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The Role of the Chief Happiness Officer sees that the work we do truly engages us and makes us feel alive every day we do it. The Role of the Chief Happiness Officer Before we discuss the role of the Chief Happiness Officer (CHO), we should ask why the role is needed. Being happier can help to improve all areas of our lives, including at work, at home and with friends and socialising. Published on: 9 Mar 2023 Before we discuss the role of the Chief Happiness Officer (CHO), we should ask why the role is needed. Being happier can help to improve all areas of our lives, including at work, at home and with friends and socialising. Companies and governments both recognise the benefits of being happier, too. There’s even a World Happiness Report that measures happiness across 150 countries. Attitudes toward happiness are changing. Not fast, but inexorably towards a world where we can talk about it as a serious business benefit. Noting the shift in attitudes, the happiness report says that over the last decade policymakers around the world are seeing the public mood on happiness as an important objective of public policy. GDP is not a good measure of progress One way of measuring a country’s progress and success is by reference to its gross domestic product (GDP), which is basically the monetary value of everything it makes (goods and services). But that’s no longer acceptable. The World Happiness Report found that in the last 10 years, the focus on income and GDP has waned, with words like GDP appearing less often than the word happiness . Other measures are coming to the fore. As the Harvard Business Review (HBR) says, GDP wasn’t designed to assess the welfare or wellbeing of citizens . The mistake by policymakers, according to the HBR, is to treat GDP as all-encompassing. Economic prosperity measured on GDP alone allows no scope for the effects (positive and negative) on people. In fact, economic growth does not guarantee an increase in happiness at all. Even if you only associate happiness with having money, the Institute for Management Development points out that GDP ignores the relationship between economic growth and income inequality . The benefits of being happy So, the role of a CHO would seem to be a very important position indeed. The CHO is responsible for ensuring all of the multiple benefits of being happy are delivered in the workplace – and wider. There’s no shortage of academic research on the benefits of being happy . The general benefits of being happy include: Improved health Combat stress Stronger immune system Healthier lifestyle Reduced aches and pains Live longer And at work: Improved decision making Increased creativity Improved personal and professional productivity Increased customer satisfaction Higher earnings It may seem obvious to say that happiness and good health go hand in hand but it’s a life lesson many of us ignore. Ironically, we’d probably claim we’re too busy, stressed or ‘under the weather’ to find the time to sort out our happiness level. In the workplace, greater happiness equates to more successful businesses . There’s a direct link between the two. It’s no surprise that so many organisations now focus on wellbeing, mental health, inclusivity. They are taking a long, hard look at their business culture and questioning whether it is fit for purpose. What is happiness? Happiness can be defined in many different ways but how we look at it here is when a person is in a state of ‘flow’ – they are so immersed in their work and the world that they feel as one with it. Think of it like the way athletes go ‘into the zone’ in preparing to excel. It’s a well-studied mental state that helps us understand how we can reach our happiness zone . We can identify the many signs and types of happiness to take us in the right direction. Happiness and having money are often lumped together. But most people today would recognise that more money doesn’t always make you happier. Yes, you need enough to love well, but more won’t necessarily make you much happier. Happiness in a Regenerative, Ethical, Mindful (REM) world is when individuals feel that their work and life contribute towards not just a better life for themselves but their company and peers, family, community, society and planet. When you feel so connected, you can achieve high levels of self-esteem, self-respect and respect for others. It’s best to see happiness as a journey, something to aspire to be. When you do this, when you make it the goal itself, you’ll always be focusing on being happier, rather than only experiencing happiness in the moment. Maslow and happiness Abraham Maslow famously created the Hierarchy of Needs . To start, we need to feel safe, secure and needed, that we belong and have good connections with people. Maslow’s final two stages – self-esteem and self-actualisation – are where work comes to play an important part. These are stages where we realise the potential of our passions and skills. Where these passions and skills combine to create value for others. This helps to move us into a state of happiness and a state of flow, too. What makes for a good CHO? You need to be both a people person but also a big picture person; to see the implications for improved happiness to your business and wider society. Take a look at some of today’s mega-businesses – like Amazon, Google, Airbnb and SAP – and you’ll find they all have a CHO . While such an appointment is an altruistic move, there is clearly sound business logic for the role in terms of increased productivity, employee engagement and efficiency, Law firm Allsop’s CHO sees her role as being a ‘people person’ who is a conduit for communications from the top down and responsible for developing its culture. Human Resources and employee engagement specialist Hppy’s CHO sees their role as giving colleagues a voice, offering them freedom and supporting their growth. What does a CHO do? Most companies perhaps focus too much on Friday pizzas, away days and free medical and health care in their efforts to boost employee happiness. But they are missing the point. These actions, while probably appreciated, won’t necessarily make people happier. Valued, yes, but real happiness is found in the work we do. Happiness comes when the work we do truly engages us and makes us feel alive every day we do it. This is realising self-esteem actualisation. Pizzas, on the other hand, belong more to the ‘love and longing’ level in Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. A CHO should: Provide feedback to their board on employee engagement and motivation issues Create programmes that increase employee satisfaction Create awareness around human-related issues of communication, motivation and leadership Devise and run workshops to improve personal and professional productivity Ensure employees’ opinions and voices are heard Ensure company values are known, understood and are a central part of each employee’s own belief system and values See that staff have the right traits and skills for the work they are doing and provide both business and social skills development where needed Check that staff aren’t overwhelmed and merely ‘fire-fighting’ problems and issues every day as this can become demotivating Ensure there is a good positive culture that boosts personal, professional and business productivity Online workspace management company Yarooms points out that the growing importance of the CHO is a sign of the times we live in . The post-Covid world of hybrid working and an emphasis on getting our work/life balance right give the role huge relevance for businesses trying to map their way to a successful future. It’s time for every business and employee to get happy. Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations provide clarity and a clear pathway forward for you and your team. Get Started

Implementing a QMS enhances sustainability by optimising resources, ensuring compliance, engaging stakeholders, and fostering continuous improvement and innovation. Embrace Sustainability with an ISO Quality Management System (QMS) Discover how implementing a Quality Management System (QMS) can drive sustainability in your business by optimising resources, ensuring compliance, and enhancing stakeholder confidence. Published on: 4 Jun 2024 In today’s fast-evolving business landscape, sustainability isn't just a buzzword—it’s a necessity. Companies are increasingly under pressure to reduce their environmental footprint, but where to start? The answer might be closer than you think: a robust Quality Management System ( QMS ). Here’s how a QMS can propel your business towards a greener future: Efficient Resource Use A QMS emphasises process optimisation, which inherently reduces waste. Streamlined operations mean less raw material consumption and energy usage—critical steps towards sustainability. By identifying inefficiencies in production and operations, a QMS allows businesses to cut down on unnecessary resource use. For instance, lean manufacturing principles, often integrated within a QMS, focus on eliminating waste and maximising productivity. This results in significant energy savings and a reduction in material wastage, directly contributing to a lower environmental impact. Moreover, a QMS encourages the implementation of practices such as recycling and reuse within production processes. By continuously monitoring resource utilisation, companies can identify opportunities to repurpose waste materials, thus minimising the need for virgin resources. This not only supports environmental sustainability but can also lead to significant cost savings. Through initiatives like these, businesses can achieve a closed-loop system, where resources are continuously cycled through the production process, further enhancing sustainability. Regulatory Compliance Navigating the maze of environmental regulations can be daunting. A QMS ensures compliance with legal and industry standards, mitigating risks and avoiding penalties, while promoting eco-friendly practices. In the UK, businesses must adhere to a range of environmental laws, from waste management to emissions control. A well-implemented QMS can help you stay on top of these requirements by systematically monitoring and documenting compliance efforts. This not only avoids legal repercussions but also aligns your operations with best environmental practices. In addition, a QMS can facilitate the integration of international standards such as ISO 14001, which provides a structured framework for managing environmental responsibilities. Achieving certification not only demonstrates your commitment to regulatory compliance but also enhances your credibility with global partners and customers. The proactive management of environmental regulations through a QMS can help anticipate future legislative changes, allowing businesses to adapt swiftly and maintain their competitive edge. Continuous Improvement Sustainability is a journey, not a destination. A QMS fosters a culture of continuous improvement, enabling businesses to adapt and innovate in their sustainability efforts. Regular audits and feedback loops mean you're always on the lookout for greener, more efficient methods. Through a cycle of planning, executing, checking, and acting (the PDCA cycle), companies can continuously refine their processes, making incremental changes that cumulatively have a significant positive impact on the environment. Furthermore, continuous improvement processes encourage the adoption of new technologies and innovative practices that can further enhance sustainability. For example, investing in renewable energy sources or developing more efficient production techniques can drastically reduce a company’s carbon footprint. By fostering a mindset of perpetual innovation, businesses can stay ahead of environmental challenges, ensuring their operations remain sustainable and resilient in the long term. Stakeholder Confidence Transparency and accountability are key. A QMS provides a framework for reporting and communication, building trust with customers, investors, and partners. They’ll know you’re committed to sustainable practices, boosting your brand’s reputation. In today’s market, consumers and investors are increasingly eco-conscious. Demonstrating a clear commitment to sustainability through a certified QMS can differentiate your brand and foster loyalty. Detailed sustainability reports, enabled by QMS documentation, can be shared with stakeholders to highlight your efforts and achievements in environmental stewardship. Additionally, a QMS can help in establishing clear environmental goals and metrics, making it easier to communicate your progress to stakeholders. This transparency builds a narrative of accountability and proactive management, reassuring stakeholders that your company is dedicated to minimising its environmental impact. Engaging stakeholders through regular updates and sustainability reports not only builds confidence but can also attract environmentally-conscious investors, opening new avenues for funding and partnerships. Employee Engagement Sustainability thrives on collective effort. A QMS engages employees at all levels, fostering a shared sense of responsibility and empowerment. When your team is aligned with sustainability goals, the impact is profound. Training programmes and workshops, integral to a QMS, educate employees about sustainable practices and their importance. This knowledge and awareness can lead to innovative ideas and initiatives from within the workforce, further driving your company’s sustainability agenda. Moreover, involving employees in sustainability initiatives can significantly enhance job satisfaction and morale. When employees see their efforts contributing to a larger environmental goal, it fosters a sense of purpose and belonging. Companies can establish green teams or sustainability committees that empower employees to take ownership of specific initiatives, from reducing energy consumption to waste minimisation. This grassroots involvement not only drives sustainability efforts but also cultivates a culture of environmental stewardship across the organisation. Enhanced Supplier Relations A QMS doesn’t just streamline internal processes; it also extends to supplier management. By setting sustainability criteria for suppliers and incorporating them into your QMS, you can ensure that your entire supply chain adheres to your environmental standards. This not only reduces the environmental impact across the board but also encourages suppliers to adopt greener practices. Strong, sustainable supplier relationships can also lead to cost savings and increased reliability, as suppliers align more closely with your company’s values and operational goals. Furthermore, by collaborating with suppliers on sustainability goals, businesses can foster innovation and share best practices. Joint efforts in reducing carbon footprints, enhancing resource efficiency, and developing sustainable products can create a synergistic effect, benefiting all parties involved. These collaborations can also lead to the development of new, eco-friendly products and services, opening up additional market opportunities and reinforcing your company’s commitment to sustainability. Market Advantage Sustainability is becoming a key differentiator in many industries. Consumers and businesses alike prefer to engage with companies that are committed to sustainable practices. A QMS can help you leverage this by ensuring that your sustainability efforts are systematic, verifiable, and impactful. Certifications like ISO 14001 (Environmental Management) can enhance your market position, providing a competitive edge. In addition, sustainability certifications and recognitions can be powerful marketing tools. Highlighting your commitment to environmental responsibility can attract a dedicated customer base that prioritises eco-friendly products and services. Marketing campaigns centred around sustainability achievements can enhance brand loyalty and attract new customers who are increasingly making purchasing decisions based on environmental considerations. In an era where consumers are more informed and selective, showcasing your sustainability credentials can significantly boost your market appeal. Risk Management Environmental risks, such as resource scarcity, regulatory changes, and climate impacts, pose significant challenges to business continuity. A QMS incorporates risk management principles, helping you identify and mitigate these risks proactively. This preparedness ensures that your business can navigate environmental challenges more effectively, maintaining operational stability and resilience. Moreover, a proactive approach to environmental risk management can uncover opportunities for innovation and improvement. For example, anticipating regulatory changes can lead to the early adoption of cleaner technologies or processes, giving your business a competitive edge. By embedding environmental risk management into your QMS, you not only safeguard your operations but also position your company as a forward-thinking leader in sustainability, capable of adapting to and thriving amidst environmental challenges. Cost Savings Sustainable practices often lead to cost savings in the long run. Reducing energy usage, minimising waste, and optimising resource utilisation all contribute to lower operational costs. A QMS helps identify these opportunities for cost savings while simultaneously enhancing environmental performance. For example, investing in energy-efficient technologies may have an upfront cost but leads to significant savings over time, paying dividends in both financial and environmental terms. Additionally, sustainable practices can reduce costs associated with waste management and disposal. By minimising waste generation through efficient processes and recycling initiatives, companies can lower their waste handling expenses. Energy savings from implementing efficient lighting, heating, and cooling systems can also contribute to substantial cost reductions. Over time, the cumulative effect of these savings can be reinvested into further sustainability initiatives, creating a virtuous cycle of cost efficiency and environmental responsibility. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Integrating a QMS with your CSR strategy amplifies your commitment to societal well-being. Sustainable business practices contribute to the broader community and environment, showcasing your company as a responsible corporate citizen. This commitment can attract talent, as employees increasingly seek to work for companies that align with their values, and it can enhance customer loyalty. Furthermore, robust CSR initiatives supported by a QMS can lead to enhanced community relations and public perception. By actively participating in community projects, such as environmental clean-ups or educational programmes, your business can demonstrate its dedication to making a positive impact. This not only strengthens community ties but also builds a positive corporate image. In a world where consumers and stakeholders are placing greater emphasis on corporate ethics, aligning your QMS with CSR goals ensures your business stands out as a leader in both quality and sustainability. Investing in a QMS isn’t just about quality—it’s about creating a resilient, sustainable business model that benefits everyone. Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations provide clarity and a clear pathway forward for you and your team. Get Started

A Business Impact Analysis (BIA) is a systematic procedure for assessing the possible implications of a disruption to essential business operations. What is a Business Impact Analysis (BIA)? A business impact analysis (BIA) is a systematic procedure for assessing the possible implications of a disruption to essential business operations due to a catastrophe, accident, or emergency. Published on: 12 Jan 2023 The business continuity plan of an organisation must include a BIA. It has an investigative component to find any threats and vulnerabilities and a planning component to create risk-reduction plans. The result is a business impact analysis report that details the potential risks unique to the enterprise under study. Before the internet, social media, and artificial intelligence, a company could prepare a five-year business plan, develop a strategy, and then put the plan into practice. Similarly, a Business Impact Analysis might be developed to find future business continuity threats. The study might then be evaluated, risk mitigation measures developed, and then put on hold until the day a significant occurrence might necessitate their implementation. Today, controlling business disruption is business as usual, and having a disaster radar on round-the-clock is a tool every organisation needs. A firm will be thrown off track by all minor disturbances, not just one major one. By assessing possible business weaknesses, business gets a much more complete picture of their business risks and opportunities for improved business performance and how best to allocate resources today and in the event of an unforeseen and potentially catastrophic event. Awareness of the internal and external factors impacting business growth today and tomorrow improve business decision-making. Business disruption comes in many forms, whether due to competition, technology, the economy or regulation, amongst many other possibilities. Businesses seldom die from a single disruption but more commonly from mini troubles that may go unseen or unknown. When a larger, more obvious disorder occurs, this can bring the end, but it was probably not the real underlying cause of the failure. According to systemic leadership, a disruption in one area of the organisation will impact all other areas. These disruptions exist quantitatively and qualitatively and may impact the environment, employees, the larger community, and society. What Is Business Analysis? The business analysis uses IT systems, staff development, procedures, and business systems to pinpoint business problems, create solutions, and address them. Software development, process enhancements, organisational change, company transformation, and policy revisions may all be involved. The business analysis aims to reduce risk and increase the value of any change program for its constituents. They will consider all stakeholders as part of a stakeholder capitalism program when doing a business analysis that covers Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) factors and their effects on growth and profitability. This may include the rules and regulations about ESG compliance. ESG factors are becoming more and more significant to investors, employees, and customers. To maintain or boost individual and corporate productivity, they will work to maximise flow for the organisation, teams, departments, and personnel. Business analysis is determining and outlining the demands of an organisation’s operations and suggesting solutions to meet those needs. A business analyst’s job is to serve as a liaison between the technical team and the business stakeholders, ensuring that the created resolution satisfies their needs. A business analyst can offer insights that can guide decision-making and assist an organisation in achieving its objectives. They also considers the impact on stakeholders by collecting and analysing data and comments from stakeholders. Furthermore, business analysis can assist in locating new opportunities, places for improvement, and prospective growth areas and generate solutions that may result in business success, cost savings, increased revenue, and, therefore, benefits for shareholders. Overall, business analysis is essential to guarantee the long-term success of the company by bringing stakeholders’ interests and the company’s goals into alignment. Business Continuity Planning (BCP) The IT department of a corporation frequently develops a business continuity plan to reduce the risks of an unforeseen incident, like a flood or fire. It’s a proactive procedure that finds the company’s flaws and crisis-related vulnerabilities. Its purpose is to help avoid unplanned downtime and recover from it. It will go over the processes and systems that must be kept up in a crisis, like a server failure, a pandemic, or a natural disaster. The BCP must be maintained and regularly updated as it contains key information essential to the organisation’s successful operational performance. It should be tested to find any flaws so that they can be fixed and procedures updated. Its purpose: · To hasten a company’s ability to recover from an unplanned, major business incident. · Understanding potential threats to ongoing business performance and determining the necessary responses in the case of an unforeseen and unscheduled business event are made easier for a company, its directors, and senior personnel using this tool. This helps minimise any negative effects on the business’s finances and retain consumers. · Any unplanned business event will be lessened by a BCP, which will also help to maintain the company’s financial viability. · It will contain important policy details, contact information for key employees and other stakeholders, and crucial procedures to help implement any business recovery quickly and successfully. · Any single points of failure, current risk mitigation techniques, and the expertise required to recover from an incident will all be identified. BS 25999 and ISO 22301 BS 25999 and ISO 22301 are international standards for business continuity management (BCM). BCM is organising, creating, and upholding policies and procedures that businesses can utilise to lessen the effects of disruptions and go on during an emergency or catastrophe. A British standard for BCM called BS 25999 was initially released in 2007. It offers recommendations for businesses on how to set up and maintain a BCM system, including how to do risk analyses, create business continuity plans, and run tests to see how well they work. ISO 22301 eventually took the place of BS 25999. A global standard for BCM called ISO 22301 was originally released in 2012. Although it is based on BS 25999, additional international BCM standards are also included. Similar to BS 25999, ISO 22301 offers instructions for businesses on how to set up and manage a BCM system. This includes how to carry out risk analyses, create business continuity plans, and carry out exercises to evaluate the viability of those plans. It offers a more thorough approach, though, and is used everywhere. The BCM systems of organisations can be developed and implemented using the frameworks provided by BS 25999 and ISO 22301. They can also be used to verify the efficacy of a BCM system. Organisations that have earned certification following one of these standards have proven that they have implemented the best BCM practices. That shows they are better equipped to manage interruptions and carry on with business in the case of an incident or crisis. Why Complete a BIA? It might not seem vital to spend the time and use up important resources on a BIA right now. Maybe you believe you already have one, but when was it finished? If your company hasn’t changed significantly, you might believe it isn’t necessary, not business-critical, or not a top priority. You might think that an audit is the only use for it. So, these are a few justifications for finishing a business impact report: · It provides a chance to examine business processes, their interrelationships, and the IT systems utilised in those processes. · You’ll be able to identify any flaws, such as the lack of data backup or the need for a few key employees who are the only ones with the necessary system knowledge. · You may see how various departments and groups interact and how that might be enhanced. You can learn how things are done. Work frequently follows the path of least resistance, but is this always the optimal course of action or is it simply how people perceive things to be done? · Plans for important IT and catastrophe recovery are examined to see if they can improve. Compliance with regulations is verified and validated. · It may be possible to eliminate fees for things that are no longer used, such as applications, insurance, and licenses. · The organisation’s pulse is measured to see whether there is a potential danger to the resilience of the business, and critical processes, functions, roles, and departments are identified. · You leave with a much better comprehension of the business risks and prospects for increased business success. Everyone has the chance to learn more about the company they work for. Additionally, individuals appreciate when management is interested in them, their role, and the dangers involved. Negative Results Of Business Disruptions Brand and Reputational Damage It can harm an organisation’s reputation, which can cause customers, partners, and other stakeholders to lose faith in and credibility with it. This may result in a decline in sales and difficult-to-repair brand damage. Reduced or Delayed Cashflow It can result in a decrease in revenue and an increase in expenses, which can hurt an organisation’s cash flow. This may make it challenging for a firm to fulfil its financial commitments, such as paying its employees and expenses, and may result in financial trouble. Lost Sales and Income Because clients would not be able to acquire goods or services or could decide to work with a rival, business disruptions can result in a loss of sales and income. This can majorly affect an organisation’s financial performance, which can be catastrophic for small enterprises. Increased Expenses and Overheads Costs associated with repairs and recovery activities are only two examples of how business disruptions can raise expenses. This may hurt an organisation’s cash flow and profitability and make it more challenging to bounce back from the trouble. Fines and Contractual Breaches If a company cannot fulfil its commitments under contracts or laws, business disruptions may result in fines and penalties. This has the potential to be expensive and harm an organisation’s reputation. Bad feelings and impact on the business culture and operating environment can also affect relationships with suppliers and other stakeholders, staff morale, and productivity. An organisation may find it difficult to bounce back from the interruption, which may negatively affect the operating environment and corporate culture. Structural Business Impact Disruptions Include 1. Natural catastrophes can cause damage to structures, rendering them unusable. 2. Failure of IT systems, manufacturing machinery, or transportation vehicles can cause operations to be disrupted. 3. Issues with the supplier: Delivery, quality, or availability issues for goods or services might cause operations to be disrupted. 4. Power outages can cause activities to be disrupted by making it difficult or impossible to use equipment and systems that depend on energy. 5. Data loss: Operations can be hampered by the loss of crucial data, including financial, customer, or inventory information. 6. Absenteeism among employees: Excessive absenteeism can cause operations to suffer, making it challenging to finish tasks and projects. Impacts That May Affect The Business Strategy Competitor action By altering the competitive environment and influencing consumer demand for a company’s goods or services, competitor activity, such as new product launches or pricing changes, can impact a company’s strategy. Failure in marketing A business’s strategy may be impacted by a marketing failure, such as an unsuccessful advertising campaign, which lowers the demand for the company’s goods or services. Product or service failure A product or service failure, such as a recall or a technical problem, can impact a company’s strategy by decreasing consumer satisfaction and faith in the company. Declining working culture A company’s strategy may be impacted by a deterioration in the working culture within the firm since it may lower staff morale and productivity, which may result in a drop in the calibre of goods and services. Declining working environment Employee dissatisfaction and productivity can be negatively impacted by a reduced working environment, such as inadequate facilities or equipment, which can affect a company’s strategy. Increased workload and stress levels Increasing staff productivity, motivation, and contentment can hurt a company’s strategy. New directors or managers with different values Changes in organisational direction brought about by hiring new directors or managers with different values can impact a company’s strategy, which can lower productivity by confusing and unsettling staff. Typical Phases Of A Business Impact Analysis Define And Agree To The Objectives And Scope Of The BIA This stage is essential for making sure the BIA is concentrated on the business areas that are most important to the organisation and that the analysis’s findings will be beneficial to it. Senior management agrees on the objectives and scope of the BIA Preparation Of Team This step entails selecting the people and organisations in charge of carrying out the study and ensuring they have the abilities, information, and resources required to do so successfully. Additionally, it’s crucial to make sure the team members are properly trained and equipped, including with the tools and information they need to conduct the BIA. Collect Relevant Data And Information The BIA lead or team gathers the needed data from the necessary staff members, systems, and outside sources. To ensure accountability, make sure senior leaders are participating. Consider listing the following information for each process under review: process name, process purpose, process inputs and outputs, process timings, participants, pertinent data, IT systems, and effects or contributions to the business on the legal, financial, reputational, and operational levels. Information Review And Analysis To determine the potential effects of disruptions on the business, this stage entails gathering, analysing, and evaluating data on the organisation and its crucial operations. The information is then examined to ascertain how various disruptions might impact the firm and its operations. In addition to evaluating potential threats to the organisation’s reputation, brand, and long-term viability, this can also include determining the possible effects of interruptions on revenue, costs, and other financial measurements. The team will also assess how various organisational components are interconnected and dependent on one another and how disturbances in one business area may impact other areas. Business Report Creation Create the BIA report with the team, evaluate it with the contributors, and distribute it to the appropriate senior leaders. This step entails writing information that includes suggestions for addressing identified risks and vulnerabilities and summarising the BIA’s findings. An executive summary, an explanation of the BIA methodology, a list of essential business operations and possible effects, a risk assessment, and a recovery plan might all be included in the report. Recommendations Review The team will consider various potential remedies throughout the recommendations assessment to address the noted risks and consequences. Examples of these solutions include implementing new practices, guidelines, or processes, acquiring new tools etc. The team will assess each solution’s viability, cost, and advantages while considering the organisation’s resources. Ongoing Review And BIA Maintenance The BIA should be periodically reviewed and updated to ensure that the data and suggestions are still valid and pertinent. This can be done regularly, such as once a year, or in reaction to adjustments made to the organisation’s activities, including the introduction of new goods or services, modifications made to the regulatory landscape, or adjustments made to the organisation’s risk profile. Critical Success Factors For A BIA · Senior management support: For a BIA to be successful, senior management must be committed and supportive. They must recognise its significance and be prepared to offer the resources and assistance required. · Clear objectives and scope: To ensure that the BIA is focused and pertinent to the organisation’s BCM program, it is crucial to identify its goals and scope explicitly. · Skilled and experienced team: A BIA needs a group of knowledgeable, experienced persons with the skills and information required to carry out the analysis successfully. · Accurate and relevant data: For the BIA process, accurate and pertinent data is crucial. Without it, the analysis will probably be flawed, and the suggestions might not work. · Communication and stakeholder engagement: To get information and input from key stakeholders, including employees, clients, and suppliers, effective communication and stakeholder engagement are crucial. · Maintenance and Regular review: A BIA should be reviewed and updated regularly to ensure the data and suggestions it provides are still accurate and useful. · Implementation and testing: This is essential to ensuring that the organisation is ready to respond to and recover from disruptions. Disaster Recovery Planning Once the BIA is finished, an emergency response plan can be developed. Time must be spent on disaster recovery planning once the processes, procedures, systems, and data are essential for the business’s continued operation after an otherwise terrible occurrence has been identified. For instance, it is important first to comprehend how a flood or fire would likely affect clients, employees, revenue, partners, and suppliers. A disaster recovery plan can be made to restore or safeguard crucial infrastructure, applications, and data after a significant outage to save downtime. Determining recovery time goals and recovery point objectives(RPO) is a crucial component of the disaster recovery plan. Recovery time targets describe how long it should take to resume regular business operations and the associated costs and effects on the company. Furthermore, recovery point objectives discuss the potential loss of data and its impact on the company. BIA and Risk assessment Both the Business Impact Analysis (BIA) and the Risk Assessment processes are crucial in identifying and assessing potential effects on a business. They do, however, have some glaring parallels and divergences. Similarities · Identification and evaluation of potential effects on an organisation are made using BIA and risk assessment. · It is necessary to identify crucial business functions and their connections for BIA and risk assessments. · Evaluating potential effects and likelihood of occurrence is a component of both BIA and risk assessment. · Plans for mitigation and recovery are created using both BIA and risk assessment. Differences between the BIA and Risk assessment · Risk Assessment focuses on determining the likelihood and potential severity of a disruption, while BIA focuses on assessing the impact of an upset on the company. · While Risk Assessment focuses on locating potential sources of disruptions and the possibility that they will occur, BIA concentrates on finding essential business operations and their interdependence. · BIA determines the impact of disorders on the company, while Risk Assessment assesses the likelihood and potential severity of disruptions. · While Risk Assessment is used to discover and assess potential risks and vulnerabilities in the company, BIA is used to create mitigation and recovery plans to deal with the effects of disruptions. Common Challenges With Business Analysis Impact The process of doing a business impact analysis (BIA) can be difficult and complex, and there are many problems that firms frequently run into. These difficulties include: Difficulty identifying critical functions Finding the tasks that are essential to the ongoing running of the business is one of the major problems of a BIA. This can be challenging since different departments or functions within an organisation may have different viewpoints on what constitutes a critical function. Assessing a function’s criticality might be an arbitrary procedure. Lack of data Lack of data and knowledge is another frequent issue. It can be challenging to analyse the possible effects of disruptions on the business effectively and to make well-informed decisions about mitigating those consequences without precise and pertinent data. Limited alignment with organisational goals Activities related to business analysis could not necessarily align with the organisation’s broader aims and objectives, which would have an unreasonable impact. Difficulty in communicating the impact Business analysts could have trouble explaining to stakeholders how their actions would affect them, which could result in a lack of understanding and support. Limited collaboration and communication Business analysts could not have the requisite stakeholder collaboration and communication skills, which would restrict their impact. Limited knowledge and abilities Business analysts may lack the information and skills needed to conduct business analysis operations efficiently, which will have little impact. Limited time Business analysts might only have a short amount of time to accomplish business analysis tasks, which could affect the deliverables’ accuracy and thoroughness. Conclusion BIA can assist firms in creating efficient mitigation and recovery plans that lessen the effects of disruptions and help preserve operational continuity by recognising potential risks and vulnerabilities. As a result, businesses can lower their environmental impact and increase the sustainability of their operations. This enhances people’s lives by maintaining access to basic services, and secure the world’s future by minimising disruptions’ effects on the global economy and society. The entire health of the earth and society can be improved by organisations becoming more resilient, sustainable, and proactive in managing risks with the aid of BIA. Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations provide clarity and a clear pathway forward for you and your team. Get Started

