Keisha Barnes

More about the Strategic Mapping Model™

Operations / May 18, 2022

Hey there! Let’s talk about Business Planning. You will hear (or see) me talk about planning – Often! It’s in my wheelhouse and my Zone of Genius. But just as I plan and emphasize to others about planning, I will say just as often: Choosing not to have a plan is still considered a plan. And with lack of planning, choices are often made for you which can be very unsettling and uncomfortable at times. Sometimes, what we thought was a great plan just becomes unmanageable. What do we do?

You, as the business owner and visionary, created your business and it could have been for a variety of reasons. Business has been and is going well. But because you are trying to do everything, YOU ARE OVERWHELMED! 

  • It seems that there is never enough time to do everything.
  • You wish there was a better, smarter, and faster way to do tasks in your business.
  • Because you are the visionary, you have BIG ideas for your business. But how do you begin when you are in the weeds of your business everyday?
  • You want to hire and form a team to help your business. But who should you hire first?
  • Or perhaps you have help but know you need more. Who  should you hire next?
  • Most importantly, can you afford to hire???
  • Is your business profitable? 
  • You want to scale but you are tired of trying to figure it out alone.
  • Do you have a solid business plan, organizational plan, financial plan, operations plan, or succession plan?
  • You want to move forward but you feel stuck and frustrated.
  • You went into business to be an entrepreneur, not an employee!

Whew! Those are a lot of thoughts and questions, right? But as a business owner, I am sure some iteration of those questions have crossed your mind.

STOP STRUGGLING and do something about it. Be a better business owner. Be a better leader. Feel better about your business.

If you’re anything like many of us, we all have tried everything. The masterminds, workshops, webinars, summits, coaching, courses, and conferences. And yet, you still feel like something is missing. You just need to figure out what is missing. Especially after hanging on for the last two years during a worldwide pandemic.

There is where I can HELP YOU. You may remember that I have recently announced that I am now  licensed in Strategic Mapping Model (™). I have more than 25 years of collective business experience, including leadership & management. I understand the excitement that visionary entrepreneurs feel when thinking of their future. Equally as important, I understand the value of operational foundations and having all the pieces in place to cultivate that growth. 

What is Strategic Mapping ™? It’s a proprietary training system that allows us to build a roadmap of where you, as the business owner, want to take your business. We strategize, identify imbalances, and map out the steps to get your business back on track. You leave our sessions with 3 key results: 

  1.  Clarity
  2.  Direction
  3.  Plan

Do you know how CEOs scale successfully? They become more strategic, then delegate, and automate. As a business owner, you know that successful organizations do not become so without team, support, or structure. As a small business owner, you have likely done ALL OF THE THINGS. How’s that working out for you? I bet it’s not very effective. Larger companies have departments consisting of teams and systems. As a small business owner, wouldn’t that feel great? That is what happens in the Strategic Mapping Model (™) where, along with crafting your Mission statement, we develop your 7 strategic objectives. This is what no one else will tell you: figuring out priorities and strategic objectives is the same for every business whether it’s a Fortune 500 company, a small business, an online business, a brick and mortar business, or  a non-profit. It’s just a change of mindset and focus.

There are 7 strategic objectives every business needs in order to flourish, grow, and prosper. They fall in these areas: Financial, Product, Operations, Team, Client Experience, Visibility, and Growth. When you work with me, we will strategize so that you gain clarity, prioritize and map out your directions, and develop a plan so that you know how to move forward in the next quarter and throughout the next year. We will align the objectives with your business and, get this, personal goals. A shift in mindset is to be expected. Your deliverables will also include a digitized plan inside Trello, a project management tool.  You will leave knowing exactly what to focus on to meet your business goals.

And when we’re done, I won’t ghost you or leave you. Because you may have questions after determining what your strategic objectives are, you will have 30 days of access to me via email and Voxer. If you think you may need more guidance or 1:1 support, the opportunity to work with me and gain further resources will be provided to you as well.

Like other plans in life, we recommend reviewing your business plan annually. Life changes. Technology changes, and if the last two years have taught us anything, the world changes.

I’ll talk more about Mission, Vision, & Values next time but until then, if you would like to have more information or want to talk about it? Click here to Kick it with Keisha!

 Strategic Mapping Model™

Operations, Strategic Consulting, Strategic Planning / April 30, 2022

Happy May Day! It’s been a minute since I’ve been here! Welcome back and thank you for your patience.

Hey, I’m Keisha! Planning, processes, and analyzing are my Zone of Genius. I help clients organize, integrate, leverage their time, and scale their business through strategy, systems, project management, team structure, and financial analysis which allows them to focus on their Zone of Genius to pursue the lifestyle they’ve always dreamed of.

