In a previous article we discussed the difference between “Costs Cutting”, “Costs Savings” and “Costs Management”, and we established that the third of the trifecta was in the long term, the best way to proceed.
The Internet is full of tools and resources that will point you in the right direction, however they all seem to be geared towards to big end of town, and as a result they can be confusing and inappropriate.
My “quick and dirty” tip is to:
- Set aside some time to think about your own skill sets, your strengths and what you want to achieve.
- Discuss the issues with appropriate employees.
- Make a list of those employees who directly generate income, those who find the work and those who provide support.
- Write down all the reasons that stop the first group from generating more income.
- Examine ways to safely lift their productive hours (e.g. shift non income producing tasks to lower skilled and lower paid support staff, introduce newer technology, better training).
- Move to the “finders” and examine the impediments they face by using a similar process.
- Thirdly, complete the exercise for the support staff, understanding of course that they do not directly generate income. Rather, they free up those staff who do.
- Finally, ask yourself if the task could be better performed by the use of contract or outsourced services.
Resist the urge to simply cut the receptionist for example. You may well end up with a higher cost, senior employee as a substitute.
If you don’t have time to invest in this process, or you have come this far and find that you lack understanding of all the issues and what is involved in each employee function, ask for help.
There are resources that you can call on. But be aware that the free advice you get may well be will be generic. And generic advice may well cost more than seeking the help of an experienced manager who can complement your skills and knowledge.
