Business Management - Productivity/Process Improvement

Could you imagine turning on ESPN and watching a game in which the players and coaches had no idea what the score is? Now how about operating a printing company without metrics to measure if it is successful or not?

I have been working with my son Paul on our annual Ratio Reports/Studies for the printing industry. It’s a very tedious process, to say the least. However, I believe it’s a very important exercise for print shop owners and managers.

According to a Fox Business Network poll, 36 percent of all new hires said they were not made to understand what was actually expected of them from the outset. A large number of employees are frustrated—even depressed—over their jobs because of the “confusion” in the workplace, and would not recommend their employers to others.

Don Johnson won a total of $15 million playing Blackjack at three Atlantic City casinos. In the casinos’ desperation to get him in the door, they essentially gave him 50/50 odds. I know an empty press schedule is scary, but like the casinos, we printers need to keep track of the numbers and verify them for ourselves before we, like the casino managers, walk off the cliff like lemmings.

People I meet in my travels as a systems guy are generally shocked to learn I was once an arguably well-known rock ’n’ roll singer, at least regionally. Everything our band did had to be voted on, even where we stopped to eat, what songs to play, who got to sing first, etc.

Michelle told us she’d been summoned to the human resources office and informed of her layoff “effective immediately.” She asked the manager, “How is the company going to service the remaining customers that have relied on me and my department?”

Many small businesses do a pretty good job of producing financial statements, but in my experience, few really use them to the fullest advantage. Often what’s missing are meaningful benchmarks by which to judge financial results.

The FUNDAMENTALS are the way a business runs/operates from the time it opens in the morning until the time it closes at night. It’s amazing how many companies do NOT take the time to consider these all-important details.

“Shoot-from-the-hip” job applicant interviews reveal very little of the information that needs to be known up front; information that is usually only found out after the person’s hiring. “I just go with a GUT FEELING, and I normally get it right!”

I’ve interacted with many management combinations at family-owned businesses, so I know first-hand the challenges they face. The main one is how to keep from permanently damaging relationships, as family members are in constant contact as they deal with the stresses of the business.