8 Ways to Improve Your Operational Strategy in 2024
Do you have an operational strategy in place to ensure success in 2024?
Let’s take a quick PULSE on your strategy. Below are eight questions to help gauge your strategy and places for improvement.
Have you identified your risks and constraints for the year ahead?
What potential areas of risk or threat within your business? Factors could include the economy, competitors, client and team turnover rates, etc.
Are you aware of your constraints? Where are their gaps, misunderstandings, missed expectations or communication?
These constraints or risks could lead to greater issues down the road that could have been avoided by a little proactive legwork at the start of the year.
Do you have core goals and objectives laid out with clarity and communicated company-wide to lead a synchronized company and teams?
This boils down to: does your team have direction and a common goal they’re collectively working towards? If not, you’re missing a great opportunity for camaraderie and increased productivity.
Do teams have actionable steps to help them achieve those goals this quarter (and beyond if applicable)?
If the answer is yes, has it actually been communicated to everyone with clarity and authority to take action? Too often companies with good intentions paint lofty pictures to encourage the team, but the follow-through is lacking and leaves team members confused and disgruntled.
If you have the right team members on board, they want to jump in alongside you and advance the company’s goals - let them! If you give them the authority to pursue these goals, they’ll feel more ownership and collectively help advance the company further than a few people or a disjoined team could. Clarity is key.
Do you have a strategy for how to develop team members and maximize resources?
Your team is comprised of individuals. Unfortunately, it’s hard to create a one-size-fits-all strategy for team members. However, with a high-performing team that’s bought into the mission, they’ll be dedicated to the work, at least for a while.
If you want high-achieving employees, you need high-yield strategies. When employees are giving you their all, there will come a point where they’ll begin to evaluate the return on investment. How are you deploying employee-focused strategies that invest back in their personal development and growth? This doesn’t mean throwing meaningless incentives at them, like endless supplies of coffee or fancy trips. Incentives may entice new employees and enchant them for a while, but the value is what they’re after long-term. How are you valuing your employees?
An investment in their long-term success is an investment worth making. Even if they leave, the likelihood that they’ll speak favorably about their experience with your company and refer back to you is higher. (I don’t have data on that point, but I have the personal experience of myself and other former co-workers at a company who employed this strategy well.)
For instance, scaling back on the expensive coffee or lunches to send to a professional development seminar instead. When it comes to employee longevity, think of long-term strategic investments.
Financial investments grow with time and ongoing deposits, people are your greatest investment.
Are financial goals comprehensive and appropriately communicated to leadership and staff?
Has the executive-level staff met up to review the prior year’s data? If so, what trends, concerns, or areas of growth or cuts need to be addressed?
When and how will these areas be addressed with the rest of the leadership and/or your departments and teams?
Assuming the goodwill of employees isn’t a good strategy in times of economic downturn, especially when the company has been prosperous but needs to tighten the reigns heading into a new fiscal year.
Most employees will understand, but they’ll understand much better if it’s communicated clearly and sincerely. In leadership, we often fall victim to controlling the narrative or exuding optimism to a fault. Transparency is a valued trait that creates trust. Employees are more willing to follow a leader they trust and clearly understand how the changes play into the long-term strategy of success for everyone.
Have you identified areas to reduce waste in the coming year?
Speaking of economic downturns and potential spending cuts, what are areas of your company that need to be re-evaluated?
Do you have software programs being paid for that are largely unused or have a minor function for the company but could be added to another service’s product?
Is your team being adequately and efficiently deployed? Do you have the right people doing the right tasks? Should job descriptions be re-evaluated based on changes in the team and skill sets? Sometimes a shake-up for the betterment of the company and employees is healthy - but this MUST be done strategically and not haphazardly or you’ll do more damage than good. This is where a third party with an outside perspective is incredibly beneficial.
Do you have an accurate pulse on your team, perception of leadership, and client needs?
When was the last time you asked employees about their experience with the company? I don’t mean sent a survey and called it done. I mean sent relevant questions and analyzed the data and trends to determine future moves and objectives for the company.
I think one of the most undervalued perspectives in most companies today is the view your employees hold. They’re the ones executing the day-to-day tasks and usually the most engaged with your client base too. They have the most active pulse on the reality of your business. How are you engaging them to inform strategic decisions?
Does your team know and live by your mission, vision, and/or values?
Ideally, your company and employees would not only know but regularly operate in all three of these categories. They would inform strategic, hiring/HR, and financial decisions.
If not all three, what is one area that you can focus on and deploy strategic initiatives to emphasize this year?
In my experience, employees who align with a culture (core values) and have clarity in why and how they serve (mission and vision) will work more efficiently and effectively because they understand their contribution in alignment with the company and individual purposes.
Where can you improve?
If you made it this far, what is one area above that you can improve upon in 2024? Let us know in the comments below what strategy most resonated with you. Let’s learn and improve together!
Do you need to identify gaps or deploy strategies? If so, contact us to discuss how we can help you elevate your business operations strategy and success in 2024!
