Lean Services Marketing

Just a quick post here for small businesses in B-to-B services.  Regardless of your knowledge of (or initial interest in) Lean, you can use some key questions to tighten up your service delivery. Why is this important? On-target marketing and delivery of services translates to less costs, increased revenue via more focus on the customer, and more fulfilled employees.  That’s what I’ll help you with here.

First, a brief intro to the concept of waste.  Waste is defined as “any activity that uses resources, but creates no value for the customer” by Natalie J. Sayer and Bruce Williams* in Lean for Dummies.  There are 7 ways that waste manifests in manufacturing companies: transportation, waiting, overproduction, defects, inventory, movement, and extra processing.  Here, we’ll just look at preventing the types of waste that relate to marketing and delivering  services, primarily overproduction, extra processing, and inventory.

To deliver and market B-to-B services efficiently, the small business owner should ask the following questions to reduce waste:

1. Am I producing more (volume) or more options than my clients want? (Even at the proposal stage.)

2. Am I producing deliverables sooner than they need them?

3. What quality levels are required by the clients/customers?

4. What quantity of deliverables/materials do they require? 

5. What materials/deliverables can be re-purposed into something that clients value?

6. Is there anything that needs packaging/promoting to create value in the clients’ minds? 

With the answers to these questions, you can begin to plan with greater efficiency and make better use of your time and resources while ensuring you are meeting client needs.   That, after all, is the benefit and goal of eliminating waste.   

 

*Bruce spoke last month at an ABPMP-Phoenix event.  This link contains his bio and information about Business Transformation Through IT, co-sponsored by ASU’s WP Carey School of Business’ MSIM Department.  To learn more about our local chapter of the Association for Business Process Management Professionals, visit our website.

I Wish I Coined This Term: "Founder's Syndrome"

If you've read my previous posts, you know that I sometimes coin my own terms, such as "URL Sprawl" and "Frienomenon." A colleague used a term the other day that, as much as I wish I could claim responsibility for, I cannot. Surprisingly enough, I have seen plenty of "Founder's Syndrome," but thought I was alone.

Thank you Carter McNamara for your excellent site, The Free Management Library(SM), and discussion of this term: http://www.managementhelp.org/misc/founders.htm.

Carter's definition is as follows:
"This syndrome occurs when, rather than working toward its overall mission, the organization operates primarily according to the personality of a prominent person in the organization, for example, the founder, board chair/president, chief executive, etc. The syndrome is primarily an organizational problem -- not primarily a problem of the person in the prominent position."

My response: Although the term is not meant to peg the founder as the problem, in my mind, any leader is ultimately responsible for organizational culture and change, as they set the example and the pace and should therefore empower others to act in the interest of the company's mission vs. respond to his/her personal preferences and moods.

The Rabbit Hole

There's an article worth noting in Jacksonville's Business Journal by Ray Attiyah. His premise is that managers should not chase more than one "rabbit" at a time and he offers a very clear analysis based on experience of why organizations lose focus. I like that he draws to the surface a substantial list of contributing factors but wish he offered a clear-cut systematic plan to avoid chasing two rabbits—or even chasing one down its hole, only to disappear. So, here is the systematic plan that I'd like to offer to small business owners and executives who feel overwhelmed by frequent changes in direction and its compounding problems:

Step 1: Be willing to look squarely at the state of affairs. It takes a tremendous amount of courage to admit errors, bad decisions, barriers to success, market challenges, and customer complaints. If you can silence the ego long enough to examine the environment without blame or judgement, you can overcome any obstacles.

Step 2: Identify root causes (as hard as they may be to admit), again in a way that rises above finger-pointing and blame-laying. However, do not shy away from crucial conversations. Be honest with yourself and others.

Step 3: Make gradual steps toward improvement by eliminating root causes. Enlist support where you need it and focus on what contributing factors must be minimized to foment change.

Sometimes this all of this is easier with the help of an outside, objective observer and facilitator, particularly in organizations rife with political battles. Scary as it may seem, the rewards of these steps are well worth it for those who truly want to lead a successful company.

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