Discover 50 powerful features of document management systems (DMS) that improve collaboration, security, and workflow efficiency for modern businesses. 50 Essential Document Management Features That Drive Business Efficiency Uncover the most powerful features of document management systems (DMS) that enhance collaboration, boost productivity, and streamline your business operations for a more efficient workflow. Imagine having every document at your fingertips—instantly searchable, securely stored, and effortlessly shared across your team. No more digging through disorganised folders, chasing after the latest version, or worrying about compliance issues. With the right document management features , this seamless level of control is not just a possibility but a business necessity. A well-designed Document Management System (DMS) does more than simply store files; it transforms how your business operates. From workflow automation to version control , and cloud storage to real-time collaboration , the features offered by a robust DMS can dramatically enhance productivity, improve security, and ensure compliance with industry regulations like GDPR or HIPAA . Whether you’re streamlining internal processes or managing client-facing documents, the right features can save time, reduce errors, and give your business the edge it needs in a digital-first world. In this guide, we’ll break down 50 essential DMS features that can help your organisation thrive by simplifying document management, improving collaboration, and maximising efficiency. Whether you're a small business or a large enterprise, understanding these tools can give you the power to stay organised, boost productivity, and ensure secure, compliant document handling. 1. Cloud Storage Cloud storage allows documents to be securely stored and accessed from anywhere, offering flexibility and scalability. This feature ensures that businesses can expand their storage capacity as they grow without the need for additional hardware, while providing remote access for a distributed workforce. 2. Version Control Version control helps manage document changes by tracking different iterations. Users can view, compare, or revert to previous versions, making it easier to maintain accuracy and consistency, especially in collaborative environments. 3. Document Scanning Document scanning transforms physical documents into digital formats, making them easier to store, search, and share. This feature is often integrated with Optical Character Recognition (OCR) for enhanced usability, turning scanned documents into searchable text. 4. Workflow Automation Workflow automation streamlines processes by routing documents through approval, review, or editing workflows automatically. This increases efficiency by eliminating manual steps and ensures that documents move through the organisation without unnecessary delays. 5. Integration with Third-Party Apps Integration with third-party apps like CRM or ERP systems allows for seamless data sharing across platforms. This feature reduces manual data entry and increases overall productivity by enabling different tools to communicate effectively. 6. Mobile Access Mobile access ensures that users can manage, view, and edit documents from their mobile devices. This feature is crucial for professionals who need to access important documents while on the move, adding flexibility and convenience. 7. Role-Based Access Control Role-based access control enhances security by limiting document access to authorised users. By assigning specific permissions based on roles, businesses can ensure that sensitive documents are only accessible to those who need them. 8. Electronic Signatures Electronic signatures allow users to digitally sign documents, speeding up processes and eliminating the need for physical signatures. This feature is particularly useful for remote teams or situations where quick approval is needed. 9. Metadata Tagging Metadata tagging improves document organisation by allowing users to tag files with relevant keywords or categories. This feature enhances search functionality, making it easier to retrieve documents based on specific criteria. 10. Search Functionality Search functionality is a critical feature for quickly locating documents within a system. Advanced search options, including filters based on metadata, make finding specific files more efficient, even in large document repositories. 11. File Sharing and Collaboration File sharing and collaboration features enable users to share documents and work together in real-time. This improves team productivity by allowing multiple users to view, comment, and edit documents simultaneously. 12. Real-Time Editing Real-time editing allows multiple users to make changes to a document at the same time, with updates appearing instantly. This feature enhances collaboration by ensuring that all team members are working with the most current version. 13. Data Encryption Data encryption ensures that documents stored within the system are protected from unauthorised access. Encryption both at rest and in transit provides an added layer of security, making it essential for sensitive or confidential documents. 14. Compliance Management (e.g., GDPR, HIPAA) Compliance management helps businesses meet regulatory requirements, such as GDPR or HIPAA, by ensuring that documents are stored, accessed, and managed according to legal standards. This feature is crucial for businesses that handle sensitive information. 15. Document Approval Workflows Document approval workflows automate the process of approving documents, ensuring that all necessary approvals are completed before a document is finalised. This reduces delays and ensures compliance with internal review processes. 16. Audit Trails Audit trails provide a detailed record of all actions taken on a document, such as edits, views, or approvals. This feature is essential for compliance and accountability, as it allows businesses to track document activity and ensure transparency. 17. User Permissions and Security User permissions allow administrators to control who can view, edit, or delete documents, adding an extra layer of security. By restricting access based on user roles, this feature helps protect sensitive information. 18. Document Capture and Indexing Document capture and indexing convert physical documents into digital formats and categorise them for easy retrieval. This feature is crucial for businesses that need to manage large volumes of documents and maintain an organised system. 19. Archiving and Retention Policies Archiving and retention policies ensure that documents are stored for the appropriate amount of time before being archived or deleted. This feature helps businesses manage storage costs and comply with legal or industry regulations. 20. Template Management Template management allows users to create, customise, and store document templates for various purposes, such as contracts or reports. This feature saves time by providing a consistent format for frequently used documents. 21. Multi-Device Synchronisation Multi-device synchronisation ensures that any changes made to a document on one device are instantly updated on all other devices. This feature ensures that users are always working with the most current version, regardless of which device they are using. 22. Offline Document Access Offline document access allows users to view and edit documents without an internet connection. Changes made offline are synchronised once the user reconnects, ensuring seamless document management even in areas with limited connectivity. 23. OCR (Optical Character Recognition) OCR technology converts scanned images or PDFs into searchable text, allowing users to search for specific words or phrases within a document. This feature enhances the usability of scanned documents, making them as accessible as digital-born files. 24. Customisable Workflows Customisable workflows enable businesses to tailor document processes to their unique needs. Whether it’s an approval workflow or a review process, customisable workflows increase efficiency by aligning the system with specific business operations. 25. Document Linking and Cross-Referencing Document linking and cross-referencing allow users to create relationships between documents, making it easier to navigate related content. This feature is particularly useful in complex projects where multiple documents are interconnected. 26. Digital Asset Management Digital asset management goes beyond document storage by organising and tracking multimedia files, such as images or videos. This feature is crucial for industries that rely on visual content, ensuring that all digital assets are easily accessible. 27. File Versioning and History Tracking File versioning and history tracking keep a detailed record of every change made to a document. Users can view or restore previous versions, making it easier to track edits and collaborate more effectively. 28. Automatic Backup Automatic backup ensures that all documents are regularly saved, protecting businesses from data loss. This feature runs in the background, providing peace of mind that files are always retrievable, even in the event of a system failure. 29. Collaboration Tools (Comments, Annotations) Collaboration tools, such as commenting and annotation features, allow users to provide feedback directly on documents. This improves communication and streamlines the review process by keeping all comments in context. 30. E-Mail Integration E-mail integration allows users to send, receive, and store documents directly within the document management system. This feature simplifies document sharing and ensures that important files are kept within the system for easy retrieval. 31. Document Import/Export Capabilities Document import/export capabilities allow users to easily bring documents into or export them out of the system. This feature ensures compatibility with other software tools and streamlines the process of transferring documents between systems. 32. Customisable User Interfaces Customisable user interfaces allow users to tailor the layout and functionality of their DMS to match their preferences. This increases usability by providing a personalised experience that aligns with individual or organisational workflows. 33. Drag-and-Drop File Uploading Drag-and-drop file uploading simplifies the process of adding documents to the system. Users can quickly upload multiple files by dragging them from their desktop into the DMS, making it a user-friendly and efficient feature. 34. Advanced Reporting and Analytics Advanced reporting and analytics provide insights into document usage, workflow efficiency, and user activity. This feature helps businesses make informed decisions about document management practices and identify areas for improvement. 35. Notifications and Reminders Notifications and reminders alert users when actions are required, such as document approvals or deadlines. This feature ensures that important tasks are not overlooked, improving workflow management and accountability. 36. Compliance Audit Support Compliance audit support provides tools for generating reports and logs that demonstrate adherence to regulatory requirements. This feature is essential for industries with strict compliance standards, helping businesses stay compliant. 37. API Access for Customisation API access allows businesses to customise the document management system to integrate with their existing tools and processes. This feature provides flexibility for organisations that require tailored solutions for their document workflows. 38. Cloud-Based and On-Premise Deployment Options Cloud-based and on-premise deployment options give businesses the flexibility to choose how their document management system is hosted. Whether in the cloud or on-site, this feature ensures that the system aligns with the company’s infrastructure and security needs. 39. Document Classification and Categorisation Document classification and categorisation help organise documents based on specific attributes, such as type, department, or project. This feature improves searchability and ensures that documents are stored in a logical, easy-to-navigate structure. 40. Document Preview Without Downloading Document preview without downloading allows users to view documents directly within the system, saving time and reducing unnecessary downloads. This feature increases productivity by providing quick access to document content. 41. Barcode Recognition Barcode recognition automates the process of categorising and indexing documents. By scanning barcodes, the system can instantly classify and store documents in the appropriate location, improving efficiency and reducing manual data entry. 42. Integration with CRM and ERP Systems Integration with CRM and ERP systems enhances document management by allowing for seamless data flow between business tools. This feature increases productivity by reducing the need for manual document transfers and ensuring that all systems are up to date. 43. Multi-Language Support Multi-language support ensures that the document management system can be used by teams across different regions and languages. This feature is crucial for global businesses that need to maintain consistent workflows across multiple languages. 44. Contract Lifecycle Management Contract lifecycle management automates and tracks the entire contract process, from creation to expiration. This feature ensures that contracts are handled efficiently and meet compliance requirements. 45. Disaster Recovery Support Disaster recovery support provides a backup plan for data in the event of system failure, natural disaster, or cyberattack. This feature ensures that critical documents are always retrievable, no matter what happens. 46. Image and Multimedia File Support Image and multimedia file support expands the DMS beyond text-based documents to include visual content, such as images, videos, and audio files. This feature is especially useful for industries that rely heavily on media files. 47. Custom Branding Options Custom branding options allow businesses to personalise their document management system with their own logos, colours, and branding elements. This feature helps reinforce brand identity, even within internal systems. 48. Business Process Management (BPM) Features Business process management (BPM) features enable businesses to automate, monitor, and optimise workflows within the DMS. This improves efficiency by streamlining complex processes and ensuring that all tasks are completed on time. 49. Collaboration on Documents in Real-Time Real-time collaboration on documents ensures that team members can work together simultaneously, making instant updates and improvements. This feature is key to fostering an agile, collaborative working environment. 50. Document Expiration Management Document expiration management tracks and manages the lifecycle of documents, ensuring that outdated or obsolete files are removed or archived as needed. This feature helps businesses maintain a clean and organised document system while complying with retention policies. Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations offer clarity and a well-defined pathway for you and your team to move forward confidently. Get Started

Discover how personality assessments can improve operating efficiency and operational excellence by optimising team dynamics, leadership, recruitment, and conflict resolution strategies within organisations. How Personality Assessments Can Enhance Operational Efficiency and Drive Operational Excellence Leveraging Personality Insights to Boost Team Performance, Enhance Leadership, and Drive Sustainable Operational Success. In the pursuit of improved operational efficiency , organisations are constantly seeking ways to enhance business efficiency and overall performance. One often underutilised yet highly impactful tool is personality assessment. By delving into the traits, behaviours, and preferences of individuals within the organisation, personality assessments offer valuable insights that can drive substantial improvements in business efficiency and operational effectiveness. Here’s how leveraging these assessments can transform organisational practices and enhance efficiency across various dimensions. 1. Enhanced Team Dynamics for Greater Efficiency Personality assessments provide a detailed understanding of team members’ strengths, weaknesses, and interpersonal styles. This insight allows for the strategic formation of teams with complementary skills, ultimately leading to greater business efficiency. For instance, a team composed of analytical thinkers, creative problem-solvers, and meticulous executors can tackle challenges from diverse angles and develop more effective solutions. Aligning team roles with individual strengths not only minimises conflict but also enhances collaboration, significantly boosting overall productivity. When team members understand and appreciate each other's personality traits, communication improves, and collective goals are achieved more efficiently. This synergy directly contributes to increased business efficiency and operational success. 2. Optimising Recruitment and Selection for Operational Efficiency Recruiting the right talent is crucial for driving operational excellence and business efficiency. Personality assessments offer a data-driven approach to selecting candidates whose traits align with the role requirements and organisational culture. By evaluating traits such as adaptability, resilience, and teamwork, organisations can predict potential performance and fit within the team more accurately. This approach reduces turnover rates and ensures that new hires contribute positively to operational goals from the beginning. Essentially, personality assessments help build a more capable and cohesive workforce, which directly impacts business efficiency and overall organisational effectiveness. 3. Targeted Training and Development to Enhance Efficiency Understanding employees’ personality traits enables organisations to design tailored training and development programmes. For example, employees with high levels of conscientiousness may excel in detail-oriented tasks and require minimal supervision, while those with high openness may benefit from creative problem-solving training. By aligning development programmes with individual personality profiles, organisations can enhance learning experiences, improve skill acquisition, and foster personal growth. This targeted approach ensures that training investments yield maximum returns, thereby driving business efficiency and contributing to operational excellence. 4. Effective Conflict Resolution for Streamlined Operations Conflicts are an inevitable part of any organisation, but understanding the underlying personality traits of those involved can facilitate more effective resolution. Personality assessments can reveal the root causes of disagreements and provide strategies for addressing them based on individual differences. For instance, if a conflict arises from a clash between a detail-oriented personality and a big-picture thinker, the insights gained from personality assessments can help craft solutions that accommodate both perspectives. This personalised approach to conflict resolution allows organisations to address issues more efficiently and maintain a harmonious work environment, which is essential for sustained business efficiency. 5. Enhancing Customer Relations Through Efficient Service Personality assessments extend beyond internal operations to improve customer interactions. Understanding the personality types of key customer-facing employees can help tailor communication and service approaches to better meet client needs. For example, employees with high levels of extraversion may excel in engaging customers and building relationships, while those with strong analytical traits can address complex issues with precision. By aligning roles with personality strengths, organisations can enhance customer satisfaction and drive operational success through more efficient service delivery. 6. Strategic Change Management for Operational Efficiency Navigating change is a significant challenge for organisations striving for operational efficiency . Personality assessments can aid in managing transitions by identifying how different individuals react to change. Those with high adaptability may embrace new processes readily, while others may require additional support. By understanding these dynamics, organisations can tailor change management strategies to address the specific needs and concerns of different personality types. This approach ensures smoother transitions and reduces resistance, ultimately contributing to improved business efficiency and successful implementation of new initiatives. 7. Fostering Innovation for Competitive Efficiency Innovation is vital for maintaining a competitive edge and achieving operational excellence. Personality assessments can identify individuals with traits conducive to creative thinking and risk-taking, such as openness to experience. By leveraging these individuals, organisations can foster a culture of creativity and innovation. Encouraging collaboration among diverse personality profiles can lead to novel ideas and solutions, driving continuous improvement and enhancing overall business efficiency. Conclusion Incorporating personality assessments into organisational strategies offers a powerful advantage in achieving and sustaining operational excellence. By enhancing team dynamics, optimising recruitment, targeting training, resolving conflicts effectively, and improving customer relations, organisations can unlock new levels of efficiency and productivity. Moreover, personality assessments play a crucial role in strategic change management and fostering innovation, further solidifying their contribution to business efficiency. When utilised thoughtfully, personality assessments become a catalyst for creating a more effective and successful workplace, driving operational excellence and achieving unparalleled levels of business efficiency. Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations offer clarity and a well-defined pathway for you and your team to move forward confidently. Get Started

11 benefits of award entry writing service from increased sales to customer loyalty, there are many benefits of business awards. 11 Benefits of Award Entry Writing Service Business awards aren't just a marketing opportunity. From increased sales to customer loyalty, there are many benefits of business awards. Learn more. Published on: 24 Jun 2021 Many businesses are missing out on the incredible benefits of an award entry writing service. Is your company one of them? Whether you see it as a PR exercise or you simply don’t have the resources to dedicate to the award entry submission process, there are plenty of reasons why you should enter business awards . In this article, we’ll be running over 11 incredible benefits of business awards using our award entry writing services. 1. Enjoy a Sales Boost Sure, business awards can be a costly process. You need to hire or internally source an award entry writer and gather resources, as well as cover whatever the costs involved are in attending the actual ceremony. But there’s good evidence to suggest that should you win, you’ll be easily recovering those costs and more. Research shows award-winning businesses can enjoy a sales boost of up to up to 37% . 2. Nothing in Life Comes Free, Except Marketing How often do you get the opportunity for other businesses to shout about your brand? Rarely! Business awards are a free marketing opportunity. You’ll enjoy the award company themselves talking about you, but also many other brands and customers engaging with your business and the award company. This gives you great opportunities to engage on social media and expand your reach. It’s also a great chance to create some unique, newsworthy content for your own website and social media. 3. Attract the Best Employees to Build Better Teams Employees expect more from businesses. We’ve written extensively about how we need to make work better before and all this revolves around being more people-centric. Chances are, you’re not going to win any business awards if you’re doing the bare minimum for your employees or your customers. To be an award-winning company means raising your standards and continually striving to be the best you can be. This makes you a better place to work, regardless of whether or not you win a business award. But should you win it, this can help your company stand out to potential new hires, helping you to attract the best talent. After all, who doesn’t want to brag a little about how they work for an award-winning company? 4. Boost the Morale of Your Current Employees Through Recognition It’s not just potential new employees that benefit from business awards. Another great benefit of business awards is the morale boost it can offer for your current employees if you win. Your staff get recognised for all their hard work and efforts put in to get your business to this point. A win will help assure them their efforts are recognised, not just by you, but by the wider industry and your customers. This can help motivate and inspire employees to continue doing the outstanding work they have been going forward. 5. Valuable Social Proof and Social Influence What do you do when you’re trying to figure out which business to work with or product to use? You look for evidence that others are doing just that, and that they’re enjoying the experience. It’s called social proof and it’s a psychological phenomenon that’s a powerful beast when it comes to your marketing. Just as we look for online reviews to assure us, winning business awards and displaying that achievement throughout our customer journey can have powerful positive effects on your customer journey. 6. Increase Brand Authority as a Market Leader One of the big benefits of business awards is the increased brand authority. Intrinsically linked to the concept of social proof, business awards make customers more likely to trust your brand. You’re the market-leader after all. 7. Gain an Advantage and USP Over Your Competitors Winning business awards can also make you more competitive compared to others in your field. Long gone are the days where businesses could compete on quality or price. The only thing left to compete on is customer experience. Establishing yourself as the market leader through the social proof of business awards makes you more competitive. It can be a unique selling point that your competitors simply can’t match up to, setting you apart from the rest of the market and increasing your profitability. 8. Increase Brand Awareness Through Exposure Even without a win, business awards can help increase your brand awareness. More business owners will become aware of your business and your presence in the industry. You’ll gain valuable PR opportunities throughout the promotion of the event by the award company, as well as the opportunity to network at the actual award ceremony. Of course, if you do win, you’ll enjoy increased brand awareness for long after your victory. 9. Improve Customer Retention Through Trust and Loyalty Customer loyalty isn’t dead. It’s just that customers expect more from your brand than ever before. The reality is customers will always be more likely to stay with a business they perceive as being great. Not only that, but 86% of customers say they’re happy to pay more to do so. You’ll already have benefited from your increased brand authority and competitive advantage from winning your business award. You’re the safest bet. There’s social proof for it. This increases your customer loyalty, which is great news for your business because improving customer retention can do wonders for your profitability. Research shows you’re more likely to sell to existing customers than new ones, but also that these customers are more likely to spend more on purchases. 10. Increase Profit Margins to Continually Improve All of the statistics above show that with loyal customers comes an incredible opportunity to increase your profit margins. Provided you continue to deliver an outstanding customer experience, they’ll be happy to spend the extra to stay with you. This increase in profit can be pumped right back into your business, allowing you to stay the market leader and continually out-innovate the competition. 11. But the Biggest Benefit of Business Awards is… We touched on this above, but it’s worth expanding on. You won’t win awards unless your business is actually worthy of being recognised as a market leader. By far the best benefit of being an award-winning business comes from being driven by the principles that create award-winning businesses. By this we mean, award-winning businesses are great places to work that deliver an outstanding customer experience and are continually growing because of this, not because of the awards — though they certainly don’t hurt! Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations provide clarity and a clear pathway forward for you and your team. Get Started

