implemented a plan in advance. This is a great pity, because a Business Continuity Plan is the least expensive insurance for a small business. In fact, it gives your organization a competitive edge. Perhaps it may not seem so now, but when the time comes, it will be worth its weight in gold. A business continuity plan that works means that your company will survive a disaster and can continue its operations no matter what the circumstances.

What is a Business Continuity Plan?

A Business Continuity Plan is simply a proactive documented planning process that insures that critical services or products are delivered during a disruption. It stipulates how employees will communicate, where they will go, and how they will keep on doing their jobs in case of a disaster. It is important to identify the core operational systems and work processes so that the services and products can be delivered to your customers, no matter what happens.

What is included in a Business Continuity Plan?

Every business is different, and you will have to analyze what the bare minimum is for your business to survive. A few ideas of what to include are listed below:

Who your key personnel and backups are
External contacts
Critical equipment (eg. PC’s)
Critical documents (everything you would need to start your business again)
Responsibility list of who does what and how they should do it if disaster strikes

Who needs it?

Every organization and business should have a Business Continuity Plan. It is especially important for small businesses as they are far more vulnerable to external circumstances.

Why do they need it?

It ensures that a business has the resources and information needed to deal with disasters.
It safeguards the interests of its key stakeholders, its reputation and its value-creating activities.
It gives an organization the opportunity to identify the potential impacts of disasters that threaten it, and to develop a framework and system of responding to the disaster in a timely and appropriate manner.
It is becoming more and more common that potential customers want to see that there is a Business Continuity Plan in place to protect their interests in the company.
It safeguards your company’s reputation.

Conclusion

It is essential that once a Business Continuity Plan is in place, that all staff should be trained as to what their role is in case of disaster. To further streamline the implementation of the Business Continuity Plan, you should test it from time to time, making the necessary adjustments where hiccups are experienced. Most importantly, the Business Continuity Plan must be updated regularly as the business changes. It is not a document to be compiled and then forgotten about. A Business Continuity Plan is not just there to cover high profile disasters. It is about being ready for any incident that may cause disruption to your business. Rather be prepared than sorry.

The top 5 reasons why you cannot run your business alone

Sue started her own business 3 years ago. She is really pursuing her passion, and loves working with her clients. She considers her business as pretty successful. She is free to make her own decisions, and her income is reasonably steady. But over the past few months she has noticed that she is not so eager to start her work day. Somehow it’s harder to get up in the mornings, and to get things done. She cannot think why she feels this way. It’s as though even though she is putting in more hours, something is holding her back. Something is blocking her creativity and drive. And eventually the pleasure of running her own business is waning.

Why does Sue feel this way? The answer is quite simple.

Sue is trying to run her business without any support. She does everything associated with running the business herself. She answers phones, does her own bookkeeping, tries to keep up with orders, does her own admin, developed and maintains her own website, etc. Sue is a very talented individual, and no doubt can do all of the administration associated with her business excellently. But it leaves her no time to do what she loves: interacting with her clients, and thinking about new business ideas.

When you insist on doing everything in your business yourself, you are doing yourself and your business a disservice. Here are some reasons why:

1. You tend to procrastinate tasks you don’t enjoy doing

Some tasks you don’t enjoy doing are very essential to the survival of your business. When you procrastinate on those tasks, your business suffers in the long term.

You will be happier and more productive if you did only those tasks you are competent at and love doing.

2. You lose money

Why spend your valuable time and energy on tasks you struggle with? Instead of spending hours figuring out how to do certain things, like building a website or designing a logo for instance, you could have paid someone else to do it while you were increasing you income with tasks you excel at.

3. You lose your focus and creativity

When there are so many details in your business to take care of, it is easy to focus on these details and forget the big picture. You no longer have the time to take a break and see the big picture, part of why you enjoy having your own business.

4. Your “I-can-do-it-myself” attitude robs you of the expertise you could have access to

Yes, you may be able to do lot of things alone. You may have issues with trusting people to become part of your business. But in the end, while you are spending time doing all the things you feel you can, you are neglecting your core business strengths.

Nobody is an expert at all aspects of running their business. Why not partner with someone who runs certain aspects with more expertise than you do?

There are plenty highly trained professionals that work online. People who can do your website development, bookkeeping, SEO, social media, article writing, etc. If you are in doubt on how to choose the right people, you can read my blog post 6 Steps to Find the Best Online Workers.

5. You forget why you started your own business

People often go into business for themselves because they want to achieve a better work-life balance. Yet it is so easy to fall into the trap of being overworked, rushed, and stressed.

Would you not rather want to have the peace of mind that accompanies having competent people helping you grow your business?

About 56% of new businesses do not survive for at least 4 years. Many entrepreneurs that survive, work 60+ hour work weeks and cannot take time off, because if they are not working, they have no income.

