the simple formula for business growth

Answers to common questions about The Scaleup Formula©

What problem does The Scaleup Formula© solve?

As your business grows there comes a point where you the owner become the bottleneck. You only have so many hours in the day and there are only so many decisions you can make and things you can do. Unless something changes your revenue will flatline while your hours and stress keep growing. The solution is to capture the way you do things (processes) and develop your employees so that they can take responsibility for running them (accountability) by regular reviews of performance. The Scaleup Formula© is a step-by-step method to achieve this.


How does The Scaleup Formula© work?

The Scaleup Formula© is a proven, repeatable way to make a business scalable - a business that can grow beyond what you the owner can control and do directly yourself. Core to this is defining, implementing and delegating processes - this is how you make your business systemised and scalable. The Scaleup Formula© has three components: Firstly one-to-one business coaching; secondly, an online app that makes it quick and easy to create processes, delegate them to employees and review and improve performance and finally, scalability tools, templates and guides for use in your business.

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How does The Scaleup Formula© System work?

The Scaleup Formula© System is an online software application that makes it quicker and easier to systemise your business and make it scalable. It provides screens to create and manage processes, employees and reviews, the three main levers of scalability. It provides pre-defined processes that you can quickly adapt to your business. It provides a dashboard that tracks your progress and suggests where things can be improved. It uses the processes and roles you define to automatically create your Operating Manual and job descriptions, two of the key enablers of a scalable business.

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How long will it take to apply The Scaleup Formula© to my business?

You will get benefits in terms of employee productivity and freeing up your time within weeks. You will be well on the way to applying the complete Formula to your business and getting all the benefits in under 12 months.


How does defining processes help me run and grow my business?

Processes are important in three ways: Firstly, they are units of management. A growing business becomes too complex to manage as a single entity; breaking it down into bite-sized chunks makes it easier to measure and manage. Secondly, processes are units of delegation. Effective delegation is delegation of the responsibility for running a clearly-defined part of the business to achieve a business result - a process. Thirdly, processes are units of scalability; they can be taught, replicated and improved - and delegating them takes the load off you.

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How do I know this will work?

The process and delegation techniques used by The Scaleup Formula© have been used by hundreds of business owners to develop business that are easier to run and grow. It is proven to work. However, success requires effort. Defining processes takes thought and getting real long-term benefits means using and enhancing these processes over the long term to improve delegation and performance. That is why The Scaleup Formula© includes coaching, to help you understand the next steps, solve problems and stay motivated.


How long does it take to create a process?

If you have a clear picture of the process and its output in your mind it will take you a few minutes to create it on the system - slightly longer if it is particularly complicated. The system is designed to make this quick and easy using drop-down lists, copying and drag and drop. If you don't have a clear picture of the process, want to adopt best practice or want to add a new capability then finding and installing a complete pre-defined process will take a few minutes. You will then probably want to customise it to fit your business which might take a few minutes - perhaps up to an hour. Working with your coach a core process can be defined in under an hour. Most businesses will have 6-8 core processes.


How do I use the system to create a process?

You create a process by defining some top-level information (its name, its main output, who owns it and so forth), the actual process steps, and the measurements used to manage the process. You can attach documents such as checklists and templates and links to other resources such as explainer videos. Processes can be broken down into smaller processes (so "Marketing" might include a sub-process "Facebook Marketing", for instance). All this is done on intuitive screens with context-sensitive help for every step.

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How do I search the process database and install a ready-made process?

On the Process screen there is a "Search Database" button that gives access to a screen displaying all the ready-made processes (including their detailed steps, attached documents, links, measurements and sub-processes). You can sort, filter and search these processes and then select the ones you need. If they are free, clicking "Install" will immediately install the selected processes into your system. If some carry a one-off fee, clicking the Paypal button and authorising payment will immediately install the selected processes into your system. You can then customise the processes to suit your business.

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How do I identify and define my key processes?

All businesses have the same core functions (get business, deliver the product or service, get paid) and so one way to develop your list of processes is to start with this and break it down to the detail of what you do. Another way is to look at the structure and titles of people or departents in your business and map out what each of them do. A third way is to imagine you are a single transaction and trace the processes that you go through from enquiry to money in the bank.

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I already have all my processes defined - why would I do them again?

If you want to stop being the bottleneck and reduce the load on you then you need a system to delegate processes and develop employee accountability. If you have processes documented already that is a good thing - but just documenting them does not drive delegation and accountability. That is what The Scaleup Formula© does.


What if I don't know how to define processes?

The system makes this really easy. You can define your own processes from scratch, which for the key ones should take from a few minutes to a couple of hours. If you want a short-cut, search our process database and install ready-made processes - tweaking them to suit your business should take only a few minutes plus you get the benefits of best practice.

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Why do I need to define all the processes in my business? That looks like a lot of work.

You don't need to define all your processes - just the important ones and the ones you are going to delegate. This is about making your business easier for you to grow and run - not creating a quality manual or getting a certificate or documenting every little thing that happens.


How does The Scaleup Formula© help me improve productivity in my business?

The Scaleup Formula© makes it quick and easy to define your processes and measurable results. Just doing this will start to improve performance. The system also allows you to define specific productivity measurements for a process with just a couple of clicks and track these easily as they change over time.

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I already have an ERP or MRP that keeps track of all my processes - why would I want to put them into another system as well?

If you want to stop being the bottleneck and reduce the load on you then you need a system to delegate processes and develop employee accountability. Processes defined in operational systems are a good thing - but they won't drive delegation and accountability. That is what The Scaleup Formula© does.


