Authored by Simon Rose and Ellie Bissett
Is your business "match fit" for this new year, and beyond?
To remain competitive in the ever-evolving market, organisations need to focus on optimising their strategies and core processes to drive success. Here we’ll explore key areas where you, as a business leader, can improve your operations to better cater to customer needs, enhance the customer experience, and eliminate waste.
Strategy, Not Just Objectives
One of the crucial aspects of optimising a business is effective strategy execution. Developing a well-defined strategy is just the beginning, and we’ve discussed the importance of this in some of our earlier articles (see below); however, it is equally important to ensure that the strategy is implemented successfully. Of critical importance, is the need to ensure that every employee in your organisation understands the strategic goals and their role in achieving them. Regular monitoring and evaluation of progress is essential to track the effectiveness of the strategy and ensure you have agility to make adjustments as needed “on the fly”.
When it comes to enhancing the customer experience, understanding your customer journeys and, importantly, how the customer fits into your organisation (and its strategy) should be the central determining factor in achieving success. As a business leader, the mapping out of every touchpoint a customer has with your brand, from initial awareness to servicing and ongoing support, you will be able to identify areas where the customer experience can be improved and develop strategies and tactics to address pain points. This could involve streamlining processes (to root out waste and unnecessary hand-offs), providing better training to employees, or even implementing new technologies to enhance efficiency.
Operationalising Success
Business process re-engineering activities will support the development of the customer experience, through translating the desired customer experience into operational reality. This typically involves analysing and redesigning existing processes to identify and eliminate inefficiencies and bottlenecks. By focusing on value-added activities and eliminating waste, you will, by extension, streamline operations and improve overall productivity. This may require redefining job roles, revising policies and procedures, or even investing in new technology to automate manual tasks.
When did you last take a view of costs and typical expenditure? Key to the role of business leaders, is the need to closely examine functional and wider expenses and identify areas where costs can be reduced or eliminated. This could involve renegotiating vendor contracts to secure better terms or exploring alternative suppliers – and, managing your vendor’s performance (quality, reliability, timeliness, and cost effectiveness) more closely to eke out greater value. By regularly reviewing and analysing expenses, you can identify cost-saving opportunities and redirect those savings towards strategic initiatives. Moreover, by maintaining strong vendor relationships and holding them to high standards, you can ensure that your business is receiving the best value for its investment.
Compliant Practices
Furthermore, prioritising regulatory compliance, can help to avoid potential legal issues and penalties, while mitigating risk, but also helps build trust with customers and stakeholders. This may involve reviewing and improving compliance policies and procedures, providing regular training to employees, and conducting internal audits to ensure adherence.
To truly optimise a business and remain “match fit” throughout 2024 and beyond, organisations must continuously reassess and adapt to changing customer needs and market dynamics. Do you have a culture of continuous improvement in your organisation today, and/or what can you do, to encourage your employees to identify opportunities for innovation and efficiency gains? By fostering a culture that embraces change and empowers employees to contribute their ideas, your business can stay ahead of the curve and maintain a competitive edge.
The Bottom Line
Optimising your business to be "match fit" in 2024 requires a holistic approach that focuses on strategy execution, customer experience, cost analysis, vendor performance, regulatory compliance, and waste elimination. By embracing these key areas, organisations can position themselves for success in a rapidly changing business landscape. It is through constant evaluation, adaptation, and innovation that businesses can maintain their relevance and thrive in the future. Here at SRM, we have all the tools, methodologies, and multi-industry experience to bring world-leading best practices to your organisation: why not reach out to see how we can help you at contactus@srmeurope.com?
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