Assessing your Skills and Capabilities

Analysis of processes, information systems, resources, and team skills enables you to plan within your capabilities. However, rather than allow weaknesses to limit strategy, note areas for improvement and aim to build them into the plan later.

Examining internal business processes

Your business processes must be efficient if you are to impress customers. Examine them all closely and note those that need working on. You may need to review the way you take and confirm orders, revise terms and conditions, change how you inform staff of an order and distribute your products, and reassess the after-sales service you provide. Look particularly for duplication, gaps, and frequent areas of complaint.

Accessing information

Examine how well your information systems, whether computerized or manual, provide people with the right information in the right format at the right time. Ask members of the team to note instances when their work has been delayed because they have had to spend precious time chasing information that could have been included in an easily accessible standard report or document. You may need to brainstorm to draw up a comprehensive list of information gaps. Finally, decide which of these gaps prevents the team giving a first-class service to its customers.

Questions to ask yourself

• Can I easily find the answers to customers’ questions if I do not already know them?

• Do I have to regularly correct information I receive?

• Do I ever have to ask someone to wait because a certain piece of information has not yet reached me?

• Am I always aware of how close my results actually are to my targets?

Reviewing team skills

Ask people to talk about their strengths and weaknesses in relation to meeting customer needs. Try to make them feel positive about the process; after all, you are discussing formulating a new strategy that will bring the team greater success and more opportunities in the future. Review resources so you can be sure that nothing is preventing you from giving first-class service to the customer. Look at office accommodation, factory space, and warehousing, and assess how well they meet your needs now, and how suitable they will be in the future. Similarly, think about machinery, vehicles, and computer equipment.

Putting the team at ease

When assessing the team’s strengths and weaknesses in an open meeting, make sure everyone feels at ease. Use positive body language such as direct eye-contact.

Discussing strengths and weaknesses

While some people feel secure enough to speak about their strengths and weaknesses openly, many do not. Start by discussing everyone’s strengths, and it will then be easier to talk about areas for improvement, particularly if you use positive questions such as the following:

“How has your job changed since you started work here?”

“How, broadly, could we all improve our performance?”

“Do we offer enough training?”

“Are there times when you find yourself in a difficult situation and are uncertain of how to tackle it?”