Discover how to embed learning into employee high-performance workflows with effective strategies that enhance employee engagement and drive organisational success. Explore the importance of contextualised learning, micro-learning, and measuring progress. Integrating Learning into Employee High-Performance Workflows Transforming employee development through embedded learning strategies for sustained success. Effective Learning and Development (L&D) initiatives are vital for the success of both employees and organisations. But what does it take to create initiatives that yield significant positive outcomes? As highlighted in a HBR article , traditional training methods often fail to yield significant positive outcomes, with many organisations struggling to demonstrate a return on their L&D investments. How to Improve Employee Engagement and Boost Productivity Why Employee Engagement Matters Employee engagement directly impacts your company’s profitability and productivity. Developing a strong employee engagement strategy is essential to gaining a competitive edge. Engaged employees drive innovation, enhance customer experiences, and contribute to a thriving organisational culture. Your employees are the link between your company and your customers. Whether they manage emails, phone calls, eCommerce platforms, or warehouse operations, their attitude and performance shape customer perceptions. Engaged employees deliver better service, fostering stronger customer relationships and loyalty. The Hidden Costs of Poor Employee Engagement Poor employee engagement can drain your business financially and culturally. It leads to: Decreased Productivity : Unmotivated employees underperform, limiting business growth. Higher Turnover Rates : Disengaged staff are more likely to leave, increasing recruitment and training costs. Increased Absenteeism : Lack of engagement often correlates with frequent absences. Reduced Innovation : Disengaged teams contribute fewer ideas and solutions. Weakened Customer Service : Low morale negatively affects customer interactions, harming your brand's reputation. Financial repercussions include higher hiring expenses, lost productivity, and diminished customer retention. Addressing engagement issues safeguards organisational success. Boosting Engagement to Enhance Customer Loyalty Engaged employees feel valued, respected, and heard. Fostering a positive workplace culture boosts morale and reduces turnover. This leads to: Enhanced Service Delivery : Motivated employees provide exceptional customer experiences. Increased Customer Retention : Satisfied employees create loyal customers. Higher Revenue : Improved service drives repeat business and higher lifetime customer value. A disengaged workforce can lead to complacency and poor performance, impacting overall team morale. In contrast, engaged employees contribute to a dynamic, collaborative environment that encourages continuous improvement. Practical Tips to Improve Employee Engagement Listen and Understand : Address why disengagement exists before attempting solutions. Identify barriers to motivation. Empower Employees : Equip staff with the authority to resolve customer issues promptly and effectively. Define Organisational Values : Establish clear behavioural expectations for staff interactions with colleagues and customers. Hire for Attitude and Fit : Prioritise mindset and cultural alignment during recruitment. Encourage Feedback : Create channels for employees to share insights and ideas. Implementing Effective Feedback Systems Feedback is valuable only when it prompts action. Develop systems that: Prioritise Listening : Actively hear employee concerns. Acknowledge Contributions : Recognise valuable feedback. Take Action : Implement meaningful changes based on employee input. By fostering an engaged workforce, your business will experience improved productivity, stronger customer loyalty, and long-term growth. Building a Culture of Learning High-performance workflows are characterised by continuous improvement and employee engagement. Robust L&D programs not only equip employees with the necessary skills to excel in their roles but also demonstrate a commitment to investing in their development. This approach strengthens company culture and enhances employee commitment. However, many organisations face challenges in demonstrating a clear return on their L&D investments. Studies indicate that a staggering 90% of the $200 billion spent annually on corporate training and development in the United States fails to deliver tangible results. The main barriers to effective L&D programs include: Learning Context: Traditional training often occurs outside the workplace, creating a gap between learning and real-world application. Time Constraints: Employees must balance their regular responsibilities with their learning commitments. Accountability: Often, the responsibility for applying new knowledge falls solely on the learner, with little ongoing support. The Solution: Learning in the Flow of Work The good news is that organisations can overcome these challenges by embedding learning into employee high-performance workflows. To facilitate this integration, the following five strategies grounded in research can help align employee development programs with key organisational outcomes, ultimately enhancing return on investment: Contextualise the Learning Learning is most effective when it occurs in the context in which it will be applied. Implementing customised training sessions tailored to specific team needs can facilitate this. For instance, initiating "learning meetings" where employees share insights from recent training and discuss their practical application within their workflows can contextualise the learning and strengthen team collaboration. Nudge, Nudge, Nudge Research has shown that small reminders can effectively encourage learning application. Organisations can implement brief, targeted nudges through email or internal communications, linking them directly to the concepts learned. These nudges should be concise, relevant, and end with a specific call to action, prompting immediate application of the learned concepts. Build in Time for Reflection Reflection is essential for reinforcing learning. Scheduling dedicated time for employees to reflect on their learning experiences encourages them to consider how they’ve applied new knowledge in their roles. Facilitating these discussions helps employees recognise the impact of their learning and strengthens their commitment to applying it. Create Micro-Learning Experiences Breaking down training content into manageable chunks can significantly enhance retention. Instead of lengthy workshops, organisations can offer micro-learning sessions that fit seamlessly into employees’ schedules. Short, focused training on specific topics will increase engagement and make it easier for employees to integrate what they’ve learned into their daily workflows. Measure Progress To accurately assess the effectiveness of L&D programs, it is crucial to track employee progress through pre- and post-assessments, as well as real-time behaviour changes. Gathering feedback on questions like, “Did you apply what you learned this week?” will provide insights into the effectiveness of training. By aggregating this data at the team or organisational level, trends and areas for improvement can be identified, ensuring that learning initiatives yield measurable benefits. Conclusion By embedding learning into employee high-performance workflows, organisations can foster a culture of continuous improvement that enhances individual performance and drives organisational success. Embracing these strategies will facilitate wise investments in people, create a more engaged workforce, and ultimately achieve operational excellence. Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations offer clarity and a well-defined pathway for you and your team to move forward confidently. Get Started

Discover how Agile Operating Models transform organisational practices to enhance flexibility, collaboration, and responsiveness. Introduction to Key Agile Operating Model Concepts Discover how Agile Operating Models transform organisational practices to enhance flexibility, collaboration, and responsiveness. This guide explores the key forces driving agile adoption, the benefits of breaking traditional hierarchies, and essential agile principles, from cross-functional teamwork to iterative improvement. Published on: 4 Jul 2024 Introduction to Key Agile Operating Model Concepts The Agile Operating Model is a transformative approach that adapts organisational practices to the principles of Agile methodology. It emphasises flexibility, collaboration, and rapid responses to evolving business needs. This innovative model streamlines processes, enhances team engagement, and enables companies to stay agile in a dynamic business landscape. The Business Context for Agile Operations In today’s fast-changing business world, organisations must remain attuned to key forces for change that impact their operations. These forces include technological advancements, shifting market dynamics, regulatory changes, and societal trends. Technological Advancements Rapid developments in technology are reshaping industries and customer expectations. Businesses need to continuously innovate, embrace emerging technologies, and enhance digital capabilities to stay competitive. Market Dynamics The competitive landscape is constantly evolving due to changing customer preferences and global economic shifts. A strategic response involves prioritising customer-centricity, adaptability, and growth opportunities. Regulatory Changes Organisations must adopt a proactive approach to compliance, embedding ethical behaviour and accountability into their culture to maintain resilience in an era of increasing regulatory scrutiny. Societal Trends With growing emphasis on environmental sustainability, diversity, equity, and inclusion, businesses should align with societal values through responsible practices and initiatives. A strategic response to these forces prioritises innovation, customer focus, compliance, and social responsibility, ensuring that organisations remain agile and well-prepared for change. Breaking Traditional Hierarchies Traditional hierarchies and siloed teams can hinder agility in leadership and decision-making. To enable adaptability, organisations must focus on cross-functional collaboration and shift from rigid roles to skill-driven contributions. This transformation fosters greater integration, transparency, and flexibility, benefiting the entire organisation. An agile organisation is characterised by small, nimble teams that collaborate across functions. These teams work together to address challenges, moving away from rigid job titles and focusing instead on skills and expertise. This shift allows for greater adaptability and innovation. By adopting an integrated approach, decision-making becomes more transparent, building trust and accountability across teams. Agile organisations serve as a model for cross-functional collaboration, inspiring similar practices throughout the business. Key Concepts of an Agile Operating Model Agility and Flexibility Traditional business models often struggle to keep pace with technological advancements, market shifts, and evolving expectations. Agile operations are designed to be flexible and adaptable, allowing organisations to respond swiftly to change and seize emerging opportunities. Cross-Functional Teams Agile organisations promote collaboration between teams from different functions, ensuring diverse perspectives and skill sets contribute to key initiatives. Cross-functional teams break silos, improving efficiency and innovation. Customer Focus Agile operating models place customers at the centre, ensuring business strategies and processes are aligned with delivering value and improving experiences. Customer feedback drives decision-making, ensuring continuous alignment with market needs. Iterative Approach Rather than long-term planning that may quickly become outdated, Agile operations focus on smaller, manageable steps that allow for continuous refinement based on feedback. This approach reduces risk and enhances adaptability. Continuous Improvement A culture of learning and experimentation helps businesses stay competitive. By embracing feedback, data-driven insights, and iterative enhancements, organisations can drive long-term success and innovation. Empowerment and Autonomy Agile organisations empower employees to take ownership of their work, set goals, and drive their development. Leaders act as coaches rather than top-down decision-makers, fostering a culture of trust and accountability. Lean Principles Eliminating waste, optimising workflows, and improving efficiency are core tenets of Agile operating models. Streamlined processes ensure resources are used effectively, delivering maximum value with minimal overhead. Transparency Open communication ensures teams understand the rationale behind decisions, fostering trust and collaboration. Transparency strengthens alignment between leadership and teams, ensuring shared objectives. Adaptive Leadership Leaders in Agile organisations champion flexibility, innovation, and collaboration. Their approach encourages a culture where teams can thrive in rapidly changing environments. Leaders facilitate problem-solving rather than dictating solutions. Performance Metrics Data-driven decision-making ensures that businesses track and improve operational efficiency, employee engagement, and customer satisfaction. Agile organisations focus on leading indicators (e.g., cycle time, deployment frequency) rather than just lagging indicators (e.g., revenue growth). Rapid Prototyping and Small Batches Agile initiatives are broken down into smaller experiments, reducing risks and enabling quicker adjustments based on real-time feedback. Incremental delivery ensures value is continuously delivered to customers. Value Stream Mapping Optimising workflows with value stream mapping ensures seamless processes, minimising bottlenecks and improving overall efficiency. By mapping end-to-end value creation, organisations can identify inefficiencies and opportunities for improvement. Feedback and Retrospectives Regular feedback loops help organisations continuously refine their strategies and improve processes. Retrospectives encourage learning from successes and failures, fostering a culture of continuous learning. Sprint Planning Short-term goal-setting and iteration cycles keep teams focused and adaptable to shifting priorities. Clear objectives within each sprint ensure alignment with broader business goals. Self-Organisation Agile teams are empowered to make collective decisions, fostering accountability and responsiveness. Decentralised decision-making improves agility and adaptability. Capability Map for an Agile Operating Model A Capability Map outlines the essential capabilities that support an Agile Operating Model, providing a structured way to visualise how an organisation can implement agility at scale. Strategic Capabilities Agile Strategy Execution – Aligning business objectives with Agile principles Market Sensing – Continuously monitoring customer and market trends Business Model Innovation – Iteratively evolving products, services, and revenue models Operational Capabilities Agile Portfolio Management – Managing initiatives with flexibility and adaptability Lean Governance – Balancing autonomy with oversight for risk management Scalable Agile Frameworks – Implementing Agile at the enterprise level (e.g., SAFe, LeSS, Spotify Model) Team Capabilities Agile Team Design – Structuring teams for cross-functional collaboration Collaboration & Knowledge Sharing – Enabling teams to learn from each other Resilience & Change Adaptability – Cultivating a mindset that embraces change Technology & Data Capabilities Digital Automation – Leveraging AI, RPA, and cloud technology to enhance agility Real-Time Analytics – Using data to inform Agile decision-making DevOps & Continuous Delivery – Ensuring seamless integration, testing, and deployment Cultural Capabilities Agile Leadership & Coaching – Supporting leaders in driving Agile transformation Psychological Safety – Creating an environment where experimentation is encouraged Agile Mindset & Behaviours – Instilling core Agile values across the organisationd to make collective decisions, fostering accountability and responsiveness. Agile Workflow: A Roadmap for Efficiency A successful Agile operating model depends on well-optimised workflows that enhance both employee experience and operational performance. Identify Core Objectives Define strategic business goals and align them with measurable outcomes such as improved efficiency, faster innovation cycles, and enhanced customer satisfaction. Conduct Skills Audits and Assess Team Capabilities Regularly evaluate skills within teams to ensure alignment with business needs and identify opportunities for growth. Create Iterative Development Cycles Address capability gaps through focused development sprints, targeted upskilling, and adaptive learning. Deploy Feedback Mechanisms Foster high-trust environments through continuous feedback loops that facilitate real-time adjustments and improvements. Iterate and Scale Successful frameworks are refined and scaled across the organisation, ensuring agility remains a core business capability. Agile workflows not only enhance operational efficiency but also contribute to a culture of adaptability, continuous improvement, and business resilience. Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations provide clarity and a clear pathway forward for you and your team. Get Started

The World Economic Forum held its annual meeting on January 16 – 20, 2023 at Davos, Switzerland to address the state of the world and discuss the priorities for the incoming year. Davos 2023 Key Takeaways The World Economic Forum held its annual meeting on January 16 – 20, 2023 at Davos, Switzerland. The World Economic Forum held its annual meeting on January 16 – 20, 2023 at Davos, Switzerland to address the state of the world and discuss the priorities for the incoming year. It offered a forum for engaging in fruitful, forward-thinking discussions and supported the development of solutions through public-private collaboration. Businesses and governments have a strategy to ‘build better’ The World Economic Forum will host a new alliance led by Swiss President Alain Berset along with 31 government ministers as well as civil society organizations and private companies. The Davos Baukultur Alliance aims to hasten the development of flourishing, sustainable communities. During the public session on Cities Rebuild, the Executive Director of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), Maimunah Mohd Sharif collaborated with business leaders in the commitment to apply the Baukultur principles which sees the entire designed living environment as a coherent whole. The Chair and CEO of Avison Young, Mark Rose, emphasized the importance of placing social value at the heart of efforts towards urban transformation . Climate action in cities must be based on nature and circularity The Mayors of Freetown, Sierra Leone (Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr), Monterrey, Mexico (Luis Donaldo Colosio), and the Lord Mayor of Melbourne (Lord Sally Capp) urged for increased funding and emphasizing nature-based solutions in fighting climate change . Leaders from the public and private sectors exchanged best practices to ensure that cities remain robust socially and environmentally in the future during the public session on Evolution of Urban Life . The World Economic Forum launched Giving to Amplify Earth Action (GAEA) – a worldwide initiative to support and expand new and ongoing public, private, and philanthropic partnerships (PPPPs). This will assist in releasing the $3 trillion in funding required annually to achieve Net Zero, stop the destruction of the environment, and restore biodiversity by 2050. The possibilities of urban life are being redefined by entrepreneurs and innovators The Global CEO of Deloitte, Joe Ucuzoglu and the Chief Impact Officer of Salesforce, Suzanne DiBianca, collaborated in their commitment to launch the World Economic Forum’s place-based UpLink innovation challenge addressing sustainable cities, the first of its kind. In order to foster creative solutions tackling environmental and social entrepreneurship, this new initiative will be tested in San Francisco and will bring together businesses, investors, and other local stakeholders. As part of the public session, Bold New Cities Take the Stage , NEOM in Saudi Arabia and Capital City of Nusantara in Indonesia came together as new greenfield cities at Davos 2023. This session aimed to reinforce collaborative learning and to bridge innovation hubs across new and traditional cities worldwide. Good governance is essential while technology accelerates urban transformation The Chairman of Arup Group, Alan Belfield highlighted that better data is needed to advance the decarbonization of buildings and cities . Meanwhile, the CEO of AVEVA Group, Peter Herweck stressed that the improvement of city services and enhance the quality of life for residents, developing nations are now harnessing smart city technologies . The State of the Connected World 2023 report was published by the Council on the Connected World of the World Economic Forum. This demonstrates the need of corporations and governments working together to address important issues linked to connected technology, ethics, security, and accessibility. A new standardized tool for smart cities was introduced by the G20 Global Smart Cities Alliance to promote the application of ethical and responsible smart city technology applying the best practices around the world. Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations offer clarity and a well-defined pathway for you and your team to move forward confidently. Get Started

Hart and Milstein's Sustainable Value Framework promotes holistic sustainability, stakeholder engagement, and value creation, facilitating long-term business success. Understanding the Sustainable Value Framework by Stuart L. Hart and Mark B. Milstein The Sustainable Value Framework by Stuart L. Hart and Mark B. Milstein offers a holistic, stakeholder-engaged approach to sustainability, emphasising value creation, innovation, and integration into core business strategies for long-term success. A Deep Dive into the Sustainable Value Framework Sustainability has become an increasingly important concept in the world of business and economics. As global environmental and social challenges continue to mount, the need for sustainable practices has never been greater. In response to these challenges, scholars and practitioners have developed various frameworks and models to help organisations navigate the complex terrain of sustainability. One such framework that has gained prominence is the Sustainable Value Framework, as conceived by Stuart L. Hart and Mark B. Milstein. This article explores the Sustainable Value Framework, its origins, key principles, and its significance in the context of sustainable business practices. The Pioneers: Stuart L. Hart and Mark B. Milstein To fully grasp the Sustainable Value Framework, it's essential to understand the minds behind it. Stuart L. Hart and Mark B. Milstein are renowned scholars and thought leaders in the field of sustainable business. Both have made substantial contributions to the development of sustainable business models and strategies. Stuart L. Hart is the Samuel C. Johnson Chair in Sustainable Global Enterprise and Professor of Management at Cornell University's Johnson Graduate School of Management. He is widely recognised for his pioneering work in the area of sustainable business strategies, particularly for his concepts of "green" and "reverse" business models. Hart has received numerous awards for his contributions to the field and is a sought-after speaker and author on sustainability and business strategy. Mark B. Milstein is another prominent figure in the realm of sustainable business. He is the Director of the Center for Sustainable Global Enterprise at Cornell University's Johnson Graduate School of Management. Milstein's research and teaching focus on sustainable business strategies, corporate sustainability, and sustainable supply chain management. His work emphasises the practical implementation of sustainability in organisations. Together, Hart and Milstein have had a profound impact on the development and understanding of sustainability in the business world. Their Sustainable Value Framework is one of their key contributions. The Sustainable Value Framework The Sustainable Value Framework is a strategic tool developed by Stuart L. Hart and Mark B. Milstein. It provides a holistic approach for organisations to integrate sustainability into their core business strategies. This framework is designed to help companies create value while simultaneously addressing environmental and social issues. It builds on the idea that sustainability is not just about reducing negative impacts but actively creating positive outcomes for society and the environment. Key Principles of the Sustainable Value Framework Holistic Perspective: The Sustainable Value Framework starts by encouraging organisations to take a holistic view of their operations and impacts. It emphasises that sustainability should be embedded in every aspect of a company's activities, rather than being treated as a peripheral issue. This approach recognises that sustainability is not just a compliance requirement but a strategic opportunity. Value Creation: The central tenet of the framework is value creation. Hart and Milstein argue that by addressing sustainability challenges, companies can create long-term value for themselves and society. This value can be financial, but it also includes social and environmental dimensions. In essence, they propose that sustainable business practices are a win-win for companies and the planet. Stakeholder Engagement: The Sustainable Value Framework highlights the importance of engaging with a broad range of stakeholders. This involves listening to and collaborating with employees, customers, suppliers, communities, and regulatory bodies to gain a comprehensive understanding of sustainability challenges and opportunities. This approach fosters better decision-making and helps build trust. Innovation: Hart and Milstein stress the significance of innovation in the pursuit of sustainable value. They argue that companies need to embrace innovation in products, processes, and business models to address sustainability challenges effectively. Sustainable innovation not only reduces negative impacts but can create new markets and revenue streams. Integration: The framework underscores the need to integrate sustainability into the core of an organisation. Sustainability should not be a standalone department or initiative but should be embedded in the company's culture, strategy, and operations. It should be a part of the organisation's DNA. Significance of the Sustainable Value Framework A Strategic Approach to Sustainability: One of the key contributions of the Sustainable Value Framework is its focus on integrating sustainability into an organisation's strategic thinking. This is in stark contrast to the traditional view of sustainability as a compliance or philanthropic effort. By emphasising that sustainability can drive innovation and long-term value, the framework encourages businesses to see sustainability as a competitive advantage. Triple Bottom Line Benefits: The framework emphasises the triple bottom line—economic, social, and environmental performance. It underscores that companies can simultaneously improve their financial performance, contribute to social well-being, and reduce their environmental footprint. This resonates with a growing awareness that businesses can no longer afford to ignore their social and environmental responsibilities. Stakeholder Engagement and Collaboration: The Sustainable Value Framework underscores the importance of stakeholder engagement and collaboration. This approach not only helps companies identify sustainability risks and opportunities but also fosters a sense of shared responsibility. Collaborative efforts involving various stakeholders are often more effective in addressing complex sustainability challenges. Long-Term Perspective: By focusing on value creation rather than short-term profits, the framework encourages a long-term perspective. This is critical in a world facing pressing environmental and social issues, as short-term thinking can exacerbate problems. Long-term thinking also aligns with the interests of investors who are increasingly concerned with sustainability. Applicability Across Sectors: The Sustainable Value Framework is not limited to a specific industry or sector. It is flexible and adaptable, making it applicable to a wide range of organisations, including corporations, non-profits, and government agencies. This versatility has contributed to its widespread adoption. Create value while addressing pressing challenges While many businesses view sustainability as a cost, Hart and Milstein argue that when we look at it through the right business lenses, sustainability can, in fact, help organisations create value while addressing pressing challenges. They call this 'sustainable value' and present it in a two-by-two matrix within their framework. The vertical axis of this matrix represents time, with the present at the bottom and the future at the top, while the horizontal axis represents the organisation, with an internal perspective on the left and an external perspective on the right. Hart and Milstein propose that most businesses generate value in the four quadrants defined within this matrix. Starting with a straightforward business perspective, without considering sustainability, the authors describe the following: Lower Left Quadrant (Internal and Near Term): In this quadrant, value is created by managing costs and reducing risk within the organisation. It's about efficiency and cost reduction. Lower Right Quadrant (External and Near Term): Here, maintaining legitimacy and enhancing reputation with external stakeholders is key to value creation. Building credibility with stakeholders is essential. Upper Left Quadrant (Internal and Future): Businesses create value by innovating and repositioning themselves in response to changing conditions. This involves continually developing products and services of the future. Upper Right Quadrant (External and Future): Addressing external dimensions of future performance, such as charting a growth path and trajectory, creates value by tapping into new markets or offering innovative services. These four quadrants represent one way to understand how businesses create value for their shareholders. Now, let's apply a sustainability overlay to this business lens: Lower Left Quadrant: Engaging employees to find ways to reduce waste and use resources efficiently can significantly lower operating costs, reduce risk, and engage the workforce. Lower Right Quadrant: Engaging with the value chain to develop products stewardship and extend the life and value of products and services can enhance reputation and legitimacy, ultimately creating more value. Upper Left Quadrant: Applying a sustainability lens can drive innovation and reposition the business to develop sustainable competencies and identify skills, products, and services required in a resource-constrained society. Upper Right Quadrant: Charting a sustainability vision for the future and communicating it clearly can facilitate competitive imagination, provide guidance on organisational priorities, and identify new markets and unmet needs. Businesses can use this framework to evaluate their activities in each of these quadrants, identifying imbalances and opportunities for action. By developing a set of initiatives to balance their portfolio of activities, they can create new value while addressing sustainability challenges. This is Hart and Milstein's Sustainable Value Framework, a valuable tool for businesses looking to embed sustainability into their strategy. Conclusion The Sustainable Value Framework, developed by Stuart L. Hart and Mark B. Milstein, offers a compelling approach to sustainability in business. By emphasising the creation of value, engagement with stakeholders, innovation, and integration into core strategies, this framework has become a guiding light for companies looking to navigate the complex landscape of sustainable business practices. As the world continues to grapple with environmental and social challenges, embracing the Sustainable Value Framework can help organisations not only survive but thrive in the age of sustainability. It is a powerful reminder that doing well and doing good can go hand in hand. Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations offer clarity and a well-defined pathway for you and your team to move forward confidently. Get Started