As a visionary business owner, you may find yourself lacking the time, foundational systems, and management skills that are required to scale and move your business forward making you feel stuck and frustrated.

  • Do you have new ideas but unsure of where to begin?
  • Are you overwhelmed managing the backend of your business daily?
  • How is your financial management?
  • Are you struggling with team management?
  • Do you have systems and processes in place?
  • What does client management look like to you?
  • Are you ready to scale but tired of figuring it out alone?

I am your solution! What if I can offer you a roadmap with goals, detailed strategy, and a breakdown of projects for your business? How does that sound to you?

I am licensed in Strategic Mapping ™ focusing on strategic objectives and project management. Bringing more than 25 years of collective business experience with me, including business management, I understand the excitement that visionary business owners feel when planning their future. Equally as important, I understand the value of operational foundations and having all the pieces in place to cultivate that growth. Do you know how CEOs scale successfully? They become more strategic, then delegate, and automate. As a business owner, you know that successful organizations do not become so without team, support, or structure. 

Through this VIP event, I will lead you through key strategic objectives of the licensed Strategic Mapping Model (™) from the Director of Operations certification. You will gain clarity, direction, and a plan.

I am opening 7 spots only for Strategic Mapping ™ for the month of May. I am already seeing so much success from this event with my clients. Once these spots are filled, prices will increase. I am very confident that this process will be a game changer for your business!

Want more information or want to talk about it? Click here to Kick it with Keisha!

3 Ways to Boost Your Business NOW

Operations, Strategic Consulting, Strategic Planning / January 31, 2022
Getting the Operations side of business together requires putting systems and workflows in place. For most businesses, you need different systems. Here are 3 ways to boost your business which will help to improve the backend of your business quickly.

Wow, it’s February already! Remember when the New Year came in and you made a goal to get the backend of your business together? The Operations side of business. Remember that?

So, let’s discuss this. You want to get your operations in shape. But what does that mean? And more importantly, where do you start? It starts with systems! Planning is innate to me and I’m a quick analyzer, so you’ve seen me talking about it often. Systems and workflows work for every type of business. But for those visionary-type business owners, this can be a struggle. Right? Moving your business forward requires change. And the best way to implement change is through small yet actionable steps.

For most businesses, you need different systems. Here are 3 ways to boost your business which will help to improve the backend of your business quickly.

Disclosure: Some of the links below contain affiliate links. If you click on any of the links and subscribe or purchase the item, I will receive a commission at no additional cost to you.

1. DOCUMENT PROCESSES

Documenting your processes will be the single most effective thing you can do to boost your business. It allows you to move forward into your CEO role, create workflows, standardize procedures, alleviate gaps, hire & outsource the work, and SCALE YOUR BUSINESS.

Think of a set of repeatable tasks and procedures that you do but no longer want to do because your time would be more valuable doing something else. Begin right there!  This is the work you will ultimately outsource. Write down every step of the process. Better yet, create a video of the process (Loom is a great tool for this). Share and gather feedback. Incorporate the feedback received by tweaking the documentation, implement corrections and streamline the processes. You now have a Standard Operating Procedure which enables you to hand off to a team allowing you to SCALE your business.

2. AUTOMATE

Thanks to technology, automation has become much easier and endless. Even if you start small, most business owners are thankful for automating appointment scheduling and invoicing. There are tools that can be integrated like Quickbooks and Calendly but then there are all-in-one tools like Dubsado and Honeybook which can make your processes run smoothly.

Automated scheduling saves everyone time. It’s no longer necessary to email or text back and forth about what time is best. For example, on my Google calendar, I set my availability, link the calendar to my Calendly scheduling software, and send out links to anyone who I would like to schedule time with. You can even create different types of events which will link back to your available time on your calendar.

Now what if your invoices went out on the right day – every month – automatically? Using Dubsado, Honeybook, or Quickbooks to create recurring invoices are all great options. This feature is a gamechanger! Just be sure to create personalized emails to go with each invoice along with any instructions you wish the client to see.

3. CREATE A DASHBOARD

What’s a dashboard? Imagine you’re the pilot of an aircraft with multiple instruments that holds information to the different areas you must focus on moving the plane forward and landing correctly. Now imagine all of the most important information on one screen so that you can put your finger on the pulse of the area that needs attention at any given moment. That’s what a dashboard is. The dashboard is the main tool where you view all the business’ key performance indicators (KPI) which are the numbers that matter most for your business. Tracking can include revenue, accounts receivables, accounts payables, sales, lead-to-client conversion calls, or email open rates.

