In general terms, #processimprovement is the practice of optimizing existing business processes in order to meet #businessbestpractices and improve the stakeholder experience – This could be a customer, vendor, employee, and/or the business principal in a #design or #architect firm.
The main goals of process improvement or a winning workflow (as we like to call it) are minimizing errors, reducing waste, improving productivity, and streamlining the efficiency of internal and external processes of a business.
A winning workflow emerges when this workflow:
Works for all stakeholders (internal and external) involved
Leverages technology
Reduces errors/ duplications of tasks
Most importantly, provide insight into your business metrics.
Start by jotting down each step in your process. Say you are looking at the #PurchasingProcess in your Interior Design Firm. Create a step-by-step description of how your business goes about sourcing and creating a purchase order, changing purchase orders, creating bills, paying the bills. Once you have done this, ask yourself the following questions and take note:
Does your team follow a set and clear way of doing this task?
Are any of these steps repetitive in nature or one-offs? Note that "one-offs" will keep us from developing a process.
Is/Are there (a) bottleneck/s in the process? Think about ways to deal with this.
Finally, present your findings to your team with the goal of looking for improvements, receiving feedback.
We create optimal workflows with your business needs in mind. Is there a task you wish someone else would manage successfully for you? Or is there a task you wish your team can master but are not sure how? We don’t stop with designing the workflow, we also create and provide you with your unique workflow manual. Excited to find out more? Here are some of the process improvement areas we have worked on for clients:
Accounts Receivable
Accounts Payable
Purchase Orders Processing
Invoicing