United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals The United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals seek a balance between social, environmental and economic priorities, they are a call for action by all countries – poor, rich and middle-income – to promote prosperity while protecting the planet. Published on: 9 Mar 2023 The United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals seek a balance between social, environmental and economic priorities, they are a call for action by all countries – poor, rich and middle-income – to promote prosperity while protecting the planet. Boosting Business Performance Through SDG-Aligned Sustainability Plans Incorporating business sustainability plans aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) can significantly enhance business performance. These plans encourage organisations to address global challenges, such as climate action, resource efficiency, and social equity, fostering resilience and innovation. By aligning with SDGs, businesses can identify growth opportunities, attract eco-conscious consumers, and strengthen their reputation. For instance, prioritising SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) can lead to cost savings through waste reduction and efficient resource use. Similarly, focusing on SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth) can improve employee satisfaction and productivity, reducing turnover. Integrating sustainability into core strategies often uncovers untapped value, boosting competitiveness while mitigating risks associated with regulatory changes and environmental impacts. Moreover, these efforts build trust among stakeholders, attracting investments and partnerships. Businesses that embed sustainability within their operations not only contribute to a better world but also secure long-term success and profitability. SDG1 End Poverty in all its forms everywhere Globally 6-700 million people live in extreme poverty. These are people who are dying from poverty. In Poverty you become ill, you can’t think straight, you can’t work, so you’re trapped, it’s a vicious downward cycle. But poverty exists in develop countries, people who are earning less than the minimum wage for example. So addressing poverty is less about addressing low income as it is the causes of poverty, lack of education, peace, access to food and water, mental health, equality. Other SDGS are help here, SDG2 Zero Hunger, SDG3 Health and Wellbeing, SDG6, Clean water and Sanitation Three take aways 600-700 million people live in extreme poverty, a downward spiral you can’t escape. Solving poverty is less about income than the cause of poverty, other SDGs are there to help Charities like UNICEF and world Vision help to address the causes of poverty. One big idea Universal Basic Income or a living wage where everybody irrespective of income receives a basic minimum wage to ensure everybody canfeed and support themselves. It’s not means tested, nobody need feel ashamed in the receive it. SDG 2 The global initiative of Zero Hunger aims to end hunger and malnutrition. The Zero Hunger initiative aims to end hunger by 2030, as part of the Sustainable Development Goals. According to the United Nations, nearly 690 million people were hungry in 2019, up by 10 million from 2018. Food waste is a global problem that has significant economic, social, and environmental impacts. A staggering one-third of all food produced globally is wasted, resulting in approximately 1.3 billion tons of waste each year. This waste not only contributes to greenhouse gas emissions, but it also has social implications, as millions of people worldwide suffer from hunger and malnutrition. The biggest sources of food waste include households, food service, and retail sectors. Three take aways Over 2 billion people lack regular access to safe, nutritious, and sufficient food. Hunger and malnutrition are responsible for about 45% of deaths of children under five years old. The COVID-19 pandemic has further exacerbated hunger, with an additional 130 million people at risk of starvation. One big idea An excellent strategy to reduce food waste is establishing a “food-sharing” system, allowing individuals or organisations to donate excess food to those requiring it. This can be facilitated through a mobile app or website that connects individuals or businesses with surplus food to local food banks. SDG 3 Ensuring good health and well-being for everyone worldwide. The SDG initiative promotes “Good Health and Wellbeing” for individuals of all ages, across the globe. According to the World Health Organisation, in 2019, there were an estimated 7.8 million deaths due to air pollution, making it the leading environmental risk factor for premature death and disease. Three take aways In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on global health, with over 250 million confirmed cases and over 5 million deaths reported worldwide. Despite progress made in recent years, maternal mortality remains a significant challenge, particularly in developing countries. In 2019, an estimated 295,000 women died during and following pregnancy and childbirth, with most of these deaths occurring in sub-Saharan Africa and Southern Asia. Non-communicable diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes, are responsible for many deaths worldwide, accounting for 71% of all deaths in 2016. One big idea Understanding the importance of mental health and how to maintain it should be incorporated into school curriculums. By doing so, students will be equipped with the knowledge and skills needed to take care of their mental health and support others who may be struggling. This is a necessary step towards achieving SDG 3 and ensuring “Good Health and Well-being” for individuals of all ages. SDG 4 Ensure that every single person has access to education of the highest quality. According to the UNESCO Institute for Statistics, in 2020, around 258 million children and youth were out of school, of which around 64 million were of primary school age, 69 million were of lower secondary school age, and 125 million were of upper secondary school age. Three take aways The global literacy rate for adults (aged 15 years and above) is estimated to be 86.3%, according to the United Nations. However, there are significant variations among regions and countries. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the education of over 1.6 billion learners globally, according to UNESCO. School closures and the shift to remote learning have widened the education gap and raised concerns about learning loss. Girls continue to face barriers to education in many parts of the world. According to UNESCO, around 132 million girls were out of school in 2020, and in some countries, girls are more likely than boys to drop out of school or not enroll in the first place. One big idea A global campaign is necessary to enable girls to achieve their full potential despite various obstacles they encounter, including societal expectations and stereotypes. By challenging these biases and promoting gender equality, we can empower girls to speak up and develop leadership skills. This campaign would strive to ensure that every girl has access to education and healthcare, regardless of their socioeconomic background or geographic location. SDG 5 To empower women and girls to ensure gender equality around the world. Globally, women earn only 77 cents for every dollar earned by men, according to the World Economic Forum’s 2021 Global Gender Gap Report. This is a shocking figure and shows gender equality for women at work is still a significant challenge around the world. Women are underrepresented in the labour force, with a global labour force participation rate of 47.2% compared to 74.2% for men, according to the International Labour Organisation. Additionally, gender inequality can have broader societal impacts, such as reduced economic growth, increased poverty, and decreased social cohesion. Three take aways As of 2020, only 25% of parliamentarians worldwide were women, and women held only 22% of ministerial-level positions. Approximately 12 million girls are married each year before the age of 18, according to UNICEF. According to the World Health Organization, 1 in 3 women worldwide experiences physical or sexual violence at some point in their lifetime. One big idea To allow women to earn the same as men is to implement pay transparency policies, which require companies to disclose the salaries of all employees, including their gender and race. This can help to identify, and address pay disparities and ensure that women are being paid fairly for their work. SDG 6 To ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all by 2030 Globally, 2.2 billion people lack access to safe drinking water, and 4.2 billion people lack access to safely managed sanitation services. The UN have ascertained that Women and girls are disproportionately affected by the lack of clean water and sanitation, as they are often responsible for collecting water and are at risk of harassment and sexual violence while doing so. Imagine undertaking a long, and often arduous journey, and not being safe while collecting basic resources. Three take aways Every year, 361,000 children under the age of five die due to diarrhoea, which is largely caused by poor sanitation and hygiene. In developing regions, 80% of wastewater is discharged untreated into the environment, polluting rivers, lakes, and oceans. By 2050, at least one in four people are projected to live in a country affected by chronic or recurring shortages of fresh water. One big idea We need to enable local communities to take charge of their own water and sanitation needs by providing them with the necessary resources and training. Community-based solutions could include building rainwater harvesting systems, constructing wells, installing water filters, and promoting hygiene education. Decentralised solutions can also help to ensure that water and sanitation services are tailored to local needs, are cost-effective, and can be easily maintained over the long term. SDG 7 This goal is focused on ensuring that everyone has access to energy services that are affordable, dependable, and sustainable by 2030. Access to modern and affordable energy services is critical for achieving sustainable development and improving the lives of people around the world. However, despite significant progress in recent years, there are still many disparities in access to energy services between developed and developing countries. Around 789 million people worldwide still lack access to electricity, and 2.8 billion people rely on traditional biomass for cooking and heating purposes. Three take aways Around 2.8 billion people still rely on traditional biomass for cooking and heating, which is associated with indoor air pollution and negative health impacts. Despite significant progress in the deployment of renewable energy technologies, fossil fuels still make up much of the world’s energy mix, with coal being the most significant contributor to global CO2 emissions. The renewable energy sector has seen substantial growth in recent years, with global renewable energy capacity reaching 2,799 GW by the end of 2020 . Investing in renewable energy infrastructure is a key strategy for achieving SDG 7. Aim to ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for all. Achieved by investing in renewable energy infrastructure, governments and private sector organisations can promote the use of clean and sustainable energy sources, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and mitigate the impact of climate change. SDG8 Sustained and inclusive economic growth is necessary for achieving sustainable development. Global unemployment increased by 33 million people between 2019 and 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic has caused widespread business closures, disrupted global supply chains, and reduced consumer demand, leading to job losses and increased unemployment rates around the world. Three take aways In 2020, an estimated 8.8% of the global working hours were lost, which is equivalent to 255 million full-time jobs. The global youth unemployment rate was 13.1% in 2020, which is three times higher than the adult unemployment rate. In 2020, an estimated 71% of the world’s workers were employed in the informal economy, which is characterised by low wages, poor working conditions, and limited social protections. One big idea Providing education and skills training programs can help individuals develop the skills and knowledge needed to access better paying jobs and improve their economic opportunities. This can also benefit businesses by providing them with a more skilled and productive workforce. Governments, non-governmental organisations, and the private sector can all play a role in investing in education and skills training programs, such as vocational training, apprenticeships, and adult education programs. These programs can be tailored to meet the specific needs of different populations, including women, youth, and vulnerable groups, and can also be integrated with other initiatives to promote entrepreneurship, innovation, and job creation. SDG 9 Encompasses three important aspects of sustainable development: infrastructure, industrialisation, and innovation. This goal recognises the importance of industrialisation and innovation in achieving sustainable development and the need for resilient, adaptable, and sustainable infrastructure. Increasing access to affordable, reliable, and modern energy services and enhancing industrialisation while promoting innovation in all sectors. The achievement of this goal is critical in ensuring that everyone has access to decent work and economic opportunities, which are essential for achieving sustainable development. Three take aways As of 2018, only 42% of the global population had access to the internet. (Source: International Telecommunication Union) In 2019, the global renewable energy sector employed over 11 million people, an increase of 1.5 million from the previous year. In 2019, only 30% of developing countries had access to digital payments, which can help promote financial inclusion and economic growth. One big idea Promote sustainable and resilient infrastructure development. This can be done by investing in the development of sustainable infrastructure, such as renewable energy systems, energy-efficient buildings, and sustainable transportation networks. It needs to be inclusive and accessible to all. This means considering the needs of marginalised and vulnerable communities, such as those living in poverty or in remote areas and providing access to essential services such as healthcare and education. SDG 10 Goal adopted in 2015 to reduce inequality within and among countries by addressing discrimination, exclusion, and economic disparities through policies and actions. In 2020, income inequality was at a decades-long high, with the top 1% owning 43% of global wealth. Despite progress, people with disabilities face significant barriers to full societal participation, such as limited access to education, healthcare, and employment opportunities. Three take aways As of 2021, an estimated 8.6% of the world’s population (or around 700 million people) lived in extreme poverty, defined as living on less than $1.90 a day. In many countries, women and girls continue to face significant barriers to accessing education, healthcare, and economic opportunities. For example, globally, women earn on average 23% less than men, and they are also more likely to work in low-paying jobs and in the informal sector. Racial and ethnic inequalities also persist in many countries. For example, in the United States, Black and Hispanic workers earn on average around 30% less than White workers, and they are also more likely to be unemployed or underemployed. One big idea Implement progressive tax policies. An advanced tax system is designed to ensure that those who earn more pay a higher percentage of their income in taxes than those who earn less. This can help reduce income inequality by redistributing wealth from the wealthiest individuals to those less well off. SDG 11 Aims to create Sustainable Cities and Communities that are safe, resilient, and inclusive. Over half of the world’s population lives in urban areas, and this number is projected to increase to two-thirds by 2050. This emphasises the need to develop sustainable and resilient cities. Three take aways Most of the world’s population does not have access to adequate housing. In 2020, around 1.8 billion people were estimated to be living in inadequate housing. Air pollution in cities is a significant health risk, with over 90% of the world’s urban population breathing polluted air. In 2018, 2 billion people did not have access to safe drinking water, with many living in urban areas. One big idea Invest in sustainable transportation systems to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, ease traffic congestion, and promote safer and more efficient mobility. This can include building bike lanes, pedestrian walkways, and public transportation systems that are affordable, accessible, and powered by clean energy. By prioritising sustainable transportation, cities can not only reduce their environmental footprint but also improve the quality of life for their residents by providing them with safer, more efficient, and affordable transportation options. SDG 12 To enhance economic and social well-being while reducing the environmental impact of economic activities. In addition to the environmental and social impacts of food waste, it also represents a significant economic loss. The economic cost of food waste is estimated to be around $1 trillion per year globally, with losses occurring at every stage of the food supply chain, from production to consumption. This loss affects not only the food industry but also the wider economy, including governments, businesses, and consumers. Three take aways E-waste is the fastest-growing waste stream globally, with an estimated 50 million metric tons generated in 2019 alone. In 2019, global greenhouse gas emissions from the consumption of energy, including from the production of goods, reached a record high of 38.0 GtCO2, with industry accounting for approximately 40% of these emissions. Over 80% of the world’s wastewater is discharged back into the environment without being treated or reused, leading to water scarcity and pollution. One big idea One idea for SDG 12 is to promote the circular economy. This is a regenerative system aimed at minimising waste and maximising resource use. This can be achieved through initiatives such as reducing packaging waste, promoting reuse, and recycling, and encouraging the use of sustainable and biodegradable materials. SDG 13 To take urgent and significant action to combat climate change and its impacts. Global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions have increased by over 50% since 1990, with carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions accounting for around 80% of total GHG emissions. This increase in emissions is mainly due to human activities, such as burning fossil fuels for energy, deforestation, and intensive agriculture. It is a major contributor to climate change and is the focus of SDG 13’s efforts to combat climate change and its impacts. Three take aways In 2019, the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere reached 410 parts per million (ppm), the highest level in over three million years. 2020 was one of the three hottest years on record, and the past six years (2015-2020) have been the hottest six-year period on record. Climate change is affecting weather patterns, leading to more frequent and severe natural disasters. In 2020, there were 110 disasters related to weather and climate, resulting in 8,200 deaths and $210 billion in economic losses. One big idea A strategy could be to promote renewable energy sources and energy efficiency through policies that encourage the adoption of technologies such as solar and wind power and incentivise the development of new efficient technologies. Additionally, reducing emissions from transportation, industry, and buildings can also contribute to achieving SDG 13, by promoting public transportation, electric vehicles, and energy-efficient building designs and technologies. SDG 14 Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas, and marine resources for sustainable development. Marine and coastal ecosystems provide essential resources and services to people worldwide. These include food, tourism, transportation, and climate regulation. In addition, marine and coastal biodiversity supports the livelihoods of millions of small-scale fishers, indigenous peoples, and coastal communities. However, these ecosystems are under significant threat from human activities such as overfishing, pollution, coastal development, and climate change. Three take aways More than 90% of global fish stocks are either overfished or fully fished, indicating the need for sustainable fishing practices. Every year, an estimated 8 million tons of plastic waste end up in the oceans, causing harm to marine life and ecosystems. Ocean acidification, caused by the absorption of excess carbon dioxide by seawater, is occurring faster than at any time in the past 300 million years and negatively impacts marine life. One big idea One approach is to create Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) to preserve and manage marine and coastal ecosystems and biodiversity sustainably. This can be achieved by implementing policies and regulations to limit damaging human activities in specific areas, such as overfishing, pollution, and habitat destruction. Encouraging sustainable fishing practices and supporting small-scale fisheries can also contribute to ensuring the longevity of marine ecosystems and the livelihoods of those who rely on them. SDG 15 Protect, restore, and promote the sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) estimates that around 1 million plant and animal species are at risk of extinction, with many facing extinction within decades if action is not taken. Three take aways Deforestation continues at an alarming rate, with an estimated 10 million hectares of forest lost each year, according to the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO). Land degradation affects around one-third of the world’s total land area, leading to decreased productivity and loss of biodiversity, according to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). Illegal wildlife trade is a multi-billion-dollar industry that threatens the survival of many species, including elephants, rhinos, and tigers. One big idea SDG 15 can be realised by advocating sustainable land use and forest management practices. To do this, it is essential to establish policies and regulations that safeguard forests and other ecosystems and encourage community based forest management and restoration initiatives. Encouraging agroforestry and sustainable agricultural practices can reduce deforestation and land degradation and create economic opportunities for rural communities. Adopting a landscape approach to land use and forest management can contribute to achieving other sustainable development goals, including poverty reduction and biodiversity conservation. SDG 16 Promoting peaceful, just, and inclusive societies. Violence and conflict have continued to be a significant challenge in many parts of the world, affecting both developed and developing countries. In addition to the loss of lives, these conflicts often lead to the displacement of millions of people, exacerbating the humanitarian crisis. It is essential to address the root causes of these conflicts, including political, social, and economic factors, to prevent their recurrence. Three take aways Corruption: According to the World Economic Forum, corruption costs the global economy more than $2.6 trillion per year, and it is estimated that more than $1 trillion is paid in bribes annually. Access to justice: About 5 billion people (or 2/3 of the world’s population) do not have access to justice, with women, children, and vulnerable groups being the most affected. Freedom of expression: According to Reporters Without Borders, journalists are being subjected to growing censorship and repression, with more than 60 countries rated as “bad” or “very bad” in terms of press freedom. One big idea Encouraging transparency and accountability in governance can be achieved by implementing open data initiatives, protecting whistleblowers, and ensuring public reporting on government spending and decision-making processes. This fosters better awareness among the public about government actions, allowing them to hold leaders accountable for their decisions. Ultimately, this helps to combat corruption, increase confidence in institutions, and ensure the efficient and effective use of resources. SDG 17 Strengthen global partnerships and cooperation to support the achievement of all the other SDGs. SDG 17 aims to enhance the implementation of sustainable development and revive the global partnership towards this goal. Despite some progress, there is still a significant amount of work that needs to be done to ensure sustainable development implementation. Three take aways In 2020, foreign direct investment (FDI) flows fell by 35% due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This decrease was particularly sharp in developing countries, where FDI flows declined by 30%. The global average tariff on agricultural products was 18.8% in 2019, which is more than three times higher than the average tariff on non-agricultural products (5.9%). This makes it difficult for small scale farmers in developing countries to access international markets. n 2020, the World Trade Organisation estimated that trade in goods and services would decline by 9.2% due to the COVID-19 pandemic. One big idea One potential solution to support SDG 17 is to create a worldwide platform that encourages and facilitates partnerships between multiple stakeholders for sustainable development. This platform would enable governments, civil society organisations, the private sector, and other interested parties to share their best practices, align their efforts, and pool resources to achieve the SDGs. It could offer a range of services, including matchmaking to pair organisations and individuals with complementary skills and expertise and provide training, mentorship, and other capacity-building support to help organisations develop the skills and knowledge necessary to participate effectively in partnerships. 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How Does Organisational Structure Impact Profitability? How Does Organisational Structure Impact Profitability? Organisational structure refers to the way a company arranges its various functions, departments, roles, and reporting relationships to achieve its goals. It defines how different parts of the organisation are organised, coordinated, and controlled. Organisational structure plays a significant role in shaping a company's profitability, but it's also closely tied to the operating model and the behaviours cultivated within the company. The way a company is organised—how its various departments and functions are structured—has a direct impact on its ability to generate profits. The operating model, which defines how an organisation delivers value, works in tandem with the structure, influencing everything from decision-making to customer satisfaction. Decision-making and coordination Organisational structure determines how decisions are made, who makes them, and how information flows within the company. A well-designed structure, aligned with the operating model, ensures effective coordination and communication across departments. This alignment enables timely decision-making, reducing delays that could otherwise hinder responsiveness to market changes, customer demands, and competitive pressures. In terms of organisational behaviour, clear communication channels foster a culture of accountability and decision-making at every level. Efficient decision-making processes lead to quicker responses to changes, enhancing the company's ability to drive profitability in a fast-moving market. Efficiency and Productivity The structure of an organisation directly influences the efficiency and productivity of its workforce. Clear reporting lines, well-defined roles, and streamlined workflows within an operating model help eliminate redundancy and maximise resources. Organisational behaviour, like proactive collaboration and a culture of continuous improvement, ensures that teams work seamlessly toward common goals. By removing bottlenecks, optimising resource allocation, and minimising friction between departments, a well-structured organisation can significantly enhance productivity, reduce operational costs, and, in turn, improve profitability. Innovation and Adaptability Certain organisational structures foster innovation and adaptability, critical components for long-term profitability. Flat hierarchies and decentralised decision-making empower employees across different levels to contribute ideas and make decisions. This autonomy can lead to faster innovation, which is crucial for staying ahead of competitors. A key aspect of organisational behaviour here is a mindset that encourages risk-taking and continuous learning. By enabling flexibility and creativity, these structures ensure that the company can adapt quickly to shifts in market trends or customer preferences—thereby gaining a competitive edge and bolstering profitability. Smart Operations Smart operations are an integral part of both the organisational structure and the operating model. By creating interconnected, efficient workflows that align with the company’s strategic goals, smart operations break down silos and promote cross-functional collaboration. This holistic approach fosters data-driven decision-making and continuous optimisation. When organisational behaviour emphasises transparency, agility, and performance measurement, companies can achieve operational excellence, enhance efficiency, and ultimately increase profitability through smart operations. Customer Focus and Satisfaction An organisational structure that aligns with a customer-centric operating model can significantly enhance customer satisfaction. For example, creating cross-functional teams or dedicated customer-focused departments enables a holistic approach to meeting customer needs. This alignment not only helps understand the customer’s journey better but also streamlines the delivery of value across touchpoints. Organisational behaviour that emphasises empathy, responsiveness, and a relentless focus on customer outcomes ensures that companies build stronger relationships, retain loyal customers, and generate repeat business, all of which contribute to profitability. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Effective organisational structures support robust customer relationship management (CRM) systems that are essential for fostering customer loyalty. Structures that integrate CRM into the operational model ensure seamless communication and data sharing across departments. Organisational behaviour focused on relationship-building, long-term value creation, and customer service excellence helps develop deeper connections with customers, leading to repeat business and increased profitability. Cross-Functional Teams The use of cross-functional teams, supported by an appropriate organisational structure, fosters greater coordination and holistic decision-making. These teams bring together diverse perspectives and expertise, driving innovation and efficiency in project execution. In terms of organisational behaviour, the collaborative culture encouraged by these teams breaks down silos, facilitates knowledge sharing, and accelerates problem-solving, all of which help streamline operations and improve profitability. Customer-Centric Structure Aligning the organisation’s structure around customer needs is key to a customer-focused operating model. By designing the structure to support customer-centric initiatives—such as dedicated customer service departments or product teams—companies can create a more responsive, personalised experience. Organisational behaviour that prioritises empathy, customer insights, and agility ensures that the company can meet and exceed customer expectations, leading to higher satisfaction, stronger loyalty, and improved profitability. Cost Management and Control Organisational structure plays a significant role in cost management and control. Centralised structures may provide tighter control over costs through standardised processes, enabling economies of scale. Conversely, decentralised structures offer autonomy to individual units, allowing them to make decisions based on local market conditions. The right structure, based on the operating model, balances control with flexibility, ensuring that cost-saving initiatives align with strategic goals. Organisational behaviour focused on accountability and cost-conscious decision-making can help optimise resources and enhance profitability. Enhanced Communication Effective communication within an organisational structure is a cornerstone of operational efficiency and profitability. Communication flows more freely in well-structured organisations, facilitating the exchange of ideas and information across departments. Organisational behaviour, such as active listening, transparency, and collaborative problem-solving, ensures that communication channels remain open and effective. This not only improves coordination but also enhances decision-making and teamwork—critical factors for driving profitability. Clear Roles and Responsibilities Well-defined roles and responsibilities within the organisational structure help avoid confusion and duplication of efforts, thus enhancing operational efficiency. By ensuring that everyone knows their specific duties, the company can streamline operations and reduce bottlenecks. Organisational behaviour that reinforces accountability, performance standards, and self-management ensures that tasks are performed effectively, contributing to higher productivity and profitability. Efficient Resource Allocation The design of an organisational structure influences how resources are allocated across the company. A well-structured organisation ensures that human, financial, and technological resources are distributed optimally, reducing waste and inefficiency. Effective resource allocation, aligned with the company’s operating model, is key to enhancing operational efficiency and, ultimately, profitability. Organisational behaviour that prioritises resource optimisation and thoughtful planning can maximise the impact of every resource spent. Performance Measurement Organisational structure can facilitate effective performance measurement, ensuring that the company stays on track to achieve its profitability goals. By clearly defining roles and establishing metrics for success, organisations can measure progress and make adjustments when necessary. Performance measurement within the structure helps identify areas for improvement, optimising profitability through continuous evaluation and adaptation. Organisational behaviour focused on results and continuous improvement ensures that the company remains aligned with its strategic goals. Effective Talent Management The structure of an organisation plays a critical role in talent management. A clear organisational structure provides career pathways, professional development opportunities, and systems for recognition—all of which help attract and retain top talent. Organisational behaviour that promotes leadership development, employee engagement, and work-life balance can enhance employee satisfaction and productivity, contributing to the overall profitability of the company. Innovation and Creativity Matrix or network organisational structures can promote innovation and creativity by allowing for more fluid communication and collaboration across departments. These structures break down barriers between teams, encouraging a free flow of ideas. Organisational behaviour that encourages experimentation, creativity, and risk-taking ensures that employees are empowered to innovate, leading to the development of new products, services, or processes that can drive profitability. Scalability and Growth A well-designed organisational structure supports scalability and growth by allowing the company to adapt to increased demand, expanded operations, and new markets. An operating model that is flexible and scalable ensures that the organisation can adjust its structure as it grows, avoiding the inefficiencies that often accompany expansion. Organisational behaviour that embraces change and encourages proactive planning ensures that the company can scale efficiently, contributing to long-term profitability. Risk Management A structured approach to risk management is vital for protecting profitability. Whether through a formal risk management department or embedded into the operating model, organisational structures help identify, assess, and mitigate risks. Organisational behaviour focused on risk awareness, contingency planning, and proactive management ensures that the company can respond quickly to potential threats, safeguarding its profitability. Collaboration and Knowledge Sharing Organisational structures that promote collaboration and knowledge sharing foster a culture of continuous learning and innovation. By encouraging cross-functional teams and open communication, the structure supports knowledge flow and problem-solving. Organisational behaviour that values cooperation and shared success creates a work environment where innovation thrives, driving profitability through new solutions and efficiencies. Conclusion The effectiveness of an organisational structure depends on the company's specific goals, market conditions, and strategic priorities. Integrating both the operating model and organisational behaviour into the structure design ensures that the company can achieve its profitability goals through improved coordination, innovation, customer focus, and efficiency. A well-aligned structure creates a strong foundation for success, fostering growth, adaptability, and resilience that will help the company navigate the complexities of modern business environments. Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations offer clarity and a well-defined pathway for you and your team to move forward confidently. Get Started

