Book: How to put things in order in your business. Workshop. Mikhail RybakovHow to put things in order in your business. How to build a reliable system from unreliable elements. Workshop Anton Astafiev, owner of a cafe chain, Perm

Alexey Timonin, CEO of the OZON online travel store. travel:

“The book seemed to me diverse and interesting. Reading it, you quite logically and consistently start with the definition business systems, go to the description business processes and, further, through projects, you get into the discussion organizational structure... Then - consideration the role of people in business and transition to processes business improvement... Chapter about consultants sustained at a decent level, various approaches and opinions are revealed. The last chapter is devoted (rather unexpectedly to me) to thinking about dangers of corruption and roles politicians in life. However, the reflections are quite practical and non-trivial.

Summing up, I would say that the result is a sincere and "not watery" book that makes you think, argue with the author's statements, offer your own options in return, agree with the proposed ones, study the questions posed deeper, etc. All this allows me to assert that the author has achieved his goal».

Sergey Ivanov, owner and manager of the Hermes company (production of sewage treatment plants):

“Mikhail, thank you for such a book! For me, as the owner of a company, according to your classification, which is at the level of "Spontaneous Business" (the company is 6 years old), this book is just a godsend.

I am currently studying at the International Institute of Management LINK at the 1st stage of the MBA course. What I liked about your book, and what advantages in relation to the academic course I would like to highlight:

The book is written from the perspective of a business owner and gives recommendations taking into account the difference in views on the processes of the owners and employees of the company;

Studying at LINK and learning new things for myself, I ran into a problem - how to apply the knowledge gained, how to implement it... Where to start the changes, for me as a business owner who is not limited in his tasks and must solve everything and everyone, it was not clear. In the book I liked consistent and clear recommendations solving urgent problems and structuring the business;

The assignments and examples are as close as possible to the realities of Russian small business. "

Lyubov Malyutin, Marketing Director, Societe Generale Group - Rusfinance Bank; marketing consultant:

“I have known Mikhail for a long time, and his book is the same clear, clear and positive like himself. I am happy that Russia already has a business community of professionals without "show-off": simple and effective. People like Mikhail make a significant contribution to his development.

And Mikhail is very good business partner... What amazed me from our first meeting: a clear, professional and quick response to my question by email. And this is what he is all about, and his book is the same. She has incorporated the most advanced technologies, and at the same time the author managed to save simplicity and clarity of presentation, to omit unnecessary terminology and complex phrases, to make reading the book easy. At the same time, the book contains exercises that immediately help to convert read into useful.

Thanks! I am infinitely grateful to you for the exchange of experience, ideas, information and professional advice! "

Sergey Baguzin, deputy director for development of a large IT company:

“Business and the management of the company pose more and more new challenges for managers. Managers and owners turn to literature in search of solutions to their problems. Unfortunately, translated books speak, figuratively speaking, of "fine-tuning". This is due to the fact that in the West, regular management is implemented almost everywhere. Therefore, it is being discussed how, on its basis, "squeeze out" a few more percent of growth due to innovations. In Russia, the main problems are associated with the construction of the management system as such. This is what Mikhail Rybakov's book is about. I really liked the set of building blocks that the author put in the foundation of regular management.

Target- a business cannot sail in the endless sea without bright landmarks.

Benchmarking- business does not exist on its own, but in a competitive environment.

Business processes- it is they who create value for customers.

Projects- without changes, everything "swamps"; change management is project management.

Staff- whatever one may say, but success accumulates not where the best materials or goods are, but where the best management and the best people are.

Quality- in the end, we won't mind if we start working like the Japanese. And this very brick is the basis of their success! "

Igor Semenovich Popovich, General Director of the TRANTOR transport and logistics company:

“I met Mikhail in 2008 at trainings at the International Institute of Management. I myself have been the owner for more than 5 years. In the last year and a half, I have faced all the issues raised in the book of Mikhail. On the way of business development, such books and consultants, such as Mikhail, are a revelation and invaluable help!

I agree with Mikhail: you need to start with yourself - your dear, beloved! After reading the book, it occurred to me analyze your own approaches and start with yourself: everything that you do yourself personally in the company and outside it! I would advise all acquaintances (business owners) to read the book. I look forward to the publication of the book! "

Evgeny Pavlov, General Director of VekFort:

Mikhail, I bought your book. Luxurious acquisition. Real guide to organizing and doing business... Among the table books currently № 1 and is unlikely to lose its position soon. I read, complete tasks, and lighter and brighter in my head... Thank you for your work!

