Ops Insights #015 Streamline Another Process
July 21, 2023 | Read Time: 2 minutes | Written by Jenny Kleintop
Time is one of our most precious resources, and in the world of fundraising, it’s easy to feel like there’s never enough of it.
What if you could get more time to focus on other tasks?
What would you do with that extra time?
It is possible to get that time through the power of streamlining.
Make the decision today to streamline one more initiative as streamlining your processes can make all the difference.
If you are not sure where to start, look at last week’s Insights to get you started.
Then look at your list and see what process or task has manual and repetitive steps.
Example of Streamlining a Process
Let’s dive into an example to give you some motivation:
I watched a team member pull 26 different reports at the end of the month to send to finance as part of the reconciliation process.
I quietly listened, observed, and took notes. It was not the time to adjust any processes as it was the end of the month.
A few weeks later, when the pressure was off, I asked her more about the reasoning for pulling the information that way. “That is how I was shown and always have done it.”
I asked if she would be open to a more streamlined way, which she was. So, we set up a meeting with finance.
I asked finance for more background and context so I could understand. I said it helps me if I can understand the process from your end so I can ensure we are covering everything on our end.
Finance said they have always received the information this way.
I then asked if I could show them something. I shared the screen and showed them the one excel file (which was a CSV pulled from the CRM with the gift details for the month, and a summary tab showing totals by funds).
Their eyes lit up and one said, “A long time ago I asked for something like this to streamline the process, but I was told it was not possible.”
Jackpot… finance is on board.
With everyone on board, the process went from pulling 26 manual reports to just one, resulting in a mere 5 minutes of work instead of two hours.
This success story teaches us the power of streamlining. When you feel there’s a better way, explore it further.
Go streamline another process today.
You’ve got this!
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