Process management is often neglected – or even deliberately avoided – in small organizations. They often tend to believe that implementing process management will lead to heaviness and constraints that will prevent them from being agile and maintaining their fluidity.
This is to misunderstand business process management (a.k.a. BPM). To get a better understanding, let’s go back to the basics.
What is a process?
A business process designates any business activity initiated by an event (an order, a customer contact, receipt of goods, etc.) that transforms information (data, contracts, support ticket, etc.) or products to produce a result. This result can be for the client or for other processes.
Whether or not they are formalized explicitly, these processes already exist in your organization: in theory your employees know what they have to do and the value they must produce (if this is not the case, you have a more serious problem.)
Why manage your processes?
The purpose of process management is
- the alignment of processes with the strategic objectives of a company
- process modeling and formalization
- the creation of process measurement systems to monitor their value and effectiveness
- their evolution to remain aligned over time with the changing objectives of the company
How does it work?
We usually start with an inventory and a mapping of the existing processes, then a prioritization of the processes to be managed (all the processes do not have the same importance or do not present the same level of risk) Then, for each process, it will be necessary to follow the following cycle
3 tips for successful business process management
1. Assign responsibilities
It is essential that each process be assigned to a person who will be responsible for it. It is she who will be in charge of controlling the KPIs (Key Performance), developing the process over time, managing the associated risks…
2. Prioritizing value over perfection
The more a process is exhaustive, the more it becomes complex and therefore difficult for users to adopt and for the manager to control.
It is therefore better to start with a simple model that will respond 60% to 80% but which will bring value immediately rather than wanting to create a perfect process.
3. Do not neglect continuous improvement
In a constantly changing society, processes cannot be frozen. The person responsible for the process must regularly listen to the users of the process, as well as those responsible for the processes linked to his own (upstream, downstream) in order to develop his process.
How OptOp can help
I advise you and guide you around
- identification, design and implementation of a robust management system for your company’s key processes
- modeling and documentation of your processes
- training and coaching of employees who will be in charge of the processes (control, evolution, etc.)
- Improving your existing processes to make them more robust and efficient.