In the prior article, Enterprise Process Map (Part 1 of 2), I promoted enterprise process maps as a tool to enhance operational clarity and create a shared view of a company’s capabilities. It is this shared perspective that accelerates business planning and improvement activities as the time to get everyone on the same page is vastly reduced. In lieu of such a foundational view, leaders setting strategy are essentially planning a road trip without awareness of the roads to the destination.
In contrast to its rather simplistic appearance, an enterprise process map’s creation can be an arduous undertaking. Building a process map forces leaders to delve into the often-ambiguous operational boundaries in their company. Politics and knowledge gaps are to be expected. But upon completion, the result is worth the discomfort. An enterprise process map defines the complete customer relationship and clearly delineates how the company creates value.
Whether the goal is a process map for an enterprise or simply a business unit, our team has boiled the approach down to four steps.
Step 1: Leadership Interviews– You need information on how things get done. Begin by speaking with the leaders and managers of the major areas of the company. Generally, aim for individuals at the Vice President or departmental leader level. The aim of these interviews is to gain an understanding into all corners of the company. To collect this information, ask each leader these questions.
Generally when asking about the major activities, a collection of processes are named. For example, if you meet with a Supply Chain Vice President, you will probably get a list along these lines:
On an enterprise process map, it would make sense to merge these processes together and label them “Order Delivery” or something similar. “Order Delivery” in this example is a mega process that defines the collection of processes above. Listing the processes with the associated mega process adds further richness to the enterprise process map.
Figure 1: Enterprise Process Map for a Retail Company
Step 2: Initial Draft– Create an initial view of the enterprise process map.
At this point, the focus shifts to the production processes.
Step 3: Distribution and Feedback- Share the draft with associates of all levels of the company and ask for feedback. It is this melding of perspectives that drives the accuracy and authenticity of the end product. Follow up if they don’t respond in a timely fashion
Step 4: Confirmation Session– As feedback rolls in, questions and differences of opinions will always surface. In order to complete (and confirm) the process map, schedule a meeting to work through the outstanding questions and drive to a shared perspective. On occasion, disagreements will require further investigation as to what really occurs in the trenches of the company. Even after agreement is reached, continued iterations will be required to keep it up to date.
When building the enterprise process map, there are several general rules to follow that will increase its accuracy.
The greatest benefits of enterprise process maps come from the clarity and shared perspective it delivers. Share it widely across all levels of your organization. Update it as the organization evolves. In this way, the clarity gained extends through the employee ranks and into the future.
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