“No man ever reached to excellence in any one art or profession without having passed through the slow and painful process of study and preparation.”

– Horace, Roman poet and thought leader

Throughout this year, we have explored the signs of operational effectiveness. These signs provide a benchmark to evaluate the effectiveness of your organization. Those signs include:

• Creating consistency: of processes, messaging, standardized terminology …. the list is vast on the value of consistency
• Effective communication: among Staff, with Customers, in messaging, in marketing, in documented communication
• Setting clearly defined priorities: knowing what is most important will guide the focus of the organization
• Building repeatable processes: a foundation for sustainability and growth
• Documenting your processes: positions an organization for unlimited possibilities
• Happy customers: without them, there is no organization
• Mitigating risks: reduces failure, delays, confusion, and prepares for future opportunities
• Establishing project management methodologies: the execution of any initiative or project becomes more probable when there is structure, risk assessment, clearly defined expectations, ongoing communication, and a defined timeline for success
• Providing tools to build knowledge and skills for Staff: this is needed to strengthen the value your Staff brings to the organization and reduces knowledge loss when Staff leave
• Exceptional quality: hard to achieve, but creates long-standing rewards

As we pause at year-end and reflect on those signs listed above, may we suggest you consider those areas where your organization excels and where there is room for improvement. Think about performing a self-assessment of each area (or hire a firm like Aldridge Kerr to assist you with the assessment) to establish a baseline. This will better position your organization for those opportunities for improvement in 2024.

There are several notable quotes worth sharing:

“Be a yardstick of quality. Some people aren’t used to an environment where excellence is expected.

Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple

“Quality means doing it right even when no one is looking.”

Henry Ford, founder of Ford Motor Company

“It is quality rather than quantity that matters.”

Lucius Annaeus Seneca, early Roman statesman and philosopher

If you look up the term “quality” in the dictionary, there will be some interesting definitions: “a degree of excellence;” “a peculiar and essential character;” and “a distinguishing attribute.” (Merrian-Webster). The Cambridge Dictionary defines quality as “how good or bad something is.” If you were to ask 5 people to define “quality,” you potentially will receive 5 different definitions. Quality can be difficult to define and even harder to achieve.

Unfortunately, we probably have experienced poor quality that negatively defines the word. So it becomes difficult to define what quality is and what it looks like.  

Aldridge Kerr defines quality as consistent behaviors and actions that demonstrate desired results. This definition identifies several areas that require evaluation:

• What type of behavior and action produces quality deliverables?
• What are the desired outcomes or results for the quality behavior demonstrated?
• How frequently is “consistent?”

If you answer those questions, you will have begun to define your organization’s Quality Plan. In addition, here are some hints to gain understanding of how your organization incorporates quality into its culture:

• Obtain input from Staff on areas where they believe quality is compromised.
• Ask Customers what your organization does well – and where you need to improve.
• Create a safe environment where Staff feel empowered to make the right choices.
• Establish processes that support and enhance quality.
• Define and measure success.

Creating a quality-driven organization is another sign of operational effectiveness.

“You gotta build a team that is so talented, they almost make you uncomfortable.”–        Brian Chesky, CEO of Airbnb

For a short stint of my career, I worked on the Help Desk of a software consulting firm. The good news is that it was a great learning experience. The bad news is that initially almost every time I answered the phone, I had to get someone to help me with the Caller’s question.

If you have been on the receiving end when calling a Help Desk, it can be quite frustrating when you need to wait while the Customer Rep obtains your answer. Unfortunately, our impressions of a Company become less than stellar when Staff are unequipped to answer basic questions as part of their job duties.

As we continue our discussions this year on signs of operational effectiveness, one sign that must be on that list is providing adequate knowledge and skills to Staff in order for them to perform their jobs. Why is this important?

• It improves the Customer Experience when issues are resolved quickly and effectively.
• Staff become more empowered to perform their job with excellence.
• It strengthens skills and expertise throughout the organization when Staff gains knowledge.  
• It reduces the time it takes to address and/or resolve tasks.

How can you create an Organization where Staff have the knowledge and skills to perform their job duties?

• Define the skills and knowledge needed to perform each job.
• Ensure existing Staff understand what is expected of them.
• Equip Staff with ongoing training to strengthen expertise.
• Identify and resolve skill gaps.
• Document tasks that only one or two Staff perform to mitigate the risk if someone leaves.
• Create an environment that encourages Staff to step forward to learn and grow in their job duties.
• Utilize external resources, as needed, if required skills and knowledge are unavailable internally.

