There is no sign of slowing down, so it is not surprising that they are known as boring and unproductive people. Read on for my top tips for supporting your organization and getting your customers clamoring for their business reviews.
What is business analysis? A business review is a review of metrics and performance of a supplier’s activities over the past period. It should be linked to the overall strategy and objectives that are the result of individual activities, interactions and contributions. It facilitates organization and creates shared ideas. By this, I mean clarity (what is being done, what needs to be fixed and who is doing it) and confidence (thinking, learning, commitment and accountability).
1. Get it from a newspaper. Now.
You will need your review and diary for the next 12 months. Why?
• Since your customer’s policy may be void, you will receive the date of your choice. • The more ratings you give, the more likely you will get a rating. If it’s January and you ask to meet in June, how can they say no? If you ask to meet next week, they probably won’t be able to get you in.
• Reformation will definitely happen!
• You can predict the preparation time you will need and become a time manager
Provide immediate business analysis – within one month of the end of the period. Who wants to discuss activities from January to March in July? No one. Give enough time. 90 minutes maximum. Not anymore. It can be difficult to catch someone at the best of times. Make sure your client books a room, not just a time in their calendar. I have delivered many reviews in cafes and lobbies and it is not fun. Ask for the largest room available, to make sure you have room for everyone if the number of participants increases.
Why not invite your client to visit your office? This is an opportunity to recreate the research with a behind-the-scenes visit and meet the team that works with them every day.
Put these announcements in the notebook for next year and don’t forget to book the meeting.
2. Meet before the meeting
If nothing else, do this. Schedule a call 30 minutes before the test to schedule a pre-meeting discussion. Ask:
• What do you like to explore during exams? • What is your main pain point?
• What are your goals? What are your goals as an individual and as a business?
• Has anything changed in your work? Do you have a different approach?
• What are some of the big projects you’re working on? • Who are your people?
You may be familiar with some of these, but confirm again. Things may be different since you last met.
Focus on measurable criteria that cover key factors such as cost, quality and compliance. Business analysis is all about strategy. The goal is to move the program forward in a meaningful way. Now is not the time to discover unexpected things for the first time. You don’t want to be on guard and your client doesn’t want to surprise you, especially in front of the boss. Advance meetings are essential to prepare and achieve a successful business analysis. It helps you gather information, identify obstacles, gain support, and improve your approach. During the actual meeting, your analysis will change and meet the needs of your client.
A short plan call with your client means a targeted survey with relevant information.
3. Call the right people
Don’t do it alone. And there are no thousands of casts.
Invite speakers who are knowledgeable about the event and can make valuable contributions. Bring together decision makers and strategic influencers. You will have meaningful discussions about program outcomes and priorities. And it works well. You must get agreement on the process and identify (and overcome) obstacles before closing the meeting. Without good people, you won’t get anything out of the meeting other than homework. You need a resolution! You want to do something!
Do not keep participants longer than required. If they are only needed for 30 minutes, leave them with any commitment to stay longer. You will get better attendance, engagement and great reputation as a conference host. Send reminders the night before or in the morning. Let your stakeholders know what you expect from their input and how important their feedback is to program development (translation: make them feel guilty). During meetings, watch out for quiet voices. Not everyone is quick with their ideas – so encourage them to share their feedback. The right participants will accelerate your event goals.
4. There is no surprise
Simple rule: make sure everyone knows what the test is about, why they are there and what is expected of them
“Business analysis” is not a proposal. If you followed tip #2, you already know what you want to talk about and why. Put them on the agenda, but be aware: not all subjects may be on the list of options. Focus on the two or three drivers that have the most impact on your customer – and the ones you have the opportunity to influence. Save these beautiful ideas for next time. Choose a topic that appeals to all members. Relevant questions will encourage participation during the meeting. You don’t want people to turn around and regret agreeing.
Share the schedule and review the event a few days in advance and encourage feedback so you can improve. Assign topics if necessary and show each clearly the preparation required. You will know when, where and how, but only you the customer will know why. This may reveal important information that will affect your approach to the program.
During the course of the program, new topics are introduced immediately. Tips for the perfect notebook:
• List the activities according to the questions to be answered by the group
• Note whether the purpose of the conversation is to share information, solicit feedback, or make a decision
• Set aside time for each subject and stick to it
• Give some background – why is this topic on target? This is especially useful if you have an issue that you don’t immediately see why it needs to be addressed. • Make it clear how participants will support
• Identify who is in charge of each topic
• Before closing each topic, review the agreed activities, timeline and owners
• Take the time to gather feedback from participants and their thoughts on the meeting (what went well, what could be improved).