Everyone has known for a long time that "Russia cannot be understood with the mind, cannot be measured with a common yardstick" - and it is not surprising that everything said by the great Russian poet fully and completely refers to the young Russian business. Unfortunately, we have to admit that both academic translated literature on economics and numerous bestsellers of Western gurus of business consulting are hopelessly stuck on impassable Russian roads. Repeated attempts to mechanically copy and "implant" Western models of organizing and doing business in the organism of Russian business, which is in pubertal crisis, inevitably caused and will continue to cause rejection.

The book you are holding now is unique in many ways. Written by an extremely interesting and extraordinary person - Mikhail Rybakov, business consultant, coach, this book is a vivid example of a new generation of Russian business literature. A clearly structured, engaging and convincingly written book creates a clear frame of reference for professional consideration and solution of those “key” problems that have been the “headache” of domestic leaders and business owners for many years. Moreover, the author gives not just guidelines, he unfolds a map to the reader with the shortest route of this difficult path of building his own successful business. Hundreds of examples from the practice of Mikhail Rybakov make the book, in fact, a desktop methodological guide for organizing, structuring and running a business. In it, you will find dozens of "boxes" with specific examples from real leaders and owners of companies of various types of business from all over Russia. An excellent arsenal of repeatedly tested and efficiently working algorithms for solving problems of your business - from goals and business strategy, through description, standardization of business processes, project and personnel management - to an effective self-developing business system.

Most Russian companies developed spontaneously. And if in the feeding years their results were satisfactory for the owners and managers, now all the flaws of management are emerging. If you want to keep the business, now is the time to clean up the mess that has accumulated in it.

Russian business is very young, and most of the companies were created and developed quite spontaneously. And that was normal: everything grew along with the market and the price of oil.

Now the market has shrunk dramatically, only the strongest companies survive. If you want to be one of them, then it's time to clean up the mess that has accumulated over the past years.

What is a mess? This is when people do not really know what they are responsible for. When the company does not have work standards and / or the staff is not trained to work according to them. When a client is "sent" from department to department and not only, the service is long and bad. When you don't want to contact the company again.
Do you recognize your business? Then this article is for you.

Business processes

In recent years, this word has been so worn out that its meaning is lost under a touch of mysticism. In fact, everything is simple. Business process - performing a particular job in a company, for example, fulfilling a customer's order (from an incoming call to receiving payment and signing an act). And each job has a certain algorithm, which must be: a) described, b) optimal, and c) really performed. The results of the company's work, including financial ones, depend on this.

Processes flow with the company, regardless of whether you notice them or not. Now it is important for you to learn to look at your business through the prism of processes.

Imagine that the company is a customer pipeline. The more bandwidth, the more successful the business. If there are build-ups and blockages in the pipe, then few clients reach the "exit".

How to improve the productivity and quality of your company? To begin with, understand how it flows main processes, that is, those from which your customers benefit directly and for which they pay you money. Other processes, such as inventory holding or accounting services, are supportive and do not provide direct value to the customer.

In a company, the main process is either one or several of them. Examples:

· Wholesale

Customer car repair

Customer service in a restaurant

Note that this illustration does not depict the organizational chart that most executives love to draw. And rightly so: it is not so important. The client does not care who the waiters are subordinate to, or which department is to blame for the lack of ingredients for a particular dish today. It is important for him to get delicious food and quality service for reasonable money, and this depends on how the above process is designed and executed.

Now to practice. The trouble with modern people is not that they don’t know something, but that they don’t use the knowledge gained. If you want my articles to become for you not just a "tabloid novel", then I recommend doing the tasks that I give. If you have any questions, write: [email protected].

Practical tasks

· Highlight the main processes of your business.
It is best to do this as a team, including the key people in your company. First, you will be surprised how differently they see work. Secondly, those decisions that you make together, everyone will willingly implement: "After all, this is my decision." In addition, people will be delighted: "Finally, they heard me!" At the same time, you will gain experience of effective teamwork: this is really great! Then it will be easier for you to work together.

· Choose one process for detailed work. State its name and purpose clearly. Determine the first and last steps.

