York Information Management and Systems

Process Mapping Workshop

Agenda

2.00 Introduction Why are you here?What is a business process?Why adopt a process view?MethodologyMapping Tools

2.45 Break3.00 Group exercise3.45 Feedback4.15 Summary4.30 Finish

What is a business process?

“The unique way in which an organisation co-ordinates and organises its work activities,

information and knowledge to produce a valuable product or service”

(Laudon and Laudon, 1998)

Manage processesSupport processesPrimary processes

What is a business process?

AddProvide infrastructure

and other supportCo-ordinate and

control

Recruit studentsTeach students

Assess studentsGraduate students

PersonnelFinance

ITPayroll

Set directionMake strategy

Primary Processes

UndergraduateEducation

ResearchApplied

Research &Consultancy

Postgraduate Education - Research

Postgraduate Education- Taught

Develop Proposal

Get Funding

Carry Out Research

DisseminateFindings

Report to Sponsor

Develop Courses

Get Students

TeachStudents

AssessStudents

Graduate

Develop Courses

Get Students

TeachStudents

AssessStudents

Graduate

Get Student

DevelopProposal

SuperviseResearch

Assess

Get Order

FulfilOrder

SupportGet

Funding

Traditional functional view of an organisation

SALES ANDMARKETING PLANNING PRODUCTION FINANCE OTHER

Recording exam results

MARKER SECRETARY REGISTRYDEPARTMENTEXAM BOARD

DEGREE CERTIFICATE SIGNATORY

• leaves room for error• encourages

duplication• encourages waste

The process view ...

ACADEMICDEPARTMENT

PLANNING PERSONNEL FINANCE

?OTHER

.... provides a complete uninterrupted view of how things are actually done.

Why Adopt A Process View?

• it encourages a customer focus• it allows flexibility needed to meet

changing environment• it makes duplication and waste more

visible• it encourages innovation and creativity• it facilitates cost reduction• it facilitates team ownership• it helps address quality issues

Process review in other Universities

Aberdeen

Abertay

AstonCranfield

Glasgow

Glasgow-Caledonian

Herriot-Watt

Hull

Keele

Leeds

LeicesterLiverpool John Moores

London Guildhall

Loughborough

Napier

Newcastle-upon-Tyne

Northumbria at NewcastleNottingham Trent

The Open University

Queens University of Belfast

Sheffield Hallam

Surrey

Thames Valley

UlsterUWE

Staffordshire

De Montford Bath

Essex

Drivers for Change

• Financial pressures

• Growth

• Desire for transparency and quality of information

• Concern over increasing administration costs

• Information systems review and implementation

of new systems

Success Factors

• Readiness for Change

• Change Agent

• Ownership

• Support from Senior Management

• Communication

• Team’s ability to listen

• Non-threatening approach

Problems/Barriers

• Structures set in stone

• Lack of leadership and drive

• Politics

• Bureaucracy

• People defend their own interests

• Lack of performance measures

• “Just another initiative” syndrome

BPR in UK Universities Methodology(Dr J MacBryde, Strathclyde University)

• Phase 1: Planning & Preparation• Phase 2: Understand Existing

Processes• Phase 3: Redesign• Phase 4: Plan Implementation• Phase 5: Implementation• Phase 6: Continuous Process

Improvement & Measurement

Phase 1: Planning & Preparation

• identify opportunity/need for review• develop and sell business case• communicate• build and train the team• produce a detailed plan including

responsibilities

Phase 2: Understand Existing Processes

• Identify customer/stakeholder requirements

• model processes• identify value adding activities

Phase 3: Redesign

• identify duplication and waste• simplify processes• identify where technology can be used• gain consensus and support• identify training requirements• define new working procedures• specify job changes and team roles

Phase 4: Plan Implementation

• design change management programme• plan implementation

Phase 5: Implementation

• train staff• pilot redesigned processes and seek

feedback• full scale implementation

Phase 6 : Continuous Process Improvement and Measurement

• measure improvements and communicate benefits

• set up periodic reviews to ensure processes are still effective

• encourage continuous analytical thinking “why am I doing this? Do I need to? Is there a better way to do this?”

Why map current processes?

• it shows exactly where existing processes fall down

• it gives you a benchmark • which allows you to measure

improvements • and savings made following redesign

Requirements for a mapping tool

• easy to learn• guidelines to ensure everyone uses a

common language• show why an activity is carried out• show who does the activity• highlight bottlenecks and waste

What are you looking for?

• what are the key steps/activities/tasks that are performed?

• how long does the whole process take ?• how long does each task take ?• what are the delays, waiting times etc..• where do bottlenecks build up• question whether each step is necessary

How do we map processes?

• Structured Systems Analysis & Design Method (SSADM)

• Soft systems methods• IDEF diagrams• Flow charts• Role activity diagrams

IDEF Diagram

Flowchart

Flow Chart

• The starting point of a process is depicted by a circle

• Each processing step is indicated by a rectangle

• the process ends with an oval• a decision point is shown by a diamond• a parallelogram contains useful

information but is not a processing step• arrows show flow (material or information)

Flow Chart

• good because it has a common language• good because it’s quite simple• an established method used in work study

and quality programmes• drawback is that it doesn’t show why an

activity takes place• doesn’t explicitly show who carried out

each activity

Role Activity Diagram (RAD)

Role Activity Diagram (RAD)

• Similar to a flow chart, but it also shows:

• how activities are divided amongst roles• interactions between individual roles• how many roles are involved

Role Activity Diagram (RAD)

• In a workshop setting:

• Easy to produce using Post-Its• Don’t worry about circles, diamonds etc• Don’t be afraid to get it wrong

- easy to move things around• Don’t write on anything else!

Process improvement

• we look for waste:– waiting– transport (e.g. internal mail)– inappropriate processing– unnecessary transport– duplication– correction of mistakes– unnecessary controls

Process improvement

• number of staff involved in steps in the process• time spent by staff on steps in the process• delay time associated with each step• quality measurements such as error rates, customer

complaints etc.• why errors or quality problems arise• what are the value adding steps in the eyes of the

customer• where (location) is each step performed• the number of controls and approvals required - and

reasons why these are needed• any seasonal or cyclical changes to the volume of

transactions

Some problems with mapping

• teams can get bogged down in existing (“as is”) processes

• which in turn encourages the team to stick with what they know and only look for incremental improvements rather than radical change

Example Role Activity Diagrams

• Recruitment• Course Transfers• Tuition fees• Accommodation applications

ExerciseMapping York’s Processes

• STEP 1 Role Activity Diagram for what happens now

• STEP 2 Look for improvements

Summary

• Did you find it easy or difficult?• Were the start & end of the process clear?• Did mapping the process help in

identifying improvements?• Next steps?