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This post is primarily aimed at small business owners and managers, although anyone with any interest or involvement in organizational leadership may find it useful.
Building a sustainable infrastructure is a lot less technical than it sounds. The infrastructure of an organization is comprised of all of the systems and documented procedures that support the organization’s normal and consistent operations. These can be financial systems like QuickBooks, communication and time management systems like MS Outlook, or documented procedures for performing specific tasks.
Building a sustainable infrastructure means creating systems and procedures that can be followed consistently and reliably, and that require as little time, thought and energy as possible. The most important thing to say about this is that systems are only effective to the extent that they’re followed consistently. Every change or exception to a procedure causes inconsistency in the culture. You want to aim your efforts at engineering a sustainable business vs. playing catch-up. Every exception to normal procedure makes more work for you and increases the margin of error.
This means that the most obvious solution to a problem may not be the most sustainable. From the standpoint of sustainability, the questions you should ask yourself when solving a problem are, how can I resolve this issue so that I never have to think about it again? What system can I put in place to ensure that I never have to deal with this issue again? How can I resolve or manage this issue such that it does not become another thing I have to think about or remember to do?
As a business owner, you have too much to do already. Your energy should be spent developing the concepts and strategies that you believe will result in your organization’s success. Your time and energy should be reserved for creating relationships with potential clients and delivering your services. The purpose of the infrastructure of your business is to handle everything else without your constant supervision or attention.
Possibly related:
[…] Erek Ostrowski, at Verve Coaching, knew at the age of seven that life for him was about learning and teaching when he stood outside under the open sky. It gave him a feeling of limitlessness and vast possibility. “Building a sustainable infrastructure means creating systems and procedures that can be followed consistently and reliably and that require as little time, thought and energy as possible”, says Erek in his post Building a Sustainable Infrastructure. […]
[…] Building a Sustainable Infrastructure. […]
[…] Erek Ostrowski presents Building a Sustainable Infrastructure posted at Verve Coaching, saying, “Building a sustainable infrastructure means creating systems and procedures that can be followed consistently and reliably, and that require as little time, thought and energy as possible.” […]
[…] Erek Ostrowski presents Building a Sustainable Infrastructure posted at Verve Coaching, saying, “Building a sustainable infrastructure means creating systems and procedures that can be followed consistently and reliably, and that require as little time, thought and energy as possible.” […]
[…] Building a Sustainable Infrastructure by Erek Ostrowski of Verve Coaching. Having a sustainable infrastructure of systems and procedures means consistency for a business, which can save on time and operating costs. […]
[…] Erek Ostrowski presents Building a Sustainable Infrastructure posted at Verve Coaching, saying, “Building a sustainable infrastructure means creating systems and procedures that can be followed consistently and reliably, and that require as little time, thought and energy as possible.” […]