Activation Consultation 1.0 – Laying out the Framework

Just a quick note I want to tell you the incredible value that the Outsource Activation Consultation Program has for you. Okay. So, there’s these upcoming episodes are about the six modules of the Outsource Activation Program within the podcast episodes. I give you an insight into the learnings that you would have on the Outsource Activation Consultation Program but there is so much more value if you actually do the full program. Now I’m not suggesting that you have to do this. I am sharing with you key points and value within this consultation regardless of whether you want to do the course or not. This is because I am so passionate about outsourcing and encourage everyone out there to try it. But if you do decide to take the activation consultation then there is so much more in there for you. Okay. There is over 1300-1400$ worth of actual course content for you. Okay. There are multiple charts and infographics. There’s 21 learning resources there is I think two to three dozen videos. And then there are expert videos. There are virtual BPO tours and then also there’s mastermind groups. And of course, there are one on one business consultations. There are open office sessions and we build for you a network in Manila of key people that you can turn to if you need contacts, leads if you need to start your outsourcing journey. Then you have them up your sleeve. So, there’s a huge amount of value there but more specifically it’s not just about the learning and education you get. You actually receive bespoke consultation and advice from myself and Outsource Accelerator. Okay, you get one on one consultation time and you get quick results and solutions for your business that you can if you feel the time is right immediately implement. So, I really believe that there are phenomenal results and potential for you and your company by doing this consultation. That is why I’m so excited. If you just want to listen to the podcast that is absolutely fantastic. That is fine because I’m just so enthusiastic about people starting their outsourcing journey. But if you do want to consider the outsource consultation then go to our website to find out more.

Hi and welcome to another episode of the Outsource Accelerator podcast. This is episode number 55. And as a continuation of episode 52. This is a somewhat unique episode in that we are reviewing the Outsource Activation Consultation Program. Okay, this is a unique program offered by Outsource Accelerator. But on this podcast, we are going through each step of this outsource consultation so that if you don’t want to pay for the consultation itself that’s fine. And you still have the opportunity to learn about outsourcing and get the best from outsourcing for yourself and or your business. So, what are we going to do today is we’re looking effectively module one of the outsource activation consultation. Again, just as a reminder if you want to know the overall overview then go and check out episode 52. And I discussed that there. If as always you want any of the show notes or any access to resources mentioned. Then go to outsourceaccelerator.com/55 for this episode.

So, module one of the Activation Consultation is about laying out the framework for outsourcing. Okay, so it’s about reframing how you think about your business and its relationship to outsourcing. So first of all, I want you to do a few exercises and this is interactive. Whether you do the consultation or not then I really think that learning is best done by applying it to your specific circumstances but also not just reading or absorbing information but actually putting things down on paper and building a plan.

Okay. So, the first thing I want to cover is just basic outlining what you want to achieve from outsourcing. This is a critical exercise in that it determines what you want to establish and it sets clear expectations why you are outsourcing and what you want from it. If you aren’t that into outsourcing and aren’t that crude up yet. Don’t worry. This is a good exercise to do anyway. And then your expectations will evolve as you do. It’s interesting to note as well that the things that we cover here often or overlap a lot with general management and business optimization principles. Okay. There’s a huge amount of information out there on how to run your business and things like that. A prime example here is about delegation and establishing processes within your business so that you don’t have to do all of the work yourself. Okay. So, delegation is one of those things that I think all of us can improve on more because it’s about leveraging as much as you can your time and your skills. We all only have 24 hours in a day. So, it’s about getting as much out of those 24 hours as we can. And a big part of that is about leveraging your time and your skills through delegation and building successful teams around you. We need to understand the fact that there are other competent people out there that can do the job for us. They might come from a different place, they might be sitting in a different office, they might have a different culture and background. But you know that’s okay. It’s getting your head around delegating roles delegating tasks and trusting that it can be done. Not only is it about delegation though it’s about proper process mapping. Outsourcing really is finding an extension of yourself and or your local team is really nothing more than that.

