5 Ways to Make Your Engineering Business More Efficient

Whatever your business deals with, it can always be more efficient. Whether you’re in mining or aerospace, there are a number of ways that your business can improve its productivity and efficiency, to help improve your profits.

Customer Relationship Management

As a means of organizing customer data from a variety of sources in one place, a CRM system such as Zendesk, allows you to see what your customers are doing, respond to them quickly, and begin the conversion process faster. It also means that if the sales executive is ill, or leaves the business, then someone else can take over with full knowledge of the account and the customer, since data integration solutions (similar to Zendesk integrations) make it possible to consolidate all customer data in one place, making the process as smooth as possible and less likely to result in the customer leaving or becoming unhappy.

Internal Communications

A part of many businesses that is overlooked, even neglected entirely, internal communications refers to the communication that a business has with its staff, and vice versa. If your staff doesn’t know what’s going on, or they don’t know why they’re doing something, then they will feel frustrated and unhappy. It’s becoming an old adage that happy staff is more productive, so consider creating an internal communications strategy with your HR and marketing staff to help improve performance. Although, while you’re at it, do not forget to ensure that your communication channel is a highly encrypted one, as business data can be sensitive prone to hacking. For instance, if you have a handful of employees that deal with sensitive information, you can provide them with a device meant solely for business communication, like a pgp telefoon, that can act as a burner phone and prevent any information from ever reaching a third party.

Automate

Eliminate the need for someone to manually complete a job, and you can make sure that that employee is focused on something that cannot be done by a computer. If you automate every business process like this, it will save you money and make your employees feel more fulfilled and valued.

Look for Opportunities

Within your business, there will be opportunities where you’re throwing something away, or ignoring something that might be put to good use. For instance, if you’re in mining, then you could be recovering precious metals from the slag, even after it has been incinerated. If you’ve never really thought about your business’s efficiency before, make sure that you ask – and reward – your employees for coming up with ways that the business can be run more efficiently.

Hire a Consultant

If you really want to get into the nitty gritty of improving efficiency, then consider hiring a consultant, whose sole job is to analyse where you’re losing money or where you could be more efficient and to help you improve it. Look for consultants with experience in your area or industry, and ask for case studies or their track record, so you know you’re getting someone with solid ideas.