E231: Better processes, events, and planning during changing times with Alyson Caffrey

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Alyson Caffrey is an SOP, process, and operations expert. Her company has created over 1,000 SOPs for agencies and other types of businesses just in 2021 alone. She has a 13-person team at Operations Agency and many people call her The Wolf (a nod to Pulp Fiction). She works with dozens of agencies and helps them build out SOPs and operations processes for their business. We’ve been fortunate to have her as a guest expert/mentor in our UCACDEMY community.

Episode highlights:

• How SOPs and processes have changed as the world has changed so much.
• Why stacking a bunch of work into the convenience of remote meetings doesn’t always benefit you.
• What to consider when doing year-end planning remotely.
• Should you create processes in a time of change and uncertainty?
• Why SOPs are the #2 thing buyers value after cash flow when purchasing a business.
• What you can do to make SOPs actually used, and not just created to sit there untouched.
• When is the appropriate time to create a process?
• Where Alyson’s agency is headed next (woo hoo!).
• Best advice: If you’re not going to do something right, don’t do it at all.
• Habit that contributes to success: Running to clear the head
• Recommended tool: Krisp to eliminate background noise
• Recommended book: Elon Musk’s biography by Ashlee Vance
• Run time: 34:52

Links:

• Previous episode with Alyson on The Digital Agency Show podcast
• OperationsAgency.com – here are great free resources

Quotes:

• “It’s difficult to plan things in a remote environment…that process needs to be as good as it is in person.”
• “We’ve gone from High School Sweethearts to going to separate colleges.”
• “Wow, I’ve been on zoom all day and I’m starting to freak out.”
• “You really aren’t getting the full attention of the person.”
• “It’s so good when you get that time in a room.”
• “Everyone thinks they’re in flux and processes are something that they probably shouldn’t create.”
• “I used to do this, but I do this now. That’s a rare opportunity.”
• “Give them some skin in the game.”

Takeaways:

• Give more time! Rather than the usual couple of days of planning, give people maybe a week to think things over.
• Don’t throw your processes out just because things are weird right now.
• To scale your business, you can’t have your hand on everything.

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