Successful entrepreneurs outsource so that their business can grow and thrive.

When you outsource work, you start enjoying your business again, because you will remember why you started it in the first place.

Your success and freedom as a small business owner depends on your ability to focus on what you love and do best, and to eliminate or outsource everything else.

Ask yourself: What would it be like to be a successful business owner? What are the first steps I need to take?

Do you know what a wonderful feeling of freedom you have when your business runs like clockwork without you having to micromanage everything? This feeling could be yours within a month.

Contact Virtual Productivity Solutions and find out how we can help take the everyday burden of running your business off you and help you become more successful.

Identifying Gaps in Productivity – A Case Study

A certain new subdivision of a company managing a 5-year project approached me recently. They had been formed 6 months previously, and were in the process of setting up administrative and operational systems in order to support the implementation of the project. This involved establishing all office systems including administration, filing, communication and logistics. They needed me to provide guidance and support to the project staff in setting up the required administrative systems.

Their brief was to

Review the current project administrative systems
Work with their headquarters to compile Standard Operating Procedures
Assess the administrative staff capabilities and needs against job functions/responsibilities
Recommend changes and additions to current systems and staff functions
Provide on-the-job training in establishing the project administrative systems.

What was clear to me from this brief was that they had identified both systems and training as areas of reduced productivity, which needed to be addressed.

After reviewing the company documentation to find out what the goals of the organization were, my first step was to consult with the administrative staff to find out exactly where they stood regarding their systems and training.

What emerged during the interviews was very interesting. Although there were areas of reduced productivity in their current systems which I identified and addressed, it seemed that there was a much larger problem: the management.

The problems experienced were the following:

The manager of the subdivision was the typical example of a micromanager. Although a very intelligent and competent individual, he could not trust his staff to do their work without his continual interference. His frustrated staff, instead of supporting him and the goals of the organization, did everything they could to undermine him.
There was confusion among the staff as who to report to, as the existing reporting structure was not adhered to.
The administrative staff had no job autonomy. They were constantly interrupted as line staff had “emergencies.” Some of these “emergencies” had nothing to do with the goals of the organization, but were of a personal nature. The administrative staff had been reduced to running personal errands for fickle staff, and the core administration was not being attended to in a timely and efficient manner.
There was no means to evaluate the job performance of staff, resulting in some staff being overworked while others had nothing to do. The staff had no motivation to perform well.

To remedy the management problem, I suggested that a team building exercise be held. Each staff member could give a short presentation of what they do, as well as what they don’t do, what a typical day looks like, what is working/not working, what admin support they required, etc. My idea was that this could lead to greater understanding and respect for each other’s roles in the workplace, and clarification as to who to go to when certain matters need addressing.

With excellent team building facilitators, the results of the team building was fascinating. The managers realized what they were doing to their staff, and a process of forgiving each other and finding ways to work together more productively resulted. It emerged that there was also conflict between the various managers, which impacted the staff, who were in turn forced to take sides. To address this, a management platform was created, where the managers could get together and support each other on a regular basis. They also had guest speakers on occasion, to help train them informally on how to manage their staff more effectively.

Examining the management was not part of my scope of work. I examined the management because if there is insufficient management, no matter how well the systems work and how good the training and implementation thereof are, there will still be areas of reduced productivity. It was clear that the productivity of the admin staff was directly impacted by the insufficient management.

My evaluation of the systems, training and management were not done in isolation to the real people who worked within the subdivision. The subdivision was very fortunate to have staff who were highly qualified, loyal, dedicated, and goal-directed, and who, despite the problems they experienced, tried to make the best of the situation.

Once the management improved, overall productivity improved and the project could finally take off.

6 Steps to Find the Best Freelancers Online

As a small business owner you can outsource the tasks that you are not good at, so that you can focus on growing your business. You don’t need a huge budget in order to outsource. In fact, you can hire freelancers for small things, and then work your way up as your business grows.

But you could, however, feel that there is too much risk involved. How do you ensure that a person you have never met face-to-face is the perfect person to do the job? There are a few things to keep in mind.

1. Be very clear with your instructions

Whenever you give instructions to people, be as clear as possible. Many people overlook this. But if you are paying by the hour, you want to save money by avoiding any confusion or uncertainty.

When you advertise your requirements, do it in a clear Step by Step format. Beside avoiding confusion, you will be able to identify any potential bottleneck in the system.

You should also be clear on important items like deadlines, payment terms and any other expectations.

2. Check the credibility of your potential candidate

You want to work with a professional who provides quality work. Some ways to check the candidate are what they say they are:

Have a look at the candidate’s portfolio. Ask for examples of similar work done before. Make sure that the candidate has worked on something similar before.
Contact the references given, or check for online references.
Google the person’s name, website name, and e-mail addresses. You want someone with an established history.