5. No device
So this can be difficult, especially when you’re the supplier, and you’re telling the customer to get off their phone. For effective business analysis everyone must be present – in mind and body. When attendees are on their laptops or phones, it’s frustrating, distracting, and pointless. Even David Cameron has banned phones from the Cabinet. So if it’s good for the Prime Minister…
Here’s how you can get your meeting tools for free:
• On your calendar, let everyone know that you will need their full attention and avoid using devices. • When you start the meeting, set a gentle reminder that the phone should not be used as you want to use the time you have to do things and support the relationship.
• To calm any stress, schedule a 30- to 45-minute phone break each time – between topics in the plan.
• If you see someone using their phone, ask them to leave the meeting to answer an email or make a call. If it is absolutely necessary, they will do that and protect everyone else from distraction. Most likely, it is not that they will put the phone unknowingly after it is done for breaking the law.
6. Strategy vs Operational
Keep them, that’s all I can say. Don’t get me wrong, how you interact with your customer and deliver your products and services is very important. Discussions often reveal the causes of problems that are part of a larger problem that can affect profitability and retention. However, you only have 90 minutes to show the last 15 minutes, agree on the priorities for the next one and how to get there. A discussion about why someone is on hold for 20 minutes or why their delivery hasn’t arrived for a few hours can drag your entire organization down. Don’t keep operational problems under wraps. They need your attention. It’s not just during testing. Arrange another meeting for that purpose. For effectiveness, I recommend before the test. You are already there, it saves you the trip and the time will be well controlled because you will have an emergency stop for the test. It also means that you leave on a positive note when the meeting is convenient and interactive in which you talk about all the great things about your client’s program, not all the problems.
If you haven’t scheduled it yet, don’t agree to a meeting right away. You will never be ready and never know how long it will be. I was tempted by the promise of a quick stop at someone’s office only to find that 2 hours later I was still there when word got around that I was there.
7. Avoid the past
You want to learn from history, not relive it. Don’t get distracted during your meeting by going through old stuff. What you learn from them and what you do about it is the key. The business review is all about making major decisions to move the program to the next quarter, so spend most of your time focusing on the future and discussing opportunities.
8. Celebrate success
Business reviews are the perfect opportunity to share the success of your program. What went well and what happened to understand the contributions of those who did. Take time to recognize accomplishments:
• Explain the positive impact on the business
• Ask yourself if you have achieved that goal. It’s worth continuing to pursue
• Make sure you have good examples to share of how your key contacts supported the program. Everyone loves and they are no different. It also gives them confidence, which helps them to act.
• Shout from the mountaintop. Consider how you can spread the good news throughout the company so that everyone can thrive. It may not be appropriate to talk about hard money, so think about other metrics that might be useful. For instance:
• We reduced costs by X%
• We saved X days on our production time
• Satisfaction scores increased by X%
9. Focus on the gaps
A gap analysis is simply this:
• Define your future state
• Analyze your current situation
• Identify how you will get from here to there
This is what will drive your program forward. Take advantage of the opportunities for continuous improvement and take the time to design a plan to address them.
Think new – find new ways to solve old problems. I encourage you to think big. I also remind you to think twice. Kaizen is a Japanese philosophy that emphasizes change for the better. Whether they are small steps or big increases, over time, these will create a value chain and produce valuable results in your program management. Approach the conversation in your meeting with this method:
1. Define the problem
2. Record the current situation
3. Visualize a positive situation
4. Define measurement objectives
5. Think of a solution to the problem
6. Develop a plan
10. So what? In the meantime?
My former mentor, Rebecca Pulham, shared this wisdom with me years ago, and I have lived it. When you provide advice, methods, data, observations – basically, anything – you need to answer these two important questions:
So what? In the meantime? Don’t talk. Create the story, capture the idea. Get your customers excited. Make things happen. Just know why you should do them and how.
Do me a favor. Get a pen and a piece of paper and write the following:
So what? What now? Paste it on your laptop. Check you out. Your bathroom mirror. They are not just words for business, but tools for life. You already have an outline of your meeting plan. You’re likely to put meat on the bone when you get back to the office, so consider:
• Conditions
• Purpose
• Planning
• Key information
• Time limit
Then you are ready to implement your plan. Make sure you will always keep your plan and keep your plans enough for a modifying response. Changing if you need it. As with any prediction, you can be wrong. It is better to accept it quickly and change it, than to risk failure and many disappointments. Summary
1. Write it in a journal
2. Have a brief speech before the meeting
3. Call the right people
4. Set a schedule and stick to it (easier than it sounds)
5. No tools
6. Good luck with the plan
7. Avoid the past
8. Celebrate success
9. Focus on the gaps
