The task finder: list, flag, rank and test your tasks

Key takeaways

The GBL Task Finder is an outsourcing task finder method in four steps: List every recurring task, Flag each against six signals, Rank the survivors by hours and risk, and Test the top five. It takes about a week of part-time effort in a business of 10 to 50 people and replaces guesswork with a short, defensible list.

• List: every recurring task, from at least three sources per role.
• Flag: six yes or no signals, about a minute per task.
• Rank: hours a week first, risk second, cut to 5.
• Test: full score and a short pilot for the top task.

Why use a method instead of a hunch?

A method finds tasks a hunch misses. Owners usually pick the task that annoys them most, which is often not the most suitable or the biggest. A structured list shows the hours spread across roles, the tasks nobody owns and the ones that only look simple. It also gives you a record you can revisit each quarter.

• How to identify tasks suitable for outsourcing
• Mistakes people make when picking tasks to outsource

What happens at each step?

Each step has one output, and the next step only uses that output.

• List produces a long list: task, who does it, how often, rough minutes each time.
• Flag produces a screened list: each task marked against the six signals.
• Rank produces a shortlist of five: highest hours, lowest risk, five or six flags.
• Test produces a decision: hand over, fix first or keep, with a pilot for the winner.

• Build a long list of tasks before you choose any
• Six signals that a task can be outsourced
• Turn your long list into a shortlist of five

How long does the task finder take?

As a GBL rule of thumb, a business of 10 to 50 people needs 4 to 8 hours to build the long list, about 2 hours to flag and rank it, and 2 to 4 weeks to test the top task with a pilot. Most of the listing can be shared: each manager lists their own team's tasks using the same template.

Expect a long list of 60 to 120 recurring tasks. Typically a quarter to a third pass five or six flags, which is plenty to choose from.

• Estimate the hours a task takes without a full study
• A 30-day plan to find the right tasks to outsource

How does the task finder fit with the other scores?

The task finder finds candidates; the other tools judge them. Once a task is on your shortlist, the repetitive task fit score rates it in depth out of 10. If the candidate turns out to be a whole process, use the process selection score instead. Before either, the never-outsource test removes any step that carries a decision or duty.

• The repetitive task fit score: ready to hand over?
• The process selection score: outsource, split or keep?
• The never-outsource test: five questions for any process

What does this look like in practice?

A pattern we see: a growing firm's managers each list their team's tasks, and the long list is far longer than anyone guessed. Flagging takes one meeting. Ranking by hours puts a bundle of order updates and delivery chasing at the top, ahead of the bookkeeping the owner had in mind.

• See client work
• BPO Solutions for UK businesses

Task finder steps checklist

• Agree one template for the long list.
• Ask each manager to list their team's tasks.
• Flag every task in one session.
• Rank by hours and risk, then cut to five.
• Test the top task and record the decision.

• How to identify tasks suitable for outsourcing
• Six signals that a task can be outsourced

Next step

Start with the List step for one team this week. The rest of the method only works if the list is honest and complete.