Do you feel there are areas of your business that could run more efficiently?
In most businesses, there is always something that can be improved and by finding and minimising these less than perfect processes, you can make your business more efficient and the best it can be.
One of the best ways to highlight these processes is with workflow mapping. Workflow mapping is a method of visualizing and charting your business processes so you can evaluate and improve them.
- Providing a clear understanding of your processes and how each process fits within your business as a whole.
- Allowing you to analyse your processes with ease and, in turn, improve them. You can highlight redundant steps or steps that take too much time.
- Improving team communication as every team member understands the steps required to complete the process. It can also decrease unnecessary and time-consuming communication as team members can refer to the workflow map for guidance or clarification.
- Ensuring a cohesive client experience due to increased accuracy and efficiency.
Workflow mapping can be completed with or without software and, it is simple enough to do it yourself by creating a basic flowchart. When decided which process to start with, choose the most important task. Start with the process that is most crucial for the overall performance of your business, directly impacts the bottom line or, is not performing as you would like.
- Start by listing each individual step of the process in the order that it needs to be completed until all steps have been listed.
- Gather all the important information related to your process. If you have a team, chat with those who directly handle that process so you can gain clarity about the process and all its intricacies. Confirm you have each individual step included and correct.
- If you have team members, include connecting lines that detail who is responsible for that step.
- Review your workflow map and ask the following questions:
-
- Which steps are time-consuming?
- Which steps can be automated?
- Which steps are missing, or are often skipped?
- Are there any bottlenecks within the process?
Need clarity or unsure where to start? Let’s connect for an obligation free consultation!