So, the initial exercise that I encourage everyone to do is a one-page strategic plan. Okay. This is effectively two pieces of A4 paper. So, an A3 and within this one page it contains all aspects of your business’ strategic plan. So, it covers everything from your goals, your milestones, your stepping stones and how you can get to your 5 and 10-year goals. It includes things like core competencies of your business. And strategic IP or intellectual property of your business and also the key roles and functions within your business. Okay, to have all of these things in front of you really helps paint a picture of your business so that everyone within your business and even if they’re outside of your business but working alongside you have a clear picture of what your business actually is and where it’s going. Okay, so it’s a super powerful exercise to do. This is available online. This is the one-page strategic plan.

Okay. So next is the business process mapping. So, what is business process mapping. If you haven’t heard it yet outsourcing is also referred to as BPO which is business process outsourcing. And the concept is that every business has a lot of processes. And it’s about identifying and delineating processes so that they can be mapped out and better managed and better optimized. A lot of businesses they kind of run a little bit chaotically stuff gets done but it’s not really clear how it gets done. Who does it. So, business process mapping is actually a really important function or skill or process you go through as companies mature. So, we include an example of this in the show notes. So, I encourage you to go there and have a look of a mapping tree. And what I want you to do through this exercise is basically look at what are the key processes of your business. Okay. Have a big think about what level of process you might want to retain or possibly outsource, what are the key processes of your business. Okay.

Every business has primary processes and then secondary processes. Okay, a lot of primary processes include you know IP and strategy and senior management decisions. And. You know the really key things whereas a lot of the other processes, the secondary processes are things such as accounts and your back office and day to day operations and potentially even customer service. So, certainly some of the customer service functions. So again, go to our show notes and look at the example and I really want you to think about all processes that you do in your business and what level of processes you might want to retain and possibly outsource. Once you have created this business process mapping chart for your business. When it comes to outsourcing then it becomes very obvious which processes you should outsource first and then eventually which outsources which processes you can outsource later. Okay, so it actually by defining what you do as a company. What processes your company does then it can actually ease, it can effectively build the steppingstones for you for an outsourcing strategy. For example, you might get bookkeeping done initially by outsourced staffing. Just start with bookkeeping. But then eventually you might get some customer services done you might get some bookings assistance done. You know it depends on your business. But then eventually you can go further and further up the business process map. Okay, so you get higher and higher skills done and things that are closer and closer to your business’ core activities. From that it will be interesting to consider exactly how far up that business process map, outsourcing can go. If you take it to an extreme there’s a potential that if you have a company of 100 staff you could actually have 97 staff outsourced and three staff right up the top of the pyramid that are effectively not outsourced or still within your home territory.

Okay. So, this is what I consider flipping the pyramid upside down where you might start with one or two assistants being outsourced or bookkeeping or one or two customer service really basic functions and minimal staffing. But eventually you can upskill and you get more key roles and functions done within an outsourcing capacity.

So, then we cover what you can and cannot outsource. There are some tips and tricks here. And you know there’s common pathways that people follow. And this is experience that I really want to share with you. Once you have done the business person mapping you will know and have identified what are your key processes. You will have identified the really fundamental processes to your business. You will also have identified which of the processes have the least and most leverage if you outsource them. Okay. I want you to make sure that you are being objective with this one. Many entrepreneurs struggle to delegate. So, you know it’s important to know whether you are thinking that this one can’t be outsourced because you’re being objective or actually because you’re emotionally hanging on to certain roles or you have low confidence that things can be outsourced. I am not saying that you outsource your core competencies or your core strategic roles or your core IP functions. I am saying that you should keep those closest to you. But at this stage what I want you to do as an exercise. I want you to go through your business process map and I want you to identify which roles could be outsourced. Okay. And as a guide here as a mental exercise I want you to think to yourself does this role, this person. So, for example a customer service person. Do they need to be in contact personally, physically with your customer? Okay, if the work, if the role is done in front of the computer screen then that is probably a good indicator that it can be outsourced. Also, if it takes as a guide one week to train someone to do that role then definitely that is a good role that can be outsourced. If it takes five years to train someone to do a role then that is probably a role that you don’t want to outsource yet. Okay. So, there are simple little guides here. There are simple little triggers that can lead you to the best decision making in terms of outsourcing. But again, this is just an exercise. What I can and cannot outsource. So, it’s about going through your business process map and imagining which roles can be outsourced and which roles should be kept close to you.

