Small business owners do what it takes to make things happen, they invest the long hours, headaches, failures and great successes that go along with it. The small business owner is obsessed with success. The passion and dedication to the business is not the only thing that is needed though.  Lets look at what a business consultant can bring to the table.

You might be wondering what a business consultant can do for a small business owner?  In most cases, a lot actually.  Business Process Consulting is a big part of what a small business consultant can help with.  Not only do they help with the focus and strategy within the company, but also bring direction to the business.

We know that a business cannot run on passion alone, a small business owner must work hard and be able to make good strategic decisions to further his or her company.  Part of that includes the management of that business.  Each and every business, self made or franchised must have a process to follow.  Without a consistent process within a business there can be no consistent output.  That output is the service or product for the business customer.   In the end, a well run business produces profit for the owner to meets his or her needs.  Excess profit can be funneled back into the company for growth and expansion.  This is a fairly basic business flow, but you get the idea.

Every business, large or small requires process.  The management of the business process is what keeps everything in line.  A business manager needs to have several key skills and be able to effectively work with the staff and other managers under them.  An effective manager does not always know every process within a business, but can rely on the capabilities of those around him to accomplish the tasks required. The end goal always being the focus of the business customers needs.

In a business environment you also have the business tasks and process flow to consider.  Not only do you need to manage the people, you need to manage the operational processes of the company.  As a company expands or develops, they tend to continue to do the things that worked. This approach will achieve the desired results.  As a business owner or manager, you should ask the question of, can it be done better and more efficiently.  Using a third party to see things from the outside often brings new light  to an old problem and can drastically improve the business process flow.

In todays small business, the owner is often the manager, process flow coordinator, HR manager, worker and everything in between.  Small businesses today are owned and operated by single individuals who usually don’t have the time to review process flow.  So, what can a little process consulting do?  Bring it all together for you and improve your business.

Process flow consulting services need to be customized to fit the business.  A consultant must be able to help the small business owner by quickly understanding the business and goals of the owner.  They are able to think strategically and clearly, bringing focus and direction to the business.  The business process consultant can think outside of the box and bring insight into your business process and help improve the effectiveness and efficiency of your processes and procedures.

The direction that a business consultant must take is one that will increase productivity, encourage growth within the business and be able to compete in tightening economic conditions.  Incorporating a Information Technology process design software may also help in process effectiveness and tracking.  The biggest concerns that need to be addressed by a consulting firm is usually around cost savings, revenue drains, increasing productivity and business growth.

While not all businesses are the same.  There is a level of business process re-engineering that can improve any business.  Part of business growth is not just by expanding or franchising your business, but by also becoming more efficient at providing the services you already provide.  Small or large businesses can take advantage of a little added efficiency and be more profitable in the end.

What is change management and how does it apply to my business?  Well, change happens, you can either let it happen and try to adapt as you go, or you can manage it and control how your business will react and respond to the market.  Any change management plan or initiative needs clear and concise communication.  What leads to resistance is the lack of involvement with the business employees, an early inclusion is fundamental to a successful change management process.

Part of change management system usually always include a Information Technology component.  The IT infrastructure is what your basic change management software will be running on anyways.  IT is a fundamental and integrated part of any change in business.  If you think about it, every aspect of a modern business runs on computers.  Some are larger then others, from the massive server-client bases to single desktop computers.  There are still small businesses that are run without computer systems at all, but those businesses are generally small and often shrinking in number.

Approaching change in your business should be planned.  A change management plan does not go over well when presented to large groups or just “emailed” around.  This process must be part of the change itself and not overlooked.  The best approach is usually and educative one.  By taking a path to work with your business areas and staff and get them engaged in the change process will bring about a more welcome message. Workshops and seminars that involve discussions, presentations and interaction with everyone will encourage a more positive attitude about process change.

One of the key components to include in discussion are why we should change, or why we should improve.  As one of the first and most important steps in any change management exercise is to understand why you are going through the process in the first place.  Without a solid understanding or reasons for changes in a business environment will lead to great resistance.  Not only should you everyone understand, they should also agree or have input into criteria that defines the need for change and improvement.

Balancing the management and technology is key to successfully managing change.  There needs to be clear focus and context to the change process as well.  Business goals, vision and values need to be aligned to accommodate the changes needed.

Change management in business encompasses nearly every aspect of it.  Changes to business process or systems usually affect customer interaction in some way, having initial customer involvement with the change process will help solidify that partnership as well.  You need to look at leadership, management, technology, vision and ideals, organizational map, customers, business partners, business practices, individuals needs and the management software as well.

The hardest part in change management solutions is the people.  Changes to hardware and equipment is easy.  Updating a procedure or task is easy.  But changing the business culture and people within it is one of the most difficult parts of a change management plan.  From ADKAR to ITIL, change management models and methodologies will not work without the people of the business.

Business Process Improvement is often considered to be a expert field, where consultants and process engineers offer their services for fairly high rates.  In some cases, they are warranted, but in a small business view, it is usually not necessary.  Deciding whether you need to review your business processes at an operational or service level is usually a decision for owners/management in their quest for higher profits.  At least in a private, for profit business.  Can your current process list be streamlines and optimized better?  If they can, then a process improvement strategy is implemented.  You are not going to re-vamp your entire process management system, you simply want to make it better.

Before you start a process improvement project, it is a good idea to have a plan laid out.  It does not have to be a very detailed plan, but having a guideline is usually helpful.  A high level plan would be to create your process inventory first.  This process definition or map is your starting block and somewhat important.  If there is no process map or repository in place, then you might consider a larger scale process development plan instead.  In most cases, businesses will have a procedure or process model already in place and are looking to make changes and improvements to it.  The part of the plan should include some process mapping and review.  Documenting the existing processes in an easy to manage format and system will help see the areas that need attention.

Identifying the problem areas in a business process is usually what brings you to the process improvement review in the first place. You may already have everything documented and only need to focus on the parts that do not work or do not mesh with the business model or vision.  The identification of process problems is often the easy part.  The harder part is figuring out how changes to the process will improve it.  Careful planning and documenting, testing and review of the process changes will ensure that any improvement is a positive one.

How can business process improvement actually help?

Some businesses do not always see how BPI will help them.  It is sometimes difficult to see how just slight changes in a process can yield higher profit margins and lower expenses or costs of production.  Apart from a limited view of the possibilities of a successful business process improvement plan, you can streamline a business with the smallest of changes to an established system.  The organization may be a profit based, or non-profit, or government agency, and each business model can benefit from a better utilization of resources.

The goal of business process improvement is to increase the efficiency and performance of the corporation. It is not to change the service provided, but to change how the business provides that service.  You need to think of BPI as way to do it right instead of just doing the right thing.  Knowing your customer and aligning your business goals with the customer needs is an ongoing exercise in any business today.  Having the tools in place to identify these changes and improve your processes to meet the desires and needs of the market will keep your business on top.