Discover how businesses can navigate volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity (VUCA) by integrating ESG principles, sustainable innovation, and conscious capitalism for long-term succes Embracing VUCA: How Businesses Can Thrive in a Rapidly Changing World Discover how businesses can navigate volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity (VUCA) by integrating ESG principles, sustainable innovation, and conscious capitalism for long-term succes Published on: 8 Sept 2022 The business landscape has undergone a seismic shift in recent decades. We live in an interconnected age where change is swift, constant, and unpredictable. Technological advancements, social media, smartphones, and global events such as the 2008 financial crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the ongoing Ukrainian conflict have intensified uncertainty and turbulence. In this environment, people are searching for stability and predictability. The term that best encapsulates today’s business climate is VUCA – an acronym for Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, and Ambiguous. What is VUCA, and Why Does it Matter? The concept of VUCA originated at the United States Army War College after the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001. It was used to describe the evolving and unpredictable global security landscape. Today, VUCA is widely applied in business to understand the complexities of modern markets. Volatile – Rapid, unpredictable change with unknown durations. Uncertain – A lack of clarity about the present and future. Complex – Multiple interconnected factors contribute to chaos. Ambiguous – A lack of clear answers or obvious paths forward. Companies that embrace the principles of agility, adaptability, and innovation are better equipped to navigate this unpredictable terrain. The Fourth Industrial Revolution and Global Warming: Twin Forces Shaping the Future The Fourth Industrial Revolution, driven by automation, AI, and digitisation, is fundamentally altering industries and societies. However, this technological boom coincides with mounting environmental challenges. Industrialisation and fossil fuel consumption have significantly contributed to rising carbon emissions, driving global warming and climate change. Fossil fuels account for approximately 65% of human-generated greenhouse gases, fuelling industries, transportation, and electricity. As deforestation accelerates to make way for urban expansion and agriculture, the natural balance of carbon sinks is disrupted, intensifying the crisis. How Industrialisation Impacts Society and Mental Health Since the Industrial Revolution began in 1760, global income levels and populations have surged. However, with rapid growth has come increased stress, mental health issues, and a relentless pursuit of wealth. The desire for bigger houses, new cars, and promotions often takes precedence over personal well-being. Studies show that economic growth, measured by Gross Domestic Product (GDP), does not directly correlate with happiness. The World Happiness Report highlights that while GDP tracks tangible goods and services, it overlooks factors like mental health, community, and creativity. A balanced approach that values human experience alongside economic output is essential. Rethinking Capitalism: Building a More Inclusive and Sustainable Future Capitalism has driven innovation, alleviated poverty, and improved living standards globally. However, it has also widened inequalities and contributed to environmental degradation. To address these challenges, initiatives such as the Council for Inclusive Capitalism and Conscious Capitalism are redefining success by prioritising sustainable growth, social equity, and ethical leadership. The Role of ESG in Shaping Better Business Practices Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) criteria are transforming investment landscapes. Investors are increasingly screening companies based on their environmental impact, social responsibility, and governance practices. By aligning with ESG principles, businesses mitigate risks, attract ethical investors, and contribute to long-term societal benefits. Notable Examples: BP’s 2010 Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill – ESG failures cost billions and damaged reputations. Volkswagen Emissions Scandal – Governance lapses led to financial losses and public trust erosion. Creating a World Improvement Programme: The Path to Global Sustainable Development In 1992, world leaders gathered in Rio de Janeiro for the Earth Summit , resulting in Agenda 21 , a global initiative for sustainable development. Today, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development outlines 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to combat poverty, reduce inequalities, and tackle climate change. Businesses can play a vital role in achieving these goals by: Reducing carbon footprints Investing in renewable energy Promoting employee well-being and diversity Supporting local communities Organisations Leading the Way Forum for the Future – Accelerates the transition to a sustainable world by partnering with businesses and governments. Business Roundtable – Advocates policies that promote economic opportunity and job creation in the U.S. Council for Inclusive Capitalism – Drives inclusive growth and sustainable development. Conclusion: A Call for Conscious Growth and Sustainable Innovation As the world grapples with VUCA environments, the need for conscious capitalism, ESG integration, and sustainable innovation has never been greater. Businesses must shift their focus from short-term profits to long-term value, prioritising people, the planet, and prosperity for all. By embracing these principles, organisations can not only survive but thrive in an era of uncertainty, contributing to a more equitable and resilient future. Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations provide clarity and a clear pathway forward for you and your team. Get Started

Business consistency helps your business operate more productively and profitably. Learn how to improve business consistency with our 10 expert tips. 10 Ways To Improve Business Consistency Additional revenue and profit will be derived from the improvements in how your business is run, its increased efficiency and the associated success you will garner. Published on: 6 Jun 2019 Post Summary: Employee engagement is recognised as vital to a business’s productivity according to the Chartered Institute of Personnel Development. Effectively trained staff are more motivated and happier. Business inefficiencies can cost up to 30% of revenue and confusing your customer with poor customer experience will lose sales. Remote working offers significant increases in business productivity. Effective ways to communicate and collaborate are essential to driving business productivity Why improve business consistency? Improving the consistency of your service delivery in your business translates directly onto your bottom line. Additional revenue and profit will be derived from the improvements in how your business is run, its increased efficiency and the associated success you will garner. However, to achieve the prosperity that your company and its employees richly deserve, you might need to make a few tweaks to how you operate and the systems you currently use. 1. Why employers are responsible for employee consistency One of the most crucial aspects of improving business productivity comes from your staff. If they are engaged, motivated, valued and allowed an opinion they will be more invested in the prosperity of the company and will work harder and more effectively to ensure the success of your organisation. Effectively trained staff are more motivated and happier. So how can you effectively engage your employees? Firstly, by being an effective manager. Giving your employees a voice so that they can relay their concerns and be confident that they will be listened to. Secondly, by empowering your staff to make the decisions that they need to make to improve your customer’s experience and help retain them over the long term. And finally, motivate them to continually improve their own productivity and effectiveness and recognise their achievements. 2. Employee training and development boosts consistency When your employees understand the job that they do, from reasons behind their role to the technical skills they need to develop to be effective, they will be engaged, motivated and productive. Employee engagement is recognised as vital to a business’s productivity according to the Chartered Institute of Personnel Development By providing regular in-house training and development to your staff you will not only be facilitating their ability to perform their role, you’ll be increasing their job satisfaction, improving efficiencies in the job processes, raising motivation and morale and lowering employee turnover. Succession training and development is vital. If your employees know that they’ll be given the opportunity to progress within the company and they will be developed to allow them to take on additional responsibilities, they’ll strive to succeed will consequently be more productive and engaged. 3. How to identify business inconsistencies Business inefficiencies can cost up to 30% of revenue. Every business, irrespective of size, suffers from inefficiencies that impact on its bottom line and the productivity of its staff. The skill comes from rooting out these inefficiencies, from the obvious to the hidden and obscure, to make your business more streamlined and a less frustrating place to work. When you want to begin the process of streamlining and improving the way you run your company a great starting point is to have detailed conversations with the people at the sharp end – your employees. They work, day in day out, with the processes that you currently have in place and will be able to offer valuable insights into ways of increasing business consistency and ironing out any bugs. As an owner or manager having a ‘there must be a better way’ mindset is essential. Taking the time to look carefully at each department and ask yourself if there would be a better way of operating, what it is and then making the necessary changes. 4. Inconsistent customer experience will lose you sales In addition to looking at how your internal processes work to overcome inconsistent service delivery, put yourself in your customers’ shoes to see how easy it is for them to do business with you. If your customers are finding your website confusing to navigate and give up before they place an order, your online user experience needs attention. As an increasing number of product research and purchase decisions are being made on smartphones and tablets, would an app simplify their buying experience and take pressure away from your tele sales team? 5. Automate the tedious tasks to improve consistency Artificial intelligence and robotics are becoming increasingly common in today’s workplace and they are having a positive impacton business productivity. Automating tedious, repetitive and mundane tasks as the dual benefit of freeing up your employees to do tasks that require critical thinking or to improve your customer’s experience and boosting the motivation and morale of your employees, which will also drive an increase in productivity. 6. Remote working – proven to improve staff consistency Remote working offers significant increases in staff productivity. If you want your business to be more productive, then looking at remote and flexible working might be the way forward. When Best Buy introduced a flexible work programme 65% of its employees reported being more productive working from home and 64% said they would sacrifice pay to be able to work remotely. Job satisfaction and employees feeling valued are important parts of business productivity. Tech behemoth’s Facebook and Google truly understand how to incentivise their employees to achieve greater productivity with perks. You don’t need to provide massage rooms, nap pods or free haircuts but i nvesting in your staff in a small but meaningful way will certainly improve morale and drive productivity. 7. How to improve consistency within teams working together. An important part of improving the productivity of your business is simplifying the ways that your employees collaborate with each other. Whether this is a simple as having a company Google account so that your employees can offer input or edit documents and spreadsheets in Google Docs and Google Sheets to formal project management software, the time savings can be impressive. Trello is an inexpensive collaboration tool that allows the entire team to see what needs to be completed on a project and review tasks that have been assigned to them. Usefully, it also integrates seamlessly with apps your team is probably already using such as Dropbox, Evernote, and Google. 8. Tools to make consistent communication a cinch Easy communication between departments and remote offices is as important as easy collaboration. Slack, a messaging app allows communication and collaboration between teams, company-wide or just members of a specific project. It also allows for voice and video calls if needed and will integrate with all the apps you already use. Other communications options include Skype, Zoom and Basecamp. 9. Interpersonal conflict and how to deal with it The flipside to improving business productivity happens when a company doesn’t have effective conflict resolution procedures in place. Conflict at some point is inevitable and if it is left unresolved can impact on the productivity of the team or business. Addressing the situation head on, calmly and professionally is key to getting beyond the issue and back to work. Defining what is acceptable behaviour in the office can help avoid conflict but when it happens it is important that it is dealt with calmly and effectively, to maintain a productive environment. Good communication is key in discovering the issue and addressing it to avoid losing key staff due to ineffective management. 10. Other workplace issues impacting on service consistency Conflict can have a negative and corrosive impact on the atmosphere in an office but other workplace issues can be equally destructive if not identified and dealt with. I nadequate training can lead to unnecessary errors that take time to correct and lack of support from line managers can lead to confusion and poor task management if an employee has no idea what needs prioritising. Leading on from inadequate support is unrealistic expectations of what one person can achieve in a given time and this can be equally demotivating and lead to stress and anxiety. To avoid all of these issues, the key is good communication. If you are aware of your team’s capabilities, have a training schedule in place to address knowledge gaps and are in regular contact with them so they know what is required and they don’t get into a situation where they are overwhelmed, they will be able to work more effectively. Summary Improving business consistency and business productivity isn’t a single task that will magically transform your business, but a combination of a number of areas that need to be addressed to get your business productivity to where you’d like it to be. Your most important asset is your staff, look after their needs to ensure they’re motivated and productive and you can only succeed. Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations provide clarity and a clear pathway forward for you and your team. Get Started

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Discover how Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) can transform goal setting, boost team alignment, and drive measurable business success. Learn how to define effective OKRs and align them with your strategy. The Power of OKRs: Setting Goals That Drive Success A Simple Yet Powerful Goal-Setting Framework to Align Teams, Measure Progress, and Achieve Meaningful Business Outcomes What is an OKR? An OKR (Objectives and Key Results) is a goal-setting framework that defines objectives and tracks measurable results. It helps create alignment and engagement around clear, meaningful goals. Originally introduced and popularized in the 1970s at Intel, OKRs have since spread throughout technology companies and beyond as a way to help teams stay focused and accountable. When you want to achieve something, anything, your desires are based on a preferred outcome. It’s a simple, basic human concept developed at an early age. One way to frame it is: I will ________ as measured by ____________. This is how John Doerr explained objectives and key results (OKRs) in his book Measure What Matters . While the concept is simple, the business world is complex, with many moving parts. However, by adhering to simple principles, big results can manifest. Research shows that employees are more engaged and productive when they have a clear idea of what their team is trying to achieve and, more importantly, why it matters. "When employees perceive their jobs as high in task significance, they display higher job performance."— The Journal of Applied Psychology OKRs are a refinement of the widely used practice of Management by Objectives (MBO). The key difference is that OKRs promote a more collaborative process rather than a top-down approach. Peter Drucker, who first popularized MBO, suggested that managers set employees’ objectives based on overarching company goals. In contrast, OKRs encourage teams to take high-level objectives and refine them to suit their specific roles. Adopting OKRs is like introducing a universal language of results within an organisation. Once embraced, this shared understanding brings unparalleled clarity, making decision-making more straightforward and empowering teams to align their efforts with broader strategic goals. For those unfamiliar with OKRs, it represents a fundamental shift in thinking. Rather than simply tracking the completion of tasks, it focuses on evaluating the tangible outcomes and business impacts those tasks are intended to deliver, ultimately measuring the value created. This shift encourages a more strategic approach, where success is measured not by activity, but by the actual value delivered in advancing the organisation’s objectives. With OKRs, the focus moves from a “doing” mentality to a “delivering” mentality, ensuring that every action taken contributes meaningful value toward achieving the overarching strategy. The OKR Process It’s more useful to think about the "OKR process" than just focusing on individual objectives and key results. Static goals that aren’t regularly reviewed can quickly become stale and meaningless. OKRs work best when combined with a regular process of tracking progress, adapting to changes, and celebrating achievements. Defining OKRs OKRs have two key components: Objectives – Memorable, qualitative descriptions of what you want to achieve. Objectives should be short, inspirational, and engaging. They should motivate and challenge the team. Key Results – A set of metrics that measure progress toward the objective. For each objective, you should have two to five key results—more than that can be overwhelming. Your key results should be: Specific and measurable Time-bound Tracked regularly If you can only measure success after two years, it’s not an effective key result. Examples of Objectives As Stephen Covey wrote in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People , “Begin with the end in mind.” This fits perfectly with identifying objectives. Some high-level objectives include: Improve customer satisfaction Increase recurring revenue Scale system performance Serve more customers efficiently Reduce data errors in critical systems While high-level objectives are useful, they should also be actionable. An objective like "be profitable" is too broad—it doesn’t provide clear direction. Instead, frame objectives in terms of achievable milestones within a set time period, allowing teams to reflect, adapt, and stay aligned. Examples of Key Results Key results focus on measurable outcomes rather than the actions taken to achieve them. For example, let’s say the objective is Reduce the number of data errors in the system . A common mistake: Key Result: Install the latest software release Why is this ineffective? Because there’s no way to track whether the software update actually reduced errors. Instead, a better approach would be: Reduce data quality errors reported to the support desk by 50% Decrease the number of unfulfilled orders due to data issues by 30% Reduce customer-reported order errors by 40% These key results provide clear, measurable targets that indicate success. Aligning OKRs with Business Strategy When setting OKRs, ensure they align with your company’s mission, vision, and core values. Where OKRs define the what and how , your business vision should reinforce the why . How to Use OKRs for Business Improvement OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) are an effective framework for driving business improvement by aligning teams around specific goals and measurable outcomes. Here's how they can be applied: Clarifying Focus and Alignment : OKRs provide clarity by breaking down high-level business goals into specific, measurable objectives. This ensures that everyone in the business is working towards the same vision, from leadership to individual contributors, which helps avoid misalignment and wasted effort. Driving Accountability : The "Key Results" component of OKRs specifies the measurable results needed to achieve each objective. This creates clear accountability, where everyone knows exactly what success looks like and how their contribution impacts the business’s overall progress. Encouraging Continuous Improvement : OKRs are typically set on a quarterly basis, encouraging regular review and adjustment. This frequency allows businesses to assess what's working, identify bottlenecks, and adjust strategies swiftly, fostering a culture of continuous improvement. Fostering Agility : Since OKRs are designed to be ambitious yet achievable, they encourage innovation and stretch goals. If something isn't working, teams can quickly pivot their approach without waiting for long-term planning cycles, improving adaptability in a changing market. Enhancing Transparency and Communication : With OKRs, all team members can see the company's high-level objectives and how their work ties into those goals. This transparency builds trust and improves communication across departments, leading to more cohesive efforts and fewer misunderstandings. Measuring Progress and Outcomes : One of the core strengths of OKRs is that they focus on results, not just activity. By tracking progress on key results, businesses can easily evaluate the effectiveness of their initiatives and make data-driven decisions to refine their improvement efforts. Getting Started with OKRs A practical way to introduce OKRs is to start with three or four objectives for the entire year, set by leadership. Then, each department or team can define related objectives for each quarter that contribute to the broader company goals. This approach ensures that every team’s efforts are aligned with the company’s long-term success. By breaking big goals into smaller, trackable steps, businesses can stay agile, continuously improve, and ultimately drive greater impact. The Smart Way to Implement OKRs: Why Gradual Rollout Wins Implementing Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) can be a game-changer for business performance. They align teams, clarify priorities, and drive measurable outcomes. However, the enthusiasm to transform often leads businesses to implement OKRs company-wide too quickly, resulting in confusion, resistance, and underwhelming results. Here’s why a gradual rollout is the smarter strategy. 1. Minimise Disruption and Confusion OKRs introduce a new way of thinking about goals and performance. If everyone is expected to adapt simultaneously, it can overwhelm teams, disrupt workflows, and dilute focus. A gradual rollout allows for incremental change, giving teams the space to understand and integrate OKRs without derailing existing operations. 2. Learn and Adapt in Real Time No framework fits perfectly from day one. Rolling out OKRs gradually provides the opportunity to learn from real-world application. Early adopters can identify what works, what doesn’t, and why. This feedback loop helps refine the process before scaling, ensuring a more tailored and effective approach for the wider organisation. 3. Build Internal Champions Gradual implementation allows you to cultivate internal champions—people who understand the value of OKRs through firsthand experience. These champions can mentor others, share success stories, and create organic buy-in. Change driven from within is often more sustainable than top-down mandates. 4. Align with Organisational Culture OKRs thrive in cultures that value transparency, accountability, and continuous improvement. If your organisation isn’t fully there yet, a phased rollout helps bridge the gap. You can align OKR practices with your cultural nuances, gradually shifting mindsets and behaviours without creating friction. 5. Avoid Overcomplication Implementing OKRs across multiple teams at once can lead to overcomplication—too many objectives, conflicting priorities, and inconsistent practices. Starting small keeps things simple. You can focus on high-impact areas, ensuring clarity and coherence before expanding. 6. Demonstrate Quick Wins Quick wins boost morale and validate the process. A gradual rollout enables teams to showcase early successes, proving the value of OKRs in action. These wins build momentum, making it easier to scale the framework with confidence and enthusiasm. How to Roll Out OKRs Gradually Pilot with a Few Teams: Start with departments open to change or facing clear performance challenges. Gather Feedback: Regularly review what’s working and adjust accordingly. Scale Strategically: Expand to other teams based on readiness and capacity. Provide Ongoing Support: Offer training, resources, and coaching as needed. Celebrate Successes: Highlight achievements to reinforce the benefits of OKRs. OKRs are powerful, but their success hinges on thoughtful implementation. By rolling them out gradually, you give your organisation the best chance to adapt, learn, and thrive. Remember, it's not about how fast you implement—it's about how effectively you embed OKRs into the fabric of your business. How to Write Great OKRs OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) are powerful tools for driving focus, alignment, and measurable growth. But what separates great OKRs from the rest? It’s all about clarity, simplicity, and alignment with your business’s unique needs and cycles—whether you're focused on short-term priorities or long-term goals. The Basic OKR Formula: I will [objective] as measured by [key result] via [initiatives]. This simple template helps you and your team see the goal, the measurement, and the path clearly. Here’s how to break it down: 1. Crafting an Inspiring Objective The objective is the specific goal you’re aiming to accomplish. It can be personal, team-focused, or organisation-wide. Ask yourself: What’s the meaningful improvement we want to achieve? How do we define success in this area? Your objective should be ambitious yet achievable, providing motivation and a clear direction. 2. Defining Measurable Key Results The key results are the metrics that show your progress toward the objective. Aim for 3–5 key results per objective, ensuring they are: Specific: Clear enough that everyone understands what success looks like. Measurable: Use data or defined milestones to track progress. Time-bound: Set deadlines for completion or regular reporting. Assign ownership to ensure accountability for each key result. 3. Identifying Strategic Initiatives Initiatives are the core activities that will drive your key results. Ask yourself: What actions will have the biggest impact on achieving these outcomes? Are these activities aligned with our strategy? Limit initiatives to 3–5 per OKR to stay focused on what truly matters. Great OKRs don’t just measure success—they help create it. Keep them simple, aligned with your goals, and adaptable to your business’s evolving priorities. When done right, OKRs take the guesswork out of growth, making every effort count. OKR Best Practices for Business Success Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) are powerful tools for aligning teams, driving focus, and tracking measurable progress. To get the most out of them, it’s all about thoughtful implementation. 1. Set Clear, Inspiring Objectives Your objectives should be ambitious, concise, and motivating. They need to provide clear direction while inspiring teams to push beyond their comfort zones. 2. Make Key Results Specific and Measurable Key Results should be outcome-driven, not task-based. Ensure they are specific, quantifiable, and easy to track, giving your team a clear vision of what success looks like. 3. Define the Type: Committed vs. Aspirational OKRs Committed OKRs are realistic goals that teams agree can be accomplished within a set period. They represent clear, achievable targets. Aspirational OKRs are stretch goals designed to push teams beyond known limits. It’s okay if they aren’t fully achieved—they encourage growth and innovation. 4. Align with Organisational Goals Ensure your OKRs connect directly to the company’s broader mission and strategic priorities. This alignment keeps everyone focused on what truly matters and helps secure team buy-in. 5. Encourage Team Engagement OKRs work best when teams are actively involved. Encourage participation in the OKR-setting process, ensure everyone understands the ‘why’ behind the goals, and create space for regular feedback to identify areas for improvement. 6. Be Transparent and Keep Everyone Informed Visibility is key. Share OKRs openly across teams so everyone understands how their work contributes to the bigger picture. Regularly review and report progress, celebrating wins and making adjustments when necessary. 7. Take an Iterative Approach OKRs aren’t set in stone. Be patient—mastery comes with practice. Review them regularly, learn from outcomes, and refine your approach over time to continuously improve performance. OKRs aren’t just about hitting targets—they’re about continuous improvement, clarity, and driving meaningful outcomes. When done right, they take the guesswork out of growth. What is the Difference Between an OKR and a KPI? In the world of business performance, terms like OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) and KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) often pop up. While they’re both used to track and measure success, they serve different purposes and are key to driving results. So, let’s break them down and explore how they differ. 1. Purpose and Focus OKRs : These are goal-setting frameworks that help align efforts with broader organisational objectives. OKRs consist of an Objective (what you want to achieve) and Key Results (the measurable outcomes that indicate progress towards the objective). The primary focus is on strategic direction and aligning teams towards common goals. KPIs : Key Performance Indicators are metrics that measure how well an organisation is performing in a specific area. They focus on the monitoring of performance over time, helping businesses keep track of ongoing results, and often reflect operational success or failure. 2. Timeframe OKRs : OKRs are typically set for a defined period, often quarterly or annually. They are aspirational and should push teams to stretch beyond their usual performance levels. KPIs : KPIs are often ongoing and are measured continuously. They tend to be more steady, tracking regular performance metrics such as sales, customer satisfaction, or employee engagement. 3. Scope and Use OKRs : These are big-picture , often challenging goals meant to inspire and drive growth. For instance, an OKR might be, “Increase customer engagement by 30% in the next quarter,” with key results measuring engagement through metrics like app usage, customer feedback, and response rates. KPIs : These are specific performance indicators that track the effectiveness of a particular business function or process. A KPI could be something like “Achieve 95% on-time delivery rate” , or “Reach $100,000 in sales this quarter.” 4. Alignment and Strategy OKRs : OKRs help ensure that everyone in the organisation is working toward the same broader vision. They're used to align teams and set a clear strategic direction for growth and change. KPIs : KPIs tend to focus on individual or departmental performance. They can help track whether operations are running smoothly or if specific business processes need attention, but they don’t necessarily align teams to a larger strategic goal. 5. Flexibility OKRs : OKRs can be more flexible, especially when progress isn’t going as planned. Teams can adjust their key results or methods to achieve the objective, learning and iterating as they go. KPIs : KPIs are often fixed metrics, and they serve as benchmarks. If a KPI isn’t met, it could signal an issue that needs to be addressed, but KPIs themselves are not usually altered frequently. 6. Drive for Change vs. Monitor Progress OKRs : OKRs are about driving change —they should challenge teams to push beyond their comfort zones and think innovatively. KPIs : KPIs are about monitoring progress towards goals. If an organisation hits its KPIs, it means things are running as expected. The Bottom Line In short, OKRs and KPIs are complementary, but they are not the same. OKRs are goal-oriented and strategic, driving teams towards significant achievements. KPIs are operational and performance-based, focusing on the ongoing health of the business. Together, they help organisations stay on track and move forward with purpose, ensuring that the strategic vision (OKRs) is realised through the effective tracking of key operations (KPIs). So, while OKRs set the direction, KPIs measure the journey. Both are crucial to creating high-performance workflows and achieving business success. 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Learn how to effectively implement the OKR cycle, from crafting clear objectives and measurable key results to tracking progress and reflecting on outcomes for continuous improvement. Mastering the OKR Cycle: Crafting, Sharing, Locking, Tracking, Grading, and Reflecting Learn how to effectively implement the OKR cycle, from crafting clear objectives and measurable key results to tracking progress and reflecting on outcomes for continuous improvement. When discussing OKRs (Objectives and Key Results), each phase plays a vital role in ensuring clarity, alignment, and continuous improvement. Below is a breakdown of each phase: Crafting: Define clear, ambitious objectives aligned with the overall strategy of the organisation. These should inspire action and progress. Develop specific, measurable key results that clearly demonstrate progress toward the objective. These should be outcomes-focused and quantifiable. Collaborate with teams to ensure buy-in and alignment. Engaging relevant stakeholders early on ensures everyone understands the goals and is committed to achieving them. Sharing: Communicate the OKRs to all relevant stakeholders within the organisation. Sharing OKRs across the company promotes transparency and understanding. Cascade OKRs down to different team levels to ensure alignment. This ensures that all levels of the organisation are working toward the same overarching goals and that there’s clarity on expectations. Locking: Finalise the OKRs after feedback and adjustments, marking them as the official goals for the cycle. Once the OKRs are locked, they become the guiding targets for the upcoming period. At this stage, all necessary tweaks are made to ensure the OKRs are clear and realistic, and the team is committed to executing them. Tracking: Monitor progress regularly on key results using data and metrics. Frequent tracking ensures you stay on top of how things are progressing and highlights where attention is needed. Conduct check-ins to discuss progress and identify potential roadblocks. Regular check-ins allow for early intervention if something is going off track. Grading: Evaluate the achievement of each key result at the end of the cycle. This typically involves a scoring system (e.g., percentage or color-coded system) to assess how much progress has been made. Assess overall performance against the objectives. Grading the OKRs helps quantify success and identifies areas for improvement. Reflecting: Analyse what went well, what could be improved, and what lessons were learned from the OKR cycle. This reflective phase is crucial for gaining insights into the effectiveness of the OKRs. Discuss adjustments for future OKRs based on the reflections. The goal is to improve the OKR process continually, making each cycle more effective than the last. Key Points About OKRs: Focus on outcomes : OKRs emphasise the desired results rather than just activities or tasks. Ambitious but achievable : Key results should challenge teams while remaining attainable to keep motivation high. Regular review and feedback : Continuous monitoring, feedback, and check-ins are essential for staying on track and making adjustments if necessary. Alignment across teams : Effective OKRs align individual and team goals with the broader organisational strategy, ensuring everyone is working towards common objectives. Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations offer clarity and a well-defined pathway for you and your team to move forward confidently. Get Started

