How Good Is Your Business at Delivering?

The old saying that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link is generally accepted as true especially where we are reliant on systems, people and co-operation to achieve the end result.

 The biggest difference between systems and people is that systems and will work if they can by default if set correctly.  Human beings can be very different. 

 I recall a recent graduate complaining about sending an email to the staff requiring them to act in a certain way by a certain date, but that very few people had actually responded the way she had wanted, “despite the fact that I made it incredibly clear in my email exactly what they had to do”.

 Human beings have a freedom of action that systems do not and demands do not automatically mean co operation – often quite the opposite

 To be human is to have feelings.  To be human is to hold grudges.  To be human is to act in a less than logical fashion on any number of occasions

 One of the biggest leaks in business is often between the different departments in an organisation.

 In Department A they could be having a great day and the customer that walks in is treated to a royal service that sets up a fantastic relationship.

 Sadly in Department B things are not quite as rosy. Someone  has just been told off by the boss and the person who’s about to deal with that very same customer is feeling unhappy and unfairly treated. Enter the client.  Needless to say the second interaction is totally different to the first and has the potential to completely reverse the client’s happiness at doing business with this organisation.

 The other thing that humans have is a long memory.  There are often on-going points of discontent between sales and marketing, or sales and distribution, or management and any of the departments.

 Often people forget why there is a particular attitude towards a person in another Department or the Department as a whole.  Many conflicts continue with the reason why forgotten – all they know is that this is the way that it is.

 If you’re going to be effective in your business then you absolutely have to be able to create a team environment that starts at the management level and is worked on until it becomes the standard culture of the organisation. 

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