Category: Business Process Improvement

Remote work is likely here to stay for the foreseeable future. That means companies must find ways to keep employees motivated and efficient, even when they’re unable to come into the office. While some studies show that remote workers are even more productive than their in-office counterparts, there are still a number of ways to make the work environment an efficient, more productive place to be.    How to Improve Workflow Efficiency: 6 Strategies Let’s take a look at strategies to improve workflow efficiency, whether that’s at the office or for the remote worker at home.    1. Identify Priorities Anyone can get bogged down in the details when bigger picture projects aren’t identified or prioritized.  Every company should then have both short-term and long-term goal-planning in mind. Priorities set from there should keep a few things in mind: What should employees be working on in this moment in order to meet those short- and long-term goals? Do employees need some support around breaking down tasks in order to achieve those goals more efficiently? Is there company-wide access to tools that would make it more likely for employees to meet those goals in an efficient way?   2. Analyze What’s Working and What Isn’t You likely know your employees pretty well, but maybe you don’t know where workflow efficiency could be improved. How are the various roles at the company working together to efficiently handle tasks?  Are your company’s tools and processes promoting workflow efficiency, or could improvements be made to boost productivity? Where is the most time being wasted? Solving productivity issues may mean reaching out to your employees to determine what’s working and what isn’t, even if you need to gather that data anonymously. If your company is drowning in paper, for example, perhaps it’s time to consider going paperless. It’s a strategy that isn’t just great for the environment, but proven to improve efficiency in the workplace, too. Just consider how much time employees spend on administrative tasks that involve paper. That could be time better spent elsewhere, like focusing on those identified long-term goals.   3. Create Efficient Processes Sometimes, your employees’ workflow efficiency is only as good as the processes in place to optimize productivity and workflow. You may not even realize that there are things in the way of employees’ being at their most productive that are beyond their control.   If your employees are stymied by data reporting, you may need to investigate systems that will simplify those processes for your employees. Our solution for our Quickbase users is Trinity Dashboards, an application that allows you and your employees to adjust data filtering and reporting based on what you need at that moment. Identify what your company needs to become more efficient, and find the tools to meet those needs.   4. Train Employees in Those New Processes Investments you’ve made to improve business workflow at your company are only good if your employees know how to use them. Training employees in new processes is the first step in better productivity. Perhaps you could even identify employee leaders to become trained in these new practices. These captains would then bring that knowledge back to the rest of the employee base as necessary. Either way, it’s important your workforce knows how to use the tools they’re given, to maximize the benefits of those tools.    5. Establish Methods for Easy Communication Whether employees are meeting on virtual conference calls or back to in-person meetings, it’s important to identify ways for employees to communicate with ease.  Finding the time to meet, though, even virtually, can be one tricky area. Trinity’s Quickbase Calendar is a way to make that process less of a hassle and more of a support system for your company, as this scheduling solution takes the guesswork out of determining the availability of employees company-wide.   6. Access Tools to Make Efficiency Easier Your processes are in place, and your employees are trained. What do you do next to allow for seamless monitoring of employee efficiency? How can you make workflow efficiency easier to maintain? There are a number of tools to help you do that, whether you’re looking to automate certain processes or make existing processes easier to manage. Trinity has a number of those solutions to help get you started and to identify the business process solutions for you. Remember: You shouldn’t just adopt every proven solution under the sun because you’ve heard they’ve worked for other companies. It’s important to consider what will work for your business’s unique needs. Let’s explore two options: Quickbase: Trinity promotes the Quickbase platform as a way to streamline your business through a customized response. The focus is on your company’s flexibility, efficiency, and communication, all areas that promote overall workflow efficiency. Custom Solutions: For businesses that need a more customized approach, Trinity offers custom software solutions for even the more complex problems around running a business. Help us help you with solution-based processes to promote growth at your business.   These are just a few strategies for how to improve workflow efficiency at your business, particularly as companies continue adapting in this unprecedented moment. With the right tools, your company can ramp up its efficiency in no time, even if your workers are remote. […]

