9 Jul, 2021
Lynda Steffens is an Accountant, Author and Introvert along with being a Business Coach from the Small Business Project. Lynda is focused on speaking, coaching and advocating for accountants and the accounting industry. Lynda has 30 years of experience in the professional services industry as an accountant, business advisor, partner, practice manager and coach and she is revolutionising the accounting industry.
During this episode we cover niching and why it is important to niche. What’s the difference between a good accountant and a great accountant. What is the value of a great accountant, should you look at a small or large firm along with so much more. So let’s jump in and discuss all things accounting and finding the right accountant for you.
About Lynda:
Lynda always introduces herself as an Accountant, Author & Introvert, three things she is very loud and proud about. Something you may not expect is that she is a wannabe hippie! A ‘living off the grid lifestyle’ very much appeals to her inner introvert.
But right now, she is solely focused on speaking, coaching and advocating for accountants and the accounting industry. Nominated for Accountants Daily Thought Leader of the Year and Practice Ignitions 50 Most Influential Women in Accounting. Her recently published book Accounting Revolution is setting the accounting industry on fire.
Lynda has 30 years of experience in the professional services industry as an accountant, business advisor, partner, practice manager and coach and she is revolutionising the accounting industry.
During this episode:
- Why Lynda has a Niche service, working directly with accountants
- What do you look at implementing to achieve a higher performing business
- Top 3 things that businesses ask you about
- What’s the difference between a good accountant and a great accountant.
- What’s the value of a great accountant
- Should you look for a small firm or a large firm?
Want more systems tools and resources?
Connect with Lynda Steffens
Website: Lynda Steffens
Project: The Small Business Project
Facebook: @therealaccountant
LinkedIn: Lynda Steffens
Youtube: Lynda Steffens
5 Jul, 2021
At the core of every business is the processes that you use. You perform these every single day, but have you ever taken the time to actually map them out and document them? Representing your workflow in this way offers a number of benefits for your business. One key benefit is that onboarding and training new employees becomes so much easier.
Representing Your Business Processes Visually
The best way to document your business processes is to do it visually. It’s much easier for a new staff member to understand the workflow from a diagram representation than a piece of text content. Business processes are basically mapped out in flow charts or variations of flow chart. A flow chart shows each step of a process in a square or other shape connected by lines or arrows. They illustrate how the task moves from start to finish.
Beyond the Flow Chart
Flow charts offer the most basic visual representation, but there are a few variations on this type of diagram that are useful for business processes.
- The Swimlane Diagram. A Swimlane diagram shows a process from start to finish but divides it into “lanes.” These are columns for different stakeholders, facilities, departments, or resources. It shows more clearly who is responsible for which part of a task.
- Value Stream Map. A value stream map is a more complicated diagram where the work doesn’t just flow one way but in all directions. It’s useful for complex tasks that require multiple departments and stages, or that might be modular.
Videos
Having a mix of videos amongst your documented processes can clearly explain the workflow when using certain software. This can also speed up some of the smaller steps and extra information that needs to be included in each process.
Seek Feedback
Don’t document your business processes all alone. Seek the advice and feedback of other colleagues, especially if they’re the ones that are usually in charge of the process. You’ll also want feedback after documentation to make sure it’s clear and easy to understand.
Start with the Big Picture
When teaching new team members a process, you have to start by giving them the big picture view of the task. Explain where this task fits into your overall business and what specific goal it’s meant to achieve. At the beginning of the process, give them the resources and tools they need and what other preparations there are, if any. For your documentation, you may start with a brief summary that explains this.
Create an Archive of Resources
Create a manual of all your business processes and make it available to team members. Encourage them to refer to these protocols as they learn. It will take some time before the job becomes second nature to them.
Why You Should Document Your Business Processes
Documenting your business processes helps you to train new team members. But it can also help in other ways. By investigating each process closely, you can look at ways to streamline and improve, making your business more efficient. You can also look for ways to standardise, delegate, outsource, or automate, saving you more time and making life easier for everyone in your organisation.
Do you want to learn more about streamlining your business processes?
2 Jul, 2021
Ben Allan from Dr App has quite the story to share. From a young age, he started working in real estate before coming to the decision to pivot his life in tech. During this episode you will hear all about apps, what are apps, how clients are leveraging apps, what makes a good app along with the benefits of using an app.
Yes that’s right. We get super nerdy during this episode.
Bio: After working in real estate from a young age, Ben had to make the conscious decision to pivot from a life in real estate to a life in tech, when he saw his job becoming superseded by technology. Ben works at Dr App on the Gold Coast, which is an app development firm. One of his main roles is to be a visionary for automation in business’ and bringing peoples idea to product form.
During this episode:
- Ben’s story
- What are apps?
- How clients are leveraging apps
- Elements of a good app
- What are the benefits of using an app
- Hot seat questions
Want more systems tools and resources?
Connect with Ben Allan
Website: Dr App
Products: Dr App work
Facebook: @drappau
LinkedIn: thebenallan
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