THE POWER OF

BUSINESS
PROCESS
IMPROVEMENT
10 Simple Steps To Increase Effectiveness,
Efficiency, and Adaptability

Capt. Dante P. Narciso, MBA

MGT-304 Professor
 Given the ubiquity of business processes in the corporate
world, The Power of Business Process Improvement is a
helpful guide for teams in every industry. It is useful for
people with minimal experience with business process
improvement, as well as for experts.

THE BIG IDEA Business process improvement or BPI

can help companies become more competitive in the
NEED TO KNOW market by demonstrating greater customer responsiveness
and increasing employee productivity

Most aspects of business equate to a process. However,

those processes are frequently not as efficient or effective
as they could be. Business process improvement or BPI
can help companies become more competitive in the
market by demonstrating greater customer responsiveness
and increasing employee productivity.
 SUSAN PAGE’s Ten Steps to BPI
• STEP 1 DEVELOPING THE PROCESS INVENTORY
• STEP 2 ESTABLISHING THE FOUNDATION
TEN STEP • STEP 3DRAWING THE PROCESS MAP

APPROACH TO • STEPS 4 & 5: ESTIMATING TIME AND COST, AND VERIFYING THE PROCESS
MAP

BPI • STEP 6: APPLYING IMPROVEMENT TECHNIQUES

• STEP 7: CREATING INTERNAL CONTROLS, TOOLS, AND METRICS
• STEP 8: TESTING AND REWORKING
• STEP 9: IMPLEMENTING THE CHANGE
• STEP 10: DRIVING CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMEN
 STEP 1: DEVELOPING THE PROCESS
INVENTORY

• The first step of business process improvement (BPI) is developing a

process inventory . This inventory outlines all the business processes
that exist in a particular department or part of a business. A list of
business processes can be developed by analyzing the work that is
done in a group, by evaluating job descriptions, or by interviewing
employees about their tasks and responsibilities. When creating a
process inventory, it is important to recognize that one business process
may be comprised of several sub-processes. The process inventory
should also include the individual who is responsible for each process
– that person is often referred to as the “business process owner.”
 STEP 2: ESTABLISHING THE
FOUNDATION

• The next step in the BPI process is creating the scope

definition document . The purpose of this document is to
provide the baseline information about a business process
and to establish the boundaries of the process
 STEP 3: DRAWING THE PROCESS MAP

• The next step is to draw a process map . This visual

representation of a business process is very effective in
communicating how the process works and where it can
be improved. The goal of a process map is to illustrate a
series of related activities that in combination deliver an
outcome to either a customer or an internal client.
Process maps may be high level or very detailed. Each
team must decide what level of detail is needed to
accomplish its goals.
 STEPS 4 & 5: ESTIMATING TIME AND COST,
AND VERIFYING THE PROCESS MAP

• When estimating the time associated with a business process, it is

necessary to look at process time and cycle time . Process time is the
amount of time needed to complete a single activity. One way to
determine process times is for the team members to make an estimate.
Another alternative is using a more formal quality control method, such
as a time study. The disadvantage of formal techniques is the amount of
time they take to complete. Usually, that level of detail is not needed.
Each process time should be added above the appropriate activity box
in the process map. The sum of the process times for all the activities is
called the baseline time.
 STEP 6: APPLYING IMPROVEMENT
TECHNIQUES

Page uses a concept called the “ improvement technique

wheel ” to communicate the six methods that can be used
to improve business processes: bureaucracy, value added,
duplication, simplification, cycle time, and automation.
Automation is applied after all the other techniques to
ensure that inefficiencies have already been removed from
the process.
 STEP 7: CREATING INTERNAL
CONTROLS, TOOLS, AND METRICS

• Once a business process has been made as efficient as possible, it is

time to create internal controls, tools, and metrics . Internal controls are
intended to improve the reliability of a business process and to reduce
the number of mistakes that are made by process workers. The first
step is to determine the different points in the process where errors can
occur. After the problem areas have been flagged, the team should
analyze how to avoid them. The solutions should be captured in an
internal controls document which will be added to the overall process
documentation.
 STEP 8: TESTING AND REWORKING

• After a team makes improvements to a business process,

they cannot simply roll the new process out to the entire
organization. First, they must test the revised process and
eliminate any unforeseen problems. Effective testing is
based on answering who, what, where, when, and how
questions.
 STEP 9: IMPLEMENTING THE CHANGE

• Once the business process has been tested adequately, the team must
develop an implementation plan. This plan covers how the new process
will be rolled out in the organization, as well as how to communicate to
and train employees, and how to continuously improve the business
process. If the business process is complex, Page advises uses project
management software to handle the implementation. For simple
business processes, a spreadsheet may be adequate. Implementing a
new business process requires three tracks: a change management track
that covers impact analysis, a communications track which follows a
communication plan, and a training track which follows a training plan.
 STEP 10: DRIVING CONTINUOUS
IMPROVEMENT

• Once a team has implemented business process improvements, their

work is not done. They must monitor the business process and make
adjustments so it improves continually over time. When teams engage
in continuous improvement, it ensures that the process continues to
deliver the original improvement gains. There are four phases in the
continuous improvement cycle: (1) evaluate, (2) test, (3) assess, and (4)
execute.
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 CREATING AN EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

• To alert management about improved business processes, the

author recommends developing an executive summary
document.
• This provides a high level overview of the project and allows
teams to gain recognition for their work in a professional way.
The key point about executive summaries is to address what the
executive sponsor cares about.
• There are six sections in an executive summary:
 CREATING AN EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

• Project Focus . The executive summary should begin with a story that
illustrates the problems that prompted the BPI project. Describe the
situation from the reader’s perspective and include information that
demonstrates the business need which drove the analysis.
• Goals . The goals section describes the purpose of the work. It can be
helpful to review the scope definition document and see what
customers wanted from the process. The goals should be stated
succinctly in a bulleted list.
 CREATING AN EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

• Summary. The summary provides a synopsis of the project. It can be

helpful to incorporate analytical results which provide concrete
statistics for the reader.
• Key Findings. This section makes management aware of the key points
that were uncovered during the project.
 CREATING AN EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

• Deliverables . The team should describe all the materials that were
created during the project, which could include the process overview,
process maps, detail documents, the internal controls document,
checklists, impact analyses, implementation plans, training plans, and
communication plans.
• Appendix . The appendix is the appropriate place to include additional
materials that support the team’s conclusions.
 THANK YOU

dantethelegend838@gmail.com

• Reference:

THE POWER OF BUSINESS PROCESS IMPROVEMENT 10 Simple

Steps To Increase Effectiveness, Efficiency, and Adaptability
AUTHORS: Susan Page PUBLISHER: AMACOM DATE OF
PUBLICATION: 2010 338pages