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Top talent makes a huge difference in a company’s success. Given that the Covid19 pandemic is fast-tracking remote and online work, teams all over the world are refashioning their hiring process.   Due to increasing competition, most companies out there know that they need to position themselves as the ideal employer for on-site, remote, local, and overseas talent. Such things as showing current employees you care about their job satisfaction and aspirations have become key components in acquisition and retention strategies.  With the advent of the coronavirus pandemic, organizations are now looking at new ways of working. These strategies include cultivating effective remote management protocols and encouraging new remote workers to maintain a work-life balance. Prospecting Strategies and Tools Appeal to today’s top talent with the following tactics.  Employ Strategic Planning Always remain proactive rather than reactive when it comes to talent acquisition. This starts by acknowledging the specific roles of the HR department. Always work collaboratively across departments to develop a comprehensive strategy for talent acquisition. Ensure that key employees in different divisions share the organization’s goals and vision.  Focus on Competencies Limited time, funds, or a lack of clarity in the overall requirements can lead managers to hire based on gut instinct rather than proven skills. Underqualified candidates are a drag on the organization.   According to a recent study, talent mismatches are a growing concern for businesses. Companies with sound recruitment strategies optimize the hiring process. Developing the right competency frameworks also set the employee up to know the role’s expectations. Strategies that are based on the competency factor turn out to be far more sustainable than just recruiting for the sake of filling the respective vacancies at the lowest price and in the shortest time frame possible.  Develop a People-Oriented Culture The acquisition of diverse talent is not an easy task. For this, employers need to accommodate both the monetary as well as non-monetary expectations of their prospective employees. This can be done by renovating existing reward and compensation strategies, learning and development opportunities, workplace culture, and other factors.  The organization’s culture should aim at focusing on people while rewarding performances and encouraging a good work-life balance. Always cultivate a brand that includes diverse backgrounds and nationalities. Moreover, a culture of transparency and open communication go hand-in-hand with success in this type of targeting.  Make sure to create and maintain your company’s brand to attract employees who resonate with it.  Measure & Analyze Data Continuously monitor the results of the talent acquisition process. Knowing outcomes helps develop the best hiring process.  Document the specific metrics of talent acquisition—time to hire, yield ratio, the acceptance rate of offers, etc. This data provides insights into how specific talent groups respond, improving the overall recruitment process.  Get Leaders Out in the Public When company leaders speak in the community they clarify aspects of their organization’s mission, objectives, and corporate culture, thereby enhancing the company’s image in the eyes of potential employees. Prioritize Employee Recognition Employees thrive when they know their work matters. Study after study reveals that employees are interested in much more than their paychecks. They aren’t just interested in making a good living. They want to make a difference in their department, the organization, and even society.  Putting it all Together Talking to your business process solutions provider is a great first step in getting a handle on the best tools and strategies you’ll need to optimize your organization’s process for attracting top talent. For over 20 years, Trinity has been partnering with clients to deliver superior business software solutions and process improvements.  Trinity helps organizations get the most out of talent acquisition and management processes, and provides a wide range of custom business solutions, including Quickbase solutions to improve your business processes. Reach out today to learn more about our solutions to all your business process needs.  […]

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Executives, managers, and business owners alike all endeavor to cultivate workplaces that are streamlined, efficient, and productive. They’d like engaged, content workers and satisfied customers, happy to do repeat business with the company month after month.  And yet, every organization has some areas of inefficiency. Identifying business inefficiency can be a complex and grueling undertaking. Getting there can be a convoluted journey involving paper tracking and hurt feelings among employees. Dire problems arise when several areas of minimal inefficiency conspire to create larger areas of poor performance, or when there are isolated areas in which deep inefficiency exists. Unfortunately, these latter dark spots can take down entire departments.  Business inefficiency can lead to: stressed, frustrated staff compliance issues lost or misplaced documentation  missed deadlines Although the economic losses may be imperceptible to most in the organization, they eventually lead to decreased growth and greater costs. The Pareto Principle tells us that 80% of any company’s negative outcomes are due to 20% of its inefficiencies.  Experts maintain that inefficient processes cost companies up to 30% of their annual revenue. It stands to reason that once these inefficiencies are identified and remedied, both revenues and productivity will improve.    