Business development Archives - Page 10 of 11

Your Company Manual and How to Ensure Its Accessibility

Pamela Ayuso June 18, 2018

A few years ago, I was looking at our firm’s operating manual. It was a 15-page Word document stored on our local server. Despite the amount of work we dedicated to assembling it, nobody ever opened or accessed it. It was the electronic equivalent of an archived file that was ignored by everybody. The manual had pages and pages of useful information, but it was of no practical use because no one referred to it.

How to Implement a Cloud System in Your Business

Pamela Ayuso June 11, 2018

Implementing a new cloud software can be very intimidating if you are not comfortable with computer software in the first place. However, even if you are not a computer whiz, you can learn how to adapt, and your firm can take advantage of all the benefits of the cloud systems available in the tech age.

The first step is to make a plan for the overall implementation of the system; this will save time, and you can then take advantage of the system as soon as you buy the license(s). The plan will allow you to have everything ready so you can start working on your software as soon as possible.

Get the Most Out of Your Communication at Work

Pamela Ayuso June 4, 2018

We all communicate daily through our words, gestures, and even our poses. The way we communicate becomes second-nature, a part of our being, and these interactions are crucial both personally and professionally.

Through communication, we find new business opportunities, detect errors in the way we operate and find new avenues for growth. What we may not realize is that even though we have been communicating since we were born, we may not be doing it most efficiently, as there are methods to increase what we get out of our communication at work.

5 Tips on How to Improve Your Business Review Processes

Pamela Ayuso May 28, 2018

To minimize error, a review process is necessary for any firm or business. Weare all humans, after all, and it is easy to make mistakes, especially if we are handling different responsibilities and tasks on a daily basis. The difficulty is that no matter how much work there is, the pressure to deliver perfection every time never disappears.

One way to fulfill the firm’s obligations is to implement a review process in which main processes and deliverables such as sales documents, bill payments, and financial reports are revised by more than one team member. Separate sets of eyes will catch overlooked mistakes and improve quality.

NetSuite: How to Select the Best ERP

Pamela Ayuso May 21, 2018

Three years ago, we found we had outgrown our accounting system. When we first started, we managed all our accounting activity on an Excel spreadsheet. We then implemented Zoho Books, an entry-level accounting system, and had been working with it for four years. At the time of its implementation, it had been a major upgrade, and I consider it a great starter accounting software system. A few years later, however, we found we were ready yet again for more advanced functions.

Selecting a new system was not straightforward or easy. We are real estate developers, and our industry has quirks that don’t fit into standard business models. For instance, we do not only sell, but we also lease properties. Also, our manufacturing process varies from building to building, and sometimes from apartment type to apartment type.

4 Simple Steps to Fix Problems in Your Processes

Pamela Ayuso May 7, 2018

Even with processes up and running in your business, you will still sometimes run into problems. Perhaps a newsletter did not go out on the date it was supposed to, or a report has missing information. It is impossible to foresee and document every single possibility in your processes.

So, what do you do when you find a gap in the way something needs to be done? You have one of two choices: you can temporarily patch it up, or you can prevent the problem from ever happening again. It pays to take the time to figure out what happened and solve the issue for the future.

6 Useful Ideas to Make Your Processes More Streamlined

Pamela Ayuso April 23, 2018

Automating your office’s procedures comes with numerous invaluable benefits: you boost your productivity, improve accuracy, and best of all – you save time and money (read more about the benefits in The Benefits of Implementing Processes in Your Business). The ultimate goal is to move things from being manually executed to discovering and implementing improvements that streamline the firm’s activities. These small, time-saving ideas add up over time. Every bit of energy you can save will allow space for growth and improved development.

So how exactly do you get started? First, study what you are already doing on a daily basis. Try to change only one thing at a time. As you start analyzing how your business runs, you may discover some easy fixes

The Valuable Cloud Software My Company First Implemented

Pamela Ayuso April 16, 2018

The Cloud can be a blessing to a small company.

Just ten years ago, the most viable options available to smaller organizations were lesser-quality systems that needed to be shared via a local server and maintained by an IT person. Because they could not afford an effective on-site system, most of these firms would just keep everything on Excel and share documents on an internal server. It was a very frustrating and now outdated way to work.

Our journey as a firm was similar to that of many other small companies. The following is a short account of the problems we faced in each of our departments with the corresponding solutions we used to solve them with the help of Cloud software.

Invest in the Future to Avoid Potential Roadblocks

Pamela Ayuso April 10, 2018

Have you ever developed a brilliant way of doing something and then forgotten the path you took to arrive there in the first place?

Whenever we do something for the first time, we are making mistakes and learning as we go. We may invest time doing one task but then realize that the process did not work. So, we try a different way again, and this time, it might lead in the right direction. Eventually, the puzzle comes together, and the goal is achieved.

Valuable Ideas from Google for Growth and Innovation: Part 2

Pamela Ayuso March 27, 2018

This article is Part 2 of my review and insights on How Google Works by Eric Schmidt and Jonathan Rosenberg.

The first part of my review highlighted some of Google’s best ideas on organization, access to information, and interviewing. In this article, I share some of my favorite quotes from their guide on goal-sharing, communication, resources, and innovation.

By no means is this a comprehensive review of the book, but in case you have not had a chance a to read it, here are some of the ideas I found most striking as a business manager myself. As soon as you get the opportunity, I highly recommend it; I predict Google’s ideas will have a significant impact on any organization.

Category: Business development