Five Steps to Build Stronger Communication and Understanding

Do you know that every new procedure or system of procedures should have a process map? This will help you communicate clearly and improve understanding within your company, just like a table.

What can you do to do this?

Identify Core Processing

We followed the money trail last time and identified your core business processes. We talked about where it would be most beneficial to make a change in one these core processes. We also introduced the process of creating a process map. Let’s now take a closer look at creating a process map. We will show you how it can create knowledge that will benefit your company.

Use ProcessMap as Communication Tool

A process map is a flow chart of the main processes within an organization. This diagram shows you exactly who, what, and how to make the process more efficient. It is intended to be used as a communication tool. It shows the interaction of all elements in the process. Organizations use process maps to gain several benefits.

o Improve process understanding

o Clarify the process boundaries, ownership, and effectiveness measures

Identify sequences of processes

o Isolate core process bottlenecks and areas for improvement

o Clarify the interactions between Customer, Supplier, Management, and Operations processes

o Offer a platform for discussion and training

A process map, in other words, shows what happens first, then second, and third in a particular process. It shows each step of the process. This is also drawn in graphic form to make it easier for communication and understanding.

This map depicts the “big picture”, which is a collection of 10-20 core functions within an organization. This map shows each section’s critical elements and their importance to the overall system. These sections or bands are what link the processes together AND the external suppliers and customers.

Link Suppliers and Customers

There are many ways to draw a process diagram, but the most common is four-band construction. These four bands connect Customers, Primary Processes (Secondary Processes), Suppliers, and Secondary Processes.

The details of a process can improve its effectiveness. Sometimes, we have learned the hard way that the process or project development is more costly than the planning phase. You can reduce development time by planning ahead and ensuring that your processes are well-designed. A detailed process map helps you to identify and reduce waste wherever it occurs.

These are some key points to remember when process mapping

Identify core processes that support mission and goals

o Create value for customers throughout the process

o Map ownership and performance metrics are included in the process

– Engage your people to map the process and identify problems and solutions

Let’s now break it down even more.

Steps of the Process

The big picture process map is a series of interconnected processes. Each of these multiple processes has multiple steps. We’ve already discussed the benefits of this approach, which include better communication and understanding as well as a reduction in waste. This gives you a “big picture” view on your company’s processes. But…

You will need to provide more details when you are writing the procedures for your company. To determine the order of each step’s interactions, you will need a method. This is done with a procedure diagram. Here is an example of a procedure map.

This refined procedure map will allow you to see all the steps involved in an organization’s competency process. It also includes the suppliers and customers. This is also known as the SIPOC method. This method identifies the suppliers of the data that is used to create Outputs. This map will also give you performance and effectiveness criteria for the process’s owner(s). You can set the benchmark for continual improvement by using such measurement criteria.

By creating a procedure plan, you can increase communication and understanding in your company. Procedure maps are a powerful tool for training new employees or improving the efficiency and performance of existing employees.

Understand, Communicate and Apply Knowledge

An organization’s process and procedure maps are both essential. As a general rule, you should never create a procedure or system without creating a process map. A process map acts as a table or contents and organizes the chapters in a book so that it can be easily understood, communicated, and then applied.

Next time we’ll discuss Six Sigma problem solving tools and answer the question: How can you go from seat-ofthe-pants decision making into measurable and continuous process improvements?