Creating Green Growth and a Green Economy Creating Green Growth and a Green Economy In terms of financial wealth, global GDP has increased significantly over the past few decades, resulting in rising living standards for millions of people worldwide. Published on: 4 Apr 2024 Move beyond sustainability to a regenerative, green economy We are living in an era of unprecedented prosperity , technological advancement, and global influence. In terms of financial wealth, global GDP has increased significantly over the past few decades, resulting in rising living standards for millions of people worldwide. In addition, technological advancements in medicine, communication, transportation, and energy have significantly improved quality of life and greater convenience and efficiency. Humans have achieved unprecedented political and economic power, with global superpowers wielding significant influence over world affairs. All these advancements have contributed to optimism and progress as people seek a brighter future filled with even more possibilities. However, it is essential to acknowledge that not all humanity has benefited equally from this progress. Significant challenges remain to be addressed, including poverty, inequality, and environmental degradation. We need to create regenerative businesses Despite progress in many areas of human development, the rapid pace of climate change has become an overwhelming challenge affecting the entire planet . Here are some of the significant reasons we need to create green growth and a green economy. Rising temperatures: The Earth's average temperature has risen by 1.1C over the past century, causing heat waves, droughts, and increased frequency and intensity of wildfires. Extreme weather events: Climate change has led to more frequent and severe weather events, such as hurricanes, typhoons, and flooding, which can cause widespread damage and displacement. Sea level rise: As global temperatures rise, sea levels are also increasing due to the melting of polar ice caps and thermal expansion of the oceans which can lead to coastal flooding and erosion. Global sea levels have risen by some 10cm since 1993, according to NASA Ocean acidification: The absorption of excess carbon dioxide in the atmosphere by the ocean is causing the pH of the ocean to increase by 30% , which can significantly impact marine life. Loss of biodiversity: Climate change is causing ecosystem changes, resulting in biodiversity loss and many species extinction. Public health impacts: Rising temperatures can lead to increased heat-related illnesses and the spread of vector-borne diseases such as malaria and dengue fever. Economic impacts: Climate change can have significant financial consequences, such as increased costs for disaster response and recovery, loss of productivity due to extreme weather events, and damage to infrastructure. Climate change has numerous impacts that pose significant threats to the environment, human health, and the global economy. Understanding the climate change debate Most of us think we are helping save our planet by eating the odd meat-free meal, turning lights off and driving electric cars. Is this enough? Four climate change facts Manufacturing a car creates the equivalent emissions of laying two metres of roads. We emit more CO2 from our homes than all the cars combined! During the covid pandemic when our consumption and travel was significantly reduced as we all stayed at home, emissions only reduced by 7%. 8% of CO2 emissions are released by the concrete manufacturing industry. Personal responsibility is quoted frequently. Going vegetarian, using a bike and putting solar panels on our homes is NOT ENOUGH . Plus people are hesitant or resistant to changing their daily lives or making sacrifices to slow global warming. The more affluent in our society create more greenhouse gas emissions than those with lower incomes. This is because wealthier individuals tend to have higher consumption levels, which often involves more energy-intensive lifestyles, such as larger homes, more frequent travel, and greater consumption of energy-intensive goods and services. According to research, the top 10% of income earners globally are responsible for approximately 50% of global carbon emissions . In contrast, the bottom 50% of income earners contribute to only around 10% of global emissions. However, it is important to recognise that taking action to address rapid climate change does not necessarily mean a drastic reduction in our quality of life or a complete overhaul of our daily routines. The public debate on climate change The Earth's climate is changing at an unprecedented rate and that urgent action is needed to mitigate its impact. Many scientists agree that the Earth is experiencing rapid climate change, primarily due to human activities, including burning fossil fuels and deforestation. However, some still dispute the existence or severity of climate change or argue that it is a natural phenomenon that cannot be mitigated through human intervention. The debate is often polarised, with some advocating for immediate action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and transition to renewable energy sources. In contrast, others argue that such measures would be too costly and disruptive. The public debate on rapid climate change has significant implications for the future of the planet and human societies, and all voices must be heard and considered in the discussion. People are reluctant to have their comfortable lifestyles disrupted to save the planet. The political debate on climate change The political debate on rapid climate change is complex and often contentious . While some political leaders and parties acknowledge the need for urgent action to mitigate the impact of climate change, others either dispute its existence or downplay its significance . The debate is often driven by competing economic interests, with some arguing that reducing greenhouse gas emissions would harm industries and lead to job losses . In contrast, others point to the economic benefits of investing in renewable energy and transitioning to a low-carbon economy. Political debates also centre on social justice and equity , with some arguing that developed countries bear a greater responsibility for reducing emissions, given their historical contribution to climate change. In contrast, others point out that developing countries are disproportionately affected by the impacts of climate change. Ultimately, the political debate on rapid climate change has significant global policy and action implications . Therefore, political leaders must prioritise the urgent need for coordinated action to address this issue. The truth is no political system is doing an impressive job at becoming truly sustainable. Understanding the bigger picture of climate change Modern industrial society has indeed had a destructive impact on the planet. Rapid global warming is primarily caused by the increase in greenhouse gas concentrations in the Earth's atmosphere. The rapid growth of industries and technologies since the Industrial Revolution has led to increased pollution, deforestation, and depletion of natural resources, among other environmental problems. The increasing use of fossil fuels, for example, has led to a rise in global temperatures and climate change, which is causing severe weather events, sea level rise, and other negative impacts. Concrete, for example, is a cheap and easy building material , and it has been widely used in developing countries to build affordable housing. Concrete has several advantages, including its durability and ability to withstand natural disasters such as earthquakes and hurricanes. It's also readily available and easy to work with. However, using concrete in construction also has negative environmental impacts, such as high carbon emissions from cement production and destroying natural habitats to extract raw materials. This has resulted in the loss of many species of plants and animals . While it's essential to provide affordable housing for growing populations in developing countries, it's also crucial to do so in a way that minimises environmental impacts and promotes regeneration. Many alternatives to traditional concrete construction can be more sustainable, such as using locally sourced and renewable materials like bamboo or straw bales or innovative building technologies like compressed earth blocks or recycled plastic bricks. The development of industrial agriculture , which relies heavily on chemical fertilisers and pesticides, has also led to soil degradation, water pollution, and loss of biodiversity. Feeding a growing global population will be a significant challenge . We will soon need to provide for 10 billion people, and food production will likely continue to emit greenhouse gases, and we need to figure out how to do that without emitting greenhouse gases. But, unfortunately, the nature of modern food production that requires fertilisers or manure, it is impossible to have zero-emissions food . Reducing meat consumption alone won't be enough to stop climate change. However, reducing meat consumption can help reduce emissions from livestock production and reduce the demand for land and resources required for animal feed production. The consumption of natural resources, such as timber, minerals, and freshwater, has also put a strain on the planet's ecosystems , and the waste generated by industrial societies has led to significant pollution of the air, water, and soil. Unfortunately, many conveniences and advancements that have made modern life easier, safer, and more comfortable have also negatively impacted the biosphere. More than fixing one small part of the industrial system is needed to address our complex and interconnected issues. Some barriers to implementing sustainable solutions include economic, political, and cultural factors. For example, powerful industries may resist changes threatening their profits, while governments may prioritise short-term economic growth over long-term regeneration. There may also be cultural barriers, such as a lack of awareness or understanding of the importance of, or a resistance to support regeneration . In some cases, people may not have the resources or infrastructure needed to implement sustainable solutions, such as access to renewable energy or public transportation. So, what can we do to address climate warming? Is it necessary for us to relinquish all the conveniences that provide us with comfortable living? People want change but not a drastic one! Is it impossible for less affluent nations to progress? Should we eliminate coal, gas, and oil from our energy sources? Should we put an end to construction involving concrete? Although some people reject nuclear energy , they are also opposed to wind or solar infrastructure . It will be impossible to create solutions without causing some unhappiness……. Create Regenerative Ethical Mindful (REM) Businesses “The Earth is a fine place and worth fighting for.” – Ernest Hemingway The most efficient approach to reduce CO2 emissions would be for affluent populations worldwide to abandon their current lifestyles , while those who are aspiring for a better standard of living refrain from pursuing it. Regeneratives businesses prioritise the welfare of the planet over personal comfort and recognise that financial prosperity is necessary to achieve this. While personal efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions are commendable, they pale in comparison to the systemic reality of global emissions. Even the most motivated individuals can hardly make a significant impact . When we consider the dangers of rapid climate change, the vast scale of emissions, and the lack of consensus on how to address the issue, the challenge appears insurmountable. This can lead to decision fatigue and moral licensing, where individuals no longer feel guilty about engaging in counterproductive behaviours. Even if you were to eliminate 100% of your emissions for the rest of your life, it would only save one second's worth of emissions from the global energy sector. Holding Politicians to account for climate warming mitigating actions To effect systemic changes in technology, politics, and the economy at the scale required to address rapid climate change, it is imperative that we implement regenerative business execution and influence those who hold power. Politicians must recognise and appreciate the fact that people are concerned about this issue and that their success as leaders hinges on their ability to tackle climate change. When governments and local politicians are reluctant to alter laws that impact their major tax contributors or campaign donors, we must vote them out and replace them with individuals who value scientific evidence. Regenerative businesses can hold our leaders accountable for implementing the most effective climate change strategies, and focus on larger levers such as food, transportation, and energy, while also considering smaller ones like cement or construction. When industries resist changing their ways due to fear of losses or a genuine desire to protect their interests, it falls on politicians to amend laws and encourage the adoption of existing technologies. Massive investments in research and innovation are also required for fields that lack effective solutions. Profit interests and reducing carbon emissions are not mutually exclusive, and industries should prioritise the latter. However, if cooperation is not forthcoming , strict regulation and penalties may be necessary to compel change. It is unrealistic to expect quick global changes given the cost and time requirements of low-carbon technologies, but a clear and growing demand for them will drive innovation and efficiency, ultimately driving prices down. Affluent individuals can contribute to this by investing in these technologies now , while they remain expensive. The best approach to promote change is to vote with both your ballot and your wallet , recognising that some solutions may have negative impacts on our lives . It is important to accept that everyone will be a little unhappy, but that it is necessary to achieve progress. Everyone can contribute by altering their behaviour , such as eating less meat, reducing air travel, or driving an electric car, not out of guilt or the belief that they can solve climate change alone, but to play a small part in the necessary systemic change. Governments and individuals can play a crucial role in slowing down rapid climate change. Climate change is a global problem that requires a collective effort to address. Governments can enact policies and regulations to reduce carbon emissions, encourage the use of renewable energy sources, and promote energy efficiency. They can also invest in research and development of new technologies that can help mitigate the effects of climate change. Individuals can also make a difference by reducing their carbon footprint by using public transportation, reducing energy consumption in their homes, and making environmentally conscious choices in their daily lives. It is only through a joint effort that we can slow down rapid climate change and ensure a sustainable future for ourselves and future generations. Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations provide clarity and a clear pathway forward for you and your team. Get Started

7 ways to improve happiness at work to improve health, increase creativity and productivity. 7 Ways to Improve Happiness at Work A happy workplace is associated with improved health, increased creativity, and productivity. Work environments with happy workers are more harmonious and positive. Moreover, such people put in more effort beyond their job descriptions and are more committed to their work. Published on: 25 Aug 2022 The latest ‘Work Happiness Score’ study from Indeed found that only one-third of UK workers are generally satisfied with their jobs. Almost one in four survey respondents said that being unhappy at work makes them unable to find enjoyment in other areas of their lives. What are the happiest and unhappiest job sectors? Workers in education are most likely to be happy, followed by those in aerospace and defense. Property workers are the unhappiest, followed by those in management and consulting and those in the automotive industry. A fifth of workers are unhappy at work, and one in 10 (11%) start feeling unhappy less than six months into a new job. Considering these stats , it’s no wonder people feel overworked, stressed, and unhappy. You’ll spend 30 to 50 hours at work each week, so why not make it enjoyable? We’ll be discussing seven ways to improve happiness at work! What are the benefits of building a happy workplace? A happy workplace is associated with improved health, increased creativity, and productivity. Work environments with happy workers are more harmonious and positive. Moreover, such people put in more effort beyond their job descriptions and are more committed to their work. The following are ten benefits of happiness at work for both employers and employees: A higher level of productivity Enhanced creativity A better quality of life and improved health Workplace stress is reduced Motivated A higher level of satisfaction at work Reduction in turnover A higher rate of retention Workplace accidents are reduced Cost-savings in health care How important is it to build a happy workplace? Employees’ happiness is critical in determining their productivity and satisfaction at work. Furthermore, it enhances a company’s image and helps it retain its employees for a long time. The importance of happiness at work cannot be overstated. Despite this, the concept of happiness at work has only gained prominence in the last few decades. Prior to that, employers focused primarily on their businesses, trade relations, and profits. In recent years, researchers have begun realizing the importance of employee happiness , and employers are also starting to pay attention. Many institutions now offer courses on “happiness.” Some of these courses, such as “The Science of Happiness” by EdX, teach people how to be happy at work and in their daily lives. Thus, we need to ask why we don’t correlate happiness with work. As a part of our culture, we have been taught that we must support ourselves financially and be responsible members of society. The vast majority of people go to work out of obligation, not because they are happy to do so. The workplace is rarely seen as a place where people seek happiness. Instead, we perceive them as places where we exchange skills and time for money to support ourselves. Generally, humans strive for happiness in their personal lives by maintaining relationships or achieving their wants and dreams. However, happiness can also be achieved at work. As opposed to popular belief, work does not have to be boring or unfulfilling. 7 ways to improve happiness at work When you feel good and happy at work, peace of mind and a work-life balance can be achieved. It has been shown that people who are happy at work are more productive and perform better overall. The following are seven steps employers can take to foster positive emotions at work: Embrace Employees’ Strengths The importance of reminding workers of their strengths and how they contribute to a project’s success cannot be overstated. It is recommended that this happens on a regular basis, especially during feedback sessions. Continually expand their responsibilities and duties to match their strengths, so they feel like they are making progress. Although weaknesses need to be addressed, they should be viewed as opportunities to acquire future skills. Those who are happy utilize their strengths in all areas of their lives. Find a creative way to incorporate your employees’ strengths into their day if their work doesn’t naturally draw upon those strengths. Consider adding a small plant to the break room or common space if appreciation of beauty is one of their top strengths. According to studies, people who work in offices with windows report greater work satisfaction than those in offices without windows. Building Relationships At Work Healthy relationships are a major indicator of happiness, so encourage your employees to connect with their coworkers. This also boosts their mood. It isn’t necessary for employees to socialize with them outside of work (although having a work friend contributes to greater job satisfaction), but simply engaging in a water cooler conversation can create a friendly atmosphere. Create a workplace culture where employees are willing to eat lunch with their colleagues rather than at their desks alone. According to a German study, people who eat lunch alone are more likely to suffer from stress than those who have social lunches away from their desks. You might see a significant rise in employee productivity if you cultivate relationships as a virtue. A Reward And Praise System If your employees have achieved outstanding results, you might want to consider giving them a raise. Sometimes employees rewrite their job descriptions to highlight just how much more they do now than when they were first hired. When determining what is fair, this should be considered, along with the cost of replacing that person with someone with the same skills and experience. Pay raises should be applied without gender bias and err on the side of generosity. Ultimately, what matters is the happiness of your employees, who will find fulfillment, job satisfaction, and inspiration in their work. Remember, a happy employee is a productive employee. Work satisfaction is highly correlated with being appreciated. You can build trust, loyalty, and commitment among your employees by recognizing them regularly for their efforts. Everyone is more productive, creative, and well-adjusted when appreciated, so let’s start with you. Gandhi once said, “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” Work-Life Balance An effective method of ensuring that employees are satisfied at work and won’t leave for greener pastures is by ensuring that this balance is achieved. Besides fair pay raises, here are the top four things you can do to help: Rewards and incentives Perks and benefits Initiatives for career advancement and training Maintaining a work-life balance Getting your employees to appreciate the fact that there isn’t a perfect ‘work-life balance’ is one of the easiest ways to foster work-life balance . Identifying what works best for them and their daily schedule is the first step. Strive for a realistic schedule, not a perfect one. Depending on the day, they might be more focused on work one day and their hobbies the next. It takes time to achieve balance, not just one day. Ensure that your employees are concerned about their physical, emotional, and mental health. Find Meaning Work is viewed differently by each employee. If they perceive it to be boring and meaningless, it will feel that way. It is possible, however, that they can find greater satisfaction and gratification from their efforts if they reframe their work as a service or a way to improve the world. For instance, a custodian at a high school may see their work as tedious and insignificant, or they may see it as helping students and educators stay healthy and safe in a growing environment. Your job as a boss is to foster a culture that promotes creativity, openness, and a platform for everyone to express ideas and criticism freely. Encourage Workers To Be More Creative How closely linked is creativity to happiness? It is important to create a creative environment that enhances both of them. This is what Teresa Amabile, a Harvard researcher, discovered. What can you do to cultivate a creative environment? The following are some tips: Ensure that participants are involved in problem-solving and decision-making. Minimize the number of meetings. Don’t let your ideas dominate. Make sure that your employees’ goals are in line with those of your company. Organize Wellness Challenges And Programs There are numerous benefits for employers and employees regarding wellness programs and challenges. Employee engagement and employee health can both be improved through these programs. Your workplace can significantly benefit from wellness initiatives such as step challenges, fitness challenges, and bike-to-work schemes. This can have a significant impact on company culture and employee satisfaction. The office is more fun when you work with friends. This helps you and your colleagues feel like you’re all on the same page. Your team will be able to connect on a more personal level with their coworkers if there are ongoing fun events at regular interval. In order to get people mingling, your best bet is to organize offsites. But, you can also arrange Happy Hour once a month or half-day Fridays in the summer. Beach days with the team are magical in the summer! Becoming a supportive manager Using Robert Half Management Resources ‘ four tips, managers can help employees achieve a healthier work-life balance. Understand what motivates your employees. Every individual has different goals regarding work-life balance. Ask each employee their objectives, and then decide how you can help. Some employees may benefit from working remotely a couple of days per week, while others may prefer to work differently daily. Flexibility and open-mindedness are important. Lead by example. Those around you follow your lead. Whenever you send emails or work long hours on weekends, your staff thinks that is what is expected of them. Employees should be informed of their options. Most employers highlight work-life balance initiatives to prospective job candidates, but they don’t communicate those initiatives to current employees. Keep your employees informed about their options regularly. Discuss parental leave options with soon-to-be parents as well. Keep up with the latest developments. Staying on top of emerging trends in work-life balance is crucial. An employee’s current work environment may not be a good fit a year from now. Provide in-demand benefits and keep your work-life balance initiatives fresh. Also, consider implementing a work-life balance program. Flexible workplaces = happy workplaces Flexible work schedules are often cited as an explanation for those who achieve a successful balance between their work and personal lives. Research has shown that employers have been allowing workers more flexibility with their schedules and work locations in the past seven years. Ken Matos, lead researcher and senior director of employment research and practice at Families and Work Institute, explained that employers continue to struggle with fewer resources for benefits that incur a direct cost. The company has prioritized providing employees with a broader range of benefits to suit their individual needs and improve their general well-being. Employers can benefit from flexibility in the long run. The Society for Human Resource Management’s president and CEO, Hank Jackson, has said that employers must provide flexible work options to remain competitive and attract and retain top talent. As Chancey pointed out, work-life balance means different things to different people due to our different life commitments. Choosing a balanced lifestyle is a very personal choice in our always-on world. Only you can decide what works for you. Conclusion: Most of us spend a large part of our waking hours at work; shouldn’t that time be enjoyable and fulfilling? Create a happy workplace by building trust, incentivizing wellness, and appreciating employees. Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations provide clarity and a clear pathway forward for you and your team. Get Started