· Draw a diagram of the selected process by analogy with the example.
The scheme should be simple and understandable to everyone. Complicated - practically no benefit - only confuses.
There should be few steps (usually no more than 10-15): this is a "schematic diagram" of the company's work. Typical mistakes:
a) Draw too general (less than 5-7 steps)
b) Going too deep into details (everywhere or in places)

· Identify and sign someone responsible for each step of the process.

· Decide who is in charge of the entire process, from start to finish.
(He is called the owner or master of the process).
It can be very difficult at times. I would like to put a big boss here, often a director. However, is this correct? He probably has other tasks. Perhaps your company simply does not have such a position. So it’s time to start such a role in the company. It is the role, not the position - there is no need to increase the staff in vain. In the future, such a person is responsible for ensuring that this process is carried out in the company efficiently, for which it is useful to give him some authority. For example, it may be an employee who is responsible to the client for the fulfillment of his order from start to finish, interacting with all participants in the process, even if they work in different departments.

· Find out what is the outcome (output) of each step and who (inside or outside the company) needs it. It can be either material or information.
In other words, who is the “client” of this step. At the same time, check with him if he is satisfied with this exit.

· Understand what you need "at the entrance" to successfully complete this step and from whom you will receive it.
That is, who is the "supplier" of this step. Are you satisfied with what he "delivers" to you?

What is all this for?

Have you already understood what all this is for? That's right, to put things in order. Because if you know exactly how a company works, that's good. Better yet, you can improve it. Already completing these tasks, you probably noticed somehow points that can be improved. Reduce unnecessary steps, simplify approvals, transfer some functions to a lower level, eliminate duplication of functions, etc.

And then optimize your organizational structure so that business processes are "comfortable" in it. So that she helps them, and does not interfere, as is often the case when departments are at enmity with each other.

Who Loses From Bad Business Processes? Customer. And when he loses, he “votes with his feet” against a company that loses profits or simply ceases to exist.

What we have done now is the basis. It is with her that the very establishment of order in the company begins. The next steps will be to define the goals and objectives of departments, the development of concise and sensible, rather than formal job descriptions. And it is not the HR manager who should write them.

I want to emphasize that the organizational structure, job descriptions, etc. - secondary, and any company is based on business processes.

And this is just the beginning. This is clearing up the mess and putting in elementary order. Then they make a sensible system of motivation, develop work standards, regulations, etc. But more on that another time.

What is the bottom line? And the fact that business is moving from the category of art to craft. This means that the results of the work become predictable. You stop depending on the whims and moods of individual employees. You can replicate your business and be confident in the results.

What should the owner do now? How to create new businesses, of course! There is still so much to do in Russia ...

It may seem that now is not the time to deal with such "far from life" issues. “The crisis is in the yard. Take more, throw further - this is the only way to survive. "

Everything is like this: "take and throw" is necessary. But sometimes it's important to stop and think about how to do it better. This question is by no means an idle one. The few hours you spend on it will bring you dividends that will far exceed your expectations.

Who is this book for? Both for "bison" and for beginners... Having studied it, an experienced businessman will be able to “sort through” what he intuitively did for many years, build a system - first in his head, and then in the company. Beginner - to avoid many very painful mistakes, to save years of "walking the rake".

The main audience is business owners and top managers of private market companies... Those who really care about business. Who fights daily for existence and prosperity in a highly competitive environment. My recommendations also apply to state organizations, but they do not have a full-fledged customer of changes, and politics (in the broadest sense) often wins over common sense, especially in Russia.

When I speak to you in a book, I mean that you are the owner of the business... If you are not yet one, you can still benefit from it. Although many thoughts may seem unusual to you, the mindset of a businessman is fundamentally different from that of an employee of any level.

You may want to delegate your employees to read this book and clean up your business. However, I would not recommend it. In our experience, the debugging of the business and its development should be managed by the owner himself otherwise they are doomed to fail. Only the technical part of this work can be delegated.

The book will be useful to my fellow consultants (as well as trainers, coaches, psychologists, etc.), add consistency and tools to their work.

It is based on - my experience work as a business consultant since 2000... Many pieces of text are taken from articles that I wrote over the years for my mailing list "Business Consultant Tips" (published since 2007) and various media. For several years now, colleagues, friends, and readers have been asking me when I will write a book. And here she is in front of you.

I always open to communication(on business).

You can get consultation on the topics of this book and not only. The consultation takes place via Skype, less often in person (in Moscow or while traveling). At it we will discuss the current position of your company, its tasks and problems, and outline ways to solve them. Send a request to the address [email protected], indicating in the subject line "Consultation".

