Many organisations use process maps to build an understanding of how their key processes work,  so they can then focus on how to improve them. Many wide-ranging benefits can be achieved in return for this effort – not the least of which are happy customers and a reduced cost base. 

These benefits hinge on one key word however, ‘understanding’. Not all process maps are equal. 
Process information can vary greatly in format and content, and if difficult to comprehend, the bulk of benefits may be lost because this information is simply ignored. Sound familiar?

Here are 5 techniques that we at Promapp Solutions have built into our methodology, and many clients have used successfully over the years.  Our main focus is helping the reader get a quick grasp of the overall process, before drilling down to detailed work instructions.

1. Keep it Simple: The Whiteboard Test

Processes are often authored by ‘specialists’ who can sometimes produce processes that seem complex and difficult to read. If your intended audience cannot easily comprehend the process from the process map, it has not achieved its purpose.  

We apply a common sense challenge to processes - the whiteboard test. If the process appears more complex than what you would draw on a whiteboard to explain it to a new staff member, then there may be too much information.

Here are some tips for rationalising process maps:

• Are there work instruction level details included as activities on the process map? These are best recorded in a separate work instruction layer of information, that users can drill down to if needed.
• Are there detailed systems ‘user manual’ instructions mixed included as process activities? These are best left in systems user guides, linking off from process information. They are easier to understand as separate documents that include step by step screen graphics. These documents can also double up as training materials for new staff.
• If there look to be too many steps in a process, perhaps multiple processes are merged into one process map? See if you can break the process map into two that flow into each other. Eg Rather than a 14 step ‘New Product Release’ process, there might actually be two processes ‘Evaluate Potential New Products’ flowing into ‘New Product Release’ .

2. Active Voice instructions: The ‘Verb First’ Habit

This little tip radically improves the readability of business processes, and is a surprisingly easy habit to get into. Describe the activity by using the VERB first.

Examples:

•             A sales folder is opened for each sales order received
BECOMES
•             Open a sales folder for each sales order received.

•             Into this sales folder, enter all relevant documentation
BECOMES
•             Enter all relevant documentation into this folder

Activities written in an active voice can also help filter out some steps. If it’s not immediately obvious what activity is being performed, then perhaps this is just a note to the process, and not a step in the process. Keep notes OFF process maps, rather have them in the next layer down, as explanations within work instructions.

3. Activity Flow is NOT Decision Flow

Processes are made up of a sequence of activities that transform inputs into desired outputs.  They are usually described as a flow of activities, but can also be described as a series of decisions – which can be useful in systems analysis and for software development purposes.

Process maps are typically described using activity flows, and these tend to be easier to comprehend. If you get creative – you could think of maybe three or four decisions for even the simplest activities in a process. The ‘Make a Coffee’ process could get hard to understand if all decisions were included on the process map.  Is there any coffee left? Are there any clean coffee cups available? Has the milk passed its expiry date? Etc...

Our recommendation is that you aim to capture the process as it normally happens, and include useful information (such as relevant ‘what if’ scenarios) as useful notes within work instruction details. Eg ‘How do we order more coffee?’

We only include decisions on the process map where they are key to explaining the process as it normally happens, and it is a major decision, meaning a decision that can trigger another process.

Another tip is to use , ‘...if required’ or ‘...if appropriate’ statements on process maps. They convey a message clearly, without the need for a separate decision.

4. Navigating process information

Your business processes might be clear and understandable, however they may still be ignored if they are not easy to navigate. The bulk of time spent ‘using’ process information is trying to actually find the one piece of the puzzle that you are after – so it’s important this is easy to do.

Our view of the minimum requirements for process navigation:

Make it Searchable
Single layer documents, like traditional text based procedures, are difficult to navigate to and from specific information, other searching by document name. If you are stuck using process documents of this type, at least consider complementing them with tools that now exist that can search the text inside the documents as well (eg Microsoft SharePoint).

Drill Down to Detail
The advantage of process maps is that the reader gets an immediate feel for the overall flow of the process before delving into the detail.  Swapping between separate hi level and detailed level views  can make for a very challenging user experience. It can be difficult to find the detail associated with each step in the process, and involves a lot of swapping between documents.   Process information that allows drill down to detailed instructions for each process step is a minimum standard. 

Link Process Maps and Attachments
Another minimum standard - users may need to follow the trail to get to the information they are after, or to pick up on the overall process.  Again, static, single layer documents make this difficult and the old document ‘hyper-linking’ can be a nightmare to manage in future.

5. One Place for Process Maps: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

An central on-line repository of processes available to all staff solves one major issue.  With all information in one place, it prevents some common user frustrations

• Where do I start to look for process information?
• I’ve found a document on the shared network – is it the latest version?
• There’s a paper based manual, but where’s soft copy so I can update it
• I’ve found the process, but who do I contact to suggest a change?
• My project has changed some processes – where do I store them?

Whether they be good or bad, storing all this information in one place makes it visible and more easily findable.

We hope you find these tips useful. If you have any questions, feedback or success stories once you have applied them, by all means send them to us on infoinquiry@promapp.com.

Ivan Seselj
(c) Promapp Solutions 2008
www.promapp.com