I often interview individuals of an organization before a consulting or speaking engagement. It helps me understand their culture, their weaknesses, their strengths and any areas of frustration.

It is not unusual to ask the same questions across the organization and receive varying answers. For example, when I recently asked the question "Tell me the process you go through when a prospect contacts your office," I received answers that described three varieties of different approaches and processes, depending on who the individual was trained by.  

At a later strategic planning session the sales team worked together to standardize the process of handling calls from potential new customers.  In essence, a check-list was created which guaranteed that every prospect would be handled the same, right down to a hand-written note written by the sales person within 24 hours of fielding the call. The sales department became much more efficient because of the process put in place and were assured that no detail would slip through the cracks.

What sort of tasks do you frequently do in your job that could become more efficient should you decide to create a checklist for it or document the process in some form?

Here is the checklist I use for every speaking engagement I book. I keep it stored within Outlook, so I can easily insert it into a Task in order to track the project:

Presentation Date:

Presentation Title:

1. Send Contract, W-9 and Deposit Invoice
2. Enter client into ACT database and Outlook
3. Connect with client on LinkedIn
4. 3 months out- Book travel - air, hotel, ground transportation
5. 2 months out- Submit article to client for in-house publications or online use
6. 1 month out- Print Handouts or send client Handout .pdf for in-house copying
7. 1 Week Prior- Call Meeting Planner - Review event details - Confirm final payment
8. 1 Week Prior- Send invoice for final payment
9. 1 Day After- Send Thank-you note to client
10. 1 Day After- Add engagement to Tracking Sheet
11. 1 Day After- Invoice for Travel/Handouts
12. 1 Week after Event- Call Client to discuss evaluations/testimonials. Ask them for a recommendation on LinkedIn
13. 2 months after event- Send them a 2nd article to use in-house or online

Whether you work in a department of individuals all doing similar work or you're the lone ranger in your role, standardization is important for several reasons.

1. If you get hit by the proverbial bus, your job can be carried on thanks to systems and processes appropriately documented.
2. You become more efficient at doing your job. You get more done with less effort.
3. Error rates go down because a standardized process becomes a reliable process. 

© Audrey Thomas