Getting Traction for “Process”

What the Experts Forget

Prepared for Dafna Levy’s blog BPM Intro

Alec Sharp
Consultant
Clariteq Systems Consulting Ltd.
West Vancouver, BC, Canada
asharp@clariteq.com
Traction
for
“Process” Speaker background
Alec Sharp, Clariteq Systems Consulting
ƒ 25 years consulting and facilitation experience: Process Applications
• Business Process Redesign / Improvement
(discover, model, analyze, improve processes)
• Application Requirements Definition
(Use Cases and Service Specifications) Data

• Data Modeling and Management

ƒ Consulting and instruction worldwide

ƒ Principal author –
“Workflow Modeling” (Artech House 2001)
(second edition Fall 2008)

The point…
…I spend a lot of time working with “process” – often with people who
don’t know, don’t want to know, or actively dislike it.

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Traction
for
“Process” From an August WfMC newsletter…
Dear Colleague,
Despite decades of theories and methodologies
from BPR to Six Sigma,
the rise of Business Process Maturity Models,
and a wide variety of technical standards for
Business Process Management,
many organizations still find that processes are unowned,
unmanaged, and out of control - in short, many
organizations are "process ignorant."
• Theories and methodologies – exactly… theories!
• BPR – “bastards planning redundancies”
• Six Sigma – the “Six Stigma” phenomenon
• BP Maturity Models – “Who says?” “Who cares?”
• Technical standards – BPMN, and what it’s for and not for
• BPM – see “BPR” above…
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Traction
for
“Process”
Factors to consider to gain traction for “process”

1 – Reactions to “process” – not what we’d hope

2 – Total lack of clarity on what constitutes a “business process”
3 – “Process improvement” means someone is doing a bad job
4 – Use of methods that are unsuitable for mere mortals
5 – Not applying the new mantras of “conceptual thinking” and
“simplicity” to the world of business processes
Disclaimer:
Not exhaustive,
not a methodology – a 30 minute
mix of:
• observations and ideas
• examples
• tips and techniques
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Traction
for
“Process”
1 – What they think when they hear “process”
Strange but true…
Many people do not find “process” a fascinating topic!

Quiz: what words or phrases come to mind for most people

when the topic is “process?”

What I wanted to hear…

• Eliminate friction
• Work together / pulling together
• Cooperation
• Alignment (my favourite term when discussing “process”)
• Working to our potential
• Free up time for value-added work
• Higher job satisfaction
• etc.
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Traction
for
“Process”
1 – What they think when they hear “process”
What I actually heard…
• Downsizing or outsourcing
• Fix the process, lose my job
• Boring
• Dehumanizing
• Efficiency experts
• Dumbing-down
• Stifle creativity
• Bureaucracy and red tape
• “How will I get around the process?”
• “It won’t work for us – we’re different!”
• “Process, process, process – I am so sick of process!”
• “Ewww – the P word.”
So…
be careful how much you talk about “process,” avoid labels
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Traction
for
“Process”
2 – Clarify what is / is not a “business process”

True, but useless…

“A business process is
a linked set of activities
that collectively deliver value
to the customer of the process.”

“A business process can be decomposed

into a hierarchy of processes.”

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Traction
for
“Process” 2 – Acknowledge varying opinions on what a “process” is
If you can’t get agreement on what a business process is,
you’ll have a hard time modeling, improving, or managing one!

Differences around size Differences around concept

Bigger than a business process: Confused with organisations:
- Customer Relationship Management - Our Customer Service process
- A “process area” or “process family”
(a related set of business processes)

Just right:
- Acquire Customer
- A true business process

Smaller than a business process:

- Identify Prospect or Set Up Customer
- A sub-process or activity or fragment Confused with systems:
- Our Oracle CRM process
Much smaller than a business process:
- Calculate Credit Limit or
Create Customer Account Confused with technology:
- A procedure or use case - Our e-Business process

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Traction
for
“Process” 2 – What does a good process look like?
ƒ Process: a defined sequence of steps and decisions,
to achieve a particular result

Event
Steps and decisions
Result
(“work”)

9 Action or decision 9 Workflow models show 9 Product

9 Time (temporal event) the flow of work: 9 Service
9 Condition who, does what, when 9 Information

ƒ Problem: diving too quickly into the work – the “how” –

before clarifying the result – the “what”

ƒ A simple method for clarifying “what” Acquire

1. Name potential process in “verb – noun” format Customer
2. Flip name into “noun is verbed” format
3. Ensure this is the intended result of the process
- each instance must be discrete and identifiable 9 Customer is
- instances must be “countable” Acquired
4. No mushy verbs! Manage, monitor, administer, handle, track,
support, maintain, etc
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Traction
for
“Process”
2 – Example: how big or small is a business process?