The “Red Flags” of Inefficiency No organization, no matter how tight its management, escapes the inefficiency goblin. What should managers look for in identifying inefficiency? Although some inefficiencies are difficult to identify, common themes come to light with examination. These areas demand a manager’s or executive’s most intense focus. Manual processes often give rise to wasted time, since some people work more quickly or slowly than others. Unfortunately, work is regularly duplicated and corrupted during manual processes.  Lost or difficult-to-find data wastes significant employee time. If employees routinely complain about a lack of organization in the workplace or are forced to wade through piles of paperwork or raw digital data to accomplish everyday tasks, inefficiencies continually sap profits.  Meetings often waste employee time. “Meeting ourselves to death” was a term coined by an assistant professor at a major university to describe how meetings impeded the progress of work across her department.  Meetings are great for addressing key or critical issues, for sparking creativity, collaborating, and sharing ideas. When meetings become the “go-to” for discussing or addressing every issue that comes to light in the workplace however, it’s the perfect recipe for wasted time. Meetings that are too frequent also lead to boredom and frustration amongst workers who are repeatedly pulled away from their work. Additionally, “stream-of-consciousness” meetings that don’t have an agenda or clear objectives do not result in actionable tasks.    Process drift is a common problem in many organizations, particularly in data-driven workplaces. When a company’s processes no longer complement or work within the operational parameters of digital solutions or suites, workers often find themselves in the position of having to devise workarounds for routine tasks on a case-by-case basis.  Lack of strategic focus is a deficiency that costs organizations millions of dollars over time. An organization may have excellent managers, supervisors, and workers doing great work, but if there’s no “vision,” individuals may be working at cross-purposes. Objectives and goals just don’t align. Managers, supervisors, and workers who are often too busy (or perhaps attempting to appear so) are a good indicator that a lack of strategic focus is a problem.  Lack of organizational analysis plagues many companies, particularly successful ones that have been operating in a given modality over a long period of time. We’ve all heard the axiom “The business that fails to plan, plans to fail.”. Failure to periodically compare performance over time to strategic objectives is a major inefficiency that is overlooked by many organizations. This issue tends to “run in the background,” rather than pinpointed as a glaring example of inefficiency. People vs. processes. When identifying areas of inefficiency, sometimes it’s the people rather than the processes. Some established organizations, departments, and workgroups cultivate a laissez-faire attitude toward processes. By becoming overly dependent on established processes, workers may become unproductive. Such workers tend to get overlooked during workplace changes. After all,  managers married to an imperative of finding a new normal may become less attentive to performance.    Taking Care of Business Identifying every source of inefficient practices can be a bottomless time suck, but here are some proven methods you can use to find the most serious offenders in your organization: Evaluate current processes – This one can be complex for hands-on managers, but it’s definitely worth it. Take some time to observe current processes and ask questions of team members. This not only helps to reveal inefficiencies but improves morale because workers gain buy-in to the process. It also affords workers the opportunity to point out deficiencies they may have noticed but don’t feel called upon to disclose. It may seem like a no-brainer that processes should never be more complex than warranted, but analysis may divulge unnecessary complexities. Process evaluations that result in useful streamlining help eliminate process drift. Solutions often include scheduling and resource management tools, productivity suites, or stand-alone productivity solutions. Tighten up those meetings – As indicated above, meetings should always have an agenda, even for brainstorming sessions. Attendees should only include those who are involved in a particular project, rather than being open to nonessential personnel. Finally, there should be a clear statement of objectives and actions for every meeting, regardless of how short the meeting may be, or how inconsequential it may appear in the greater scope of things. Engage digital solutions – With the proliferation of data-driven organizations, it is now possible to make mundane tasks more efficient very quickly. Business Process Automation (BPA) is software designed to simplify complex tasks, which saves companies time and money and improves productivity. Productivity solutions and suites can centralize data, eliminating the “lost data” phenomenon, frustration, and wasted time. Set goals for improvement – If your organization has solid workers who follow directions, the process of improving efficiency can become like any other project that needs to be addressed, rather […]

Read More… from 5 Strategies for Identifying Inefficiencies in Your Business

