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Business improvement - just stop and think!

One of the simplest things we can do if we want to improve our business is to stop and think. Just stopping to reflect upon what we are doing can give one of the greatest impacts we can have within our own business. When we take a look at what we are doing we are able to see activities and arrangements that don't lend themselves to being the best possible way. These areas for improvement become more obvious when we take the time to stop what we are doing and take a step back from the (hectic) day-to-day. 'Does it work?' is a great question to ask when we step back - does it work well? By taking the time out to ask this question you will most likely find opportunities to improve leaping towards you. This is not hard - it just takes the discipline to periodically stop and think about what we are doing. Smartspeed Consulting Limited BESPOKE BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT | LEAN TRAINING | OPERATIONS TROUBLESHOOTING www.smartspeed.co.uk

Do you want a productivity boost?

One item of conversation that crops up time and time again is that of wanting a boost in productivity. Projects get delayed and don't seem to move, let alone the piles of paperwork on your desk that seem to build up from normal working; these all detract from our ability to be productive. Well, there is a simple approach to improving productivity. It can give a one time boost, or can be used on an ongoing basis to maintain higher levels of productivity. It's quite simple and all to do with 'keeping your house in order'. Write a list of everything that you think you need to do to get all of your tasks / projects back on track. Resolve to sort out this list and focus on clearing as many items as possible. In fact don't stop until you do clear the list. When you have finished you will be in a position to tackle new jobs and hence become truly productive. The list that was holding you back was stuff that should have been done already and therefore a case of obliga

What is your job?

Many people spend their days working without truly appreciating what their job really entails. I'm sure that you have seen other people work really hard at what they are given (or have chosen) to do, and yet aren't producing results of any real merit. Most jobs are designed for a purpose - to add value to a specific process or client, they are there to make the process or client experience better. If you are familiar with Parkinson's Law (that effort expands to fit the time available) you will see the countless unnecessary tasks that fill the days of many working people. Jobs that do not fit with the value that the organisation is trying to generate, and do not help anyone to deliver meaningful results. Not understanding current work content and how this generates value to the end client is crucial if we are to spend our days doing something that is useful, profitable and enjoyable. Does your day-to-day work deliver the results? Smartspeed Consulting Limited &#

A lack of sequence

We all know that our projects and our tasks are a collection of steps. We take time to map our work (looking for improvements) and then find that productivity does not increase as a result. Could it be that we are reviewing the wrong areas? Could we be better off by doing something different that just mapping what we think we do? Sometimes the improvement that we need is at a very lowest level within the organisation's efforts - in the day to day activities, not necessarily the strategic ones. How we file our work, how we decide when to give the information to the next stage of the process and the format of the information can all have big impacts in the productivity of our work area. When we don't understand what the best sequence is for our work we find ourselves not being as efficient as we could be. What is the right sequence for the work in your business? Can you engineer the handovers and sequences of work so that you can become more productive in your work? H

Take advantage of down time

Busy busy busy are our days and yet there is always the opportunity to get more done if that is required. There are many tasks that can be run at the same time as others, effectively getting two things done at once. Looking for these opportunities to piggy back other activities can add a further degree of productivity to your day. Of course, you also have the opportunity of jettisoning tasks that yield little value to your cause (or your stakeholder's) and have less to contend with in the first place. Smartspeed Consulting Limited 'For When Results Matter' www.smartspeed.co.uk

How do you remember to do everything?

Pretty much everyone has a huge stack of items that they need to do. When seeing the amount of confusion that this can cause it raises the question of how do you remember everything that you have to do. At most people's disosal are existing systems that can be used to capture all of this information. Whether this is a CRM system, email, paper or something else there is one thing that is certainly true. If we keep it only in our heads thenwe risk a continuous state of confusion. If this situation applies to you then the following considerations may help you to enjoy more productive days: - find a way to get your list of tasks out of your head on an ongoing basis. - decide how you are going to prioritise your activities. - keep your lists up to date and maintain a flow within your list, flush tasks when they stagnate (either do them or remove them from your list if no longer relevant). Keep your brain working at full tilt through better organisation of your list of tasks

How do you work out your priorities?

When faced with a massive list of tasks that need to be completed, and let's say that some of them will affect the ability to improve your businesses, how do you choose the right task to start with? I have seen many justifications for people choosing what is considered a real priority - that one thing that must be completed first, and in many cases there was no rationale behind the choice. If you ever find yourself in this situation then I offer a simple consideration to help you find the most important activity to focus on. Evaluating your task list in terms of urgency (or deadlines) and impact (the benefit of doing the work versus consequences of not doing the work) can make the top task stand out, hence making it an easier decision. Try it and see how you get on. Smartspeed Consulting Limited 'For When Results Matter' http://www.smartspeed.co.uk/