Telecom company redesigns Service Provisioning processes, makes things worse!

Service Facilities Installation Service Customer

Order Management process Assurance Update
Management process process process
process

Customer Facilities Installation Network Customer

Service Management & Monitoring Records &
Repair Billing

Process: Move Telephone Service

Capture 1:1 Assign 1:1 Install 1:1 Confirm 1:1 Activate
Service Network Premise Service Customer
Order Facilities Equipment Quality Account

Trigger: Customer result:

Customer wants
Process: Move Telephone Service
€ Telephone service
telephone service z is moved
moved.
€ Telco result:
Active account
Vague process naming, confusing process with organization, with receivable
not focusing on what the client wanted from the triggering event posted
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Traction
for
“Process” 2 – Be prepared to deal with objections

VP of Workflow at banking organization:

“Typical consultant – that’s just semantics”

“Oh-oh…
this isn’t going the
way I planned”

First principle – “demonstrate, not convince”

Me:
“That’s fair –
let’s try it with your processes…”

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Traction
for
“Process”
2 – Discover, sequence, link “Commercial Loans” processes

Solicit Settle
Payment Book Loan Register
Identify Loan Customer
Prospect Fund
Accept Loan
Loan
Application Assess Solicit
Loan Prospect Distribute
Application Qualify
Payment
Receive Prospect
Payment

Accept Assess
Identify Qualify Solicit Register Fund Book Solicit Receive Distribute Settle
Loan Loan
Prospect Prospect Prospect Customer Loan Loan Payment Payment Payment Loan
Application Application

1:1 1:M 1:1 1:M 1:1

Accept Assess
Identify Qualify Solicit Register Fund Book Solicit Receive Distribute Settle
Loan Loan
Prospect Prospect Prospect Customer Loan Loan Payment Payment Payment Loan
Application Application

1:1 1:1 1:1 1:1 1:1 M:1

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Traction
for
“Process”
2 – Process Area, Business Processes, Subprocesses

Commercial Loans Management

Acquire Customer

Identify 1:1 Qualify 1:1 Solicit 1:1 Register

• Process Area
Prospect Prospect Prospect Customer • Business Process
• Subprocess
1:M

Grant Loan Collect Payment

Accept 1:1 Assess 1:1 1:M
Fund 1:1 Book Solicit 1:1 Receive 1:1 Distribute
Loan Loan
Loan Loan Payment Payment Payment
Application Application

M:1

Settle Loan
No sub-
processes
identified yet

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Traction
for
“Process”
2 – Five sensible guidelines for “business process”

1. Activities linked 1:1 are probably part of the same process

2. “Action verb – noun” naming that indicates primary result
3. Generally triggered by an event (action or time) outside your control
4. At the end is a result that makes a stakeholder happy
5. The same “token” or “work item” moves through the whole process,
although it will be transformed (e.g., “loan application” -> “loan”)

Customer result:
Grant Loan Loan funds are
Trigger:
€ received
z
Customer submits Accept 1:1 Assess 1:1
Fund 1:1 Book
Loan Loan
loan application
€ Bank
Loan Loan
Application Application result:
Loan asset on
books

Token: A loan,
from application to booked loan

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Traction
for
“Process” 2 – Summary: what is a business process?
Clear, defensible, understandable guidelines:
ƒ Naming in “action verb – noun” format
ƒ Discrete, countable results
Sales Production Logistics Accounts
process Receivable
process process
process

1 triggering Sales Production Logistics Accounts 1 result for

event: Receivable
each stakeholder
Customer
Fulfill Order: an end-to-end business process Customer: Goods accepted
signals
Owner: Payment received
demand Capture Build Transport Collect Performer: Commission credit
order order WIP payment Association: Order statistics

Ultimately, business processes are all about alignment

Eliyahu Goldratt: “Local optimization yields global suboptimization.”
ƒ Local (functional or departmental) improvement is often achieved by
adding constraints that hurt the whole
ƒ Process focus: shift from task efficiency to outcomes
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Traction
for
“Process” 3 – Let’s agree – functions are not bad!
Sales Production Logistics Accounts
Receivable

