Process Mapping
Process Mapping
Also known as a Process Workflow Chart, Process Mapping is a visual planning and management tool that defines workflow activity within a business. Focusing more on tasks rather that job titles, this tool emphasizes inputs, outputs, controls, and mechanisms within different business systems. Using Process Mapping enables your business to better document and understand the flow or sequence of events in your work processes.
Why Should You Map Your Processes?
Process Mapping can be applied to all aspects of a business and showcase how each system works together. The visual component of Process Mapping enables employees to see tasks outside of their job titles and emphasizes how each task is vital to the business goal. Mapping your processes provides structure to business systems to see where the business succeeds, needs improvement or focus, and addresses questions related to performance, quality of work life, and work design. As a problem-solving process improvement tool, Process Mapping can be used in place of procedures for many business systems.
What are the Benefits to Process Mapping?
Mapping your businesses’ processes grants your company the ability to see system efficiency and flaws. Being able to pinpoint opportunities for improvement in work systems enables your business to improve and refine processes, cut unnecessary steps, and save your company time and resources. While enabling your current staff to see the “big picture” of your workflow activities, Process Mapping provides more effective employee onboarding showcasing to new hires how their tasks fit into the business system.
Is Process Mapping Required by Certain Standards or Regulations?
Process Mapping is not a widely required tool, but it has been recognized and mentioned in multiple national standards. Under Quality Management System-Requirements and processes, Process Mapping is required for ASQ/ANSI/ISO 9001-2015 to establish, maintain, and continually improve a quality management system. Testing or calibration labs do not require Process Mapping, but it can used in 17025:2017 ISO where a documented procedure is required.
Key Steps to Consider When Mapping your Processes
- Perform Investigations to determine validity, branches involved, and/or analysis of causes
- Perform a Current Business Evaluation
- Determine Risks and Opportunities
- Identify potential corrective or preventative actions
- Performance Review-Quality management
LATOPIA’S PROCESS IMPROVEMENT STRATEGY
Labtopia defines the current state of business processes and develops a comprehensive vision and recommendations for improvements to core business processes.
Labtopia’s strategic goals and objectives include:
- Removal of any “Silo” processes from within the organization
- Identify “As-Is” core business processes, and determine areas of redundancy, manual operations, and data fragmentation
- Recommend improvements to core business processes (“To-Be”) to optimize the use of resources and identify where technology or other solutions may support these new processes
Contact Labtopia today to help you map your processes and improve your organizations efficiency!