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It’s
on my desk... somewhere!
One of
the books that has had a profound effect on me is ‘The E-Myth’
by Michael Gerber.
Aside
from Jim Collins’ ‘Good To Great’ it has to be the
book that has had the most impact on me.
And yet,
I realized recently, I have fallen into one of the most popular traps
encountered by those who should know better, I`ve failed to implement
a whole load of the theories and practical ideas that the book preaches.
It dawned
on me the other day, when discussing with Salima, my wife (a Lawyer
and entrepreneur, and a dedicated list-maker) some issues we were both
interested in, I said, I have the answer to that – it`s on my
desk... somewhere!
Yes, I
have to be the first to admit that – if left to my own devices
– I am a terrible procrastinator and don`t keep `to-do` lists
like I know deep down that I should. My desk is covered in papers, all
useful, that I mean to get around to organizing or implementing sometime,
but because I have not organized them into tasks on a list, they sit
there, uncomplaining, waiting attention.
In contrast,
Salima has a book that she keeps her lists in and she dutifully crosses
off each task when done. You don`t need to flip back many pages to find
all the items neatly crossed off! Also, she has created her own knowledge
management system in her media business that all of her staff can access
online, anywhere in the world, any time of day.
So, I
decided to set aside the procrastinating half of me, and let the action-based
Steve take control.
It`s all
well and good having a `to-do` list if you`re the only one having to
do the items listed, but if your staff will have to do some of the action
points, then it really needs to be online somehow.
As the
idea grew, I decided to investigate what is more commonly known as a
`knowledge management` system.
To my relief, I found a couple of workable options.
One, is
a free `drop box` service, which is basically a web based filing cabinet
that one can give access to staff to, for example, and store all the
required information virtually.
The only
drawback is that it has a relatively low storage limit before it becomes
a paid-for service.
The other
I discovered, is offered by a well known and trusted Canadian software
vendor, who provide a more extensive service to capture all the vital
knowledge we professionals store in our heads about our clients which
we really should share with our team, but we just don`t know how or
where to store it!
The impact
a good knowledge management centre will have on a firm is accentuated
when one considers how much knowledge a typical partner carries in his
or her head about their clients.
Much of
it never makes it to the file, simple, but important, stuff like, the
client`s proper name is Ferdinand, but never call him that, he goes
by `Ferdie`.
Add to
that the fact that by the year 2020 some 75% of today`s partners plan
to have retired, and you have just a ten year window to document and
share this important information.
If you`re
looking to sell your interest in the firm in the next ten years, having
a parking space for this information will make your firm a little more
attractive to potential buyers, who will have the comfort of knowing
all vital client information has a home, and that they can access it
easily.
Another
survey stated that staff at your firm spend between 15% and 35% of their
time just searching for information, and a staggering 40% of the time
they never find what they`re looking for. What a waste of precious resources!
So, based
on the above, I believe that having your very own `Wikipedia` now seems
to make financial as well as practical sense.
Let`s
look at just a few practical applications –
1. Manage
your recruiting and human resources functions more effectively by having
job descriptions, submitted resumes and performance review notes and
more, all readily available, and subjected to security levels so sensitive
information is only available to those who should have access to it.
2. Gather all of your best practices for auditing various types of organizations
in one place so your team is primed before they start any particular
new assignment, instead of learning on the job – something clients
see and hate paying for!
3. Collect all your best tax thinking in one place and have templates
ready to run, stop re-inventing the wheel each time a difficult tax
problem presents itself!
4. I could go on, but you get the idea by now, right?
So, that`s what I am starting to develop myself – new internal
systems to improve client service and an internal knowledge management
system to store that information for all to benefit from.
I would urge you to follow suit and explore the options available. This
seems to me to be an investment that has an immediate and tangible payback,
and we don`t stumble across those every day!
© 2003-2011,
Steve McIntyre-Smith. All Rights Reserved. |
