By implementing a BOS and continually tweaking it over time, you’ll create an efficient and sustainable organization that’s poised to achieve its goals.
Every business wants to scale and become more profitable. But few take the time to audit their processes and create systems to ensure long-term scalability.
Successful organizations understand the value of business operating systems (BOS) and how they drive growth. A BOS is a set of protocols that establish consistency in managing every department, which ultimately determines a company’s success.
Whether you’re a local business owner or a corporate executive, a BOS provides a wide range of benefits to any organization regardless of size or industry. This guide explores the value of an operating system and why it’s imperative for companies looking to stay ahead of the curve.
What Is a Business Operating System?
A business operating system is a set of guidelines defining how a particular department should be run. Successful companies have operating systems for their departments, like marketing, sales, customer service, finances, operations, and human resources.
This establishes a consistent approach to managing all aspects of a business, which drives operational efficiency. Team members can follow a unified process to execute specific tasks and accomplish the intended objective.
Benefits of Having a Business Operating System
Computers have operating systems to manage the hardware’s resources and provide a framework for applications to run on.
Businesses need an operating system to create a sense of direction and set a clear standard for how things should run. We’ll cover the value and benefits a BOS can provide any organization.
Creates Organizational Alignment
Every BOS begins with a clear plan of attack that shares the company’s mission statement and values. This allows business owners to better communicate their vision throughout the entire organization.
From there, objectives are established that align with the overarching purpose. Executive teams build the foundation for the operating system, which includes the processes, systems, roles, and responsibilities involved in ensuring the success of each initiative.
Boosts Operational Efficiency
Optimizing your procedures and processes helps reduce costs and boost productivity, leading to a more profitable business. Every operating system has a method for tracking real-time data, allowing business leaders to identify processes falling short of expectations. This helps leaders and managers optimize resources, ensuring their teams are operating at peak efficiency.
A BOS also can automate repetitive tasks, freeing up skilled team members to focus on strategic initiatives. This leads to increased efficiency and reduced errors, allowing businesses to stay ahead of the competition. For example, sales teams use CRM and automation tools to remind reps to follow up or send automated campaigns to prospects to encourage them to move forward.
Enhances Team Collaboration
A BOS provides workflows, defined roles and responsibilities, and communication channels to ensure better collaboration between team members. Clear roles mean everyone is held accountable to meet a certain standard.
Setting protocols can eliminate guesswork and enhance collaboration by ensuring employees have the information and resources to complete projects. Many teams have a defined workflow that allows everyone to view the status and progress of each project, allowing teams to share their input.
Creates Consistency and Scalability
A documented approach to managing various areas of your company ensures everyone follows the same process. This helps you achieve scalability across the organization. For example, definitively assigned roles and clear training protocols helps provide a seamless hiring and onboarding process.
Businesses create a BOS to establish a framework that can be duplicated across numerous departments and locations. As a result, the quality of products, service and efficiency remains consistent regardless of how much the company grows.
Improves Customer Satisfaction
Businesses can leverage a BOS to bolster customer satisfaction in many ways. Performance metrics can instill quality control for your products and services, resulting in greater customer satisfaction. A standardized approach for handling complaints, inquiries, or other common issues helps streamline the process, ensuring faster response times and consistency of service.
Streamline Your Operations and Propel Your Business Forward
Implementing a business operating system is a game changer that can elevate your company to the next level. Creating a foundational framework for employees to follow streamlines operations and develops a culture of accountability.
However, the advantages of a BOS go far beyond just internal operations. It ensures proper quality control on products and services and helps your team provide a consistent customer experience that keeps them returning for more.
There are many ways to implement a business operating system. You can create your own or hire a business coach with experience developing effective operating systems. A business coach can provide a FIT Business Health Assessment to determine your organization’s strengths and weaknesses, hold you accountable, and help identify blind spots and opportunities you may not notice.
By implementing a BOS and continually tweaking it over time, you’ll create an efficient and sustainable organization that’s poised to achieve its goals and differentiate itself in today’s competitive business landscape.
Alan Wozniak, Newsweek Expert Forum.