We mainly work with management teams companies in the strategic sessions, we accompany during the changes. We fly and travel to different cities and countries. There are economic formats for small companies.

Several times a year we hold in Russia and abroad business camps, where owners and managers of companies from different industries, cities of Russia and other countries gather. From holding owners to individual entrepreneurs. In a business camp, you will practically work out the technologies described in my books and not only. And also get a boost of energy for the year ahead, new business contacts. Details are further in the book and on the website.

Visit www.mrybakov.ru - there are many useful materials... Sign up for a free newsletter"Business Advice" to regularly receive our articles on business and not only (continuation of our books), announcements of live events.

You can find at Facebook me, as well as our communities: “How to clean up your business” (business tips) and “From career to freedom” (inspiration for every day).

I recommend to study my new books: “Business processes: how to describe them, debug and implement. Workshop "and" Business strategy: how to create and implement it in life. Workshop ". They were written 6 and 8 years after that, they absorbed our experience over the years. New books do not repeat the one you are holding in your hands, they significantly expand and deepen the methodology. I now recommend that clients use them together when debugging their business.

We publish fragments from it provided by the author.

The book "How to put things in order in your business" is system practical tools that will allow you set up a business... So that he:

• brought good profit


• steadily have worked and developed


• practically independent from the human factor of employees


• demanded from the owner minimal control.

• 124 example and comment from owners and managers companies.


• 418 examples from practices of the author.


• 131 practical exercises , by completing which, you can improve your business.

Mikhail Rybakov (www.mrybakov.ru) - business consultant, coach. In consulting since 2000. Among the clients are more than 500 Russian and Western companies: BEKO,Bosch, InBev, OZON.ru, Saint-Gobain, Alfa-Bank, Beeline, Garant, INTECO, Consultant Plus, KROST, LANIT, MegaFon, Russian Railways, SIBUR, YUKOS, as well as medium and small businesses.

author more than 100 publications in print media and the Internet, mailing lists "Business Consultant Tips" (regularly published since 2007, more than 55,000 subscribers), many master classes, distance courses and webinars.

The book was written for small and medium business owners, top managers: both "bison" and beginners. Having studied it, an experienced businessman will be able to “ put on shelves»What he intuitively did for many years, build a system: first in my head, and then in the company. Beginner - to avoid many very painful mistakes, save years"Walking on a rake."

Also the book will be useful business consultants and trainers.

Introduction

- We have two problems in Russia ...

- Fools and roads?

- No! Corruption and weak management.

Joke

During the fat years, Russian business grew actively. Sometimes several times a year, if you count in terms of turnover. We recruited additional staff, opened new offices. As one client, the owner of the company, told me: "We are growing faster than we get crazy."J. It seemed that there would always be growth.

but freebies never last forever... In the fall of 2008, the crisis came, and the volume of many markets decreased significantly. Some of the companies went bankrupt. Others cut their business, laid off a significant part of the staff, moved to the outskirts or out of town. And now, in June 2010, businesses continue to shut down.

However, for some, the business began to grow more than ever. Is happening division into winners and losers... Further it will only intensify.

I recently participated in a PPC Seminar. It was amazing that there were many participants over 40, and even 50 years old. At the beginning, the presenter asked who had come for what. One respectable-looking man said bluntly: "State-owned companies have stopped paying even through bailiffs - now we have to deal with advertising."

Finally normal market begins... And he forces you to do your business really competitive and efficient... Including on a global scale. Now Russia sells to the world market mainly crude oil, unprocessed timber and weapons. Because practically everything else made in our country is of no use to anyone! Alas…

Here's an example of what you can do to attain using the technologies described in the book. In the fall of 2009, I received such a letter.

EXAMPLE1 Good afternoon, Mikhail! I read your article "How to put things in order in your business". Held practical work on the development of the "Customer Service" business process (our business is the supply of stationery to corporate clients). Managed to achieve amazing results! Number of mistakes in orders (which entails the need to exchange or return goods by our forces and at our expense) through the fault of the company (statement operators, warehouse employees, delivery service) decreased by 10 (!) times: up to the level of 2-3 for 750-800 orders per month. That's what We have done:

• We have divided the entire chain of the customer service process (external, bringing in money) into links (stages of customer service).