Times are changing and the business world is scrambling to keep up. These are strange times indeed and managers need to react quickly to keep their teams working efficiently.  Let’s be honest: as enjoyable as it is to work from home in your pajamas, it can often be difficult to remotely manage a workforce and stay productive.  Some organizations will thrive in this environment. In fact, companies such as Twitter and Square have officially told employees that they can permanently work from home. As a result, the goal of this article is to help you survive and thrive with changing team dynamics in this brave new world that we are facing.  Let’s look at 5 ways that your company can move forward in today’s changing workplace.  1. Embrace the Cloud 2020 has become an ideal year to make the switch towards digitizing your entire workflow. This includes apps, storage, communications, and operations.  While it is true that a migration can be difficult at first, it is also equally true that the efficiency gained can be massively rewarding. Using platforms such as Quickbase, it is possible to design customized software applications to centralize, streamline, and future-proof your business operations.  In the case of cloud-based technology, you can keep your entire business operation connected and lower your company’s IT costs.  On top of money saved, using a cloud workspace gives access to scalability, consistent backups, encryption, and emergency backups. Luckily, adopting a cloud workspace is straightforward and usually involves minimal training time for workers.  This is all great. But truly, the beauty of having a cloud-based system means that you finally have access to total flexibility for your workforce. Everyone can access the same servers from across the world and manage virtually any business function, giving your company full control over your future. 2. It’s Time to Go Paperless Going paperless is like migrating over to the cloud. At Trinity, we help our clients utilize web-based form technology to gather and exchange information or use document assembly software to create customized documents. Having a paperless company enables your workforce to get things done. Fast.  Digital collaboration and paperwork are made easy without having to store tons of documents in a physical office space. Plus, your accounting team will be grateful to have everything digitally available: sending and receiving invoices, payments, and common accounting functions can all be done on the cloud. 3. Customized Software for Scalability Customized business process solutions are our specialty. We love helping clients tackle customized software that makes scaling easy. Off-the-shelf software platforms typically have a limited capacity for scaling and customization. It’s important to consider your long-term goals. Picture this: your team is adjusting to remote working. You want to encourage business growth and are not happy with your off-the-shelf software. At Trinity, we have helped companies across the world meet these challenges. Think of this pandemic as an opportunity to mobilize and take a proactive approach.  As a Quickbase Solution Provider, we specialize in application development that is ideal for scaling. We can help your organization roll out software over a rapid timeline. 4. Prioritize Cybersecurity You’ve probably heard about the insane amount of ransomware and cyberattacks attacks that have affected everyone from Apple to police departments across the United States. Cyberattacks usually are focused on accessing, changing, or destroying business information.  As a result, we need to be vigilant concerning cybersecurity and only use encrypted technology to prevent or mitigate cyberattack risk. We can happily state that Quickbase obtained an A rating from SecurityScorecard, which is an independent security rating service that rates digital companies based on the strength and comprehensiveness of their platform security.  Cybersecurity and encryption are huge. If you’re going to have your entire corporate operation based on the cloud or utilize digital web-based applications in any capacity, thoroughly examine the platform you work with.  5. Embrace New Communication Methods There are lots of applications that when utilized together can make your working life 100% easier. It’s funny how a simple combination of tools can vastly enhance the quality of output and efficiency of a company.  The first step is to find a single platform that allows your team to pick and choose which apps they use. In our case, we have multiple Quickbase integrated apps that are designed to streamline your work life. These include:  Online Scheduling: If your company wants an efficiency upgrade, check out an online calendar and scheduling tool. We recommend TrinityCalendar. The application is fully integrated with Quickbase and has streamlined scheduling and resource management features. Digital Signatures: TrinitySignature is a Quickbase digital signature solution. Your team can use digital signatures to make signing forms and outputs fast and easy. Plus, you can utilize the tool inside the web version of Quickbase or Trinity can design a custom mobile app that integrates with Quickbase. Virtual Meetings: We’re all probably familiar with virtual platforms to handle meetings remotely during this pandemic. We recommend examining the security credentials of your video conferencing platform.  If your organization wants a guiding hand to help determine next steps during this changing time, we can help. Developing customized software is our forté. If you can define it – we can build it.  Get in touch with Trinity and we can explore the options.  […]

