Rules of a quality business
Many business owners fret over documentation and how to best name and compartmentalise them - or who should have access to what and when. But there is something even more crucial for entrepreneurial success. And it’s something that underpins everything we do for our clients and how we run our daily operations. That is - our 6 Wonderful Rules of a Quality Business.
1. Keep your promises
Whether it’s an officially binding contract or a verbal agreement, it’s important to keep your promises. Nothing builds trust faster than when you demonstrate your integrity and become known as a person who delivers on their word.
2. Cash flow is king
No matter how big your business is, if you don’t have a steady and healthy cash flow, you can quickly find yourself in financial strife.
3. Never discount
Can I say that again? Never discount! For every 1% you drop in price, you have to significantly increase your sales to achieve the same bottom line.
4. Pay yourself first
Always pay yourself first to protect your livelihood as the business owner. Next, pay your employees as they’re the ones who make a positive difference in serving your clients. And only then should you pay everyone else.
5. Focus right
Regardless of whether you are a sole-trader or a multinational company, make sure your time is prioritised right by splitting your day into three business focuses: working on it, working in it, and selling.
6. Know your why
Whether you follow Simon Sinek’s model or any of the others available, it’s important to clearly know your ‘why’ so you can communicate it at every client touchpoint. Far more powerful than a lengthy vision or mission statement, a short and concise description of your ‘why’ is the best litmus test when speaking with prospective clients. Because if the opportunity is aligned with your values and with what you do, then it's an easy conversation.
Policies and procedures
Once you have the essential business rules in place, you need policies which have a broad focus and guide the business to achieve its goals and objectives. Ideally, each policy should be expressed in one paragraph or, at maximum, a single page. While there may be various ways to achieve a policy, adhering to it is the important thing. Drilling down from policies, you then create specific procedures which are step-by-step strategies and lineal workflows of how things should happen to achieve a desired outcome. While you can get bogged down in trying to account for every possible mishap, a procedure only needs to give a picture of what ideally should take place. Allowance for escalation points and variations should instead be addressed in detailed notes and work instructions which can be referred to when needed.
Bringing it all together
When you have outlined your business rules, policies, and procedures, you can then put them into an ISO 9001 framework and demonstrate to the world what a quality business you are. This is the space where quality.com.au shines, supporting our clients through this integrative process. From there you can engage a subject matter expert to help you put in the finer details. Then you can manage the ongoing continuous improvement which allows you to strengthen and refine your business model as you grow.
For more information about ISO 9001, contact us today and start the conversation.
Book a call with me now to discuss your quality journey.