Category: Business

New Software: When and How to Implement into Your Business

Pamela Ayuso July 15, 2019

As a leader in a small or medium-sized company, you are already working with a set of software solutions that take care of most of the organization’s transactions, such as sales, purchasing, and accounting. These systems were usually implemented when the company was in its beginning phases. When the company didn’t have any systems yet, you probably invested in the best software available within your budget and solved as many of the transactions in your company as possible.

As is often the case in small to medium-sized companies, budgets are usually constrained, which means that the set of systems you have implemented for the company will not be flawless. You may have already invested in separate software for sales, accounting, project management, and document storage. Alternatively, you may have invested in an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solution, which is a single solution that integrates a variety of areas in your company. No matter what combination you are working with, there will almost always be gaps.

Maintaining Faith: Build It and They Will Come

Pamela Ayuso July 8, 2019

If your product is built right for your client, they will come. More often than not, it will work out as you envisioned.

The Value of a Little Patience When Automating Processes

Pamela Ayuso June 24, 2019

When implementing a new process in a company, it takes some time to find a new rhythm of work. Routines and habits must change, and the team has to adjust to the new way of doing things. It requires patience, and sometimes, in the middle of the transition, you may wonder whether it will ever work.

Once the implementation is completed successfully, though, it’s beautiful to see. The process you had been working on now operates independently without you having to do anything about it. The team, the systems, and the processes have all adapted, and the new way of doing things is the new normal.

How to Make Sense of This Crazy World

Pamela Ayuso June 17, 2019

I used to think that I could build a perfectly structured company in which everything would be neat and tidy. I tirelessly designed and organized the company to ensure the structure would be failproof. Little by little, that idea was slowly torn apart as I discovered how little is actually in my control. The world and life itself can change in an instant. An organization will be put under stress and sometimes experience failures no matter how organized it is.

At times the changes may come slowly and are easier to adapt to. Other times, a circumstance may be a game changer and can present itself unexpectedly, to which we have no choice but to adapt. Given that this is how the world operates, how can we succeed in the middle of all this uncertainty? How do we operate effectively in a world that sometimes makes no sense? I don’t have all the answers, but I do have some strategies I’ve been experimenting with for some time.

Assess How Effective You Are at Delegating

Pamela Ayuso June 10, 2019

As you advance in your career, the ability to delegate becomes more important. By delegating, you will have more time to focus on the work where you can add the most value. You will also provide the space for others to get valuable training and move up in their careers. Take a moment today and assess your effectiveness in delegating.

To start, analyze your current workload. Some of the questions you can ask yourself are:

What are you doing today that you can delegate to free up time for yourself?
Is there a specific task that only you can do which you are neglecting to do something that another person on the team can do?
Can someone do part of the work you are doing more effectively (or efficiently) than you?

Configuring Processes to Gain More Efficient Results

Pamela Ayuso May 27, 2019

Our company recently underwent a company-wide process revamp: we examined all our processes, revised the content, and standardized the formatting since it was not consistent across departments. This project underlined the importance of setting up processes to be as clean and organized as possible with proper categorization and structuring. This deliberate configuring helps the user focus on the language itself and not be distracted by discrepancies in the arrangement of the processes.

We have processes for every department within our company. Some departments, like Finance, have more processes than others based on the nature of the work. For more on how we use processes at Celaque, our firm, please refer to my blog posts on processes: The Benefits of Implementing Processes in Your Business, How to Improve and Grow Your Business with Effective Processes, and 6 Useful Ideas to Make Your Processes More Streamlined.

This Is How a Virtual Assistant Can Enhance Your Business

Pamela Ayuso May 6, 2019

If you are drowning in your to-do list, try working with a virtual assistant. Finding and working with one can save you hours of time and effort. A virtual assistant can help you tackle your to-do list in no time at all, especially those tasks on your list that can be completed by anyone. He or she will help you get out from under the avalanche of work. When you are freer, your assistant can also help you do the things you wanted to do but never had the time to complete. Having someone you can rely on to do all the undone work can change your professional life.

Luckily, finding a virtual assistant today is easier than ever. Thanks to the internet, there are multiple sites where you can connect with the right assistant for you. My favorite site is Upwork, where you can find highly rated freelancers for every budget, based around the world. You can also post a job on Twitter, Craigslist, or Zirtual, a portal dedicated to helping professionals find virtual assistants for both office and personal work.

Your Business and New Employees: How to Adjust Your Processes

Pamela Ayuso April 22, 2019

The ultimate benefit of processes is that they are adaptable. They are living organisms that can be modified as the company grows or changes. Because a structure with preexisting processes is already in place, it is easier to adjust, add, or remove responsibilities as the team grows and evolves.

When a new person joins your company, the current processes can provide the foundation from which you and the team can see what work is being done now and how it can be modified. From there, it is easy to reduce the workload for other members of the team, if necessary, and to assign new responsibilities.

How to Set Up Your Peer Coaching Group for Success

Pamela Ayuso April 15, 2019

Peer coaching groups are one of the most useful mechanisms you can design for your career. Growing a career/business is complex, and it is much easier to face challenges with others who are in the same boat as you. In a peer coaching group, you and a group of professionals can come together to listen, learn, and share your career paths and projects.

During these meetings, the group members discuss goals, challenges, or simply what is happening in their professional lives. In between sessions, you’ll have a group of people you can rely on for support during the projects you are embarking on.

You may not be in a location where a group is readily available, so you may have to set one up yourself. In any case, to have the greatest impact on your professional life, it’s imperative to make sure your peer group is the right one for you.

Knowing How to Learn from Failed Projects in Your Business

Pamela Ayuso April 8, 2019

Much of innovation is about experimentation and trial and error. With that, often comes failure: something that usually stops us from exploring in the first place. The immediate effects aren’t pleasant, as failure comes with wasted time and effort and disappointment. If we learn to fail gracefully, however, and learn from our errors, we will be able to grow. Growth comes along with much inevitable failure.

Failure can at times be very apparent, while other times it is less so. The first step in accepting failure is to know when a project/idea is officially over. If something has failed, the best thing to do is recognize the project as a missed opportunity and move on. Let go of the past and move on. From there, learn from it. Try to look at the missed opportunity from a distance and learn. Finally, don’t let this stop you and your teams’ creativity. Keep going, keep ideating. The quicker you can move through this cycle, the more you and your business will be able to grow.