As Hendrith Vanlon Smith Jr, CEO of Mayflower-Plymouth said so well: “It’s wise to think of employees as a talent pool and treat them accordingly. They have talents and skills that can help the company to be successful. Some of those talents and skills may even go beyond the scope of their job description but maybe can still be utilized.”

Empowered, knowledgeable, and highly skilled Staff position any Organization for operational effectiveness.

“Planning without action is futile, action without planning is fatal.”

–  Cornelius Fitchner

Would you build a house without a clearly defined plan that outlines the parameters of the size, shape, structure, and dimensions? Of course, not (or at least, hopefully not). That’s the purpose of a blueprint, to define the specifications of what will be accomplished. The success of the end-product is driven by the plan for its implementation.

As we continue our discussions on signs of operational effectiveness this year, we would be amiss if we did not include the need for a structured project plan methodology that is used for implementing any project or initiative.

However, a plan outlining the specifications and deliverables is only a part of the successful implementation of any project. For example, the last few years have created some challenges for those building houses or cars or many other products because of material shortages. This is complicated with the staffing shortages. It is hard to move forward without the resources needed, whether materials or staff, to accomplish the desired outcomes. This has introduced an enhanced need for planning, risk mitigating, and defined deliverables.

By having a plan, you can consider those unique challenges and risks that must be faced in order for any project or initiative to be successful. A proven project management methodology enhances the chance for success and strengthens operational effectiveness.

Utilizing a project management methodology produces momentum to move forward. The goal is to build the plan and use it to execute the identified deliverables. As U.S. General George Patton said so well: “A good plan, violently executed now is better than a perfect plan tomorrow.” Create the plan and execute the desired results.

“Don’t be fearful of risks. Understand them and manage and minimize them to an acceptable level.” ― Naved Abdali, Author of Investing Magazine

Risk is defined as “the possibility of loss or injury.” Quite simply, risk is the possibility of something undesirable happening.

We deal with risk every day…. We could be hit crossing the street, or driving our cars, or falling in the shower. All possible, undesirable risks. The same relates to business as there are risks that threaten the ongoing success of any organization.

As we continue our discussion on signs of operational effectiveness, managing risks is critical for sustainability and growth. My father used to regularly ask me “what is the worse that can happen?” This was his way of getting me to consider the risks of actions I was about to take so I could determine if even with the greatest risks, it was worth moving forward…. Or not.

How does an organization address risk? There are several factors to consider related to risk management:

• Avoiding risk is unattainable; but there are many methods to mitigate the risks an organization faces.
• Building a risk assessment into every project, initiative, and/or program encourages mitigating those risks that could arise.
• Understanding possible risks allows an organization to be proactive versus reactive.
• There is a higher probability that a project or initiative could fail if there is not an effective risk assessment built into the project plan.
• Establishing a standard risk assessment process and methodology encourages long term success.
• It is important to manage the cost of risks including considerations for ignoring risks and taking no measures to address those risks versus placing too much importance on a risk and utilizing extraordinary resources when the risk is not that great.
• A risk assessment should be built into the annual planning process.

Utilizing risk management within an organization encourages operational effectiveness.

“At the heart of a successful business strategy is a customer experience that is elegantly simple and positive, where consumers are likely to come away satisfied – and return.”

– Andres Angelani, CEO of Softvision

As we continue our discussions on signs of operational effectiveness, we need to include a significant indicator: happy Customers. Unfortunately, there are some organizations that do not even know whether their Customers are happy. Therefore, having a clear understanding of the signs that indicate a happy Customer aligns with creating operational effectiveness.

A Customer is happy when:

• Services or products are consistently delivered on time and are error free.
• Staff provide timely responses to Customers’ inquiries, questions, and/or concerns.
• The Customer believes in the organization so much he/she returns for additional services or products.
• The organization provides routine updates on changes, improvements, or anything that could impact the Customer.
• They are treated as if they are the most important and only Customer the organization has.

To monitor and increase the probability of a happy Customer, consider the following simple methods:

• Clearly define the characteristics of a happy, satisfied Customer.
• Define criteria to measure this.
• Establish a method to routinely obtain input from Customers.
• Evaluate that input to identify those opportunities for improvement.

A happy Customer, per Gregory Ciotti, Content Marketing Lead at Shopify, is described as follows:

“A satisfied customer is one who will continue to buy from you, seldom shop around, refer other Customers and in general be a superstar advocate for your business.”

A happy Customer is yet another sign of operational effectiveness.