As the Operations Manager, I took over day-to-day operations from the CEO and focused on streamlining revenue-generating activities.

We started with creating new estimating worksheets and a custom Podio CRM and continue taking ""lazee" steps each day.

Initial steps resulted in a 50% decrease in the time it takes to find relevant files and contact information.

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We continue to look at how we can get the effervescent, outgoing CEO back doing what she does best: kibbutzing with other CEOs in her industry and making sure everyone knows about her company

We started by prioritizing what needed done first so the owner could focus on the activities only she, with her law degree and VA advocacy background, could do.

Although the original plan was to start with a website and social media campaign, I recommended we start with a complete analysis of her toolkit to make sure it was right. Within 1 week, we shaved over $100/month off her toolkit budget and allotted that to other, more pressing needs. 

Next is automating her client intake process and tweaking her custom Podio CRM. We're both looking forward to it!

We started by looking at the various BizIdeas he's had, using the "Eye Doctor Clarity Assessment" to prioritize his ideas into what he wants to do first so he has a way to focus is ever-active mind.

Using this simple, yet powerful, tool helped him reduce his dreams and passions to a few words: "Create Lazy Young Entrepreneurs."?

(And the word lazy was his, promise!)

Now we're developing a plan for how to move toward his vision and outlining ways to partner with existing resources to launch more quickly.

AND tackling the ways mindset can stand in the way of moving forward towards success.

After completing Phase 1, Analysis, we went to work researching ways to use their existing toolkit since there was no budget for new tools.

After developing high-end FrameMaker templates, training the client team, and developing the documentation, we put the system to the test.

The result? The ability to tweak all the documents at one time and turn around final deliverables in 48 hours instead of 18 days.

The added benefit: the new templates ensured consistent formatting, conversion to other formats, and let the team focus on writing and technical accuracy.

As part of a team reviewing the Medical Groups, I was responsible for documenting the "as is" aspects of the processes and identifying ways we could revamp the technology needed to ship medical records digitally instead of printed documentation that was often lost or misplaced as recruits went to their designated location.

Each of the 5 services had different ways they needed the content, so I met with representatives from each to determine what was needed and then created detailed documentation on the commonalities and differences.

Once a technology vendor was selected, I was responsible for meeting with them to review the technology solution they proposed to make sure it met the initial requirements.

Phase 1 was an analysis phase: we needed to see what approach to use to meet the needs of both the word processing/layout team and the SMEs.

Phase 2 was design and implementation: The word processing/layout team moved from Microsoft Word to Adobe FrameMaker to provide the heavy lifting features they needed and the SMEs used a customized version of Adobe Acrobat to mark up the content.

When all the FrameMaker templates were complete and tested, the Acrobat instructions created, and the training for both teams was complete, the company was able to get the documentation out the door with 50% fewer system crashes, a lot less cursing, and approximately half of the overtime needed previously.

As I spoke to the team member I was to work with for the next 6 months, we realized there were several problems leading to the high fines being levied.

One was expected...individual companies did things differently.

What we found really contributed to the problems was that no one at the local level had a background in technical writing, processes, or even the software to document the processes. 

With this knowledge in hand, we set out to create a high level documentation system to be modeled by the individual locations and developed training programs for the designated local representative.

We did extensive testing of options, software, and outlined what did, or did not, equal an "allowable" difference from the corporate standard.

Structuring the content wasn't easy and it was a LOT easier than the pushback we got from the field!

As we evaluated, tested, and presented, we discovered that between 70-80% of the content actual was the same and could be part of a master database stored at the corporate level.