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We’re living in unprecedented times. In a few short months, the world has been altered forever, and every person on the planet is being forced to adapt. Now, the economy is facing a rough ride and businesses must adjust their operation strategy or become another casualty of the pandemic. Are you going to let this pandemic sink your business? Or will your organization choose to adapt, and keep afloat through these challenging economic times?  The purpose of this article is to observe the five ways that people and organizations are changing their working tactics to weather the recession and survive. With each point, we suggest a tactic to help your business or organization meet the challenge.    More Remote Work (Even After the Pandemic) Gartner, Inc. conducted a survey in March 2020 and found that 88% of businesses have either encouraged or required employees to work from home. They also found that 97% of organizations have canceled work-related travel.  This will undoubtedly rock many organizations to their core. It’s a challenge to change your entire business operation within such a rapid timeframe. This isn’t a time for worry – in fact, it’s an opportunity to revamp your business operation in an efficient manner. If your organization hasn’t done so already, consider migrating to a cloud workspace. Cloud servers offer easy collaboration for remote workers. Plus, adopting a cloud workspace is easy and has a short training time frame. Your formerly office-based staff can access cloud desktops and run an entire company virtually. Creating customer orders, completing administrative tasks, and updating employee files are just a few of the tasks you can do. Virtually any office task can be achieved remotely, and workers can access the cloud from anywhere with consistent backups, essentially avoiding any risk of physical disasters destroying your data.  Cloud workspaces also offer scalability and you only pay for the storage you need. There’s no longer a need for hardware in your office space, which can get outdated quickly. Cloud technology enables you to scale services solely to what your company needs now.  There’s a strong chance that many companies will embrace the remote cloud workspace and keep most workers remote. This will save serious money on overhead such as office space and computer hardware.    New Communication Methods Effective leadership and a clear timeline will enable your company to make these changes in a measured manner. Your leadership should provide a clear ‘plan of action’ for employees to have full disclosure and comfort with your COVID-19 proof strategy. We recommend only referencing information from verified sources such as the World Health Organization and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).  It’s important to establish team guidelines to ensure that there are ground rules for your new remote working strategy. Record numbers of employers are introducing intentional ‘peer-to-peer’ interactions such as regular virtual check-ins with managers, and virtual ‘all hands on deck’ meetings on platforms such as Zoom, GoToMeeting or Microsoft Teams. Having ‘core team time’ helps employees stay in the loop and helps stave off feelings of isolation.  One key tool is utilizing online scheduling – an exceptionally useful tool for scheduling and resource management. We use TrinityCalendar to easily expand our calendar and scheduling needs while connecting with other Quickbase applications. When all our applications are connected, it makes our organization flow become fast, smooth, and at peak efficiency.  Another benefit of using Quickbase applications is the sheer effectiveness. Using features such as digital signatures, you can capture a digital signature and use it on all your forms and outputs. These have a user and time stamp to ensure authenticity while making it easy for HR or other members of your workforce to approve, sign, and authorize documents or reports.  Whichever communication platform you choose, ensure that it can integrate with a wide variety of apps and has project management features to manage, track, and administer workflows. Only work with flexible tools as your business grows and changes.   More Tech, Less Travel Pre COVID-19 crisis, it was considered normal to have millions of people traveling for business every day. But this pandemic is forcing organizations to reconsider the impact of travel in many ways. Yes, there are environmental drawbacks, and there are also serious health considerations as we’re forced to accept that air travel has quickly spread a disease that has negatively impacted human health and the global economy.  Many businesses are realizing that there are far more cost-effective ways of communication. Instead of footing the travel costs (flight, hotel, food, and so on) of employees, why not just invest in the cloud and host video conferencing? Virtual technology is seeing a massive uptick during the Coronavirus crisis. Once this is over, we will see a lasting progression of cloud use, virtual technology, and videoconferencing.  This adaption of technology is a good thing. Offices will never fully disappear. Humans are social creatures and there are benefits of having a team in one place for certain business functions. The corporate world is realizing that sending employees across the world is unsustainable in many ways. Post-pandemic, we will see a drop in global business travel as corporations save travel for only the most essential purposes.     Everything is Going Online We’ve heard about the retail apocalypse for some time now. Now, it’s being accentuated by a pandemic that is literally closing shops and forcing restaurants and retail businesses to either embrace online shopping or fail. This pandemic is leading to a rapid increase in online, pickup, and delivery options for shopping and food sales. Again, this trend will outlast the pandemic and businesses in these spaces should prepare their business model for long-term growth in online sales and strategy.  This increase in home entertainment will continue to affect the cinema industry as the film industry is already adapting by releasing entertainment directly online to streaming platforms. Online businesses are growing and it’s safe to say that every industry will need to adapt to increased consumer […]

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