Let me ask you a question about your business...
If your best employee quit tomorrow, could someone else step in and do their job?
My guess is that your answer is likely, "honestly, probably not." That answer tells me everything I need to know about where the ceiling is in your business. You're certainly not alone.
When all the knowledge about how things get done lives inside somebody's head instead of in a documented process, you are one resignation, one retirement, one bad day away from chaos. And the bigger the company gets, the bigger that risk becomes. It's like building a house of cards and then being surprised at what happens when someone sneezes.
I'm not suggesting you go create some 500-page operations manual that nobody will ever read. We're not writing War and Peace over here, people.
What I am suggesting is that you identify what EOS calls your Core Processes, the handful of processes that drive the majority of your results, and get them documented at a high enough level that a smart person could pick them up and follow them. Your onboarding process, your sales process, how you deliver your product or service. The stuff that matters.
In EOS we say these processes need to be documented, simplified, and then Followed By All. That "followed by all" piece is where the magic is.
Nobody throws a party when you document a process. Nobody pops champagne and says "congratulations on your beautiful onboarding checklist." It is the least glamorous work in business, hands down. But it is the difference between a business that depends on specific individuals and a business that can actually grow past its current limits. Every company that has scaled figured this out at some point. The ones that stay stuck are the ones where everything still lives between somebody's ears.
If your top performer gave notice tomorrow, how long would it take to recover? Weeks? Months? That answer is your process gap.
I'd love to send you a free copy of Gino Wickman's Traction book. It lays out exactly how to think about documenting and strengthening your core processes. Just send me a message and I'll get one to you!
About Me
As an EOS® Implementer, I serve as a teacher, coach, and facilitator, helping business leaders transform their companies through the Entrepreneurial Operating System®.
Helping leadership teams gain clarity and Traction isn't just something I do, it's the work I'm built for. And it brings me immense joy to help entrepreneurial companies run a better business and live a better life.
