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Firstly, what do we
mean by the DNA of a business.
Every business carries
the "culture" of the CEO, therefore every business operates with
characteristics that reflect the ideas, values, and strategies of
the CEO. Even if businesses are outwardly identical in what they do,
the way they are run or as we call it, their business DNA will be
different. This DNA must be understood by all senior Management and
staff to be able to optimise business operations.
So what are the components of the
business DNA and how do you build it.
The Action Management view is that everything that
a business does can be viewed as an "action". These "actions" can
then be structured into a hierarchy as they are cascaded down
through the business operations. Top-level actions are called "Key
Actions", then the 2nd level actions are "Business Actions", then
come "Operational Actions", followed at the lowest level by
"Procedures". The combined view of all these Actions and their
operating characteristics becomes the business DNA
(view a simple Excel example).
The business DNA then becomes the
nucleus that drives all aspects of the business and quickly determines what your
people should be doing and where improvements are required to
optimise business performance.
Your business DNA can be built in ONE
DAY.
- Key
Actions are the five key operations that
strategically drive the business. Actions like "Make Sales",
Manage Stock, Look After Employees, etc, are some
examples.
- Business
Actions are the five strategic sub-actions that
underpin the Key Actions. For example under the Key Action "Make
Sales" there may be a Business Action of "Build Client
Relationship", or "Develop Target Market", etc. All Business
Actions also possess "Action Characteristics" (see below). The
summary of Key Actions and Business Actions can now be viewed in a
"strategic matrix" and we call this the
"Business-on-a-Page" or the "Business 5x5".
- Operational
Actions are the five major operational actions
that are necessary to implement a Business Action. All Operational
Actions will also possess "Action Characteristics" (see
below).
- Action
Characteristics are the detailed make-up of each
Operational Action and include Description, Method, Measure,
Target, Report, Projects, and Risk
Assessment.
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Next Step
is to
assign
the
accountability
for all DNA
Actions to
your
people |