Return On Capital Employed (ROCE) is an important measure of financial productivity or financial efficiency. Learn how to measure and improve ROCE. How To Measure and Improve ROCE Return On Capital Employed (ROCE) is an important measure of financial productivity or financial efficiency. This is a good measure of how well the business is being run. The higher the value, the better. It's also referred to as the "Primary Ratio". Published on: 6 Jun 2024 Return On Capital Employed (ROCE) is an important measure of financial productivity or financial efficiency. This is a good measure of how well the business is being run. The higher the value, the better. It’s also referred to as the “Primary Ratio”. A company exists to turn hours and money invested into profits. How well it does that is a measure of financial productivity or more often referred to as financial efficiency. ROCE is an important KPIs in helping to improve your business productivity management . How can you measure financial efficiency with ROCE? The formula for ROCE is defined as Operating Profit/Total Capital Employed *100% ROCE is showing what level of costs are required to drive profitability. The more productive a company is, the higher the retained earnings they’ll be to drive further growth. Total capital employed might include debt, retained earnings or shareholder equity. How does ROCE differ from Return On Investment (ROI)? ROI is only concerned with the returns created by a specific investment such as a marketing campaign. ROCE is looking at the returns created by all the costs of running the business including debt. How does ROCE differ from Return On Assets (ROA)? ROA is only looking at the returns created by capital equipment such as machines, vehicles and warehouse lifting equipment. Investors will use ROCE when researching companies for possible investment opportunities. Like all performance metrics, it should be used in conjunction with other KPIs to accommodate possible hidden risks, such as high levels of debt. The values needed can be easily obtained from a company’s accounts. It is best to establish a trend of ROCE over a period of time to accommodate market changes and possible seasonal variations. A high, stable ROCE will show the business is being well managed. If a company has high levels of cash reserves that it’s not using, this will make the company appear very inefficient when they are included as part of Total Capital Employed. Enhancing ESG Ratings through ROCE Return on Capital Employed (ROCE) can significantly enhance a business's Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) rating by promoting efficient resource use and responsible investment. High ROCE indicates effective utilisation of capital, aligning with ESG principles of sustainable management. Companies focused on improving ROCE often invest in eco-friendly technologies , optimise supply chains, and enhance operational efficiencies, thereby reducing environmental impact. Furthermore, strong ROCE performance reflects good governance practices and financial health, boosting investor confidence and stakeholder trust. By prioritising high ROCE, businesses demonstrate a commitment to long-term sustainability, positively influencing their ESG ratings and attracting socially responsible investors. How to improve ROCE The higher the revenue and the lower the costs, the better the ROCE. With staff costs being the biggest cost of all, it may be tempting to reduce the headcount or lower the wages to make the company appear more productive or more appealing to investors. It is this thinking that has contributed to the poor productivity figures of many UK businesse s, that lowering costs, especially staff costs will help build a stronger, more profitable business. The thinking is rooted deep in economics where staff are just seen as a labour cost, a cost to be minimised. With the top-down hierarchy, staff are recruited for a given job, given a job description, annual appraisals and monitored for the hours they start and finish work. This has the effect of making staff work more hours to feel more effective. An expectation is created that those long hours will be lead to a salary increase, promotion or just stop them losing their job. But in reality, all that happens is the same work just gets stretched over a longer time, people work less hard, they pace themselves to work the long hours needed and so productivity goes down. Longer lunches, casual conversations all stretch the day out so productivity goes down. The bosses may think they are getting more work completed for their money, that the employee is earning their salary, but in reality, the same work is being stretched out over a longer period, and most likely completed less effectively too. The Total Capital Employed may include high levels of debt to drive up sales or operating efficiencies, meaning the company may be carrying high levels of risk. Capital items are depreciated over time meaning companies with older equipment may look more profitable than companies with new equipment. Return on Equity (ROE) Another important, perhaps better, financial productivity KPI, Return on Equity, ROE, measures how well the shareholder value (cash essentially) of the company is creating value. Why is ROE a better performance measure than ROCE? Because ROE strips out debt from the capital employed to use just shareholder value and looks at net income, not operating profit, it gives a clearer picture of how well the business is being managed. How is ROE calculated? Return on Equity (ROE) = Net Income/Shareholder equity * 100 ROE is seen as an important financial KPI as it is only considering stakeholder equity (cash, equipment etc) and is a better measure of how well the assets of the business are being managed. If the ROE is high, check to see why. If it is because the shareholder equity is very low, the company may be low on cash. If it is because the revenues are very high, that shows a strong business performance. Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations provide clarity and a clear pathway forward for you and your team. Get Started

How to overcome limiting beliefs holding back your success How to overcome limiting beliefs holding back your success Limiting beliefs hold you back from setting your goals and achieving your full potential. "Your beliefs become your thoughts; your thoughts become your words; your words become your actions; your actions become your habits; your habits become your values; your values become your destiny." Gandhi Like the brakes on a car, limiting beliefs hold you back from setting your goals and achieving your full potential. We will take a closer look at what limiting beliefs are and how you can identify and remove them. What are beliefs? Beliefs shape us like the clay in the hands of a potter. They determine how we think, how we feel, what we say and the actions we undertake. Our beliefs are based on past experiences which are now shaping our future. If we become what we think about most, then we become a reflection of our beliefs, both good and bad. Our thoughts come from our beliefs which then become our reality. When you have a belief about something, you’re more likely to see evidence around you that reinforces that belief and miss or discount anything that contradicts it. 5 examples of limiting beliefs and thoughts. Beliefs are assumptions and convictions we hold to be true about ourselves and the world around us. Beliefs become self-fulling prophecies that can hold you back or encourage you. You will have beliefs about success, education, money and morality and many other things, too. When combined with your core values, deeply held assumptions about ourselves and the world, you have a toolbox of attitudes and behaviours that you’ll be using in any given situation. People naturally recognise that someone who is determined and tenacious, who never gives up, is more likely to succeed than someone who procrastinates. Someone who believes they will succeed is generally more likely to than someone who doesn’t, irrespective of their talents. Health professionals recognise that the attitude, that is the way people act based on their beliefs, of a patient is a major factor in their recovery. In medical research, placebos have been seen to be as effective as many drugs. So, if you can think your way to health, then you can also think your way into being less healthy and less successful or more successful, too. The beliefs that others have of us can also play an important part in our beliefs about ourselves. What is a limiting belief? Have you tried to do something and failed, then not tried again? Why did you not try again? Why did you fail, and what defined failure? Did you take the failure as, ultimately, a positive experience or a negative one? While all failure is initially negative, it’s also a great mentor saying: “Don’t do it that way again”. And sometimes, experiencing why something doesn’t work is the only way to know why and how to do it better. Limiting beliefs are a state of mind that undermine your confidence and restrict you from pursuing a task you’d otherwise like to take on. They are assumptions about yourself, the world or other people that are holding you back from starting or completing a task. Limiting beliefs start in childhood, they are rooted in experiences and a way of thinking. Limiting beliefs can affect everything in your life; at work, at home and in many other areas. They place boundaries on what we think we can achieve. How is a belief formed? Beliefs are formed from experiences and from what we inherit from our parents much like we inherit many visible attributes from our parents, but unlike having blue or brown eyes, they are not fixed. As the report from the Baby Lab suggests, we’re born with a set of morals inherited from our parents, and some they teach us, which then evolve into our belief system over time and with experience. These beliefs can change over time as our experience of life evolves or if we deliberately challenge our own beliefs What is a core belief? A core belief is a deeply held assumption about ourselves, others, and the world around us. It forms the very essence of who we think we are and our opinions. Core beliefs can become self-fulfilling. If we think somebody or a certain type of person is a bad or good person, we are likely to treat them in a way that reflects that. This may encourage that behaviour in them and reinforce our belief in what they are like. The role of beliefs in our lives "Watch your thoughts, they become your words; watch your words, they become your actions; watch your actions, they become your habits; watch your habits, they become your character; watch your character, it becomes your destiny.” Lao Tzu We prefer people who we identify with most, be that their values, their beliefs, their attitude towards life or their behaviours. So, beliefs form a large part of our relationships and how we communicate with each other. This relates to all aspects of our life: work, professional and home. Knowing and being able to identify our own core beliefs and values will go a long toward helping us to succeed at whatever we are trying to accomplish. We may value honesty and believe that being honest is essential to success in life, or that other people are inherently dishonest and so make everybody sign a contract rather than rely on a handshake and a gentleman’s agreement. Identifying a limiting belief and removing it can help to increase motivation and engagement with a task. Limiting beliefs can be a healthy thing, too. Nobody should overcome the self-limiting belief that they can fly. Some self-limiting beliefs are good, sensible and help keep us safe and spend our time wisely. You may wish to become a best-selling singer, but if you’re tone-deaf, can't sing or keep time, that’s not going to be possible. Perhaps you settle for being an okay singer singing locally or pursue another interest. The challenge is in knowing what is actually physically impossible vs what you only believe to be impossible. With limiting beliefs comes victim mentality and imposter syndrome. Our beliefs can affect our health, from the healthy to the not-so-healthy food we eat, to the positive and negative thoughts we have. What is the relationship between attitudes, values and behaviours? What we think about controls how feel and the emotions we experience. What we feel controls how we act and how we behave. Having a positive attitude comes from having positive beliefs and positive values. If we believe on the whole that people are good and that one of our core values is that telling the truth is important, then we will have a positive attitude towards others, we are more likely to be truthful ourselves and trusted by others in return. What is an attitude? Attitudes are judgements on anything, whether somebody likes or dislikes something, finds it good or bad. Attitudes come from our values and beliefs. Carl Jung, in his essay on psychological types, defines attitude as “the readiness of the psyche to act or react in a certain way”. As such, attitudes will drive how we think, feel and act about things in our lives and about ourselves. Also known as the ABC model : affective, behavioural and cognitive. The affective component relates to emotions and feelings (the emotional part), behavioural relates to how we act or behave given the attitudes we have and cognitive relates to what we believe to be true (the logical part). Attitudes are based on our core beliefs and the behaviours that they motivate. For example, having a ‘positive attitude’ helps an individual to be motivated to start and engage with a task that needs to be completed. What are values? Values are core ideas and standards you believe to be true for you and how you should act on a day-to-day to basis. They help you prioritise and make ethical decisions. When you act and work in alignment with your values you generally feel good about yourself and life. Recognising they exist and what your core values are will help you make better decisions in life. The New Zealand Government places a lot of importance on happiness and wellbeing. It explains that on personal beliefs, values, attitudes and behaviour, values are: “stable long-lasting beliefs about what is important to a person”. Can values change over time? Values can change over time going from childhood to old age. The things that are important to us change. Experience and varying needs will change the values you find important. For example, security may be more important later in life and relationships earlier. As we said earlier, values are the ideas and concepts we were born with and formed as part of our childhood, those values become attitudes based on underlying beliefs. What is a behaviour? Behaviours are the final action based on our core beliefs and values. So we have values working with beliefs creating our belief system. Our thoughts, emotions and feelings are expressed as our attitudes with behaviours being the final visible action. These behaviours also determine how well we will be able to learn, acquire new knowledge and develop new skills. For example, with poor beliefs about school and little value in education, unhelpful attitudes are formed resulting in visibly poor behaviours towards learning. What are the causes of limiting beliefs? Limiting beliefs are usually rooted in experiences that have come to define how you see yourself, others and your capabilities. Some people are more predisposed to them than others. Those with a negative disposition may be more likely to have them than those with a positive disposition, but anybody can have them. Comments made to you, bad experiences, or just a lack of confidence can all hold you back. Understanding the source of your limiting thoughts or beliefs can help you to overcome them. Are your beliefs holding you back? Generally, positive thinking people with few limiting beliefs are healthier, live longer and are more successful, as reported in Can you think yourself young? Guardian article. Your limiting beliefs can stop you from trying something new. Moreover, they cause stress and unhealthy habits that can lead to depression and lower personal and professional performance. Limiting beliefs can stop us from leaving our comfort zone where life is relatively easy and risk-free but lacks growth and the opportunities to learn new things and take on new challenges. This might limit the extent to which you can achieve your personal and professional goals. Limiting beliefs can be subconscious or conscious thoughts about how you see the world, yourself and others. With limiting beliefs comes victim mentality and imposter syndrome. Not feeling that you are good enough can be a self-limiting belief that results in the imposter syndrome. Even though you’ve achieved a lot and you receive a lot of praise, you just don’t believe it’s real, and that you’re about to be ‘found out’. Believing that all our issues and problems are the result of other people’s actions, not our own, is self-limiting behaviour resulting in the victim mentality. What are examples of limiting beliefs? Typical examples of limiting beliefs or thoughts include: I’m not good enough; I can’t ...; I’m too old, too young; I don’t have enough ...; I’ll never be …; I’m not … enough; I don’t have the … They fall into these categories: Either you don’t feel you’re capable of starting the task due to a lack of skills, experience, money or time, for example. You can’t complete the task because it will never be good enough. That should you achieve your goal, you fear you won’t be able to sustain it, that you’ll be rejected by family and friends You’ve achieved your goal, but now you feel like an imposter, that you don’t deserve your success. Revered guitarist Eric Clapton had these thoughts. How to identify your limiting beliefs Is there something you’d like to do, to be or achieve but you are not currently working on it? That’s a good place to start. Become more aware of how you express yourself. Are many of your statements about yourself very negative? Speak with friends, family, and colleagues about something you might like to pursue. The only obstacle to doing this is that they may have been influenced by your own negative view of yourself or have their own issues stopping them helping you. So keep an open mind. We are all familiar with that little voice, the inner critic, inside our heads feeding us either negative or positive thoughts and emotions depending on what we’re doing, who we’re doing it with and what we’re seeing as a result. Become more aware of your inner voice and manage it in a constructive, positive way. Your business beliefs will shape your business like they do your life A positive attitude in business is essential for creating high-performance teams as there are just so many challenges to get through. Whatever plan you put together will likely fall at the first fence, and so you’ll need to constantly adapt to new challenges and lessons learnt. Positive beliefs then will help you become more resilient, develop essential business skills and create a business culture that will foster innovation, agility and motivation. Ray Dalio , founder of the investment firm Bridgewater Associates and one of the wealthiest people on the planet, identified his beliefs in his book Principles . 6 ways to overcome limiting beliefs So, to address limiting beliefs we need to identify their root causes and associated behaviours. You’ll have to start thinking in a new and better way. Perhaps the first thing to do is to act. There is no better motivation to getting started than actually getting started. The act of starting will spur you on, rather than waiting for the right time. Is this negative belief based on any facts, is there anything to suggest it is a limiting fact, rather than a limiting belief? Is the limiting belief only that it will make you slower or less good? If so, get started and find out, you’ll be surprised how much better you’ll get with practice. Ask yourself what would be the worst that can happen if you either start or complete the task. Persistence and tenacity are the hallmarks of success. Did you start something in the past, fail and then believe you couldn’t do it and didn’t try again? Well, go try again. If you improve even a little bit, you’re on your way. What we tell ourselves is important. Tell yourself you can, and there’s a good chance you’ll start to see you can. Look at those around you. Are they positive people? Are they successful people? How do you feel when you’re around them? Do you feel uplifted, inspired and motivated? Does a conversation with them make you feel good about yourself? Unfortunately, there are many people in life, even family and friends, who will resent your ambition and success if they haven’t experienced that for themselves. Movies and songs are full of that sentiment by successful artists. Adele and Lil Peep come to mind, among others. Perhaps the first step is to become more aware of our own thought patterns, how we react emotionally to certain situations and people. Once you become more aware of these thoughts you can challenge the perceptions that lead to those thoughts. Negative thoughts release chemicals in the brain that create feelings of stress and unhappiness. Positive thoughts elevate your mood and make feel more engaged, your actions, countenance and behaviours become more positive too. It comes down to the perspective you have as it relates to events and people in your life. Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations offer clarity and a well-defined pathway for you and your team to move forward confidently. Get Started

Learn how to improve staff call handling performance with these 7 simple tips to empower your staff to deliver outstanding customer service every time. 7 Ideas To Improve Staff Call Handling Performance Learn how to improve staff call handling performance with these 7 simple tips to empower your staff to deliver outstanding customer service every time. Published on: 6 Mar 2014 Having your staff trained in telephone sales techniques will improve their call handling performance. Training in telephone sales techniques & professional call management needs to encompass strategies which help those of your employees who use the phone in the course of their working day to improve their telephone skills. How to improve staff call handling performance: 7 ideas 1) Speaking to the right person Ensure that your staff know how to identify the correct decision makers when it comes to what you’re offering. Doing the correct research before the call will help them find the correct person to speak to. Asking for someone by name is far more likely to result in a call being put through as opposed to one where the caller simply asks for the “person responsible for…” Gatekeepers are listening out for those! 2) The ‘un-scripted’ script Treating a customer as if they are just one of a batch of many will turn them off – and that’s what a script does. Making sure that the staff who use the phone know their product, and are prepared for any questions, means they won’t need a script, and can sell the product on its benefits to the individual, rather than by what is on a sheet of paper in front of them. Ensure that all sales staff understand business and language colloquialisms too. Not just general differences but also industry-specific terms. 3) Closing the deal Correctly-trained sales staff will recognise when the right time to close a deal is. Too early, and the customer will feel pressured and harried; too late and the customer will get bored and end the call. Using telephone call recordings of past calls will help your staff identify the signals and when to close the deal. 4) Following-up Review of your telephone call recordings may help identify follow-up opportunities that were missed in the original call. It will also help to train your sales department in how to spot opportunities for follow ups in the future, especially if the calls are codified with notes on exactly what was said and the customers’ reactions. 5) Asking the right questions The right questions to ask may not always be obvious. Going over past calls and highlighting key takeaways will make sure that sales operators know the questions to ask, but also when to ask them. Sharing best practice has long been accepted as the best way to bring poor performing staff up to the level of your better performing team members. 6) Customer service What is your customer really saying – and can your customer service teams help them find the answers that they are looking for or the solution to their problems? With access to full telephone call recordings your sales & customer service training can be adapted to improve this very important skill . 7) Improved telephone sales technique Taking notes during a call is important, but when reading the notes back it won’t pick up tone, enthusiasm or any reticence. Listening back to sales calls is an important part of sales telephone training; you can evaluate not only what is said, but how it is said. It’s very true that improved telephone sales techniques means improved sales as an outcome. The company will be building on customer service performance and results, leading to happier customers. Better trained telephone sales staff will know more about their prospective customers and your product, leading to an increase in customer confidence and, as a consequence, revenue. How does your company train telephone sales staff at the moment? Can you see the benefits of call recording to help develop telephone sales training techniques? We can help you improve your telephone service skills and call handling performance with our bespoke telephone training service. Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations provide clarity and a clear pathway forward for you and your team. Get Started

Aligning sustainability and business strategy enhances profits and purpose, creating a win-win for companies, stakeholders, and the planet. Bridging the Gap: How Integrating Sustainability with Core Business Strategy Boosts Profitability and Purpose Integrating sustainability with core business strategy isn't just ethical; it's financially sound. It enhances profits, aligns with purpose, and secures a sustainable future. For too long, the pursuit of sustainability in business has often felt like an addendum, a 'nice-to-have' checkbox to tick, rather than a core, purpose-driven element of corporate strategy. The divide between sustainability and core business strategy has left many companies with a fragmented approach that fails to harness the full potential of sustainable practices. In this extensive exploration, we delve into the imperative of uniting sustainability and core business strategies, showing how this fusion can lead to enhanced profitability, a clearer sense of purpose, and a stronger, more resilient bottom line. The Legacy of Separation Historically, companies have maintained a sharp separation between their sustainability and core business strategies. Sustainability initiatives have typically been confined to mitigating downside risks, often revolving around standard recycling programs and the production of glossy Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) reports. While these efforts are indeed commendable, they often lack a genuine alignment with a company's core purpose and competencies. Meanwhile, within the confines of corporate walls, the core business strategy focuses on making pivotal decisions that drive revenue, encompassing considerations on markets, products, and pricing. This fragmentation has persisted within organisations for far too long, with these two fundamental aspects of a company's identity existing as separate entities. This disconnect has consequences not just for the company's bottom line but also for the broader stakeholders. The traditional approach of isolation has hindered the synergistic development of sustainability and core business strategies, leaving a notable gap that undermines the overall performance of the business. The Battle of Silos One recurring challenge that this disconnection perpetuates is the existence of isolated silos within the organisation, with sustainability and strategy teams frequently competing for the attention of the CEO. The outcome of this competition is an uneven allocation of resources, creating a tug-of-war between those advocating for sustainable practices and those pursuing core business objectives. This misalignment can lead to inefficient resource utilisation and missed opportunities for growth and innovation. The Paradigm Shift However, the tides are changing. Forward-thinking companies have realised that sustainability is not just about mitigating risks and ticking off CSR checkboxes. It's a transformative journey that, when integrated into the core business strategy, becomes a driving force for positive change. In this new paradigm, sustainability is no longer relegated to the periphery; instead, it is at the heart of the company's purpose and vision. The integration of sustainability into the core strategy is a holistic approach that recognises sustainable practices as a way to increase revenue, reduce volatility, and access new capital. The Value of Alignment A company that fully comprehends the value of aligning long-term financial objectives with relevant sustainable practices will experience significantly enhanced compound results. The realization that sustainable behaviours aren't just 'nice-to-haves' but are essential components of a successful business model brings a profound transformation in thinking. To determine which sustainable behaviours are relevant, companies must assess what matters most to their core business. This could involve strategies to reduce energy consumption, embrace the circular economy, or launch more responsible products. Whatever the approach, these behaviours need to be explicitly identified, costed, and fully integrated within the business to unlock their full potential. Our Expertise in Action This is where our expertise comes into play. We specialise in helping organisations bridge the gap between sustainability and core business strategy. We work with you to identify, cost, and fully integrate sustainable practices that are tailored to your unique core business. By harmonising these elements, we empower your company to evolve into a more sustainable and profitable entity, capable of facing the challenges and opportunities of the modern business landscape. Unlocking the Potential By embracing sustainability as a core part of your strategy, you unlock a world of potential. Sustainability ceases to be a separate entity but becomes an integral part of the overarching plan, intertwining with your core business strategy to create a stronger, more resilient, and ultimately more profitable company. Incorporating sustainable practices into your core strategy isn't about incurring costs; it's about seising opportunities. These opportunities are the keys to unlocking new revenue streams, reducing exposure to volatility, and attracting fresh capital. Sustainability, when embraced holistically, transforms from an afterthought into a powerful force for long-term financial growth. Finding Relevance The key to successfully integrating sustainability with your core business strategy is to determine what is materially relevant to your organisation. The materiality assessment is a vital step, as it helps you identify the most significant environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues that are pertinent to your business and stakeholders. For example, if your organisation is a heavy consumer of energy, reducing energy consumption and transitioning to renewable sources can be a highly relevant and impactful sustainable behaviour. If your customers increasingly demand sustainable products, launching eco-friendly alternatives can be a significant step. The circular economy is another avenue to explore, particularly if your industry relies heavily on resource-intensive processes. Embracing circular principles can not only reduce waste and environmental impact but also create new revenue streams. Ultimately, the key sustainable behaviours that you choose to adopt should align with your core business goals and the expectations of your stakeholders. Once identified, these behaviours must be costed and owned within the business, ensuring that they receive the necessary resources and attention to drive sustainable transformation. Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations offer clarity and a well-defined pathway for you and your team to move forward confidently. Get Started

