Different Business Systems

If you have attended business and/or sales seminars, you have no-doubt heard the presenter talking about how the better companies have very well thought out and efficient systems in place to run their companies. I happen to fully agree with that assessment, and am always looking for examples of any type of businesses that in fact have superior systems. Recently, I dealt with a company whose business system really stood out for me. We now have Guardianship of my four year old Grandson Jack, and we noticed he had some issues with his teeth. As a result, we found a highly recommended Dentist that specialized in working with children to check him out.

(The Greeting) Upon entering the office, the first thing that struck me was how clean and tidy it was. On one wall were 3 Play Station Video Games that Jack spotted right off, and was very quickly playing. This freed me up to deal with the office staff, who were very professional and friendly when I handed them the paperwork they had E-Mailed my wife earlier on for us to fill out before we showed up for the appointment. It had everything that was needed on it, including what the Insurance Company would cover. This very simple and easy thing to do cut a ton of time off what can be a time consuming and stressful process, and in a 3 minutes or so I was done.

(The Inspection) The Dental Hygienist came out and took Digital Pictures of Jacks teeth, and then asked if she could clean them, which I agreed to. She also went over what the Dentist would be looking for when he came in for his examination after the cleaning, just like a CSR would do for a customer on the phone making an appointment.

(The Diagnosis) The Dentist then came in and checked Jacks teeth, and we were ready for what needed to be done.

(The Presentation) Jack and I were then asked to go to a special seating area which had a Flat Screen TV on the wall which was showing a kids video for Jack to look at. Its sole purpose was to keep him occupied so he would leave us alone while we talked. In just a few minutes the Dentist came back to get me, and we moved over to a stand-up work area and Flat Screen TV, which showed what the Digital Pictures revealed, and he pointed out what had to be done.

(The Close) We then went over a printed out Invoice for the work to be completed, which consisted of a series of Flat Rate priced line items that had no doubt been started by the office staff during the Dentists examination, and then quickly completed upon learning what he found. It turns out Jacks problems were the result of going to bed with a bottle of milk every night as a baby resulting in multiple pockets of erosion in the base of many of his teeth, which is referred to as "Bottle Rot". It was really very serious problem for Jack, and required a lot of work to repair. I also learned that he would have some of these teeth until he was 12, so we had to do something about them now.

Like many customers, I was not at all prepared for the cost of the work to be done, as it was many thousands of dollars. Also like them, I had to make a choice. I could say no, and pay-up for what had been done so far and go elsewhere for another opinion and price, or bite the bullet and go forward with this company. For me, the choice was an easy one, as I was very impressed with this companies operation as soon as I stepped in the door, and by the time of the bill presentation I was confident that everyone in the building was a competent professional, and would do a great job. This was very important to me, as it turned out the work to be done requires an Anesthesiologist to put Jack under for 3 hours, and be there during the entire one time procedure. Obviously it was a very big deal to have our little guy worked on like that, and I wanted to make sure everything was going to be done properly and safely for his sake. My Wife and I will also be there during the entire procedure, and will be very relieved when it is completed. So I signed the agreement, thanked the Dentist who then went on to another patient, and the close was completed.

(Additional Explanation and Information) Another staff person then very carefully went over the steps that the Anesthesiologist would go through during the procedure, as she could see I was a little concerned about this part of it. She made absolutely sure that I knew just what to expect during the process, which really helped to lessen my anxiety. She then gave me 2 dates that would work for the Anesthesiologist so I could have more of a chance to deal with any scheduling conflicts after talking with my Wife, and I was good to go.

So there it is, every step of a system that was well thought out and designed to make doing business with this company as efficient and time saving, easy to deal with, and comfortable as possible. What was also very apparent to me, was how the Dentists time was focused on just doing his job which generated the company's income, and only took about 15 minutes out of the 60 minute appointment. Too this end, I never heard him say one word to the staff about what to do, it was just done. I feel he was truly following the classic E-Myth Revisited philosophy of empowering others to do their jobs via systems, which is something every business owner should be striving to do.

I realize that going to a Dentist's office is not the same as sending a Tech out to a customer's job-site, but having first rate business systems will allow any type of business to operate more efficiently, while making larger profits. They also make everything easier and better for your companies' owner, management, and employees; what a concept.

Just my thoughts,

Gene B