One of the greatest costs to the bottom line of any business is lack of efficiency within the workplace. And this expresses itself from the top management down through the organization.

Everyone wants high efficiency from their staff, yet many people know how to obtain this elusive objective.  As you are developing standards for your business it is the perfect time to introduce goals and timelines.

Everyone within your organization must be able to adhere to timelines. Most businesses run with some type of deadlines which need to be met. The sooner everyone is on board with this understanding the sooner your business will function at it’s highest efficiency.

What you are doing is establishing a reliable network.  A system in which functionality is know to not just survive, but thrive on the efficiency and collaboration of each team member.

Expectations are another component of efficiency.  What are your standards of work produced?  Have you communicated this fully with your staff?  As you are developing policies and procedures, consider also developing a brand manual. This manual not only contains your mission as a company, your goals, your expectations but it also contains the details of those expectations down to the colors used in your logos, the fonts used on your website and your communications, even the spacing in the communications.

Consistency is extremely important. This doesn’t mean ideas change or designs are set in stone, instead it lays out a template in which all work is followed and adhered to without question. This is a place where everyone can go to get answers to standards and revisit the focus of the company at any time.

When you turn off the ‘open’ sign at the end of the day you still must fully understand that it’s your business. Your staff will never care as much about it as you do, nor will they be as invested in it as you are. It’s yours! Your child, your vision – your future. This is why your expectations – fully expressed to your staff, will bring you the results you are looking to achieve within your business.