Business Frameworks are FREE templates to help you save time and grow your business, including templates to improve planning, organise brilliant and productive meetings, and get the results you want.
These frameworks are used by Company Shortcuts, an investment Lara put a great deal of energy and time into with the marvellous Nicola Cook who is now taking the business to its next stage. The objective of the company is to teach all companies the importance of sales strategic planning and to focus on accelerating growth through training world-class sales professionals.
I recommend starting with the Team Planning and Recruitment section, as I believe getting the best staff on board from the beginning is at the heart of every company.
Each Business Framework section includes a flowchart overview so you can see how the templates work together and how to use them effectively for better business practice.
There are currently 80 business frameworks – all with a proven track record, to help you develop better business actions and improve overall success.
PLANNING
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| Planning The Journey |
Summary Organisation Checklist |
Maximising The Value of The Business |
| An overview of all templates within this section. |
Derived from a due diligence check list, this document will ensure that the critical documents and records you may need to value the company or exit are all held in an organised format. |
A check list of the various areas of business a leader must continually sense check to ensure best performance. |
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| Yearly Strategic Plan – For Management |
Strategic Year Planning |
Strategic Single Year Focus – For Team |
| Every company should have a fully communicated plan of priorities for the year. This document helps you capture the most important activities for the periods ahead. |
The financial performance record of progress towards the above plan for simple digestion. |
An overview of top goals and objectives for the year ahead. |
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RECRUITMENT
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| The Team – People Planning & Recruitment Templates Overview |
Workload Assessment – Task Breakdown |
Master Role Profile Template |
| An overview of templates within this section. |
A template against which to review workload priorities. Use this sheet for one week to check actual work volume in different core roles. |
A description document broken down into 5 core Key Performance Indicators which should be reviewed twice a year and rewarded against. |
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| Individual Key Objectives |
Job Advertisement – Example |
First or Second Interview Request Letter |
| Utter clarity of detail around the 5 key points of performance should be sought each year and jointly agreed with the person in the role. |
Be original and outstanding in the way you advertise a role, and where you advertise it. The style in which you advertise should enhance and complement your brand image. |
An invitation to interview. |
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| Rejection Letter – No Interview (Example) |
Interview Questions & Assessment |
Reference Request Letter
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| A polite way to let someone down – you may want them in the future. |
Carefully thought out questions for interviewing should give discovery of the skills of the individual you are looking for – not a random group of questions changed for each candidate. |
A much undervalued part of the recruitment process. |
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| Rejection Letter – After Interview (Example) |
Employment Offer Letter |
Employee New Starter Form |
| The professionalism of the way you reject potential recruits can damage or help build your reputation. |
Legally you may need this kind of document customised for some specific roles. |
Make a good start by ensuring you capture the right details for an individual from the outset. |
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| Induction Weekly Overview – Sales (Example) |
| Invest early in giving a new recruit every chance to know the company and you will boost their possibilities for success and payback with skills and input. |
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WELFARE & CULTURE
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| Staff Handbook |
Performance Standards |
Probationary Period Performance Review |
| our team needs to know the rules and expectations within your company as soon as they are due to arrive. The cultural piece of this document is significant. |
Performance in a fair and shared way, where both parties have balanced input. |
As a new recruit nears final probation Period term. Circulated amongst a broad range
Performance of the team you will get a balanced over- Review view. |
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| Career Development Review (CDR) |
Mini CDR |
Staff Survey Letter |
| A recording system for a conversation about performance and career development plans supported by the company – and rewarded against to show appreciation for delivering beyond expectations. |
Half year similar conversation to review on track or not performance. |
Important to ask team players their independent opinion from time to time. |
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| Staff Survey |
Staff Survey Results Summary |
20 Ways to motivate your customers |
The scoring mechanism to measure the companies performance against
objectives, a reflection on management. |
Scoring should be circulated and points of weakness focused upon. |
There are loads of books on this subject but your own invention will pay dividends – and you have to work at building a culture. |
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| Staff Motivation Countdown Board |
Employee Exit Interview Questions |
Leaver Property Checklist |
| Rewards system example to celebrate monthly target achievement. |
An opportunity for improvement – find out how the organisation may not be performing as well as you might think. |
Make sure you record, and have returned, properties owned by the company. |
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SALES & MARKETING
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| Sales & Marketing Overview |
Marketing Plan |
Price Setting a New Item |
| An overview of all sales & marketing templates. |
Comprehensive sense check of marketing thinking to devise a focused plan around marketing activities and priorities. |
