What Is Operations Consulting?
Universal Creative Solutions primary service is operations consulting. We work with nearly every department providing the breakdown, research, planning, and leadership necessary to optimize your business successfully. Our work helps organizations implement new strategies, improve existing ones, and unlock unlimited growth by providing the path to overcome any obstacles. No problem is too big or too small for our teams. We aim to be the best tool available to you, no matter where you are in the process of building your organization. Below is an overview of what operations consulting is and our unique type of consulting to help unlock your potential.
Why You Need an Operations Consultant
Why You Need an Operations Consultant
No matter how well established your organization is, every company faces operational challenges at some point during their existence. Operations consultants aim to provide analysis, research, and a plan to solve significant issues in the organization's processes or execution. These, sometimes simple, solutions remove the barriers that hold a company back and unlock the answers to unlimited growth. Although an operations consultant is a significant investment, the return on that investment is nearly guaranteed to far exceed the cost. As long as you are willing to sustain the changes implemented, your company will benefit from the recommendations for years to come.
Imagine a situation where the economy or business isn't doing well, and the company needs to improve efficiencies just to stay afloat. An operations consultant will provide that pivotal outside of the box thinking that can optimize performance. It's not that your team couldn't figure out much of these improvements themselves, quite the contrary. Most often, current workloads or familiarity with existing processes prevent them from seeing or implementing required changes. We work seamlessly with your existing team by listening to their needs. There's nothing better than the "boots on the ground" to get the vital feedback needed for critical improvements. We then theorize and test the best practices and report on winning strategies that improve both the company and employees day to day lives.
Now imagine a time when the business is doing well. An operations consultant can still help the company by shoring up its defenses for a downturn. In this case, an operations consultant will create opportunities to find savings and plan departmental improvements to recession-proof your business. That way, you can continue the pattern of growth by getting ahead of the required changes while competitors are languishing behind, waiting to improve once something has already gone wrong.
No or little productivity support or tracking tools
Are you facing an uphill battle to increase market share? An operations consultant can help by reviewing the marketing department's deployment of advertisements, tracking tools and processes, and create a feedback loop to get accurate data from the team. As the business or team leader, you must rely on data collected to make crucial decisions. Trying to gain market share without optimizing your marketing department's operations is like assuming you're guaranteed to win at a game of chance. Until you have the right tools in place, you hinder your ability to succeed. An operations consultant with experience in improving marketing departments is a crucial tool to have when you are planning company growth.
No matter what phase or state your organization is in, operations consulting can benefit the team. Operations consultants provide pivotal guidance to break through the barriers your company faces. We help your teams achieve like never before.
Are you struggling to improve sales? An operations consultant can help by reviewing the sales pipeline, sales practices, and technology employed. They will likely find that unnecessary work, which can be handled by automation, is impeding the team. Additionally, each member of the sales team may be using different tactics. An operations consultant can help standardize and promote the sharing of successful sales tactics. Simultaneously, a consultant can bring in cutting edge technology and integrate necessary tools with the personal touch of a sales department for an excellent customer service experience. These changes are guaranteed to lift sales while simultaneously making it easier for your team to do their best work.
Team has a Difficult time making decisions
Do you have big company goals but a small team budget? An operations consultant can help review existing processes, research new technologies/automation, and plan the implementation of more successful processes. The new methods recommended should improve your team's ability to execute on even more than before. Instead of adding additional payroll to increase potential, take a small portion of that investment to hire an operations consultant to increase the capacity of your existing team permanently.
When you embrace the operational changes and couple that with today's technology, the result proves the value of operations consultants. Demand for operations consulting grows year over year because so many companies are seeing a positive return on investment. Never in history have we been able to do so much with so few or so little. However, taking advantage of this potential requires knowledgeable experts in researching, planning, implementing, and integrating a nearly infinite path of possibilities.
Allow Universal Creative Solutions to organize and execute on the changes your organization needs so you can focus on the results and customer services so critical to your bottom line. Together, we can advance seamless improvements that improve your ability to maintain the business while you grow.
Our Approach to Operations
Our Approach to Operations
Operations are always in a constant state of change to address the current state of the business, team, or a number of external and internal factors. That's why our process is based on a continuum that we call the 4 imPERAtives. The four imperatives are Planning, Enacting, Reviewing, and Adapting. However, not every solution we are hired for requires long term planning upfront. We often use a phased based roll out system to get things started more effectively than focusing all our energy in more detailed planning. It depends on what the client wants/needs. Certain situations call for immediate response/changes to keep things moving while we develop better solutions that can be implemented in the long term. How Universal Creative Solutions uses both a Phase-Based Rollout along with the 4 imPERAtives of Successful Change to help our clients succeed is briefly outlined below. For detailed information the 4 imPERAtives of Successful Change as well as when and how to implement a Phase-Based Rollout approach, please see their respective detail pages along with worksheets to help you get started.
