Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/58508
Is "Checking itTwice" continued unparalleled customer service. But before I get into the specifics, let's explore how intended efficiencies in the system get derailed. Clearly, taking care of the customer by adding value to their restaurant or chain is a key ingredient to your suc- cess. Transparent to any niche, the focus is always on serving the cus- tomer, even if it means throwing in a few value-adds at no charge (which explains how growing dealerships often lose sight of the rising costs of delivering their niche value).Ultimately, this leads to eroding margins, tighter cash flow, leveraging the line of credit and paying higher interest charges. It also answers the question"How did we make less money with higher sales and similar margins?" Operationally,what worked at $3 mil- lion in annual sales starts breaking down at the $6-million mark and is flat out unsustainable at $10 million. There are similar plateau effects at $20 million, A system-driven organization is a management plan that divides the business into functional areas, such as Sales, Purchasing, Inventory Control, Contract and Design and Service. $50 million and $100 million. At any level, applying the same principals of a system-driven organization can help your bottom line. So, now is good time for the definition. A system-driven organization is a management plan that divides the business into functional areas such as Sales, Purchasing, Inventory Control,Contract and Design and Service.Then, each of these areas is broken down into subsections, where structure, ownership and management control points are laid out. Okay, it sounds like an organizational chart, but it's actually more of a 3-D organization- al chart on steroids when you factor in control points, a series of filters—either people or software-driven—that ensure data integrity of critical path data, such as sales orders,purchase orders,checks, etc.Note theword"ensure,"which elim- inates the need for backtracking once data passes through a control point. The Burkett Experiment:A Lesson inTrust & Controls When you start by eliminating dupli- cate processes through unbreakable control points,magic starts to happen. Higher volume with no additional staff, improved cash flow through better management of special orders and improved customer service through more accurate orders all add to the bot- tom line by reducing hidden costs. As much as I would like to say this is all about software, it's not. Sure it helps the process if your software is designed with this in mind, but it's really a man- agement philosophywith a bent toward leveraging people and technology to maximize control points. Take Burkett Restaurant Equipment in Toledo,Ohio, for example. A strong pro- Our high-quality product line offers over 2.200 items, many with value-added features not available anywhere else. Combine our ever-growing selection with aggressive pricing and you will discover why Update is the obvious choice. For further product information or a distributor near you, please call or visit our website. www.update-international.com 1-800-747-7124 42 FEDA News & Views