• Determined the "internal intermediate" (IPP) at each stage; who is the consumer (internal customer) of this WFP.


• Together with the consumer, we developed quality standards for the runway and agreed that the consumer will return a low-quality runway for revision to an “internal supplier” if there are justified claims.

And it works! Now everyone in his place knows WHAT his subcontractor expects from him. We clearly showed each employee HOW the quality of his work affects the speed and quality of service, and the satisfaction of an EXTERNAL CLIENT who pays us money. In any case, interpersonal conflicts (who is right and who is wrong) have been reduced to nothing. Each runway consumer in his place defends the quality of runway received from the subcontractor. The relationship between "checkout", "warehouse" and "delivery" is clearly regulated.

If the system fails, we we carry out "work on errors" and, if necessary, we make adjustments to the regulations (if the error is systemic).

In the article, you mentioned the definition of the goals and objectives of the departments, the development of sensible job descriptions, the system of motivation and work standards. And where can you learn more about this? To make it just as easy to understand and to the point. Thanks!

Actually, the book is the answer to these and other questions.

Business is simple, I would even say routine work if he lined up reasonably... Alas, this is often not the case. And then the errors of the system have to be compensated for by the daily heroism of managers and employees.

Quality management guru, author of the "Japanese economic miracle" Edwards Deming proved that only a small part of business problems are associated with specific employees, and more than 90% - with a bad system... And this is the responsibility of its leaders. Your responsibility!

Many hope to get quick success: "all at once." Alas, this happens very rarely. And it's better not to rely on luck, but roll up your sleeves- and start plowing over building a quality business in order to get the well-deserved fruits later: satisfaction from the results, money, free time.

The book will help you!

Business structure and books

A business consists of 3 main elements: owner, system and people who work in it.

Owner – « the God»The company. He is in over her... It was by his will that she was "born", belongs to him and serves his interests. He is free to develop it or not, sell or close it.

System Are those organizational arrangements that make up the company and that make it work.

People make the "wheels" of the system "rotate". And they transform soulless machines, regulations, forms of documents, etc. v " living organism».

The consciousness of many managers, and therefore of their businesses, is characterized by distortions:

Each of the described distortions dangerous... Only balancing all 3 elements will give you a business that is sustainable over the long term.

The book reflects the structure of the business.

Section I BUSINESS SYSTEM will teach you how to optimize your business system.

Chapter 1 Business and its Environment will allow you to make your business effective from the point of view of the owner and useful to customers. You will learn how to intelligently interact with competitors and other key stakeholders. You will also be able to identify the key competencies and competitive advantages of your company.

Chapter 2 Business Objective and Strategy will help you work out the direction of travel and plan a route. Namely: to form an image of the future of your business and its mission, to set clear goals. Develop a strategy and specific policies (principles) for your company.

These are all very well-worn concepts in business literature. I will show you how on practice use these instruments.

Chapter 3 Business Processes will clearly demonstrate to you the essence of your business. You will learn to use simple technologies allowing describe and optimize the work of your company.

Chapter 4 Projects will teach you to achieve success in the implementation of projects, to fit into timing and budget subject to the required level quality... Including risk and change management, suppliers and contractors, etc.

Chapter 5 Organizational Structure will show you why the structure of the company not so important, as it is commonly believed. And at the same time it will allow you to build it in an optimal way.

Section II PEOPLE IN THE BUSINESS SYSTEM will give you the technology to bring your system to life with quality staff. Namely:

• Determine the company's need for employees


• Hire suitable candidates


• To educate and train people, turning them into quality workers


• Knowledge management


• Motivate employees: both with money and otherwise


• Build a team


• Build the optimal path for each employee in your business.

Section III DEVELOPMENT OF THE BUSINESS SYSTEM will show you how to improve your business.

Chapter 7 Continuous Business Improvement will give you technologies that will allow you to make your business self-developing... The simplest, but effective, is the assessment of customer satisfaction and work with their complaints and complaints. Very useful are benchmarking and statistical methods. And, finally, business improvement systems - from quality circles to ISO 9001, 6 sigma and others.

Chapter 8 Counselors and Trainers will show you when and why agents of change are needed, and how to effectively use their services. Alas, most managers do not know how. And either they don't turn to consultants at all, missing out on opportunities to bring their business to a new level, or they waste time and money.

