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Organization is important in any business. If you doubt its significance, consider that bankruptcy is often coupled with the concept of re-organization. It means something has become so “disorganized” or “out of balance” that it has impacted the viability of the company and must be “re-organized” for it to work again.

No business leader wants to get to that point. Yet, many do, simply because some part of the business was “out of order,” and it affected the rest of the business.

A wise leader knows the value of organization at every level of business – not only in the area of fiscal responsibility, but also in the areas of legal, administration, IT, communication, marketing, sales, production, and customer service. There is an art to creating a business system that works together well.

And when you do, your customers know it.

What does an organized business look like?

Financial

There are scheduled operations that are completed every day, week, month, quarter, and year – the recurring functions that ensure income is tracked, bills are paid, and reporting is provided on a regular basis. The leader’s responsibilities are in planning, budgeting, and monitoring results to ensure the organization stays on track financially.

Legal

When the legalities of business are not established, organized, and documented, misunderstandings, broken business partnerships, and ultimately, costly lawsuits can occur. In many cases, these could have been prevented by simple agreements and good record keeping.

HR and Administration

The HR and Administrative arms of a business are all about people and how they work together. Organization here takes the form of solid, well-considered policies and procedures. It includes a welcoming and informative onboarding process. A leader with an organized administrative department will ensure the facilities are functioning well, systems flow, and maintenance is addressed. If you enter an establishment where the facilities are not maintained well, and there is general disorder, you will most often notice disgruntled employees. These are indicators of disorder in the areas of HR and Administration.

Marketing and Sales

Marketing and Sales are high activity areas. Often staffed by high “I” wired individuals who are uniquely gifted in these areas, these areas can be so people- and activity-focused that organization goes by the wayside. The people that Marketing worked so hard to reach, perhaps, were not captured in a central database; and so valuable leads and sales are lost on a daily basis. If your prospects are only tracked on sticky notes, you have a Sales and Marketing organization problem that could be costing you considerable revenue.

IT

IT is a critical component of business. Lack of organization in an IT department is evidenced by lack of standard operating procedures, outdated equipment and software, security updates that are neglected, no backup systems, and no crisis management plan. If you as a leader are not on top of an organizational plan for this area of the business, you can be assured there are hackers who will exploit those gaps.

Production

Organization in the area of Production is a matter of quality and safety. Documented procedures, communication, and constant monitoring are key in the area of Production. Organization in this area ensures efficiency and consistency in delivery of the product or service. This is an area where organization is tied directly to revenue.

Customer Service

Does your Customer Service team have a thorough process for addressing customer questions and concerns? Do they know who to contact if the issue is beyond their scope of work? Do they know the empowerments and limits of the decisions they can make in order to serve your customers? An organized system for taking care of customers will have major impact on the company’s bottom line.

Organization matters in every area, and organization is not the end goal. The end goal is to be organized enough to effectively, efficiently, and proactively market, sell, and deliver a great customer experience.

The key to creating order across all facets of the organization is to have a good system of checks and balances.

Accounting needs C- and S-wired team members who do the methodical recurring tasks with great accuracy. And it also needs D- and I-wired individuals who will look at the numbers with an eye for results, building, and innovation.

Legal is similar in its need for very detailed individuals as well as those who can step back and quickly assess the big picture.

HR and Administration tend to lean heavily toward S- and I-wired individuals, who naturally care about people and processes. But they also need the C- and D-wired individuals to create the order and balance of compliance and boundaries.

Marketing and Sales are great fits for I- and D-wired team members. I’s love these areas for the people contact and creativity they allow. D’s shine in these areas because they are motivated by challenge and driven by results.

IT is usually composed of C- and S-wired individuals, as it should be. Their attention to detail, their patience for solving problems, and their penchant for systems makes this a natural fit. Mixing in D- and I-wired individuals helps prevent analysis paralysis and inspire innovations.

Depending on the product or service, Production is predicated on all types. In fact, a great production match includes both those who are driven to keep things moving combined with those with an eye for detail and quality.

Customer Service requires a great deal of patience and perseverance and is, therefore, a great fit for those who are S-wired. But where reinforcements are needed, a D-wired supervisor can make a great pairing for an S-wired team.

Organization, really, is all about balance. It is about finding the right balance to keep something moving forward in an efficient, orderly fashion. Where D’s, I’s, S’s, and C’s work together, each with their best strengths in play, the organization is truly strong.

The work gets done…and done correctly.

How organized is your business? Do you have the right system of checks and balances across your team?

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For more resources on how you can create a balanced team that gets results, click here to learn about the Maxwell Method of Communication Impact Report.

As the CEO of Strength Leader Development, Deb Ingino is a highly sought-after international executive mentor, coach, trainer and speaker. Deb is well versed in global business operations and helps business leaders and their teams to discover and leverage their strengths, so they can create highly collaborative teams that deliver great results. With a refreshingly direct style, Deb helps leaders and their teams to deliver profitable results. Connect with Deb to learn more about her mentorship and coaching programs to equip you with advanced strategies to elevate your results.

When you have a strong team that collaborates well,
you have a competitive advantage.

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