3. Work according to milestones

If you need to outsource a big project, pay according to specific deliverables. This protects you. The worker is also protected if you provide an upfront deposit.

4. Expect short daily updates

Have the freelancer give you a short summary on:

What they did and the results they got
Any problems or challenges they faced
Any questions they might have

This way you keep on top of things. Someone may forget to send you the summary. It reflects on their calibre. But for those that do remember, you can see how they are doing and fix any issues before they escalate.

5. Give regular feedback

Whether the work is done well or is subpar, give feedback. Let people know exactly what they are doing right or wrong. Focus on the positive, and build a strong relationship with your worker.

6. Never hire someone full time immediately

Start by hiring a candidate for a small project. You can then ask for more complicated work if you are satisfied. Be sure that the candidate communicates well with you and that you feel comfortable with him/her.

It is actually very easy to ease the burden of your day-to-day tasks with a little planning and foresight. You also have the opportunity to finish essential projects you simply don’t have time for. If you would like to find out how Virtual Productivity Solutions can help you in this regard, visit our website.

The importance of small business planning

Starting your own business is a lifelong dream of many. Whether the reason is not to work for a boss, doing what you are passionate about or claiming financial independence, the vision often does not extend beyond opening the doors of the business. Where should the growth of the business take it in the next few years?

No one gets rich without having a clear idea of how to accomplish it. Success in any field needs a structure. Yet the lack of planning in new businesses is ridiculously high. You can temporarily get away without a plan if you run the business on your own (even if research has shown that only 7% of unwritten goals reach fruition).

However, the moment you employ other people, you run into problems. You need to communicate to them what the business is trying to achieve, and how the jobs fit together into an integrated whole.

You also want to communicate clearly to potential clients that you have set up your business with the intention of growing it. You need to be able to demonstrate that your business with its current team can get the job done, and that policies and procedures are in place to ensure this.

What unfortunately often happens is that early business success makes us think we don’t need a plan.

If there is not a plan with a clearly defined direction and guidelines, you become so task orientated that you lose sight of your goals. There may be a vague goal that revolves around increasing productivity, but without actionable steps it does not mean much. You will not have significant growth in your business.

Ultimately, business failure comes down to one thing: lack of knowledge. Setting up a clear plan with actionable steps helps ensure that you and your employees know exactly where you are heading and how to achieve it.

A small business needs to be far more nimble and flexible than a big business. Create your plans keeping this in mind. If necessary, get outside help or hire people with the right knowledge to guide you in setting up a business plan.

Henry Ford said: Before everything else, getting ready is the secret of success. What are you doing to get ready for your business to flourish?

Feel free to contact Virtual Productivity Solutions for advice and guidance in setting up a business plan.

Ensure excellent customer relations through thorough record-keeping

The other day, I visited the doctor for a routine check-up. On arrival, I was informed that my file had been lost, and I therefore had to fill in all the information again. Not only that, but the receptionist had the attitude that it was my fault the file was misplaced! All the information regarding previous visits was lost, and it took quite a while to sort out my medical history with my physician before the actual examination could begin. I was not impressed.

The next day, I had a query with my internet service provider. When I phoned and gave my name, the receptionist immediately had access to my file, and could respond quickly and appropriately to the query. The problem was sorted out professionally, increasing the company’s credibility in my sight, and I thus feel free to recommend them to others.

This got me thinking about how important good record-keeping is for a small business. Beside the legal obligations regarding documentation, your satisfied customers are one of your most crucial assets, as you cannot run your business without them. One way in which to ensure the most positive relationship with each customer is through taking extra care with good record-keeping and archiving.

As a small business owner, it is easy to overlook the value attached to good record-keeping. This job is often given to the lowest paid employee. It is far easier to shove documents into a file than to pay someone to index and sort them. In fact, most businesses do not know they don’t have their important documents until they need them!

This is a potentially dangerous situation, and could cost the company at best an inconvenient amount of lost revenue. For instance, if you have a proof of delivery document to the value of $500 and you lost it, technically the client does not have to pay.

Good record-keeping is not a stand-alone function but rather a support function to other aspects of running a business. Beside the legal requirements, good record-keeping is also good for PR. Customers are always impressed if you can draw a file easily or deal with any issues that require documentation to clear up.

Clients want to know that they are regarded as important by a company. They are far more likely to go back to a business that attended to their query or problem quickly and professionally.

These days, it is so easy for customers to complain about poor service via the internet. Good record-keeping can assist in keeping the bad word-of-mouth rumour mill at bay and even in gaining a few good references.

If you want to enhance customer satisfaction through correct documentation procedures, contact Virtual Productivity Solutions to help you develop an easy-to-use documentation system for your small business.