28
From Process to Profit: Karl W. Palachuk, Author, MSP, Coach Small Biz Thoughts [email protected] Super-Charge Your Managed Service Business with SOPs
From Process to Profit:
Karl W. Palachuk, Author, MSP, Coach
Small Biz Thoughts
Super-Charge Your Managed Service Business with SOPs
From Process to Profit:
The Premise: You’re in business to make money!
The Promise: Good SOPs will make you money and save you money!
Super-Charge Your Managed Service Business with SOPs
3 Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk
SOPs
• Consistency
• Quality
• Reproducibility
4 Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk
SOP … Definitions
• A Process is the name given to a series of
tasks that result in a general outcome.
• A Procedure is the name given to a specific set
of action steps that achieve an outcome. A
process might include several different
procedures.
• A Checklist is the name given to the finest level
of detail for executing the action steps needed to
achieve a result. A procedure should include at
least one checklist, but might include more than
one checklist.
5 Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk
General Operations
• Have a Franchise Mentality– The Emyth
– Franchise-like
– Your Way / Your Brand
6 Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk
7 Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk
General Operations
Complexity is Increasing - Exponentially
1. More difficult to be competentAnd stay competent
Answer: Specialize
2. Hard to get all the details right
Answer: Checklists and SOPs
Com
ple
xit
yHi
Lo
Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk8
It is 238,900 miles from the Earth to the Moon
9 Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk
General Operations
Adopt a Managed Services Model
• Prepaid
• As flat as possible profitable
• Preventive maintenance
• Just do it!
X
10 Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk
General Operations
Use Good Tools
• RMM
• PSA
• Ticketing System
• etc.
11 Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk
General Operations
Manage Time Every Way You Can
• Track every hour
• In your PSA
• Detailed
• GIGO: You can only generate reports on data you have entered
• Productivity• Billability• Profitability
Time Is Your Widget
12 Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk
General Operations
Define What is Billable and What is Not
• Just do it
• Enforce immediately
• Example:
• Managed Services covers the maintenance of the operating system and software
• No Adds, Moves, Changes
Client Contracts
• Billable T&M
• Managed Service
• Project (flat fee or prepaid blocks)
13 Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk
“Managed Services covers the maintenance of the operating system and software.”
Questions
on this?
14 Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk
Sales
Take Money Every Way You Can (Except I.O.U.)
(( and maybe Bitcoin ))
Credit Card
Paypal
ACH
Check
Pay Online$
15 Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk
Sales• Get Prepaid for Everything
• Never have a problem with cash flow!
o Hardware / Software
o Managed Services
o Blocks of Time
o Project Labor• X% up front• Milestone payments
Revenue is FoodFor Your Business
Cash FlowIs Oxygen!
16 Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk
Sales
Sell The Best
“Business Class”
• Good equipment
• Push the 3-4 year refresh
• Do not apologize!Stop Trying
To Save
Your Clients’ Money!
17 Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk
Sales
• Define Your Clientele
o By Industry
o By Size
o By Software
o By Geography
Stick to your target market very rigidly
19 Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk
Service
• Did I mention Branding?
• Service is
Where the Rubber
Meets the Road
20 Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk
Service• Put Technical Prowess in its Place
Com
ple
xit
y
Hi
Lo
Only one person on earth can do this
A handful of people can do this
Lots of people can do this
Any competent technician can do this
“Techie” clients can do this
All clients can do this
Your mother can do this
21 Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk
Service• A Checklist for Everything
o Repeatable Success
o Repeatable Process
o Push labor to lower-level techs
o No need to reinvent the wheel
o Continuous Incremental Improvement
Consistency Brings Profitability
• Franchise-like
• Save time at every stage
• Predictable success
22 Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk
Service
• Massaging Tickets
o Every Ticket – Every Touch
o Priority
o Status
o Queue / Service Board
o Time Estimate
o Assigned to the right person/team
Priorities
• P1 - Emergency
• P2 - High
• P3 - Medium
• P4 – Low
Statuses
• New
• Acknowledged
• Schedule This
• In Progress
• Waiting Client / Vendor /
Results
• Closed
Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk23
Service• Massaging the Service Board
o Sort and Re-sort
o By Priority
o By Status
o By Age
o By Client
o By Tech or Team
o Anything else you can think of
Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk24
Service
Work in “Real Time”
• WITNS – What is the Next Step?
• “Documented Work”
• No Gaps / No Overlaps
Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk25
Service
• Troubleshooting and Repair Log
o Basic Information
o Important Steps
oMinimum something every 15 minutes
Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk26
“Habit is a cable; we weave a thread of it each day, and at last we cannot break it."
-- Horace Mann
Nothing
Happens by Itself
27 Copyright © Karl W. Palachuk
Fear Is Your Enemy
• Money
• Clients
• Comfort Zone
Franklin Roosevelt
Thank You
Questions?
Karl W. Palachuk, Small Biz Thoughts
www.smbbooks.com
