Are you currently stuck in a cycle of `this is how we do things because this is how we’ve always done them?`
Are you 100% confident that your current processes and systems are working for you, optimising your business time and resources?
When was the last time you spent time evaluating your business processes and procedures?
We’re guessing, like many businesses, we get so caught up in the “doing” that the “evaluating and testing” sometimes gets pushed to the back of the line.
Evaluating processes creates more opportunities and gives you back what we all crave more of…time.
- Think about:
- What are your current processes?
- How do you do what you do?
- What processes are currently mapped out? Do they need to be?
What do your processes look like?
Business processes may be simple or complex, involving just one person or several different departments. However, what they should all offer is value. Value to you and value to your customer.
Think about when an order is placed online for one of your products, what is the process of communication, packaging and shipping this product out to your customer? What stages of the process add value, and what stages could be improved upon?
What if a potential client books a discovery call with a member of your team? Who picks up this lead and follows up? Who logs the opportunity? How is everything recorded? Who has access to the information?
Evaluating current processes and systems is about identifying where your strengths lie and where improvements and efficiencies can be made. It is about analysing your business operations and then optimising your processes and systems to help you get things done.
The key is to not become complacent. We want to avoid systems becoming ingrained in organisational culture, leading to inefficiencies, no creativity, and the risk of issues occurring.
Benefits of reviewing processes
- Optimising processes saves time, resources, and money.
- Everything runs like clockwork, with systems and processes aligning with your business objectives, values, and goals. There is a purpose and value added at every stage.
- Reviews help to ensure consistency, reliability, and accountability.
- Allows you to make all important improvements that can help your business grow.
- It helps you to make sense of the data, allowing you to analyse efficiencies and do what’s best for your teams.
How can you evaluate processes effectively?
Gather everything
Identify the process you would like to evaluate and gather all the information and data relating to this.
Which parts of the process have you currently mapped out? Who is involved, and what stages, paperwork, and systems do you need/use?
If other people/departments are involved, ask for information; what resources do they use/need? Is there anyone else involved?
From here….
Map it out
Break down the process step by step. A slow process, yes, but vital, absolutely.
Use post-its and write down each individual step of the operation, visually displaying the process in the current order in which it is carried out.
Note beside each step how long each stage takes so you can identify how long the process takes in its entirety, as well as which team/department carries out the process.
When you map the process out in such a way, you can gain a visual representation of timings and people’s involvement, allowing you to….
Review and evaluate
Analyse your data. Review each step and see where you can introduce improvements and efficiencies.
Ask questions: for example, think about what you’re doing and why you’re doing it. What is the reason for each step? Is every step necessary? Does it add value?
Question everything.
Analyse the data. Are there trends or patterns occurring? Can you capitalise on these? What questions do they raise? Can you spot efficiencies? Opportunities? Have they highlighted any bottlenecks?
Communicate
Sometimes, it’s hard to see the wood for the trees, so it’s vital to encourage feedback throughout the entire process. Engaging with your stakeholders throughout to ensure buy-in, gather opinions, and gauge what actually goes into the process to make it work.
Identify your strengths and weaknesses and…
Make changes
Align new efficient processes with best practices and embrace new technologies to support change.
No one person should hold all the information or process documents. Ensure you create and record all document processes and manuals and make these accessible for everyone involved. Blueprint your process.
If in doubt, ask for help.
How we can help
Sometimes, knowing where to start when reviewing tried and ingrained processes can be challenging. We often find that for most businesses, you need to be able to take a step back to review processes with a fresh pair of eyes.
This is where we come in.
Through our consultancy service, we can help you map out processes, ask those all-important questions, and gain an understanding of what you want to achieve and how.
Making slight changes to processes and introducing efficiencies to systems, you can continue to thrive and grow.
For example, do you want to automate your paper-based process and move this to a more efficient online system?
Are you drowning in document management processes and need to find a solution to help you reduce resources and time?
Let us help.
Book a call with us today.