Critical learning on how to price an item. Knowing what all the component parts cost is imperative but price setting is an art not a percentage applied science – sell for the value of what the market will pay. |
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| Barriers to entry (a) |
Barriers to entry (b) |
Business Traveller Demographics |
| A SMART sense check on what type of questions you should ask yourself and your team so that you all focus on selling to the right kind of customer with a cohesive consistent message instead of spreading resources too thinly and failing to deliver a promise. |
Criteria for selecting all other products. |
How you should be able to clearly define your target audience. |
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| Summary of Your Competition Knowledge |
Product Launch Checklist |
Successful Negotiation Tactics
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| Detailed capture of what the competition do, what focus on the market they have, their products, packaging, indeed anything that helps you beat them is valuable. |
A tick sheet of impact that you need to cover when bringing a new product to market both internal and external actions. |
Learning to prepare, think through and play a negotiation. |
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| Introduction Letter |
Customer Quotation Template |
Contract of Sales Guideline |
| A really engaging introduction letter will raise your game and ensure that you target new clients effectively. |
Quotes should include all the details of the service you offer and sometimes what you do not. |
A contract of sale should include all the details of the service you offer and sometimes what you do not, so that both parties are aware of the terms of sale. |
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| Vendor Tender Scorecard |
Prospect Project Summary |
Prospect Pipeline Overview |
| A thoroughly great check list of the topics you may need to have prepared in order to respond to a large company tender. |
A means of evaluating a new prospect or project from an existing client. |
An overview of your prospect pipeline, including existing and new business, in terms of activity levels. |
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| Quarterly Presentation Template |
| A summary document for individual sales staff to complete to bring up to date information to management from their markets. |
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CUSTOMERS
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| Loving the Fans – Customers Overview |
Customer Retention Activities |
Key Customer Care Considerations |
| An overview of all templates relating to customer retention and customer care. |
Quick tips and thoughts on how to improve client retention activities. |
Plan for the areas/support to put in place for different levels of client care. |
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| Customer Service – Global Performance Standards |
Customer Order Process |
Customer Complaint Process Flow Chart |
| Maintain a consistency of knowledge and client care throughout the business. |
A clearly diagrammed flow of the activities/actions and processes required to deliver goods – visual flow charts are priceless in perfecting the steps of delivery. |
Record keeping of complaints ensures ownership and resolution long term, whilst also enabling trend analysis to ensure customers gain consistent care. |
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| Customer Complaint Letter Reply |
Customer Complaint Letter Follow-Up Conversation |
Customer Satisfaction Survey |
| An example of letter showing how to respond effectively to a client complaint. |
An example of how to respond effectively to a client complaint – resolution summary. |
An example of a simple document you can apply to randomly monitor delivery satisfaction. |
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| Delivery Service Questionnaire |
Average Invoices Trend Report |
| Looking for client feedback on delivery service – demonstrating consistency to deliver the perfect order. |
A method to analyse the activity level of your order processing department and trends in order types to understand order mix. |
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MONEY
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| Money Templates Overview |
Head Office Budget Timetable |
Monthly Cumulative Actual vs Budget |
| Template download |
Company wide planning document to ensure the budget comes in on time to start the New Year with clear communicated targets. |
A sense check run rate by month and running against cumulative monthly targets which will allow you to focus on shortfalls against budgets set. |
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| Top Financial Tips |
Financial Reporting Expectations |
Expenses |
| You should always know the basics of your business performance. |
Have the right reports to show you the performance parts that highlight what works and what does not – then make changes to bring performance in line. |
Make sure your team treat company money as their own. |
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| Tax Planning and Considerations |
Squeezing The Lemon |
| Planning your tax to avoid unnecessary penalties. |
Tips for cost control, particularly in the early days when every penny counts. |
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EFFICIENCIES
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| Board Meeting Agenda |
Meeting Agenda |
Meeting Action |
| Albeit some companies need no board, at a certain scale you will find monthly, timetabled meetings covering these critical topics very important and relevant to staying focused. |
Have copies of these available on a central Agenda systems drive, insist any meeting held with more than 3 people requires proper planned agenda, usually circulated 7 days in advance so that each individual comes prepared and engaged. |
Circulate immediately after the meeting so attendees know their deliverables and circulate pre next meeting, starting next meeting with a review of progress. |
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| Delegation List |
Efficiencies Templates in Flowchart Overview |
| A topic which most leaders find seriously challenging and often a skill one has to be wholly committed to achieve growth – practice this! |
Template Download |
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SPECIALIST
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| Specialist Templates Overview |
| Template Download |
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