Chapter 9 New Business Tips will open up new horizons for you. How to work without an office and remotely. When and how to effectively use outsourcing, or become an outsourcing company yourself. And how, at the same time, we can provide our clients with comprehensive services, increase their value for consumers and earn extra money from this.

And finally Chapter 10 Strategic Landmarks will show you how it is profitable to build your business without using corruption. Why is socialism reigning in the modern world, and what are the consequences for business and society as a whole?

The book only briefly covers such important topics as marketing, sales, financial management... The book is already large and rich. And if we talk about money, then profit is only an indicator of how efficiently a business is operating. When you put things in order, profit growth will not be long in coming.: as a result of reducing costs, increasing the number of satisfied regular customers, motivated staff, and so on.

Hope these above topics will be included in my next books.

Chapter 3. Business Processes

The concept of "business processes" has recently become very popular and even covered with a certain touch of mysticism.

In fact, everything is simple. A business process is a standard set of actions that are performed in a company to achieve a given result.

For example, the fulfillment of a customer's order: from an incoming call to receiving payment and signing an act.

Typically, processes are repeated many times in a more or less unchanged form... A very simple but important conclusion follows from this: the process execution algorithm can be fixed and then improved, reducing costs, reducing execution time, etc.

The business process should be: a) described, b) optimal, and c) really performed as described... The results of the company's work, including financial ones, depend on this.

The owners and management of the company receive the following benefit from formalization and optimization of processes:

EXAMPLE 35 ... Business owner, former officer - military technician (maintenance of military aircraft). It is necessary that any employee, seeing that a red light is on, can get a manual, open it on the page about a red light on, and then act strictly according to the instructions: do one, do two, do three ... And no creativity. This is a combat aircraft!
By the way, it was this owner who REALLY implemented a quality management system in his company and achieved a level of quality in production close to the German competitor.

EXAMPLE 36 . Yuri Anushkin , HR director of a large company. When the work performed is of a regular nature (and our work is basically just that), it should be formalized in the form of the described Business Processes, Regulations, Instructions, Job Descriptions, etc. This is what will ensure identity, interchangeability and quality (including through control).

EXAMPLE 37 . Nikolay , a middle manager in a manufacturing company. When I was young, I lived in the States for some time. At one time he worked part-time sorting garbage. A Mexican and a Chinese worked with me. None of us knew English, but at work we understood each other perfectly. We were given T-shirts with large numbers 1, 2, 3, and a primitive diagram in pictures, where it was drawn what to do there and how to interact. However, when we were discussing where to go in the evening, it was difficult to agree: there was not enough language.

If the business processes are not described in the company, then, most likely, it is a mess! Alas, there are not so many companies in Russia in which the processes are formalized, and even fewer of those where the processes in life correspond to their description.

G. Emerson (1911): "At many factories there are no written instructions, except for the minor Internal Regulations, set forth in an unacceptably rude form and always ending with the threat of calculation."

Ibid: “There is an opinion, preached with great pathos, but still completely illiterate, that standard instructions kill initiative in a worker, turn him into an automaton. ...

The point is that this terrible constraint on initiative exists only in our imaginations. Working quickly and easily means reducing effort without compromising results and freeing up your brain for higher initiative, to invent and develop even better ways. "

Learning to see processes

Processes take place in the company, regardless of whether you notice them or not: after all, the work in the company is somehow carried out! Now it is important for you to learn to look at your business through the prism of processes. This is the essence "Process approach" to management, and it is fundamentally different from the usual way of looking at a company through its organizational structure. The experience of the largest companies in the world and my consulting practice show that, having learned how to correctly apply it in your work, you can increase the efficiency of your business at times.

• The main


• Subsidiary


• Management processes


• Measurement, analysis and improvement processes

EXAMPLE 38 . Sergey Baguzin , deputy. development director of a large IT company. I recommend reading: Mike Rother, John Shook “Learn to see business processes. The practice of building maps of value streams ", publishing house Alpina Business Books,2008 year.

Main processes

These are the processes that make up the essence of the company's business... They are also called processes. making money... And also - by those processes for which your client is willing to pay, i.e. which bring value to him.

Any company has these processes. There are one or more of them: for small and medium-sized businesses, usually no more than five. In fact, each of them is separate line of business.

Let's take a typical trading company. There are usually two main processes in it:

• Wholesale


• Retail sales

Examples from other business areas:

• Customer car repair


• Issue of the magazine


• Customer service in a restaurant

The main process of a restaurant may look like this (Fig. 5):

Drawing5 ... Business process "Customer service in a restaurant". All further consideration of the topic "business processes" I will conduct on this example.

