Improve Productivity in the Print Industry
Have you often thought about how to improve productivity in the print industry?
Of course you have.
If we want to get better at what we do we need to find ways to continuously improve productivity. There are probably many ways and ideas to get this done.
For the purposes of creating a method to continuously improve productivity, I have suggested a process for you to follow.
Decide on Your Goal
First, we have to identify what our goal is. Do we want to increase our print revenue by 10% this year or add 10 new customers that provide at least $10,000 in new revenue or something else?
Once we have decided on our goal then we can proceed to the next step.
Plan Your Path
Create a step-by-step plan for how you will reach your goal. Make sure you add dates for each action item so you can check progress at a later date.
If you take the time upfront to properly plan you will be able to take a much shorter route to the goal than if you just winged it.
Create Key Performance Indicators to Measure Success
In order to follow the progress, we need to create KPIs.
As an example, if I want to grow revenue 10% then I would track revenue daily, weekly and monthly so I can see how I am tracking against the goal.
If I want to add 10 new customers of at least $10,000 each then I would track the number of new customers and their dollar volume which would be the KPI for that goal.
Review Progress Periodically
Set a time each week to review your progress against your goal and plan. How are you doing? What successes did you achieve? Why? What held back your progress?
By asking these questions we are able to build on our successes and increased focus to the roadblocks that are holding us back from achieving our goal.
Create Next Steps
During your progress review, start plotting the next steps for the coming week.
When we take the time to think about this we will shorten the path to achieving our goal.
Take Action
I recommend having a bias for action. We certainly need to plan, but we must take action if we are to achieve our goal in the timeframe we desire.
When we take action and then review progress weekly, we will have the opportunity to make mid-course corrections before we veer off the path to our goal too far.
Improve Productivity
In the print industry, it is an ongoing challenge to improve productivity, but with the right goal, plan, weekly review and a bias for action we can continuously excel.
What actions do you take to improve productivity?
photo credit: Shutterstock
*********************************************************************
Another must-read, Bill! Do you think such plans should be concrete and followed to the letter? Or should they be a bit more fluid, changing as progress is made and one is able to see what works and what doesn’t? Thanks!
Melissa, thanks for your comment. I believe that we need to create written plans that are concrete but be flexible as we move forward to continue to adapt the plan to changes in our situation. When plans need to change then put a revised plan in writing as you go as you see what works and what does not as well as reacting to changes in your environment. The key is to have a process that you follow and then put the plan in writing so you can continually track and improve your productivity. I hope this answers your question.