The Breakdown
The Breakdown
The mainstay of strategy is a well-developed plan. We work with your teams to gather the information, data, objectives, and key results required to reach new heights. We take that information and develop a path towards success which often includes several stages. Short term planning to provide the base and resources necessary for the next steps. Mid-term planning to expand and accelerate the organization towards the final phases. And long term planning which takes the strides made from mid-term planning and turns it into sustained growth to achieve these goals and for whatever comes next.
Phase Based Rollout
Phase Based Rollout
To succeed in an ever-changing world, you must also be in a constant state of improvement. That's why our long term process detailed in the four imperatives is a circle. However, it's not as easy as creating a master plan and adjusting along the way. You have to dive deeper into the inner circles where it all begins. To truly succeed, there will be a series of growth periods in any process. Additionally, operations contractors are often asked to come in when these systems or projects are already in progress. That means that we need to take into account the current state in comparison to the goals. When we review a project or goal that yet to be achieved, it's usually handled in several stages. We call that a Phased-Based rollout approach with the following stages - short term movement, midterm traction, and long term success. This operational approach is most often employed when we are dealing with emergencies or on-going processes that don't allow for a full stop. We like to keep progress going while we are planning better solutions to operational challenges. We decide on which approach to take on a case by case basis with decision-makers ahead of time. Not all services call for this approach. Strategy Consulting is the focus on full planning ahead of time. With implementation consulting, the plan is already complete. Operations consulting includes this rollout approach most often, especially when contracted on its own because of the nature of work in progress when our services are engaged.
Short Term Movement
Short Term Movement
During this phase, we usually breakdown barriers and processes that have been causing the progress to slow or stop. Removing some items that the management believes is necessary can be messy; however, it's useful to maintain momentum while the detailed plan is in development. Don't worry; we never sacrifice safety or compliance when deploying this phase. However, other things like reporting or "the way it was supposed to be" will likely be put on hold while we tackle the underlying challenges. While the team is busy making progress without cumbersome reporting or process in the way, we establish a clear plan that streamlines the workload. We also look at the best way to provide the necessary oversight to track KPIs. We're also likely to handle any in-depth research on tools or assets required to help support both the team and company.
Midterm Traction
Midterm Traction
This phase is the rollout of any plans that are within reach of the current resources. While we would love to enact only the perfect long term strategies, the reality is often short of the requirements to expand directly into ideal long-term plans. This phase allows us to take advantage of the short term movement while organizing the basic structure and framework for success. During this stage, we work to integrate some of the assets required to increase the likelihood of long term success. This phase also includes improving oversight and setting KPIs to understand how the process is turning into results or what areas need further improvement. During the midterm phase, we review and adapt the plan for any final adjustments that allow for long-term success.
Long Term Success
Long Term Success
The long term phase usually takes the longest to enter and execute due to its focus on perfecting changes and processes in a way that allows for sustained improvements. During phase 3, we bring in any final resources required and open up the full change list. Even though the 4 imPERAtives continue in a constant loop, our primary goal is to enable your organization to track and enact your own improvements. We know we have succeeded when you no longer need us. Although we are happy to maintain our consulting partnership, we consider our work a failure if its continuation comes from requirement rather than a request.
imPERAtives of Successful Change
imPERAtives of Successful Change
The 4 imPERAtives of Successful Change is the framework that Universal Creative Solutions uses to enable long term success for ourselves and our clients. We use this framework during our engagement as well as attempt to train the organization to use this natural structure on an ongoing basis. This process can be used on a macro or micro level and is visually presented in ever-changing concentric circles. The amount and degree of these constant improvements depend on the growth or reduction of the operations / department currently being reviewed.
Additionally, operations contractors are often asked to come in when these systems or projects are already in progress. That means that we need to take into account the current state in comparison to the goals. When we review a project or goal that yet to be achieved, it's usually handled in several stages. We call that a Phased-Based rollout approach with the following stages - short term movement, midterm traction, and long term success.
This operational approach is most often employed when we are dealing with emergencies or on-going processes that don't allow for a full stop. We like to keep progress going while we are planning better solutions to operational challenges. We decide on which approach to take on a case by case basis with decision-makers ahead of time. Not all services call for this approach. Strategy Consulting is the focus on full planning ahead of time. With implementation consulting, the plan is already complete. Operations consulting includes this rollout approach most often, especially when contracted on its own because of the nature of work in progress when our services are engaged.
Plan
Plan
Using OKRs to identify the Objective desired as well as the key results that will indicate the objective has been achieved is a great place to start. We often use this framework when handling long term planning. However, it can also be a problem for the early phases of a project where speed and execution may be more vital than a truly thorough plan. The right approach will be determined before any work begins. This stage requires as many team members as possible, especially those who will be impacted by the change. However, there needs to be one individual in charge of this stage and likely one final decision-maker. Otherwise, planning can quickly get out of control with too much input. During the planning stage, we run a breakdown of required resources, ID what is currently available as well as what needs to be acquired for success. We also outline how those resources should be allocated for the highest chance of success. Finally, we outline the enact stage and how we will track results during rollout. During this phase, we take a hard look at the goals and make sure to set the priorities on the most important aspects within our control and resources available to gain the greatest success during this stage.
