My favorite college English professor used to start each week off by outlining our course plan for the days ahead. He would conclude his list with the caveat “if the crick don’t rise,” meaning this was what would happen IF everything went according to plan. As we all know sometimes that just doesn’t work out. Sometimes, the crick does rise and we get floated off course. We know it’s important to have a backup plan so that those eventualities don’t derail our plans for success. The challenge in business is deciding how much time to devote to our actual plans and how much to allot for creating our contingencies. Time spent devising a failsafe that you never use is time wasted, but not having a plan in place could turn a minor disaster into a major catastrophe.
Clearly, the key is figuring out what the right balance is and sticking to it. Unfortunately, there isn’t a tried and true formula that you can follow to determine what that ratio is. The balance will vary from one business to the next and can even change over time for any given business.
In a previous series we talked in great detail about technology for your small business and the ways that you can use it to get ahead. If you missed the series you can find a recap here. Technology allows you to accomplish more in less time which is crucial when you are trying to minimize the amount of time and effort you need to expend creating a backup plan. Utilize every timesaving shortcut you possibly can. Often, just having information stored electronically so that it will be accessible to multiple employees at any given time can be the difference maker you need.
Keep accurate, up to date records. You can’t always count on each member of your staff being available when you need them, particularly in a crisis situation. If there is only one person on your team who is aware of recent changes you could be in big trouble if you don’t have that information when it’s needed. Having a central repository for information will allow others to step up and get the job done. Providing ways for employees to collaborate, even when they’re not in the office can provide numerous benefits. For more information on back office solutions to keep your employees connected click here.
Be Prepared with Our Simple Free Inventory Solution
Another tool that you should have in your arsenal of preparedness is Stockpile. By utilizing Stockpile simple free inventory solution to track your inventory you can free up valuable that you are then able to devote to other projects. You ensure that anyone can have access to critical inventory data, at any time. It is easier to keep up to date records because making changes is so quick and easy. Why waste time gathering info and compiling reports? Stockpile’s reporting functions make it easy to get the data that you need in a format that you can use.
If “the crick does rise,” you’ll be well prepared if you have Stockpile simple free inventory solution and you follow these tips. For more ways to grow your small business and improve the way you get things done, check back with us soon. To get started with Stockpile, sign up today!
