Systems Before Staff

About to hire an admin person, an operations manager or a VA? Check the work first, so they spend their day on what needs a person

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  • 20+ years connecting business systems
  • Works with the accounting, job and CRM systems you already use
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An office worker keying figures into a spreadsheet beside stacks of paper files

Hire for the Right Work

When the admin piles up, the natural answer is to hire someone. The owner is doing invoices at night, the office manager is stretched, and the business is growing. A new person feels like the fix.

Sometimes it is. But in a business running on several systems and spreadsheets, a fair share of that admin is the same details typed into a second system, approvals chased by email, and reports rebuilt by hand. Hire into that, and a capable new person spends their week re-keying.

The Systems Before Staff check is a short, fixed-price review of the work you're about to hire for. We separate the work that needs a person from the work that a fix between your systems could take away, so whoever you hire starts on real work.

Four Questions We Answer

Before you write the job ad.

What would the new person actually do?

We list the tasks you’re hiring for, hour by hour, with whoever does them today.

How much of it is re-keying?

Typing the same order, timesheet or invoice into a second system. That’s work a connection can often do instead.

How much is chasing?

Following up approvals, missing dockets and unanswered emails. Often a sign the process has a gap, not that you need more people.

What genuinely needs a person?

Talking to customers and suppliers, judgement calls, checking exceptions, keeping things moving. That’s the job worth hiring for.

Want a head start? Our free Admin Time Count helps you tally where the hours go this week.

Three Possible Answers

All three are good outcomes. The point is to choose with your eyes open.

Hire, with a clearer role

The work needs a person. You get a role outline built around the work that matters, which helps you hire the right person.

Fix first, then hire

Part of the workload is re-keying that could be connected. Fix that first and the new hire starts on real work.

Fix, and hold off hiring for now

Most of the workload comes from gaps between systems. Fixing them may free up enough time to wait. Your call.

This isn't a case against bookkeepers, admin staff or VAs. Good people are hard to find, and it's worth making sure their time goes on the work only a person can do.

Who It's For

  • Owners about to hire an admin assistant, office manager, operations manager or VA
  • Owners doing invoices, timesheets or reconciliations after hours
  • Businesses where each new customer or job seems to need more office time

When You Don't Need It

  • You're hiring for customer-facing work, sales or skilled trades.
  • You run on one system with little retyping. The work probably does need a person.
  • You want the full picture across the business. The Process & Systems Audit covers that.

If Something Needs Fixing First

If the check finds a workflow full of re-keying, such as job to invoice or timesheet to pay to bill, the usual next step is a First Workflow Sprint: one workflow fixed in a few weeks at a fixed quote, handed over with a written procedure your new hire can follow.

Kenomont is a business systems consultancy founded by Aaron Chambers, with more than 20 years of experience building and connecting business systems, including a purchase order approval system a large retirement living provider has used every day since 2014. We don't sell software or recruit staff, so we have no stake in which answer you choose.

Systems Before Staff FAQs

No. Often the answer is “hire, and here’s the job description”. Good admin people, bookkeepers, operations managers and VAs are worth their weight in gold. The check makes sure they spend their time on work that needs a person, not on typing the same details into three systems.

It’s a short, fixed-price review, and we tell you the price before we start. If the work you’re hiring for turns out to need the full picture, we’ll say so and suggest the Process & Systems Audit instead, rather than doing both.

Not long. It’s a conversation with you and whoever does the work now, then a short written summary. We agree the timing before we start, and it’s designed to fit before you advertise the role, not to hold it up.

A short written summary that splits the work into three groups: work that needs a person, work that could be fixed or connected so nobody has to do it, and work that could wait. Plus a suggested outline of the role based on the first group.

Yes, maybe more so. A VA can only follow the process you give them. If the process involves copying data between systems that could be connected, it’s worth knowing before you build their day around it.

Thinking of Hiring?

Tell us the role and the work behind it. We'll tell you honestly whether a check is worth it, or whether you should just go ahead and hire.

Not sure yet? See all the ways to work with us.

What happens next
  1. We read your message and reply within one business day.
  2. If it helps, we book a free chat (usually 30 minutes) about your systems and what you're trying to fix.
  3. You get an honest view: whether we can help, roughly what's involved, or who'd be a better fit.

Free initial chat. No sales pressure - if we're not the right fit, we'll say so.

Prefer to talk? Call 1300 470 091

Got a spec or files? Email [email protected]

Name, email and message are required. We reply within one business day.

Part of our guide: Business Process Improvement Guide

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