What are business processes? Examples will allow us to better understand this subject, so we will actively use them.
general information
To begin with, let's figure out what business processes are. This is the name of the cumulative sequence of certain actions aimed at transforming the resources received at the entrance to a completed product that has value for consumers at the exit. Thanks to this definition, you can understand that business processes are within each organization. Whether they are formalized or not, this does not play a role. Remember: you can meet business processes everywhere. Examples of them will be given later in the article.
Let's look at a household example. There is a housewife who wants to wash the dishes (business process). She entrusts this task to the dishwasher. At the entrance we have dirty dishes. During the process, water, detergent and electricity will be used. And at the exit we get clean dishes. Business processes are being built on a similar pattern. The examples that will be given in the future will only confirm these words.
Functional approach
Since we are interested in the company's business processes (specific examples), then let's not postpone their consideration, but immediately get down to business. Suppose we have a company with a functional approach to management issues. According to him, an enterprise is a set of divisions. And each one works to fulfill its specific function. But in such cases, when individual units are focused on achieving their performance, the overall effectiveness of the company often suffers.
Let's look at one typical conflict process. The sales department requires an increase in the maximum possible range for the growth of turnover. At the same time, they also want the stock of goods to be always in stock. Whereas the supply department plans to purchase a narrow range and in large quantities. Indeed, in such cases, they will work efficiently, and their main indicator will increase (more precisely, the price from the supplier will fall). That is, there is a business implementation process that departments look at differently.
Process approach
He considers everything that happens as a set of processes. There are basic and supportive. Each process has its own specific goal, which is subordinate to the task facing the whole company. In addition, there is an owner who manages resources and is responsible for the implementation of all necessary. There should also be a system for quality control and error correction. It goes without saying that no process can proceed without resources. And the list of components is completed by a system of indicators by which business processes are evaluated. Examples of this are what, because it was promised that they would be? Now let's take one and take a look.
Imagine a map. At the very center is the core business process. It is divided into individual components. They are accompanied by managing and supporting processes, which ensure that everything is performed as required. This will be the process approach. When the work of one element is completed, its operating time is transferred to the next.
Description of business processes
Examples of this in general terms can be seen throughout the article. But complete documentation is often comparable in thickness to small books (or even large ones if the work of a giant company is being studied).
Modeling business processes (examples of which are also given here) requires that all operations of the enterprise be as clear and transparent as possible. This will allow them to be analyzed in the best possible way and to identify various problems even before they fail. It must be remembered that the main task of the descriptions is to understand the interaction of disparate units, to monitor what and to whom they pass on at each stage of the assignment. Thanks to this, the adaptation of new employees can be greatly simplified and the dependence of the stability of the enterprise on an unstable human factor can be reduced. Also, with a competent approach, operating costs will be reduced . This is what helps the description of business processes. An example of such optimization can be demonstrated by the manager of almost any successful company.
Development order
Let's look at a practical example of a business process in an enterprise. Initially, we need to take care of the project team. It is formed from company employees. Most often it turns out that one working team is not enough. What can then be done? To fill the lack of strength, you can attract a temporary group. It also helps to create a description of how the process is functioning at a given point in time. In this case, one should strive to identify all the links between actions, and not to fix the smallest details.
To avoid going aside, you can use standard cards and forms of processes. When developing processes, it is recommended to use the method of successive approximations. In other words, it is necessary to repeat the cycle of actions for improvement until an acceptable result is obtained.
What should you pay attention to?
Focus on the following sections:
- Standard forms.
- Map.
- Routes
- Matrices.
- Flowcharts.
- Description of joints.
- Auxiliary descriptions.
- Documentation
- Detailed description.
- Definition of indicators and indicators.
- Rules of implementation.
Best of all, the concept of the necessary elements can give a real example - reengineering of business processes of an existing enterprise. But in such cases, you must be prepared for the fact that you have to get acquainted with a huge amount of documentation.
Let’s say a word about cards
So, we have already examined what business processes are, examples of them in real life. Now let's go through the technical documentation, which should be if we need an accurate and clear description. So, initially I want to pay attention to the business process map. It is a graphical representation executed as a block diagram. At the same time, care must be taken to ensure that each participant has their own separate column. The time intervals are entered in the lines. A fully completed card allows you to check whether the operation has been synchronized.
It is also possible to trace whether information passes between different departments of the company and how. To get the best effect, you should ask a few questions. Who performs this operation? Why should it be done? What is she like? When do i need surgery? Where is it carried out? When improving ongoing processes, you should still ask if it can be improved.
Matrices
They are necessary to highlight the most important business processes within the enterprise. During their compilation, the interconnection of everything that is happening, as well as the degree of mutual influence, is taken into account.
When analyzing a chain of processes, it is easy to find that the exchange of information moves from the upper left corner to the lower right. That is, in this mathematical form, the relations between the supplier and the consumer are described, presented in the form of a rectangle. In each cell of the matrix, all the necessary requirements for the action are indicated that were / are committed / will be done. They are a kind of two-dimensional models, with which you can judge what is being done and how and what purpose is being pursued. The difficulty in compiling the matrix here is that for miscalculation with maximum accuracy, you often have to use a significant amount of data. And this implies the presence of a large amount of information. Moreover, in such cases, digital information is usually used, which often still has to be calculated.