Discover 7 essential strategies to streamline workflows, enhance efficiency, and achieve operational excellence. Learn actionable tips to optimise processes, boost productivity, and drive sustainable growth in your organisation. 7 Business Process Improvement Strategies for Operational Excellence Unlock the full potential of your organisation with these strategies designed to drive efficiency, productivity, and sustainable growth. Effective business processes are the backbone of successful organisations. They enable smoother operations, better productivity, and increased profitability. Yet, many businesses face inefficiencies that hinder their growth. Business Process Improvement (BPI) offers a structured approach to identifying and resolving inefficiencies, driving operational excellence by ensuring that workflows align with organisational goals and deliver measurable outcomes. Prerequisites for Business Improvement Before embarking on a business improvement programme, it is essential to establish a solid foundation. This includes: Clear Objectives: Define what you aim to achieve through the improvement initiative, whether it’s cost reduction, increased efficiency, or enhanced customer satisfaction. Leadership Commitment: Ensure that leadership is fully committed to driving and supporting the changes. Employee Engagement: Cultivate a culture where employees are motivated to participate and contribute ideas. Resource Allocation: Secure the necessary resources, including time, budget, and tools, to implement changes effectively. Baseline Metrics: Understand your current performance by collecting data and setting benchmarks to measure progress. With these prerequisites in place, you can confidently move forward with strategies to enhance your business processes and achieve operational excellence. Below, we explore seven BPI strategies that can elevate your organisation. 1. Conduct Process Mapping Process mapping is a powerful tool for visualising and analysing workflows within an organisation. It involves creating a detailed diagram or flowchart that represents the sequence of tasks, decisions, and interactions involved in a process. By carefully documenting each step, process mapping helps you gain a comprehensive understanding of how work is completed, who is responsible for each step, and how different departments or teams interact. Identifying Bottlenecks The primary benefit of process mapping is that it allows businesses to pinpoint inefficiencies. Bottlenecks, for example, become much more evident when the entire workflow is laid out visually. These bottlenecks can occur at any point where work is delayed due to resource constraints, excessive approvals, or lack of coordination between departments . Identifying these obstacles is the first step toward removing or reducing their impact. Uncovering Redundancies Redundancies are another common issue that process mapping helps uncover. In complex organisations, it’s easy for tasks to be duplicated or for processes to overlap unnecessarily. When workflows are clearly mapped, it becomes easier to spot areas where tasks are being repeated or where resources are being used inefficiently. This visibility allows for the elimination of these redundancies, ensuring that resources are being utilised in the most effective manner possible. Improving Standardisation and Consistency Furthermore, process mapping provides insight into areas where there is a lack of standardisation or clear procedures. These gaps can lead to inconsistencies in output quality, missed deadlines, or customer dissatisfaction. By documenting processes, organisations can standardise workflows and implement best practices, ensuring greater consistency and reliability in outcomes. Fostering Cross-Functional Collaboration Another advantage of process mapping is that it promotes cross-functional collaboration. Since process maps show how different departments interact, they can highlight potential communication gaps or opportunities for better coordination. When employees from various functions come together to create or review process maps, it fosters a greater understanding of how their work fits into the larger organisational strategy and encourages collaboration across teams. Enabling Continuous Improvement In addition to identifying bottlenecks, redundancies, and areas of inconsistency, process mapping also helps with continuous improvement. Once an organisation identifies inefficiencies or improvement opportunities, process maps serve as a baseline for future iterations. Changes can be tracked and measured over time, allowing businesses to refine their processes and enhance overall performance. Streamlining Operations for Success Ultimately, process mapping is an essential technique for streamlining operations, improving efficiency, and enhancing organisational effectiveness. It provides a clear, visual framework for understanding workflows, enabling businesses to identify opportunities for optimisation and better allocate resources. By regularly updating process maps, organisations can continue to evolve and adapt to changing needs, ensuring long-term success and competitiveness. Actionable Tip: Use tools like flowcharts or specialised software to map your key processes. Invite team members from different levels to contribute, ensuring accuracy and inclusivity. 2. Leverage Data Analytics Data-driven decisions are fundamental to improving business performance and achieving long-term success. Rather than relying on assumptions or gut feelings, making decisions based on data provides an objective, evidence-based approach that allows businesses to pinpoint exactly where they can improve and how to allocate resources most effectively. By leveraging data, organisations can gain insights that are not only accurate but also actionable, ensuring that each decision made contributes to overall growth and efficiency. The Role of Performance Metrics At the core of data-driven decision-making is the use of performance metrics—key indicators that measure the effectiveness of various aspects of the business. These metrics can range from financial data, such as revenue and profit margins, to operational metrics, like production cycle times, customer satisfaction scores, and employee productivity levels. By continually monitoring these metrics, businesses gain a clear picture of their current performance, which serves as a foundation for making informed decisions. For example, if a company notices that customer satisfaction scores are dropping, data analysis can reveal patterns or issues (such as long response times or product quality concerns) that need to be addressed. Identifying Trends with Data One of the most powerful aspects of data-driven decisions is the ability to identify trends. Over time, data can highlight both short-term fluctuations and long-term patterns that would otherwise go unnoticed. For instance, sales data might show seasonal patterns that allow businesses to adjust their inventory and staffing levels accordingly, or customer feedback might reveal emerging needs that signal new market opportunities. Identifying these trends empowers businesses to act proactively, positioning themselves to take advantage of opportunities before their competitors do. Uncovering Inefficiencies Data analytics also plays a crucial role in identifying inefficiencies within the organisation. Whether it's a manufacturing process that is slower than necessary, a sales funnel with a high dropout rate, or operational bottlenecks that delay product deliveries, data helps pinpoint exactly where performance is falling short. Through data analysis, businesses can uncover the root causes of these inefficiencies rather than just addressing the symptoms. This enables businesses to implement targeted improvements, whether through automation, process optimisation, or staff training, ensuring that each adjustment has a direct, measurable impact on performance. Assessing the Impact of Operational Changes Another critical advantage of data-driven decision-making is the ability to assess the impact of operational adjustments. Without data, it’s difficult to understand whether a change has made a significant difference or if further adjustments are needed. However, when decisions are grounded in analytics, businesses can track the effects of their changes in real-time. This feedback loop allows for continuous improvement, as businesses can quickly evaluate whether a particular approach is yielding the desired results or if they need to pivot. For example, after launching a marketing campaign, performance data such as conversion rates and customer engagement metrics will reveal whether the campaign was effective or if adjustments are required. Eliminating Bias and Subjectivity Moreover, data-driven decisions eliminate bias and subjectivity from the decision-making process. When decisions are based solely on assumptions or personal experience, there’s a risk of favouring certain ideas or initiatives that may not be the most effective. Analytics, on the other hand, provide a neutral, factual basis for decisions, reducing the influence of biases and making it easier to evaluate multiple options objectively. Fostering Accountability and Alignment In a broader organisational context, adopting a data-driven culture can foster accountability and alignment across teams. When everyone is working with the same data and performance metrics, departments can work collaboratively toward shared goals, making it easier to align strategies and track progress. This transparency also helps managers and employees make better decisions at all levels, leading to greater efficiency and cohesiveness within the organisation. The Power of Data-Driven Decisions for Growth Ultimately, data-driven decisions ensure that operational adjustments are not only informed but also impactful. By making decisions based on facts and insights, businesses can continuously optimise their operations, improve customer experiences, and stay ahead of the competition. In a world where market conditions, customer preferences, and technologies are constantly evolving, data analytics provides the agility and foresight necessary to navigate these changes successfully. By embracing this approach, organisations can make smarter, more effective decisions that drive sustainable growth and operational excellence. Actionable Tip: Invest in business intelligence tools to track metrics like cycle times, error rates, and customer satisfaction. Regularly review this data to stay informed about your processes' performance. 3. Automate Repetitive Tasks Automation has become a game-changer for businesses seeking to improve efficiency, reduce errors, and enhance productivity. By integrating automated systems into everyday processes, organisations can unlock substantial benefits that not only streamline operations but also create more room for strategic decision-making and growth. Below, we explore how automation specifically impacts key operational areas and drives the path towards operational excellence. Reducing Manual Effort Manual tasks such as data entry, invoice processing, and inventory management often require significant human input and can consume valuable time. Automation tools and systems can take over these repetitive tasks, significantly reducing the workload for employees. By automating routine processes, businesses can free up their teams to focus on more complex and strategic activities, ultimately leading to increased job satisfaction and higher levels of employee engagement. This shift not only boosts productivity but also ensures that employees’ skills are better aligned with the organisation’s high-priority goals. For instance, instead of spending hours inputting customer details or processing invoices manually, an automated system can instantly capture and record data, ensuring a faster and more accurate workflow. This, in turn, allows your team to concentrate on high-value tasks such as customer relationship building, strategic analysis, and business development. Minimising Errors and Enhancing Accuracy Manual processes are prone to human error. Mistakes in data entry or inventory tracking can lead to costly issues, including lost revenue, poor customer satisfaction, and even compliance violations. Automation addresses this challenge by eliminating the risk of human error in routine processes. Systems designed for automation are typically programmed to follow predefined rules and protocols, ensuring that tasks are executed consistently and without deviation. For example, invoice processing can be automated to match purchase orders with supplier invoices, flagging discrepancies for review. This ensures that mistakes, such as overpayment or incorrect billing, are prevented before they occur. With fewer errors, businesses can maintain a high level of accuracy and integrity in their operations, which is essential for maintaining trust with clients, partners, and regulatory bodies. Increasing Speed and Efficiency Speed is one of the primary advantages of automation. Where manual tasks may take hours or even days to complete, automated systems can carry them out in a fraction of the time. Automation speeds up processes like inventory management, order processing, and customer support, enabling businesses to respond more quickly to customer demands and market changes. For example, inventory management systems can automatically update stock levels in real-time, ensuring that the business always has accurate data on product availability. This level of responsiveness not only improves operational efficiency but also enhances the customer experience, as customers receive timely information on product availability and faster delivery times. Fostering Operational Excellence When businesses automate key operational tasks, the result is more than just time saved or errors reduced—it’s a pathway to operational excellence. The integration of automated processes aligns with best practices for efficiency, consistency, and scalability. With automation, businesses can standardise workflows across departments, ensuring that every team member follows the same processes, regardless of time or location. This consistency allows businesses to scale operations without compromising on quality or service delivery. Additionally, automation enables businesses to make data-driven decisions. By gathering real-time data from automated systems, organisations can gain valuable insights into their operations, customer behaviours, and performance metrics. This data allows for continuous improvement and proactive decision-making, which are key components of operational excellence. Strategic Focus and Business Growth The most significant benefit of automation is that it enables teams to move from being bogged down by repetitive tasks to focusing on strategic activities that drive business growth. With time freed from mundane processes, your team can engage in problem-solving, innovation, and building customer relationships—all activities that contribute to long-term success. For example, rather than spending hours on manual administrative work, sales teams can focus on lead generation, closing deals, and nurturing customer relationships. Similarly, marketing teams can shift their focus from manual campaign tracking to crafting more targeted strategies based on data insights provided by automated systems. Automation isn’t just a tool for reducing manual effort; it’s a critical enabler of operational excellence. By automating routine tasks, minimising errors, and increasing speed, businesses can unlock new levels of efficiency and productivity. Ultimately, this creates a more streamlined and agile operation that allows teams to focus on strategic, value-adding activities. Embracing automation paves the way for long-term growth, enhanced customer satisfaction, and a stronger competitive advantage in the marketplace. Actionable Tip: Evaluate your workflows to identify repetitive tasks. Implement automation software tailored to your industry and scale. 4. Implement Continuous Improvement Business improvement should never be viewed as a one-off initiative; instead, it must be an ongoing effort embedded within the company's culture. In today’s fast-paced, ever-changing market, businesses need to be agile and adaptive to remain competitive. Continuous improvement is the cornerstone of this adaptability, enabling companies to stay aligned with their operational goals while evolving to meet shifting demands. Building a Culture of Continuous Improvement A culture of continuous improvement is more than just a set of processes or tools—it’s a mindset that pervades the entire organisation. It requires a commitment from leadership to foster an environment where every employee is empowered to contribute ideas for improvement. Encouraging staff to think critically about how things can be done better, faster, or more efficiently can create a collaborative environment that drives growth and innovation. Leadership plays a crucial role in cultivating this mindset. They must actively support and model continuous improvement by promoting transparent communication, setting clear expectations, and recognising achievements. When employees see that their contributions are valued, they are more likely to be engaged and motivated to find solutions that improve the business. Adapting to Changing Business Needs Business needs evolve constantly, whether due to shifts in the market, technological advancements, or changing customer preferences. What worked yesterday may not be as effective today. Continuous improvement allows businesses to stay ahead by ensuring their processes, products, and services remain relevant and effective in the face of change. Adapting to changing business needs requires a proactive approach. Regularly assessing current operations, identifying areas for improvement, and implementing iterative changes can help businesses maintain flexibility. This might include adopting new technologies, updating training programs, or streamlining workflows to remove bottlenecks. Companies that make continuous improvements are more likely to avoid stagnation, remain competitive, and seize new opportunities as they arise. Alignment with Operational Goals The ultimate goal of continuous improvement is to ensure that all processes are in sync with the company's operational goals. By constantly evaluating and refining business processes, companies can enhance efficiency, reduce costs, and improve quality. It’s essential that every initiative for improvement is aligned with the broader strategic objectives of the business. To achieve this alignment, businesses must first have a clear understanding of their operational goals. This means setting measurable targets and regularly reviewing progress. Performance metrics, such as key performance indicators (KPIs), are useful tools for tracking progress towards these goals and identifying areas where improvements are needed. Continuous improvement should be driven by data and insights, ensuring that decisions are based on evidence rather than assumptions. The Role of Employee Engagement in Continuous Improvement For continuous improvement to be effective, employees must feel invested in the process. When individuals at all levels of the organisation contribute ideas for improvement, it not only drives innovation but also increases employee satisfaction and retention. Employees who see that their input is valued and that they have the ability to influence change within the company are more likely to feel empowered and engaged. This is particularly important in industries where customer satisfaction and operational efficiency are key drivers of success. By tapping into the collective knowledge of the workforce, businesses can uncover new ways to improve customer experiences, streamline operations, and achieve better outcomes. Measuring Success in Continuous Improvement To gauge the effectiveness of continuous improvement efforts, businesses must establish metrics to measure progress. These can include financial metrics, such as revenue growth or cost savings, as well as operational metrics like cycle time reduction, process efficiency, or customer satisfaction scores. Regularly reviewing these metrics provides insight into how well improvement initiatives are contributing to the organisation’s success. In addition to quantitative metrics, qualitative measures—such as employee feedback or customer surveys—can help businesses understand the impact of improvements on the workforce and customer experience. Combining both types of data allows for a more comprehensive understanding of the effectiveness of continuous improvement efforts. Continuous improvement should be an ongoing commitment within a business, ensuring that processes evolve to meet changing needs and align with operational goals. By fostering a culture that embraces change, engaging employees, and measuring success, businesses can maintain a competitive edge and achieve long-term success. Ultimately, businesses that prioritise continuous improvement will not only improve their bottom line but also enhance their ability to adapt and thrive in an ever-changing environment. Actionable Tip: Use frameworks like Kaizen or Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) to foster regular assessment and adaptation. Encourage employees to suggest improvements and reward their contributions. 5. Focus on Employee Training Well-trained employees are one of the most valuable assets a business can have. Their ability to perform tasks more efficiently and with fewer errors directly impacts the overall success and profitability of the organisation. Investing in regular training not only enhances individual performance but also contributes to a culture of continuous improvement within the team. Below, we’ll explore the key reasons why regular employee training is crucial for maximising operational efficiency. Increased Efficiency and Productivity Training empowers employees to execute tasks with greater speed and accuracy. When employees are well-versed in the processes, tools, and technologies they use daily, they can complete their work more quickly, without the need for frequent guidance or corrections. This leads to an overall increase in productivity as employees spend less time troubleshooting or redoing tasks. Efficient performance is essential for businesses seeking to maximise output while minimising costs. Reduction in Errors and Mistakes One of the direct benefits of employee training is a noticeable reduction in errors and mistakes. When employees are trained properly, they are more likely to understand the details and nuances of the tasks they’re performing. This knowledge helps them avoid common pitfalls and navigate complex situations effectively. Fewer errors result in better-quality products or services, which enhances customer satisfaction and reduces the cost of rework and corrections. Adaptability to New Tools and Processes As businesses grow and evolve, new processes, tools, and technologies are often introduced to improve operations. Regular training ensures that employees are not left behind as the business adapts to changes. By equipping your team with the skills they need to navigate new systems or software, you enable them to stay current and maintain their efficiency. This adaptability also supports the implementation of innovation, as employees are confident in using new tools and can integrate them seamlessly into their workflows. Fostering a Culture of Operational Competence Training is a key component in building a culture of competence within your organisation. When employees receive ongoing development opportunities, they feel more confident in their abilities and are motivated to continuously improve. This leads to higher levels of engagement, as employees take ownership of their role and strive for excellence. A competent workforce not only improves day-to-day operations but also strengthens the overall performance of the organisation in achieving long-term strategic goals. Employee Retention and Satisfaction A well-trained workforce is often a satisfied and loyal one. Regular training demonstrates a commitment to employee development and personal growth. Employees who feel they are improving their skills and advancing their careers are more likely to stay with the company. This reduces turnover and recruitment costs while fostering a sense of loyalty and engagement, ultimately contributing to a more stable and high-performing team. Continuous Improvement and Innovation Ongoing training creates an environment where continuous improvement is encouraged and valued. Employees become accustomed to learning and refining their skills, which leads to more efficient problem-solving and creative thinking. As a result, your team is better equipped to identify opportunities for improvement within existing processes and innovate new ways of working that further enhance operational performance. This mindset of continuous improvement drives long-term growth and helps businesses stay competitive in an ever-changing marketplace. Stronger Leadership and Team Collaboration Training not only benefits individual performance but also strengthens team dynamics. Well-trained employees are more likely to collaborate effectively, as they share a common understanding of processes and goals. In addition, training can develop leadership skills, helping employees grow into managers and mentors who can guide and support others in their professional development. A team with strong leadership and collaboration skills is essential for tackling complex projects and achieving organisational success. The importance of regular employee training cannot be overstated. It drives efficiency, reduces errors, fosters adaptability, and builds a culture of competence within the organisation. By investing in your team’s development, you not only enhance their skills but also create an environment that supports continuous growth and improvement, ensuring long-term business success. Training is an essential tool for maximising operational performance and creating a workforce that is capable, engaged, and ready to meet future challenges head-on. Actionable Tip: Create a training calendar that aligns with your process improvement goals. Include topics such as new technologies, soft skills, and operational best practices. 6. Enhance Communication Effective communication is a cornerstone of any successful operation, and when it falters, the consequences can be significant. Poor communication often leads to misunderstandings that create confusion among team members, resulting in missed deadlines, errors, and even project failures. In many cases, it’s not the lack of effort, but the misinterpretation of information or lack of clarity that leads to delays. These breakdowns can snowball, causing cascading issues that affect productivity, morale, and ultimately, the bottom line. Teams can waste time retracing steps or correcting mistakes that could have been avoided with clear, consistent communication. In larger organisations, where cross-functional teams must collaborate, these issues multiply, resulting in even greater inefficiency and frustration. Streamlining Communication Channels To ensure smooth operations, businesses must implement streamlined communication channels. This involves reducing the number of communication touchpoints and optimising the flow of information. It's not just about the tools used—such as emails, chat platforms, or project management software—but also about defining how and when these tools should be used. By having well-established communication protocols, businesses can prevent the chaos of fragmented conversations or an overload of messages. Clear guidelines on which channel to use for different types of communication—whether it’s for urgent matters, project updates, or routine discussions—ensures that the right information reaches the right people at the right time. Ensuring Consistency Across Teams One of the most important aspects of streamlined communication is ensuring that all team members are on the same page. This consistency is achieved through standardised processes and regular updates. When employees have a clear understanding of project goals, deadlines, and expectations, they can focus on their tasks with greater efficiency. For example, in project management, setting up regular check-ins or status meetings ensures everyone is aligned and allows for quick course correction if needed. Similarly, providing access to centralised information sources, like shared documents or dashboards, prevents team members from working off outdated or incorrect data. Enhancing Collaboration and Decision Making A streamlined communication system also fosters a culture of collaboration. When information is easily accessible and communication flows smoothly, decision-making becomes quicker and more informed. Team members can contribute their expertise more effectively, knowing that their input will be considered and integrated into the project seamlessly. Furthermore, clear communication fosters trust within teams. When people understand each other’s roles and responsibilities, there is less chance of overlap or confusion. This, in turn, leads to a more harmonious work environment, where people feel confident in their work and in each other’s contributions. Improving Overall Business Efficiency Ultimately, the goal of streamlined communication is to create a more efficient and effective business environment. When communication flows smoothly, employees spend less time clarifying misunderstandings and more time focusing on value-adding tasks. The result is increased productivity, higher quality work, and a stronger bottom line. Additionally, streamlined communication aids in managing client relationships. Clear, timely communication with clients can prevent service issues, boost customer satisfaction, and lead to long-term partnerships. Efficient communication across the organisation ensures that all client-facing teams are working with the same up-to-date information, enabling them to offer better service and more effective solutions. By optimising communication processes and eliminating barriers to clarity, businesses can ensure that their operations run more smoothly, leading to greater productivity, improved morale, and better overall results. Actionable Tip: Adopt communication tools like Slack, Microsoft Teams, or project management platforms. Regular team meetings and updates can also improve collaboration. 7. Measure and Optimise Outcomes Improvement initiatives in any business, whether focused on operations, customer service, or product development, must go beyond theory and deliver tangible, measurable results. It’s not enough for changes to look good on paper or sound promising in meetings. The ultimate test of any initiative is its ability to drive meaningful, quantifiable improvements in performance. To ensure that improvement efforts are directed towards achieving clear outcomes, businesses need to establish and track Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) . KPIs are crucial metrics that help businesses gauge the effectiveness of their initiatives, monitor progress, and identify areas where adjustments may be needed. The Importance of Setting Clear KPIs Setting clear KPIs is vital because it creates a roadmap for success. Without clear targets, improvement initiatives can become unfocused or fragmented. KPIs provide a solid foundation for what success looks like, helping teams understand exactly what they’re working towards. KPIs must be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) to provide actionable insights. For example, instead of a vague goal like "improve customer satisfaction," a clear KPI would be "increase customer satisfaction score by 10% over the next quarter." This kind of specific measurement ensures the initiative stays on track and can be adjusted if necessary. Maintaining Focus and Accountability Clear KPIs keep everyone involved in the initiative focused on the desired outcomes. When goals are well-defined, it’s easier for teams to stay aligned and motivated because they have a tangible target to work towards. KPIs act as a compass, guiding actions and decision-making. When things don’t go as planned, KPIs can pinpoint exactly where the issue lies, ensuring that resources aren’t wasted on areas that don’t drive value. Accountability is also strengthened with KPIs. Whether it’s a team leader or an entire department, KPIs allow managers to track progress, assess whether performance targets are being met, and intervene if corrective action is needed. This fosters a culture of responsibility and ensures that everyone understands their role in achieving the initiative's success. Evaluating Outcomes Effectively The ability to evaluate the outcomes of improvement initiatives is what separates successful organisations from those that struggle to implement lasting change. KPIs enable businesses to measure not just whether an initiative was completed, but whether it achieved the desired impact. This could involve tracking customer retention, profitability, or process efficiency after implementing a new system or strategy. Evaluation using KPIs also provides transparency. It’s easier to show stakeholders—whether they are employees, investors, or customers—that the business is making progress and delivering value. The more clearly results can be evaluated, the more the organisation can refine its strategies, ensuring continuous improvement and sustained excellence. Maintaining Operational Excellence Maintaining operational excellence requires a commitment to consistent improvement and performance evaluation. KPIs ensure that any initiative, whether related to process efficiency, product innovation, or employee satisfaction, leads to continuous growth. When teams are regularly reviewing performance against their KPIs, they are more likely to identify issues early and take corrective actions before they escalate. Operational excellence isn’t just about improving the existing systems; it’s about creating a mindset of relentless pursuit of better outcomes. By embedding KPIs into the daily operations of the business, organisations create a culture of high performance, where every improvement initiative has clear objectives, measurable results, and a focus on delivering lasting value. In conclusion, setting and tracking KPIs is essential for the success of any improvement initiative. They provide clarity, direction, and focus, ensuring that efforts contribute to achieving measurable results and maintaining a high standard of operational excellence. Without them, improvement initiatives may lack the structure needed to achieve meaningful, long-term success. Actionable Tip: Define specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals for each process improvement project. Review performance against these metrics regularly. Conclusion Business Process Improvement is not a one-time task but an ongoing journey. By adopting these seven strategies, you can create a high-performance work environment that aligns with your organisation’s objectives and achieves operational excellence. Start small, measure your results, and gradually scale your efforts to achieve sustainable growth. Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations offer clarity and a well-defined pathway for you and your team to move forward confidently. Get Started

High performance work systems can help your business out-perform the competition. Learn how to develop HPWS to increase your business productivity today. How to Develop a High Performance Work System to Increase Business Productivity High performance work systems can help your business out-perform the competition. Learn how to develop HPWS to increase your business productivity today. Published on: 27 Feb 2025 Business productivity in the UK is in crisis. We’re among the lowest in the G7, with UK productivity a staggering 17% below the USA and France. So often businesses look to new sales or marketing campaigns to resolve productivity issues and increase profitability. Instead of looking for external solutions to internal problems, we think everyone needs to rethink business and make work better with a high performance work system ( HPWS ). We’ll be looking briefly at what a HPWS is and how you can develop one for your business. What is a HPWS and why Does Your Business Need one? Wouldn’t it be great if everyone in your business was working to their full capability? That’s exactly what a High Performance Work System aims to achieve. It does this through adopting systems of work which improve performance. Nothing too groundbreaking, right? The previous approaches to achieve this focused on machines and technology. For example, getting a new CMS to better analyse data or automating more processes to free up employees. But despite these well-intentioned approaches, productivity didn’t increase. In fact, the further we’ve moved into the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the technologies it can offer, the more productivity has struggled. It’s what’s known as the productivity paradox . High performance work systems look to address this by taking a new approach — one that focuses on people. After all, people are at the heart of any business HPWS achieve this by creating a culture of high performance for businesses. There is much discussion between academics, economists and other thought leaders around what the key characteristics of a high performance work culture is. But generally speaking, a high performance work culture will have most, if not all, of the following aspects: A company culture of learning and continuous improvement Strong leadership with emotional intelligence to foster this culture A HRM strategy utilised to promote a positive company culture Strong teams built through selective hiring processes Teams and departments have clear goals, strategically aligned with larger business goals Alternative working practices A flat, or flatter, organisational hierarchy to promote communication A clear vision for the business, which all employees share Employees who are motivated, engaged and committed to this vision Research suggests businesses who adopt a high performance work system can see an increase in business productivity between 20% to 40% . How to Develop a HPWS to Increase Business Productivity To develop a HPWS you need to understand what your business goals are and what your current work systems are and how they aid those goals to assess where you can further develop a performance culture. Employees and leaders should be as involved as possible in the entire process for the best results. Let’s take a look at the characteristics listed above to see how you can implement them in your own workplace. A Company Culture of Learning and Continuous Improvement Are you happy with the status quo or are you always striving towards the next development? Many businesses fit into the former category. They assume the way things are done now is the way they should be done. This works for a time, until a more competitive company comes along that has developed further through continuous improvement. They can offer better products, at more competitive prices and a better customer experience overall. This is why it’s vital for high performance workplaces to foster a culture of continuous improvement across the business. All teams and departments should continually be looking for ways to improve the current way of doing things, allowing the business to remain competitive and innovative in the wider market. Continuous improvement is intrinsically linked to learning. Employees who are unable or unwilling to learn are a recipe for disaster for businesses. Learning can empower staff, teach them new skills and change their way of thinking. Ultimately, all this knowledge gets pumped back into your business, allowing you to continuously improve. Businesses can create a company culture of learning and continuous improvement by: Making open, transparent communication a priority Investing in staff development Setting and measuring goals and using this information to improve future goals Empowering employees by implementing ideas and encouraging a sense of ownership over ideas Strong Leadership Through Emotional Intelligence Our current command-and-control management style wreaks havoc on business productivity, ultimately creating low performance teams and a low productivity business. Of course, management needs a certain amount of skills to run a team such as commercial awareness, organisational skills, the ability to delegate and so on. But so much more importantly, they need emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence is a simple concept at its core. It’s the ability to manage and understand your own emotions and also the emotions of those around you. High emotional intelligence notice and consider the impact of their own emotions and the emotions of others. Managers who possess a high level of emotional intelligence are more likely to stay calm and navigate situations successfully, as opposed to get stressed out and make rash or impulsive decisions. Daniel Goleman, the American psychologist who popularised emotional intelligence in business says there are five key characteristics to emotional intelligence: Social skills Self-awareness Self-regulation Empathy Motivation Of course, business can encourage strong leadership with emotional intelligence by promoting those who possess the skills into leadership positions. But contrary to popular belief, emotional intelligence can be learned . Previous Next Start Your Business Improvement Journey Our business improvement programme and smart operations provide clarity and a clear pathway forward for you and your team. Get Started