Decide which KPIs are important for your business and start with something as simple as an Excel spreadsheet. If you have team members who are responsible for monitoring tasks like emails, customer service, or accounting, assign them to update the dashboard monthly.

Having a dashboard automatically makes you become more aware, more efficient, and more selective about where you (and the business) are spending time and money and how you work with clients – because, after all, numbers don’t lie.

Systems can save you time and money. Getting them in place can feel overwhelming. Be intentional and take actionable steps to get the operations side of your business together. Small steps will do.

If you are ready to go deep and get down to business about cleaning up the backend of your business, a strategic planning session with me may be a good fit for you. Remember your goals. It’s already the second month of 2022 and time is not waiting. Start here to book your Discovery Call.

3 Systems Every Business Needs

Online Business Management, Operations, Strategic Consulting, Strategic Planning / January 24, 2022
A system is a process which focuses on specific issues in your organization. By applying systems to your business, you will save time and money by not repeating the tasks over and having everything automated.

There is one issue every business owner and entrepreneur faces – we all have so much to do and not enough time to do it! This leaves very little time to spend on things that really matter like revenue-generating activities and scaling your business to its next level.

However, there is something that all business owners can do to help alleviate this issue. Implement business systems.

What are business systems?

A system is a process which focuses on specific issues in your organization. The system is normally automated, but the essential part is that a system makes the process much simpler. Systems improve productivity! Systems save the business owner time and money by automating repeated steps of the processes in your business. Typical examples of tasks that can be systemized include social media posting, email marketing, client onboarding, client offboarding, time-tracking, or invoicing.

Beginning with a systems approach means not having to waste time on smaller activities that consume your time in your business. Having solid systems in place, your processes move more fluidly and like clockwork. As the business owner and CEO, you will be able to redirect your attention to the more important activities that are likely to add so much more value.

 The idea of implementing systems can be overwhelming. And as explained above, this is your Why. But for the other 4 W’s, I’ve seen and heard many business owners who were not sure Who to turn to for help, What systems were needed, When to begin, and hoW to optimize them.

Here are 3 very important systems every business owner needs and should have. They can be quickly and easily implemented into your business. The Return On Investment will be greatly manifested!

Client Onboarding

You know what they say about first impressions. Having a Client Onboarding system will impress your clients and cement how your clients view you and your services. Automate and personalize your onboarding process with your brand. Typical areas to automate are your online scheduler, email templates, proposals and contracts to name a few. Once you have created these systems, you can map out an entire workflow that will move your clients through the Client Onboarding system.

Example: Client receives your proposal which links to a contract and invoice once accepted. After the invoice is paid, the client receives a link to your Scheduler to schedule the onboarding call. After the onboarding call, the client receives a Welcome email containing important information regarding your organization.

This process can be refined and tweaked as much as you like and even more as your business scales

The Dubsado platform is a great tool for creating a Client Onboarding system. The system will be pretty much plug-n-play. Click HERE to use my affiliate code to receive 20% off.

Client Management

Client management systems are also important to your business. Having one in place helps to improve service to clients and keeps you organized while doing so. Creating master files, templates, and guidelines saves time, and improves efficiency and accessibility. Creating master data forms which house your clients data will help to stay on top of the client’s important information. Using tools as simple as this affiliate link for Google Workspace (enter this code 963FD7RG9JM36RL for 20% off the first year)  can be very effective and cost-efficient or you can reach higher with more robust systems such as Keap. As your business grows and scales, having this process systemized will provide long-term efficiency.

Project Management

Having a team means delegating and monitoring tasks. The most effective business system that is a must is the project management system. Using a PM tool like ClickUp, Trello, or Asana will absolutely allow you to take your business to the next level and scale. You and your team will remain organized on all current tasks while previous tasks can be documented for reference. The PM tool also helps to stay organized and create timelines to manage client expectations on projects. Clients will feel like they are getting a customized experience that impresses them.

PM tools typically have the ability to integrate with MANY other tools to make your work easier and smarter. And when working with team members, the PM tool is great for matching the person to the process which keeps everything running smoothly.

Summary

By applying systems to your business, you will save time and money by not repeating the tasks over and having everything automated. Your time can be invested in other areas of your business that can bring greater value. Even better, clients are happy and feel appreciated because consistent service is being delivered.

Start with these 3 systems as outlined then move to other areas of your business to automate. Have questions? If you’re not sure where to start, why not start with a Strategic Planning session with me where we spend up to 2 hours with each other assessing your business systems and creating a plan for you to implement. Start here and let’s have a coffee chat. You will leave our session with so much more clarity. Book your spot now and receive 22% off any package (use code PCM). Offer expires 1/31/2022. Let’s go!