Enact
Enact
Never wait for the perfect plan to come together unless you are certain there will be an issue with resources. There's nothing worse than a great plan that never sees any execution except one where the roadblocks are so visibly insurmountable and predictable. Leaders often underestimate the psychological effect that these roadblocks can have on a team and ultimately the project. It can cause a drop in trust in the leadership's ability to plan and achieve the organization's goals. That being said, inaction is the only guarantee of failure. Therefore, if the plan is as well thought out as possible, and the resources seem to be allocated, move forward, and move fast. Some organizations get stuck in the planning stage, constantly adjusting plans before they have a chance to enact any of the plans. Others get stuck in the enact stage where their constant changes never give the process time to bear out or the team the time to review results. This stage usually requires training for the team and a team or project leader who manages the new process. Additionally, if you want to allow your team to focus on their work and the team leader to manage the new process, you may want to consider adding one other individual strictly in charge of aggregating and reporting on KPIs. Measuring and reporting are vital aspects of improving the process. However, it can also impede the team engaged in implementing the new process. That's why it may be useful to assign an outside member to review and report appropriately.
Review
Review
During the planning and enact stages, the KPIs should have been defined and then tracked during the enact stage of the plan. After the process has been running for a while, and we have enough data to review, we begin the review stage. This stage also requires feedback from the team to truly understand how the change positively and negatively affected the outcomes. Unfortunately, not everyone likes change so you if you haven't heard about it yet you're likely to get an earful at this stage. However, the team needs to understand that all adjustments are a give and take. The progress made should be a net positive for the organization or solution to the problem. However, that does occasionally mean a bit more work for specific individuals or at certain steps in the process. The leadership needs to be open and empathetic to these issues so that they know the impact on the team. However, they must also be strong enough to enforce these changes even if it doesn't benefit every member of the team.
Adapt
Adapt
Using OKRs to identify the Objective desired as well as the key results that will indicate the objective has been achieved is a great place to start. We often use this framework when handling long term planning. However, it can also be a problem for the early phases of a project where speed and execution may be more vital than a truly thorough plan. The right approach will be determined before any work begins. This stage requires as many team members as possible, especially those who will be impacted by the change. However, there needs to be one individual in charge of this stage and likely one final decision-maker. Otherwise, planning can quickly get out of control with too much input. During the planning stage, we run a breakdown of required resources, ID what is currently available as well as what needs to be acquired for success. We also outline how those resources should be allocated for the highest chance of success. Finally, we outline the enact stage and how we will track results during rollout. During this phase, we take a hard look at the goals and make sure to set the priorities on the most important aspects within our control and resources available to gain the greatest success during this stage.
Operations Focus Areas
Operations Focus Areas
Now that you know the unique processes Universal Creative Solutions employs, we should outline some of the focus areas in which we excel. Below is a shortlist of our areas of expertise in operations consulting.
Results from Our Operations Consulting
Results from Our Operations Consulting
There are two main issues for any company supply and demand; demand for the companies product through sales and supply or the ability to fulfill that demand. In a service-based organization, that supply side is the ability to hire the right people and intelligence for the roles that need to be filled to perform the services. Universal Creative Solutions helped an organization multiply its monthly hiring by five times the original amount within three months of implementing our recommendations.
The recommendations and detailed pathway on whom to hire and in what order allowed them to build a team that can scale infinitely more than just those immediate results. We achieved those results through the following: Reviewing existing hiring practices to identify weaknesses in workflow and results Building a pipeline, flow chart, and tracking system accessible by the entire team Training the team on using the new system to organize their recruiting and hiring processes in a centralized database Implementing a candidate rating system that covered requirements from the client as well as recruiting best practices Rating all candidates and prioritizing the best options for available positions
Marketing & Automation Operations Improvements
Marketing & Automation Operations Improvements
We increased the return on investment of marketing spend for a home improvement company from 7:1 to over 20:1 within three years. We accomplished this while maintaining revenue growth and in fact, doubled the average business revenue where both revenue and ROI continued until the next phase of growth. We also accomplished this without requiring any additional employees/labor costs. We achieved the goals above in several ways: Implementing integrated marketing tracking systems Creating a customized CRM for increased automation to support the team in handling more leads and opportunities without increasing team size Testing new marketing channels and improving existing advertising through conversion rate optimization
Sales & Business Development Operations Improvements
Sales & Business Development Operations Improvements
Nonprofit Operations Improvements
Nonprofit Operations Improvements
Universal Creative Solutions has worked with a wide variety of organizations. One of our favorite organizations to assist with is a Nonprofit Organization. We are proud to have helped establish and launch a thriving national nonprofit supporting youth and young adults through positive motivation and life skills. We established this nonprofit through the following: Researching and reporting on legal and financial requirements to set up the organization as well as the decision-making process to determine how to structure the organization. Building custom CRM and researching/inputting a national database of potential donors and clients. Working with the team to establish sales and logistics of executing on nationwide contracts and events.
