Process Efficiency

"We've always done it that way..." said inefficient people everywhere!

Most businesses have grown organically with processes and practices being adapted from experience. This can create a tangle of processes which are no longer relevant, either by being outdated by new technology and thinking, or the situation that they were put in place to deal with is unlikely to ever happen again. Everything kind of works, just not efficiently!

Having an external review of your processes will highlight any inefficiencies or outdated processes, allowing you to reengineer them and boost productivity or cut waisted time.

How to you know your processes are inefficient?

Most processes are put in place to ensure a consistent outcome or mitigate a risk. Processes are great, but like anything they need to be regularly reviewed and updated. This can be difficult for the people who created or have lived with them for a long time; it’s a form of institutionalisation. A view from the outside is the easiest way to spot quick wins.

We’ve worked with a variety of businesses, all of whom had processes which were outdated, overly complicated or inefficient. Signs that your processes could be inefficient include:

Single incident rules

Companywide rules based on a single incident which occurred years ago, but has never happened again since but adds time each time the process is conducted.

"We've always done it that way"

Processes which have been passed down from employees who have moved in, without being reviewed. These are the ones where no-one can quite remember why it happens but everyone is sure it's important.

"If it ain't broke..."

Any process which hasn't been reviewed for a number of years will generally be inefficient. The world moves on a such a pace now that any process which is more than a couple of years old is ripe for being inefficient.

"To me, to you"

Any process which requires going backwards and forwards between individual or departments. These are real time sappers and can create bottlenecks, meaning processes take much longer to complete.

Bottlenecks

Processes which can only progress with approval of a single person. This means everything grinds to a halt if the individual is busy, on holiday or ill which can, at best, slow things down, and at, worst cause chaos!

Manual tasks

Automation has come a long way - if you're still manually updating changes in stages, re-keying information or manually reporting data, you are out of date. Human error and wasted time are killers in business.

Let's talk about what we can do to supercharge the efficiency of your business!

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Are your processes efficient?