If you’ve been paying attention to our series on workflows, you have likely designed an efficient workflow process for your property management company, and now you’re wondering if it works.
How can you be sure your team will follow the process you’ve worked so hard to design?
Our blog today warns you against becoming a micro manager, but shares some tips on how to make sure your workflow process is tracking.
Implementation versus Micro Managing
You’ll lose heaps of buy-in from your team if you become a micro manager looking over everyone’s shoulder every second to see if the job is getting done exactly the way you want it done.
Workflows show you how to do things better and more efficiently. These changes have required a lot of time from you, so of course you want to be sure everyone is clear on the objectives and tasks.
Once the workflow process is implemented, you want to make sure that the time you spent is not wasted.
How to be Sure Your Process is Implemented
You need a great team before you can implement a workflow. If you’re unclear on what makes a great team, check out the podcast we just did with Melissa Prandi.
With an exceptional team in place, there’s a three-step process to ensuring your workflow can be implemented:
- Step One: Accountability
You can make sure accountability is completely clear to everyone involved in the process. Go through the whole flow one time and make sure you know who owns what tasks. You need to know that everyone understands that they’re accountable for the success of the entire process. - Step Two: Clarity
Make sure you have clarity around each task. Does everyone understand at a detailed level what the specifics are of each task? You could have written procedures for each task and task owner. Put any measures into place that are necessary to show you that everyone understands. - Step Three: Measure Results
The last and best way to make sure your process is getting done will involve clear measureables associated with your checkpoints throughout the workflow. Then, you know that everything is getting done the way you expect it to, and you’re seeing improvement over time.
Designing your Tracking Process
Measuring your outcomes is serious. It’s tracking the process empirically without forcing your own ideas about what is working. You know whether you’re hitting the mark or not.
Track the time it takes to execute each task and the time between each task. That shows you the total time required to complete the entire process. When you track these times and look at them through several instances of the process, you know if you’re on target or below target.
If things are getting done early – that’s fantastic. But, it does not necessarily mean that the process is working. Double-check to make sure nothing is forgotten.
When you’re tracking the process, you need some understanding of how long things are taking. It has to be accurate data.
Track Early and Then Track Less
Track individual tasks early on in the process, to make sure all the effort you’ve put in up front is paying off. Once you know it’s working, you won’t need to track it all the time. You’ll only need to revisit it if things get behind from a delivery standpoint.
Each individual can track how long their tasks are taking. Add those things up and then you’ve got some KPIs to drive you. You don’t have to do this forever. Just do it until you understand how long the process takes and to see if there is room for improvement.
Remember this: if you have great people, everyone is contributing to the outcome, and the process inherently works.
We’re glad you’ve joined us to talk about workflows. It’s a personal passion for us at Fourandhalf, and it really helps to sort out a business. Remember that they’re a tool to help your business become more efficient and to help you understand how information moves and flows through your company. But, it’s just a tool. You need great people and an interest in growing your business.
If you have any questions about workflows or how to grow your property management business, please contact us at Fourandhalf.