And then as a further activity what I want to do is work on you specifically. Okay so as an exercise I want you to go through a task delegation assessment. Okay. So, this is an exercise where you list the key things that you do in your role. Okay. So, it’s almost like mapping out of your role. List all of the key main tasks making note of any tasks that you should not be doing at all. Put aside things that you should definitely not outsource. Tasks well beyond the skills and experience of your team. Those that required you personally to enact them and confidential tasks, revenue generating tasks and tasks you love to do. So, once you’ve identified the things that you that is essential for you to do then review all of the tasks that are left. Okay, particularly look for time consuming tasks. Look for high repetition and regular tasks and look for tasks specifically that someone else might be able to do better than you. Okay. So, there’s a huge opportunity here to free up a lot of your time because your time is best spent doing the things that you enjoy, the things that you have as a core competency and the things that can generate the most value for you and your business.

So those are the core concepts of this first module of the Outsource Activation Consultation Program. It is about laying out the framework and to recap what this is. It’s about mapping out where you are now. What your business exactly is. Having a look at the processes and then identifying which things should be kept close to you and which things should be outsourced. It’s about identifying the easiest route to success. Okay. So, if you’re going to start outsourcing don’t outsource the biggest department or the most complex function. Take one person, start with one person, start with a simple function get that running smoothly and then you can expand from there.

So just to recap. There is outlining what you want to achieve from outsourcing. There’s the realization that a lot of these things, such as delegation and process mapping are actually essential items within any business but it’s just applied to an outsourcing setting. Then there is the creation of the one-page strategic plan. Again, it’s in our show notes then it’s about moving to the business process mapping. Okay. Again, have a look at our show notes. But it’s effectively like a genealogy tree tipped on its side so that there’s a hierarchy of tasks. There’s an identification of primary and secondary tasks and then again a sort of further layer structure of deeper tasks within those. So, once you have that mapping in front of you it’s hugely powerful to then pick out tasks assign roles to them and know which roles can and should be outsourced. Next there is an exercise looking at that mapping to say what you can and can’t outsource within your business. Then you look at task delegation for yourself. You go in and break apart your daily day to day work and you know try and be honest with yourself and see what roles is really contributing the most to your business. Stick with those and try and delegate and outsource the rest. Okay, so overall this is an exercise of self-reflection and introspection I suppose and also identification. So, really getting everything getting the essence of your company down on paper. This process if you do this will help you a lot. Regardless of the outsourcing aspect I think it actually makes a huge benefit to get everything down on paper in front of you so that you can quantifiably analyze things in front of you.

So that is the essence of module one of the Outsource Activation Consultation. I mean I’ve concentrated into a quick 10 15-minute chat here and it’s difficult without the visuals and it’s also difficult without the worksheets in front of you. But I really encourage you to work through these processes. And then the next modules will become far more relevant. Okay, of course, within the Outsource Activation Consultation we then look at these exercises and work through the results with you and give you greater context of what can be achieved with outsourcing plugged into your business.

So. Hope you learned something here. And as I mentioned if you want any of the show notes any of the resources mentioned then go to outsourceaccelerator.com/55. If you want to review what I said in the prior episode about this the introduction to the entire consultation. Go to episode 52 and then we will be back shortly with the module two aspect of this consultation. So, stay tuned and I look forward to seeing you next time.