Process Management

Process management vision

 Everything organizations do to create value for customers of their products or

services is a process. Process management is key to improving performance.
 Process managed organizations see things from a customer perspective – as a series
of inter-connected work and information flows that cut horizontally across the
business functions.
 The key or core business processes are well defined and developed sequences of
steps with clear rationale, which add value by producing required outputs from a
variety of inputs.
 Deployment of a common high-level process framework throughout the organization
gives many benefits, including reduced costs and increased flexibility.
 Process management best practices include: identifying the key business processes,
managing processes systematically, reviewing processes and setting improvement
targets, using innovation and creativity to improve processes, changing processes
and evaluating the benefits.
Process classification framework and
process modelling
 The APQC’s Process Classification Framework creates a high level generic, cross-
functional process view of an enterprise – a taxonomy of business processes.

 • The IDEF (Integrated Definition Function Modelling) language provides a

useful structured graphical framework for describing and improving business
processes. It consists of a hierarchical series of diagrams and text, cross-
referenced to each other through boxes. The processes are described in terms of
inputs, controls, outputs and resources (ICOR).
Process flowcharting

 Flowcharting is a method of describing a process in pictures, using symbols –

rectangles for operation steps, diamonds for decisions, parallelograms for
information and circles/ovals for the start/end points. Arrow lines connect the
symbols to show the ‘flow’.
 • Flowcharting improves knowledge of the process and helps to develop the team
of people involved.
 • Flowcharts document processes and are useful as trouble-shooting tools and in
process improvement. An improvement team would flowchart the existing process
and the improved or desired process, comparing the two to highlight the changes
necessary.
Leadership, people and implementation

 Top management who have used process management to great effect recognize its contribution in creating
knowledge and eliminating waste, yet they understand the importance of involving people, measurement
and good communications.
 • Process owners are key to effective process management. They have responsibility for and authority over
process design, operation and measurement of performance.
 • Managing the people who work in the processes requires attention to training programmes, performance
targets, communicating changing customer needs, negotiation and collaboration.
 • Moving to process management requires some challenging fundamental changes, leading to new ways of
working and managing. Current initiatives should be carefully examined to ensure good planning and an
understanding of what needs to be done first.
 • As with all change initiatives, delivering some tangible measurable benefits early on will help overcome
the inevitable resistance.
 • With the wider introduction of e-commerce systems, there will be greater pressure to run rapid, fault-free
business processes. Some of the processes will need to change ‘shape’ as demands, technologies and
markets change.