Business results strongly depend on how optimally its main processes are built. That is why the optimization of the company, as a rule, starts with them.

EXAMPLE39 . OlgaYudina, credit analyst, Societe Generale international financial group. An illogical process can lead to big loss of time and money... So, for example, I came across a situation when the bank first does financial analysis and business analysis, prepares documents for the client for submission to the credit committee and only at the end the owners are “pushed” through the databases on the subject, for example, of a criminal record. If the potential borrower does not pass this test, then it turns out that all the preliminary work was wasted.

PRACTICAL TASK 24

Highlight the main processes of your business

You should end up with a list of several names, similar to the above examples.

I remind you that this task, like the rest, is best done in a team, including in it the key people of his company, as well as several experienced and intelligent ordinary performers from the main processes. First, you will be surprised how differently they see work. Secondly, those decisions that you make together, everyone will willingly implement: "After all, this is my decision." In addition, people will be delighted: "Finally, they heard me!" At the same time, you will gain experience of effective teamwork: this is really great! Then it will be easier for you to work together.

It is advisable that your colleagues read this book, or you need to tell them her key points.

We describe and optimize the main processes of our business

So we got to the essence of the company. Digging further.

We determine the key parameters of the process

First, we need to set the general process parameters, namely:

Name. A well-chosen title clearly defines our understanding of the process. It is convenient when the name consists of a "verbal noun" (that is, formed from a verb) and some clarifications.

For example, "Serving a customer in a restaurant."

First and last steps. They immediately establish a common understanding of the boundaries of the process. Is the client's meeting and accommodation included in the service? And the farewell? But if we call the process "Customer service in the restaurant from meeting to seeing off", then it sounds a little more ponderous, but clear. In the future, this will greatly facilitate our work.

Objectives of the process. Again, keep track of the accuracy of the wording.

For example, "To ensure maximum customer satisfaction and his desire to repeatedly use our services in the future, the maximum current and long-term profit of the restaurant from serving the client."

In the example above for a restaurant, the process manager might be the hall administrator.

Another important point: in further work on the process, we will look at it from the point of view of its manager, name the steps accordingly, etc.

EXAMPLE43 ... Mikhail Filippov, founder and director of OfficeMax, Nizhny Novgorod. I will give an example to support this. In our company, the owner of the Customer Service business process (by the way, developed and implemented after reading the article by Mikhail Rybakov “How to put things in order in your business”) is operator- an employee who accepts a customer's order by phone, fax or e-mail and maintains it (the order) until it is shipped to the customer. In the process of processing an order, the operator has to communicate:

• with the supply department (for ordering a missing or rare product),


• with a warehouse (coordination of the replacement of one product with another, similar),


• with the Client (to agree on the replacement of one product with another, as well as if the client wanted to exchange one product for another after receiving the product),


• with a delivery service (so that the order is delivered to the client at the time they want),


• with the manager (to sign an agreement or agree on a deferred payment in excess of the allowable limit).

All this time, the operator is representative of the client's interests in our company... Clients are know and appreciate... This is probably why, when contacting our company with the next order, they ask specifically Masha or Yulia.

Process outputs. What should be obtained during the implementation of the process. Outputs can be material or not.

For example: a satisfied customer, company profit.

Process inputs. That is, those materials, information, etc., that are needed in order for the process to be successfully performed.

For example: customer, free tables, menu, service standards.

EXAMPLE 44 ... Alexey Timonin, CEO of the OZON.travel online travel store. Before starting the description of business processes (or at the initial stage), you should decide on key concepts... This can be materialized as glossary applied terms or in another form, but it definitely should be. And it is worth giving the maximum clear and consistent definitions of the most fundamental concepts, which would seem to be obvious - "order", "client", etc. I never cease to be convinced of the usefulness of this exercise.

PRACTICAL TASK 29

Choose one of the core business processes that you outlined in the last step.

It is with him that you will work in the next assignments. In the future, you can apply all this to other processes in your company.

Determine the key parameters of the selected process.

As I wrote above, this work is critically important to do. in a team... I am very often a moderator at such events, and always opinions differ among different participants. Except when everything is very formal, for example, in a government organization or in the presence of a very authoritarian leader. However, there are solutions here as well.

