The Process Ninja

Process Ineptitude Personified

Insurance as a concept is not a difficult thing to grasp - so why do so many companies make a complete mess of it?

Yesterday I called around to get some quotes on a fairly niche insurance product - landlord insurance for a holiday rental property. Most insurance companies couldn't (or rather wouldn't) provide cover. But one who did was one of the major banks. Happily I used their online quote tool. After entering only my address details it instantly spat me back a quote.

Hmm...something not right there. Knowing what I do know about insurance and having completed other online quotes I knew that there was something wrong. Nonetheless I pressed on and was greeted with a screen which said something along the lines of "Oh you want an insurance quote, great, but this is all too difficult for our system to grasp so you're going to have to fill in a crappy form and someone will call you sometime in the future".

Confidence dwindling - but as their product looked good I pressed on and completed the online form. It gave me the option to enter my customer number (I have an account with this bank) which I thought was smart as it would streamline the application process.

A few hours later I had already signed up for another insurance provider (Ray White Insurance) who had provided me with some really good service.Still I was curious to see what our inept banking friends would do next.

At 11:30 am the next day (a mere 24 hours later! - too slow!) I received a call from the bank who proceeded to grill me about my account details: "what is your card number? What is your limit? What is your address? Do you have any regular payments? Where did you collect the card from?"

"Wait, is all of this necessary? - I just want to get an insurance quote" I replied to which I was told that it was necessary as the bank had called me and they needed to verify my ID (which I had no idea why they had trouble doing this since I knew very well what my address, card number and other details were). "What you'll need to do is to call us back."

"What????" I replied "But what if I wasn't a customer? How would I get a quote"

"Oh, you'd have to call us, we wouldn't call you".

So I take down the number I am supposed to call her back on and throw it in the bin. Or should I say, the "too hard basket".

So by all accounts this bank don't call people back to give them quotes. They also don't make it easy for current customers to take out insurance. They also don't have an online quote tool that works. They have created a process that suits themselves and not their customers, and the equation is therefore very simple - the customers will not buy - and that includes me.

- TPN 

Are you creating a monster? Repeatability & Scalability in Process

I'm working with a team at the moment who has a product that they sell to clients. As part of the ongoing managed service to this client they have 9 key services that they provide. Basic stuff really - service requests.

Think about this:

• They have 9 process maps for each service request type

• They have procedures for each service request type

• They are all "client specific"

So what happens when they bring on a new client? Yes, they create a new set of processes and procedures for that client.

And what happens if a change is required to a process - yes they have to change the process across all the clients!

Just think about the administrative overhead of all that and the potential confusion caused by 9 processes times X number of clients. Essentially what they have done is to create a process monster. We're now going through the process (ahem) of stripping back the client specific information to create 1 process and set of procedures that can be used across all clients. This reduces the admin overhead, reduces the margin for error and allows us to go to market quickly and implement rapidly if a potential client comes along.

So the message is, when you create or modify process remember:

• Repeatability - make it easily repeatable, don't re-invent the wheel each time
• Scalability - make it adaptable to growth

Don't create a monster.

TPN

Documenting your business procedures in ten easy steps

Hi all, this is an article I have recently written for Flyingsolo.com.au. It's audience is small / micro businesses, but you may find it relevant...

Processes. Love ‘em or loathe them, we can’t live without them. They are part of everything we do in our lives and in business. But often we take our business processes for granted until disaster hits or we we need to break free from our indespensible role as the boss; but how do you get started with documenting processes for your business?

Here are 10 easy steps to get you onto the path of process enlightenment:

1. Start with the basics
It is tempting to try to jump straight into writing procedures, but before you do this it is important to document information about your business that may seem obvious. It might be obvious to you, but ask your staff a few simple questions and you may get a surprise!  Start with the basics – what the business does, who its customers are, where you are located, who your suppliers are, what your operating hours are and how you can be contacted.

2. Who are you writing for?
Before you plunge headlong into your business’s most complex processes, remember who you are writing the procedures for - not for those like yourself who have intimate knowledge of the entire business, but for your staff.  The more accessible you can make your instructions the easier it will be for your staff to learn. Write your procedures as if you are talking to a child – that way everyone will understand them.

3. Make a list
Before you start writing procedures, make a list of all of the processes within your organisation, note who can provide the information and prioritise each one of them.

4. Just start
What are you waiting for? Just start! Stop thinking about it and do it. Procedures are like life insurance - don’t put it off.  You never know when you might need it…

5. Never mind the medium
Don’t be overly concerned with how you document your procedures. Whilst Word and Excel are good ways to start, it doesn’t really matter if you write them with a rusty nail dipped in blood - as long as you do write them (just make photocopies!)

6. Step By Step
When you write a procedure, break everything down, step-by-step. Try to number each step, write down who is responsible and clearly articulate what is required. You may find it helpful to start each step with a verb. For people like me, that means a doing word, like “create”!

7. Ask your staff
You probably think you know everything about your business (and I’m not saying you don’t!) but you should always let your staff review your procedures.  You might find out that they aren’t doing things the way you had hoped, and they may even have some new ideas for ways to do things better…

8. Re-invent
Documenting your processes and procedures forces you to think about the way things are currently done. This very act can help to stimulate creative juices and generate ideas to re-invent and improve your business.

9. It’s a living thing
Once you have documented your procedures don’t put them on a shelf and forget about them. It’s important to keep them alive and up-to-date. If you can’t handle continually updating them then set a date in your diary to review them on a regular basis.

10. Get Professional Help
If it all seems too hard or you can’t find the time, don’t be ashamed to get help. There are many experienced procedural writers out there who can help you to pull things together (like me!)

Why not share your experiences and tips for creating procedural manuals for your business?