“Time is the scariest resource and unless it is managed nothing can be managed”

– Peter Drucker

One of the biggest challenges in our time is the way we use time within our businesses. time is defined as a duration where all things happen, whilst business can be defined as a commercial, profitable, enterprise where goods and services are exchanged for one another or for money.

Every business requires some form of investment. Here lies the crux of the matter.: time is your most valuable asset. If you waste money, you can use time to get it back, but if you waste time, money won’t get time back.

How can saving time save money?

Successful business people will use money to save time. It’s not a modern phenomenon. In 1913 Henry Ford’s first moving assembly line for mass production reduced the time to build a car from 12 hours to 2 hours 30 minutes.

A modern day example to look at is McDonald’s. The fast food restaurant chain demonstrates a sustainable business model of automated system processes to produce food of the same quality worldwide, employing low skilled staff and making a very good profit.  This example is a utopian process model for most businesses and I wouldn’t expect your business to jump into 100 percent systemised process to save time, as it would be impractical and problematic in terms of business continuity and operations. However, most businesses could benefit from systemising in this ever increasingly technological driven economy where more and more people are expecting real time results or faster services in the expectation is to save time.

Adopting a strong stance as a business owner

The trick as a business owner is not to become entrenched in a troubleshooting mentality. You should avoid being the number one contact for your customers unless it’s a process escalation. Instead you should focus on becoming a visionary, looking at new business opportunities, providing leadership and road mapping the future of the business for growth. Over time, this can increase revenue and give you the tools to improve the business both for employees and clients.

Utilising technology to save time… and money

Another example of utilising technology to save time (and consequently, money) is in the legal sector, where there is often aheavy investment into CRM (Customer Relationship Management) and Time Capturing tools (Harvest Time Tracking). For example, users in a law firm can send automated payment reminders for invoices direct form the software for time / services, or can use software to automatically invoice clients for time the end user spends on additional work outside of the initial contract (Phone calls, meetings etc.) These tools can reducethe administrative workload of the lawyers so they can spend more time quantifiably increasing the productivity and revenue for the business.

A SYSTEMS mentality

To adopt this mentality, it’s helpful to think of the word  SYSTEMs, or “Saving Yourself Stress, Time, Energy and Money”. Although there will be an initial investment of time like Henry Ford’s building his production line or McDonald’s initial cost for bringing machines / systems to their restaurant outletsThese investments can not only save time, but improve systems and processes for a better customer experience, and employee satisfaction. It can empower others to do the work for you, and leave customers with a more consistent service. Once established, you can then roll out your methods by replicating your business model as part of business growth.

Are you ready to invest in technology?

Successful leaders will invest in people, computerised systems and other types of technology that will save them time. So, my question to you is, are you investing in resources that will save you valuable time to impact on your bottom line?

Don’t let the daunting prospect of looking to systemise intimidate you. Instead, break it down into towers of influence to your business. Most business leaders I work with start with sales and debt collection processes that will help with drive revenue and bottom line.

Make use of what time you have don’t waste it, grow it and save it and time will work for you improving your bottom line. The key to making systemisation work is to make sure your staff are properly trained and educated about the system you are implementing and will be using on an ongoing basis.

Lastly make sure you are looking at what technology can do both currently and in development in your sector. For example, a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system, programmed production, stock control, accounts, sales quoting tool, outstanding debt collecting are just a few ideas where improvements could be made.

Invest in the future so always select a system that can grow with your business to maximise your return in investment.

Make sure you manage time and not let time manage you… get in touch with Brian Doubleday today on 07703 107070 for more business growth tips.