What is the value of integrity in business to your organisation? Is it following safe practices making sure everyone in your organization keeps to the straight and narrow? Or better yet, how do you show your corporate integrity to potential clients? Do you have statements on your website? Do you prove it to your clients by showing them that your organization lives up to what it says? How effective is that for you and your organization?
Some would say that business integrity is the building block, the foundation of any business and that if you cannot show integrity, then it’s pointless being in business. Other that integrity towards a business’ clients is the most important and that employees come in a close second. So how would you prove, beyond reasonable doubt, and with sincerity, that your business integrity is your solid foundation? How would you prove that your clients and employees are gaining the full advantage of being in your organization?
Let’s say, for example, you run a successful retail company.
Your employees will almost always undergo training of some sort, whether it’s learning to smile and nod at a difficult client, instead of engaging in all out war in the center of your store, or teaching your sales team new subtle ways of winning sales.
Or, you could also own a successful import/export company, your staff will still undergo training at some point, and you would need to be able to give your clients a way to track their imports/exports.
Would it surprise you if I told you that you can do all this with a document management system? That you can use online applications to track employee training, to allow valued clients access to documents about where their valuable items are, and when their valuables will reach their final destination?
So how does this help with your corporate integrity? Well, besides being able to show employees in a concise, effective manner exactly what the policies and procedures are for your business processes and what their roles are it also helps to keep them on the straight and narrow – by tracking and ensuring that it gets done. For clients and even customs organizations (and regulators generally), it could show transparently how the business processes work in getting their valuables from point A to point B, showing them that everything is being done efficiently, properly, following the correct avenues. The way this is achieved is by applying process maps of the business process and tracking forms related to the key documents that accompany their orders.
In the end, you will have a powerful way to back up your mission statements proving, not only to clients, but your employees as well, that your business integrity is in fact something you can be proud of, and that in turn not only raises your organization’s reputation, but it will make more and more clients and employees proud to work with you, and we know how important word of mouth can be as a marketing tool.
