Seven Ps Of Highly Efficient Business
This discourse is not anything you may not have heard before. If you are a business owner or hope to start one soon, the seven elements of highly efficient business are components of businesses you must have come across before. Essentially, this discourse is more about what you should really focus on as a business owner and priorities assigned to each. To make your business highly efficient, you would need to master how to make these elements work effectively and in your favour. The key elements are Purpose, People, Product, Pounds, Plan, Place, and Process.
Purpose: we have already dealt with purpose in an earlier article (click here). Why you are in business or the reason for the existence of your business is far more important that the pleasure or reward you will get from running a business. Finding a purpose other making money gives your business and you personally a sense of responsibility to your society , your employees and your customers. It gives your life a meaning, that through your business, you can begin to make some difference in this world. Purpose is perhaps the most important element in your business. With purpose, you understand why you are in business, you know at all times, which direction to take your business to and above all you have a reason to keep going even when things are not working the way your expect.
People: This element involves all human contacts your business will need to succeed. It involves the management, employees, customers, investors, suppliers, partners, regulators, and even the general public. A good human relationship is largely based on trust. And trust is built on honesty and integrity. When people know you as fair and honest, they will most times trust you to give them the best. Always create a win- win situations for both your enterprise and people who have stake in it. Always remember that you are in business because of all these people; you will always need them. You need your customers to sell your product, you need your employees to make the products, you need investors for finance, you need your suppliers for raw materials and the list goes on. Every person related to your business must be treated fairly. Do not attempt to cheat, circumvent, or manipulate anyone. Remember, you are in business not just for now, you are in business because you want to make a difference in this world. And you need people for that.
Product (or service): This is a creation of either tangible or intangible value intended to meet human need. All products are centred around meeting a need. Products become valuable when it can or has achieved the reason for their conception. A lesson you must learn here and now is that products, no matter how valuable they are now, will eventually become obsolete. For your enterprise to become sustainable and not become obsolete as well, there must be a constant innovation mechanism put in place to churn out new products at regular intervals. Computers started out to be a big equipment, immovable and very expensive. Today, we have tablets and smart phones which are relatively affordable. Imagine that IBM decided to stick to making super computers. by now they would already be out of business. Back in the days, we used to have Okin Biscuits, which was perhaps the most popular cookies around at that time. Today, Okin Biscuits is no longer in business. But, guess what? We have so many varieties of biscuits today from which you can choose from. Constant innovation is the soul of business. You business must keep metamorphosing to keep up with times and changes. The competition will run you out of business if you decide to be stagnant. Your customers will move next door if your products become worthless to them. Be constantly innovative, and create a structure that encourages creativity in your company.
Pounds (Capital) : This element include capital, financing and profit. It goes without saying that no business can survive without money. You need money to start, to run and keep running your business. Your business must make profit for continuity and as a reward for you hard work. First of all, my advise for starters is to start with their own money no matter how small. I believe there is no business that cannot start with a little amount. I have a dream of owning a media enterprise that will publish magazine titles, make documentaries, own a TV network, media school and so on. I really do not need much to start a magazine. What I need right now is to keep writing, save more and when the opportunity arrives, I can move to the next level. See how well you can do with your own money before you start asking your friends, family, banks, etc for loans and investments. If you cannot succeed with your own money, the indication is that you cannot with others. Start small, keep dreaming, focus on the most important and money definitely and ultimately will not be a problem. For people who have started, you will need to focus on what is important. Place yourself on salary. Don’t tie your personal spending to how much you make in your business. Create a financial structure that includes growth and expansion. Seek opportunities in investments and financing to grow your business. Above all, find ways to keep you cost low and keep your profit rising.
Plan (strategy): Planning is an integral part of any business. It is a blueprint for actions and steps to take to achieve a goal. Right from idea conception to production to customers, different set of plans must be in place to address different stages and aspects of your business. Business plan (for start up), financial plan, marketing and sales plan, company structure, future plans, etc are like your compass to get to where you want to be. Planning makes you proactive. It gives your business a certain edge over unforeseen situations. However, when you make plans, always back them up with facts. For instance, when you are writing your marketing plans, you will need to find out who and what constitute market target. You will need to know their preferences, and buying patterns. All these can only be known through feasibility studies and existing data on your subjects. Planning makes you more efficient. You will know what to do at each point in time while reducing time wasted on trial and error. Make plans, discuss them with your employees and team of advisors. Let them make suggestions. Give some allowance to flexibility as some circumstances may call for some changes in plans. Remember, plans are made to achieve a certain goal. So if your plans are not working towards that, re-evaluate your plans, make necessary changes and move on. You make not get it right at first. With time and experience, you will not what works and what will not.
Place: This is the location of your business. It is place where production and basic business activities occur. It a place where your customers, suppliers, regulators can contact you. It can also be a place where you sell your products and make sales. Where your business is located is very crucial as it should be strategic. Location can be determined by a number of factors. One of them is what you sell. If your customers are located in a particular region or part of a region. The most sensible decision is to locate your business close to them. Some other businesses may not place importance on location as their customers are in different places. Some businesses do not even require a physical location as they can conduct their activities on the Internet. Where you choose to operate from should facilitate sales and generate income for your business. Look for the most suitable place for your business. Make it a heaven for your customers, employees and even passersby. Make it a point of duty to make the place neat, desirable and friendly. Let everybody know that you mean business.
Process: This element is the how of your business. How do you run your business? How do you make your products from raw materials to the consumers. Most big corporations have what they call SOPs- standard operating procedures. They define daily activities of different parts of their businesses. It is a step by step procedural guidelines for engaging in daily operations of the company. Have SOPs for your enterprise ensures that there are standards and guidelines for operations in your business. It ensures continuity and uniformity. New employees can pick them , understand the procedures before engaging in any activities. Having them also allows for standardized approach to constant improvement of processes. What this means is that you can always look for ways to improve your business processes to ensure more efficiency and reduction of redundancies. One of the keys to sustainable and profitable enterprise is business process improvement- finding ways of doing your business better. By constantly improving your processes, you can keep your overhead low relative to your revenue. As an entrepreneur, your duty is to constantly apply your innovative instinct and aptness to seek new ways of doing your business better.
The seven elements of highly efficient business are the integral part of your business. Making them work efficiently is up to you. As a business owner, with the vision to build a vibrant and prosperous enterprise, you must constantly make these element work efficiently. Every opportunity you have to develop one element must be seized. As one improved element can trigger the improvement of other elements. Your job is already spelt out for you; make them work efficiently and see your business rise to the next level.
