Managing work flow is one of the most important aspects of running a business. The better the work “flow”, the more efficient your company will run. Before you lose out on potential profits with your business, consider some of the tips below to effectively manage your work flow.
1 – Have a Document Management System in Place
A basic tenant of efficient document management is to have a well organized filing system. It’s impossible to run a profitable business if you cannot find the documents you need for a job., Even on a virtual level filing can be a tedious task, but a professional outsource bookkeeping service can handle and organize your document management system so that the financial information you need is available at your fingertips. All you have to do is review and manage.
2 – Plan the Day’s Schedule in the Morning
Before the work day begins, have a plan in mind as to what each employee needs to accomplish that day. Of course be flexible in case problems arise, but workers need goals to keep on track. This will also make document management easier in the end.
3 – Set Limits on Breaks and Personal Time
Employees can get distracted by emails, phone calls, and other breaks in work. This loss of concentration can quickly get a person’s mind off track. Good policies and practices for all company’s should include no cell phones, no texting, no personal e-mails and no surfing the web during working hours. If they have any form of personal communication it should be notated on their time sheet and deducted from paid hours. This will not cost you down time and will eliminate the abuse of personal communications during working hours.
4 – Rely on Management Software
Manual document management is hard to keep track of, but you can easily monitor your payroll, inventory, sales and more if you use the best business software on the market today “QuickBooks.” QuickBooks will permit you, with the touch of a button, to view and analyze the financial information you need to run an efficient and profitable business.
5 – Move Non-Core Work Activities out of the Office
Consider outsourcing or sub-contracting non-core activities like bookkeeping, payroll and document management to a professional bookkeeping or accounting service. Outsourcing allows small and medium size businesses to compete on a level playing field with big businesses.
The author: Dawn Contardi, owner of Sharp Bookkeeping Service, a Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor and a member of the American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers with 25 years of experience can be reached at 732-458-3800 or contact us.