Setting out your management systems will make clear what you plan to achieve, what you need to do in order to achieve your goals and the checks you put in place to monitor your performance, as well as the actions you’ll take if you fail to deliver what you’ve set out to. In simple terms, your management system might be the system you use internally to manage a particular activity or operation or it might be how your overall business is managed. Either way, setting out your management systems and making sure you have the right systems in place will help you achieve your objectives, demonstrate compliance, ensure consistency, establish best practices and set priorities.
Why bother with a management system?
Darshana Ubl, marketing and entrepreneurial guru as well as CEO of Entrevo UK, recently worked with 500 small business owners in the service industry who typically had 1-10 employees. Most of those businesses earned between £100k and £1m. She found that the reason these small businesses failed to become as profitable and scalable as they might have been was at least in part due to a lack of systems. She went on to point out that this weakness can be overcome inside 12 months if the business owner develops (among other things) the right systems. There are a number of other reasons why having the right management systems in place should be a priority:
1. Improved decision-making capabilities
First and foremost, in business, any decision you make is only as good as the information that your decision is based upon. As a result, making sure you have access to the most up-to-date, relevant and accurate information will make your decision-making process better and your business stronger. Having the right management systems in place for gathering information about your business and your competitors as well as the marketplace in general means that your business will be better positioned to make the right decisions at the right time.
2. Your business lifecycle will be more predictable
Start-ups typically go though a lifecycle that involves discovery, validation, efficiency, scaling and sustaining. The stages in this lifecycle from efficiency onwards are heavily reliant on effective systems, processes and procedures. Here’s what you might expect from putting the right systems in place:
Business is all about maximising limited resources and not about reinventing the wheel. Using tried and tested processes increases efficiency immensely;
When a small company grows rapidly, the process can be painful. Cash flow is often referred to as ‘start-up cancer’ and in some cases this term is no exaggeration. Appropriate financial management and planning systems help you predict potential issues and take proactive, remedial action before things become problematic;
As more people become involved in a business, effective processes and procedures help ensure everyone is working on their key tasks and not on administration. Working this way means that synergy can be achieved by ensuring that everyone is pulling together and singing from the same hymn sheet.
3. Your business will be more credible
Business is about credibility and official accreditation such as ISO 9001 (quality) and 14001 (environmental), whilst difficult to obtain, can greatly help when it comes to gaining the credibility you need, particularly in a competitive marketplace like technology. Peter Andrew is Head of Innovation at Alba, which is a technology business incubation centre, providing advice and support to early stage businesses.
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.