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Business Process
Improvement: The Devil’s in the Detail
By Ben B Graham
President
The Ben Graham Corporation
© Copyright 2004, The Ben Graham Corporation. All rights reserved.
Permission is granted to post, print and distribute this document in its
original PDF format.
Organizations employ a number of formulas to improve their business operations
and get more "bang for their buck". Effective programs invariable get down to an
examination, analysis and improvement of the business processes. Using a process
flowchart to define the existing system is an essential first step to
improvement that is often overlooked or addressed superficially. This article
takes a look at a couple of more common flowcharting methods being applied today
with a focus on the detail process charting methodology that was developed sixty
years ago.
Organizations are continually reminded of
the need to understand their business processes. Governments demand it.
Certification Agencies demand it. Auditors demand it. Competition demands it.
People recognize that there is value in understanding the details of the work
they do. They know they should understand the mechanics of their processes
better. They know that understanding their processes will enable them to do a
better job. But most people have not been exposed to proven tools and methods
and have not learned HOW to study their work. Conscientious people will dig into
the details of their work, apply the tools that are available to them and try to
figure out how to improve their lot. When a work process is completed by one
person, that person may have sufficient understanding of the work to make
significant improvements in the way the work is done. On the other hand, when
the work a person does is just a part of a larger process, their understanding
of their own work and attempts to streamline their piece of the process in a
vacuum (without considering the rest of the process) may create more problems
than they solve. While focusing on business processes is not new, it has
achieved some kind of “vogue” in the past several years. Several programs
(Reengineering, BPI, Six Sigma) have emerged that focus on improving business
processes. Government mandates (Sarbanes–Oxley, PIPEDA) and Certification
Organizations (ISO) have focused on process as well. All of these programs,
mandates, certifications include process documentation as a starting point.
For nearly a century, people in a position to study work have recognized that a
picture of the work flow is an invaluable tool for understanding the work. The
first method developed specifically for flowcharting work flow was developed in
the early 1900s. It was unveiled to the world in a paper presented the American
Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) in 1921. In 1947, ASME adopted an evolved
version of the flowcharting symbols and method for applying them as a national
standard for Process Charting. Since that time, several techniques have been
developed or adapted specifically for charting the flow of business or
information processes.
Tool or Method?
General Diagramming Packages
There are a lot of tools available that provide symbol sets. But if the symbols
are not wrapped in a methodology, then the charter has to invent one.
(Collecting the data, stringing the symbols together, handling rework…unusual
situations…) The most common tool for drawing flowcharts is the general purpose
drawing package. Unfortunately, principal features of these packages, “free form
drawing style and many, many symbols” are precisely what make them less suited
to documenting business processes. In general, they do not provide the structure
to support a specific technique. They typically do provide the symbol sets for
various techniques – but no instruction or built-in structure to ensure a
technique is applied correctly. Good charts can be prepared with these
applications, but it requires an understanding of a flowcharting method along
with the discipline to adhere to the method. A lack of consistency in method
will usually mean a short life. Many of today's process maps are as much a
blueprint for building and understanding procedures and processes as a
photograph is a blueprint for developing an automobile. They look clean and
streamlined… because they are missing something… the detail of how to get the
work done!
Basic Flowcharting
The most recognizable flowcharting method (which includes many variations) is
derived from the System & Program Flowcharting method promoted by IBM in the
1960s.
This methodology was originally developed to document program flow – a task
suited to a single-line flow. It is not as well-suited to the documentation of
business processes that include many interrelated flows. A common variation of
this approach is called a swimlane diagram or a multi-column chart1. Swimlane
diagrams divide the flowchart into rows that represent the locations or people
involved in the process. When the process flows to a different area, the
flowline moved to a different row.
While this methodology provides high-level visibility over the areas involved,
it is still limited to a single line flow, which by its nature is high level. It
doesn’t provide visibility over multiple items and it and doesn’t readily handle
parallel processing. How often do we use parallel processing? How often do you
use multi-part forms? How often do you make copies of documents that go to
different people? If your organization has a copier, there is likely parallel
processing. How often do you send an email to more than one person? Does your
organization distribute copies of reports to more than one person? These
activities are not likely to be apparent on a single line flowchart.
IDEF2
IDEF is a process modeling standard developed by the USAF in the 1970’s and
standardized by the Federal Government in 1993. An IDEF0 model consists of a
hierarchical series of diagrams, text, and glossary cross-referenced to each
other.
The two primary modeling components are functions (represented on a diagram by
boxes) and the data and objects that relate to those functions (represented by
arrows).
IDEF0 introduces greater levels of detail by drilling down through hierarchical
levels to new diagrams. Each diagram includes just a few boxes.
Because the fundamental element of an IDEF process chart is a function, it does
not provide clear visibility over delays, it doesn’t provide clear visibility
over relationships between documents, it is difficult to see how a piece of the
process really fits into the big picture (how a change in one function will
impact other areas in the process).
Detail Process Charts3
Information processes include flows of numerous documents, forms, email,
systems, parts, people… that are all tied together to accomplish the process
objective. Understanding the steps along EACH flow and the relationships between
the items is crucial to understanding the process - detail process charts show
the steps and the relationships.
The Detail Process Charting methodology developed by Ben S Graham Sr in the
1940s is derived from the work simplification Flow Process Charting methodology.
The work simplification charting method includes a small, well thought out
symbol set and methodology that provides elegant structure to the task of
process charting. The fact that the work simplification symbol set was adopted
as the ANSI and ASME standards for Process Charting fifty years ago is testimony
to its fundamental simplicity. It has flowed through a half century of new
technologies and constantly changing processes with the grace of an
alphabet…because it is fundamental. It is basic. It gets to the root of our
processes. It speaks the language of process.
The fact that this symbol set (and many others) are included in a number of
diagramming packages with little instruction on how to apply them correctly is
unfortunate.
Four basic symbols represent doing work, checking work, moving work from one
location to another and nothing happening.
Four additional symbols represent variations of doing work. The four variations
of doing work include three variations of value-added work and a symbol
representing destruction or termination. The value-added symbols are the Do
symbol for manufacturing processes and the Originate and Add/Alter symbols for
information processes. That’s it! Eight symbols.
The beauty of this method is its genuine problem-solving format. It breaks down
the work to INDIVIDUAL elements. The processing of each item (document, form,
letter, log, record, file, email…) is represented as a horizontal line. Charts
flow left to right. The name of the item is identified in a label at the
beginning of the line and the activities (AND periods of non-activity) that
occur are represented with symbols laid along the line in sequence.
Most information processes include the processing of several items. The
relationship between items is displayed with vee-shape line that points from the
item providing the information (the open end of the vee) into a symbol that
represents the activity that happens to the other item.
These relationships between items are what tie many items together as a single
process.
With a multi-flow chart, when the work divides or separates, the chart
separates. What had previously been a single flow line becomes multiple flow
lines.
This takes us back to our fundamental concept of breaking the work down into
individual elements.
Even at a bird’s-eye view, the number of items in this simple process stands
out. Every horizontal line is a different item. Each is identified in the Label
at the left end of the line. |
