The free Constraint Check

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The doubling test

One question that usually tells you which side the constraint is on.

01If twice as many enquiries came in next month, what would happen?

We'd struggle to handle them

Some would get a slow reply, or none

We'd cope, with long days

We'd handle them all and win more work

Part 1 of 2

Demand

Is enough of the right work reaching you, and turning into orders?

02How do most new customers find you?

Almost all are repeat customers

Word of mouth from people who know us

A mix, including the website and search

Several sources, and we track which is which

03If someone searches Google or asks ChatGPT for what you do in your area, are you named?

I've never checked

I checked, and we're not

Sometimes

Yes, and I checked recently

04How often do you put something useful in front of potential customers?

Rarely or never

Now and then

Every month

Every week, on a plan

05Could a new customer get in touch, or ask for a price, on your website in under a minute?

No, it's a brochure

There's a general contact form

There's a clear enquiry form

Yes, and it asks for what we need to reply properly

06How quickly does a new enquiry get its first reply?

It depends who sees it, sometimes days

Usually the next working day

Usually the same day

Within hours, and one named person owns it

07What happens after you send a quote or proposal?

Nothing, unless the customer gets in touch

Someone chases it when they remember

One person chases, but not on fixed days

Follow-ups go on set days, every time

08When you lose a sale, do you know why?

We rarely hear back at all

We assume it was price

We ask sometimes

We ask every time and write it down

Part 2 of 2

Supply

Could the firm take on more work without something giving way?

09How much of the owner's week goes on email, admin and chasing?

Most of it

About half

A day or so

Very little

10How often do things wait because they need the owner, or one key person?

All the time

Most weeks

Now and then

Rarely, others can decide

11How much of your quoting, proposals and paperwork is done by hand?

Nearly all of it

Most of it

Some, we use templates

Little, it's mostly automated

12When staff need an answer from a manual, a procedure or a past job, how do they find it?

They ask the one person who knows

They dig through folders and emails

It's on a shared drive, if you know where to look

They search for it and find it in minutes

13Do you turn work away, or give long lead times, because you're full?

Often

Sometimes

Rarely

Never, we could take more

14If your most experienced person left tomorrow, what would happen?

We'd struggle to keep going

Things would slow right down

Others could cover, with effort

It's written down, so others could carry on

Where is your firm stuck?

The doubling test

Demand

Supply

Your two scores

All seven areas

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