One of the most important results of such sessions is that people (often for the first time in years) communicate constructively with each other, determine how the work actually happens, agree with each other... The result is both business decisions and an improvement in the company environment.

We set the general logic of the process

We can now define general scheme of the process... It is convenient to think of it as a sequence of operations, which are usually written in rectangles and sometimes connected by arrows. In the diagram, the process usually goes from left to right or from top to bottom, depending on the position of the sheet of paper. An example is provided in the subchapter Basic Processes.

Key point: the process does not depend on the organizational structure and can go through several departments, cross their boundaries. Such processes are called cross-cutting.

In the example of a restaurant, the meeting of the customer is handled by the hall administrator, the order is received by the waiter, and the food is prepared by the kitchen.

The client does not care which departments are involved in the fulfillment of his order. He cares about the quality and time of cooking, price, level of service, etc. The process approach makes it possible to manage these parameters of our business that are important for the client, contributing to its prosperity.

It turns out that business processes are primary, they are the backbone of the company. A the organizational structure is just an environment for their execution... Read more in the chapter Organizational structure.

There is several rules for describing processes:

• Display only normal process flow... Usually, most of the processes, depending on certain conditions, can be performed in different ways. For example, if a customer comes to a restaurant and all the tables are full. But do not overload the main scheme with this. She must be simple and transparent.
  It is better to leave all the nuances for more detailed levels of description.
  Let's say your company fulfills customer orders, with orders of various types. In this case, call the step “fulfill a sales order,” and for the different types, you describe several different sub-processes.


• Do not be too small, but do not limit yourself to too high a level of abstraction... In both cases, a scheme is obtained that is of little use in practice. A good guideline: the process diagram should contain from 5 to 12 steps, optimally about 7.
  In one architectural bureau, the chief engineer, overjoyed that he was finally heard, brought on the second day of the working session a diagram of the main process, in which he was a great deal. The process consisted of 42 steps (5 A4 pages)!


• Hold on to some chosen level of detail... It often happens that in the group describing the process there is a certain expert in one of the stages of the process. And he begins to insist that "his" step should be presented in more detail. This violates the logical integrity of the model, so invite him to show his full expertise later, when you get to a deeper level of description.
  So in one working group on the formalization of the main process, the chief accountant, together with a lawyer, diligently described the steps for agreeing and approving the contract. In the end, out of the 17 steps that came out, 5 were the result of their work. I had to cut it down to one.J

Practical task 30

Draw a diagram of your company's selected core process.

It is convenient to do this with markers on a flip chart. The results are then transferred to a computer, for example, inMicrosoftVisio.

My colleague, a well-known Russian consultant David Shusterman, says about the same: "In business, money is made on routine, on proven technologies of mass production, and ideas are what money is spent on, and most often it is irretrievable." The article “A look from the outside. I hope for a crisis. " Newspaper "Vedomosti", No. 161 (2431) of 28.08.2009

Edwards Deming. Way out of the crisis: A new paradigm for managing people, systems and processes; Per. from English - 2nd ed. - M .: Alpina Business Books, 2009 .-- 419 p.

While working on the book, I was lucky to meet the President of the Moscow Federation of Kyokushin-kan Karate-do Evgeny Prokhorov. He often visits Japan. I asked him what was the reason for the success of the Japanese. And I got the answer: "Diligence and discipline."

HR is a standard abbreviation for human resources, which means human resources. It is so widespread that they usually don't translate it, but say, for example, "HR manager", that is, the HR manager.

Garrington Emerson. The Twelve Principles of Effectiveness.

The intelligence quotient (IQ) is a quantitative assessment of the level of a person's intelligence: the level of intelligence relative to the level of intelligence of an average person of the same age. Determined using special tests. (Definition from Wikipedia).

"Company B" from the chapter Company through the eyes of the owner

More precisely: start with business goals. But they continue - with business processes. Everything else is secondary.

An example, like all others, is a conditional one.

However, sometimes the meaning is different. Owner, proprietor, proprietor of the processprocess optimality in general (remember the role of the architect), has the right to adjust and approve the process. A process manager called who is in charge separate process instance, for example, the fulfillment of a specific customer order "from and to" (operational manager). See Architect, Builder, Operations Manager. Alas, the terminology floats. I will use all of these words interchangeably.

From the English. account-manager, i.e. manager (more correctly, a salesperson) for work with key clients.

See Basic Processes.