Does The Scaleup Formula© provide workflow functionality?

No, The Scaleup Formula© is a system to help you make your employees more productive and accountable, which makes your business more scalable. You use the system to work with employees to define processes and measurements and coach them to take responsibility for results. A workflow system, whilst useful in its own right, does not do this - and used without thought can have completely the opposite effect.


Does The Scaleup Formula© include forms functionality?

No, The Scaleup Formula© is a system to help you make your employees more productive and accountable, which makes your business more scalable. You use the system to work with employees to define processes and measurements and coach them to take responsibility for results. It is more important that they own the forms and checklists used than that these be on some centrally-controlled system, which risks having the opposite effect.


What if I don't have the right employees to delegate to?

Experience shows that, while most businesses will have the odd problem employee, most people react positively when their boss shows faith in them and gives them responsibility and opportunity. They will step up and become much more motivated and productive. The limited initiative and effort shown by many employees usually says more about the way they are managed than their character or abilities.


What if I delegate something and the employee screws it up?

The Scaleup Formula© teaches you a delegation process that accepts mistakes will be made and treats them as a learning opportunity. This controlled, gradual, supportive approach means that errors with major consequences won't happen.


How does The Scaleup Formula© improve quality and reduce mistakes in my business?

The Scaleup Formula© makes it quick and easy to define your processes and provide quality measurements for each of them. The system allows you to create reviews with a single click and these reviews are where you work with your employees to continuously improve performance against these quality measurements.

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How does The Scaleup Formula© improve the service I deliver to my customers?

The Scaleup Formula© helps you quickly and easily define your customer-facing processes and their measurable results. This means that your customers will get a more consistent, better-quality experience.

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How do I get over my fear of giving more autonomy to employees?

If you simply throw responsibility at them then you would be right to be fearful of the consequences. The Scaleup Formula© ensures that you delegate following a proven process that is designed to make your employees succeed. Most business owners discover that developing their staff is incredibly rewarding and liberating.


How does The Scaleup Formula© make it easier to attract and retain employees?

Job satisfaction for most people is driven by a sense of purpose, a belief that they do their job well, autonomy, being part of a team and having a supportive boss. The clear purpose and coaching approach to management created by The Scaleup Formula© create this environment and will make your organisation an attractive place to work.

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What if I'm too busy to do all this stuff?

The point of The Scaleup Formula© is to give you more time. Investing a few hours in teaching an employee to do something you currently do will give you that time back many times over. If you are serious about growing your business then this is not optional. Business owners who spend all their time reacting, deciding and doing will never have a scalable business.


What if I am too busy to define my processes?

You don't have to define your own processes from scratch. If you want a short-cut, search our process database and install ready-made processes - tweaking them to suit your business should take only a few minutes plus you get the benefits of best practice. If you want a tailor-made solution with minimal effort, ask our experts to create your processes.


What if I don't have time to carry out all these reviews?

The point of The Scaleup Formula© is to give you more time. Investing a few hours each month in coaching and developing your staff (which is what reviews are for) will mean that you do less and they do more. If you are serious about growing your business then this is not optional. Business owners who do not develop their employees will never have a scalable business.


What do those gauges and graphs add to my business?

Delegation and accountability drive sustainable business growth - but they are difficult things to measure, which makes them difficult to improve. The Scaleup Formula© has a unique way of measuring these things and uses these gauges and graphs to show you this. This means that you know exactly how you are increasing delegation and accountability and so making your business easier to run and grow.


What if I don't want my company or my employees to be driven by targets because it feels too corporate and threatening?

This question is based on a false view of targets and process measurement. If you want to delegate properly you must agree what success looks like - a measurable result. These numbers once agreed are not a stick to beat people with - or even something which attracts reward when achieved. The numbers underpin the coaching conversations that take place with your employees during reviews, about what needs to improve and how to achieve this.


Will this help me implement Key Performance Indicators in my business?

Yes, KPIS are in effect a small selection of your most important process measurements. The system helps you implement these with a few clicks.


How does The Scaleup Formula© accelerate the growth of my business?

The Scaleup Formula© accelerates the growth of your business in two ways. Firstly, processes improve productivity, which means that you are able to deal with work that you might be losing or turning away now. Secondly, processes make delegation easier and free up your time; most business owners use this extra time to develop new business, products and markets.

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How does The Scaleup Formula© help me improve profitability in my business?

The Scaleup Formula© helps you improve productivity by making it easy to implement and manage processes using measurable results. Improving productivity means that you can sell and deliver more with the same number of employees. This means that your revenue goes up while your costs stay the same - so your profitability improves.

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How does The Scaleup Formula© reduce my stress and the hours I work?

The Scaleup Formula© helps you implement processes in your business. These make it easier to plan, execute and improve delegation so that you reduce the number of things you must decide and do yourself. Instead, you teach your employees how to do these things.

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Why do I need coaching as well as the online system?

The system, with its user guide and help screens, gives you all you need to implement The Scaleup Formula©. However, if you really want to accelerate your progress, 121 coaching provides support, motivation, accountability and tailored advice focused on you, your business and your priority issues.

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What are the scalability tools and templates?

With each session of coaching you receive relevant tools, templates and guides to help you systemise your business and make it scalable. These are customisable and brandable, and build into a library of tools and guidance that help you apply The Scaleup Formula© to your business.

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Can I schedule 121 coaching to suit my availability?

Yes, it is quite common to reschedule sessions. Note that you cannot carry sessions over the month end and build up a backlog. Use it or lose it.