I want you to think of all of your pet business systems. Now, think about a time where maybe you told your staff to do something and gave them all of the direction needed to do it but for some reason, they didn't do what you wanted them to do. Do you know what caused the problem?
Today I brought on a very special guest, Liz Illg, to share the importance of systems and processes for your pet business.
Liz is the Owner of Puff & Fluff Grooming and Pet Sitting with five locations in Phoenix area. Not only has Liz turned her passion for animals into a thriving business, she is an expert when it comes to creating an environment of growth for your business as well. In fact, as an Operational Strategist, Liz specializes in working with small business owners and entrepreneurs. She can assist with everything from streamlining systems to creating manageable training and operational manuals. Liz received her Bachelor’s in Business from Arizona State University and her Master’s in Education from Northern Arizona University.
Transcript:
This is episode 175 of Bella in Your Business. Hi there, I'm Bella Vasta from Jump Consulting. You might know me from CBS, NBC, Fox, Huffington Post, Entrepreneur, or maybe you've seen me speak on stage or read my book, The Four Dogs That Every Business Owner Needs. In any case, get ready because you're about to get your hashtag Bella Butt Kickin' in this next episode of Bella in Your Business.
So what do you say? Let's get ready and jump. Welcome to Bella in Your Business. My name is Bella Vasta, and I want you to recall a time where you wanted your staff to do something. You thought that you actually understood that you gave out all the instructions, but for the life of you, you can’t understand why they cannot just do what you want. Well, today I have a guest who is going to help solve this problem and a lot more that you might not have even realized you had.
If you’re in the mastermind, you may have heard of her. If you’ve been to Paradise, you may have met her, but she has been changing pet sitters’ lives left and right the past 60 days. So I had to bring her on the podcast and give her all to you. Without further ado, Liz, welcome to the show. Liz shared that she owns five pet grooming businesses—actual storefronts—in the Phoenix area and has expanded to five locations in the last six and a half years. When we first met, she had just started, with only one location, doing everything herself.
She talked about running 12- to 16-hour days and how exhausting that was. When asked how she managed to grow, Liz explained that she was originally the operator—doing it all—but realized that to grow, she needed to delegate. Before delegating, however, she had to document everything. Without documented processes, delegation was chaos.
She shared a story about her “nightmare” moment—driving between her first and second storefronts when both managers called her about the same issue at the same time. She was juggling two phone calls, two crises, and realized she had failed—not because her managers were incapable, but because she had no documented processes to guide them. That moment became her turning point.
Liz realized that as a CEO, she had to take full responsibility and own the problem instead of blaming her staff. As she grew, it became clear she couldn’t be the answer for everyone’s questions. It wasn’t fair to them or to her. Her team wanted clarity and empowerment, not constant dependency. She began building systems and processes so her business could run without her constant involvement.
She explained that as she grew, she wanted to empower people around her—to create a culture where staff felt ownership. Systems should function independently, not rely on constant human oversight. By developing structured training, clear expectations, and standardized systems, Liz saw everything change. Her employees felt empowered and connected, and the culture improved dramatically.