Earliest
Final
triggering Process: Fulfill order results
event

Process
• End-to-end business processes
deliver valued results by aligning
the objectives and work effort of
multiple functions
• Results are discrete – “countable”
• Must be explicitly identified and
managed as a whole
Function
• Specialized skills, knowledge, tools
• A centre of expertise – an efficient
way to provide resources across
multiple processes
• Work is ongoing
• Organizational design is usually
based on functional areas
• We prefer not to use the somewhat
negative term “functional silos”

The people who manage and work in these specialized

areas often don’t like the term “functional silo”
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Traction
for
“Process” 3 – My favourite picture
Function Function Function Function
1 2 3 4

Critical
Business Process results

Under each function, list:

• Performance goals for each function
• Applications used by each function
• Data required by each function
• Technology platforms used by each function
• Core responsibilities by function

Nothing else seems to illustrate the disconnects as well

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Traction
for
“Process”
3 - Three common obstacles to performance

1. Processes are not identified properly and made visible

2. No “process owner” to set overall direction and resolve conflict
3. The goals of the functions often conflict with the goals of the process

A/R goal:
VP VP VP VP precision vs
Sales Production Logistics Finance rapid collection

Sales Production Logistics Accounts

1 Receivable
2
If the process isn’t Who owns the process? A
identified and Process: Fulfill Order process owner/steward/officer
managed as a whole, must be appointed
it will never get better
on its own! Process goal:
3 Shortest cycle time
Sales goal: Production goal: Logistics goal:
late-quarter sales minimize setup lower shipping costs

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Traction
for
“Process” 3 – The process consultant’s philosophy

“Honest criticism is hard to take, especially from a relative,

friend, acquaintance, or stranger.”
Franklin P. Jones

That’s why we must…

• make it clear – what “processes” really are
• make it visible – how their processes behave
• make it blame-free – because everyone’s working hard
…and then, let the facts speak for themselves

We must also help everyone understand that…

• there’s more to improvement than “faster and cheaper”
• what matters the most are the human factors
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Traction
for
“Process”
3 – Process goals: not always “faster and cheaper”
Too often, companies lack focus, or focus on the wrong discipline.

Great processes don’t try to be all things to all people –

strive to be great at one differentiator, and good at the other two…
Consistent, predictable, error-free,
Operational and efficient.
Excellence
More efficient, but less flexible in
changing direction or meeting
needs of individual customers.

Continuous and rapid Tailors service delivery to

introduction of new Product Customer the processes of individual
products and services. Leadership Intimacy customers.

More flexible for More flexible for adapting

adapting to needs of to needs of individual
new offerings, The original reference: customers, but less
but less efficient. The Discipline of Market Leaders efficient.
Michael Treacy and Fred Wiersma
Addison-Wesley 1995
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Traction
for
“Process”
3 – Critical factors: more than just workflow and IT

Business mission, strategy, Process ownership, Culture, core competencies,

goals, & objectives objectives, & differentiator and management style
drives drives drives
*
Business Process

enables enables enables enables enables enables

Workflow Information
*
Motivation & Human
* Policies and Facilities
Design Systems Measurement Resources Rules (or other)

• Actors • Applications • Employee • Skills • Constraints • Workplace

• Steps & • Data assessment • Matching • Business layout
decisions • Information and incentives actors to rules that the • Equipment
• Flow - • Integration • “Reward and tasks process • Furnishings
sequence and punishment” • Recruitment, enforces
handoffs • Process selection and • External Enabler – A factor
performance placement & internal that can be adjusted
to impact process
indicators performance.

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Traction
for
“Process”
3 – Assess process by all enablers
Business mission, strategy, Process ownership, Culture, core competencies,
goals, & objectives objectives, & differentiator and management style
drives drives drives
*
Business Process

enables enables enables enables enables enables

Workflow Information Motivation & Human Policies and Facilities

Design Systems Measurement Resources Rules (or other)

• Too many • Unavailable • Inappropriate • Mismatches • Out-of-date • Mismatch of

actors information performer or between task policies or work needs
• Non-value - • Re-keying of process value and numerical limits and facility
added steps data measures performer • Excessive • No support for
• Duplicate • Missing • Internal rather • Inappropriate review or team work
steps functionality than customer recruiting and approval steps • Layout that
• Delays and • Awkward focus placement • Restrictive impedes flow
bottlenecks interfaces • Measures of • Too little labor contracts of people or
• Excessively • Lack of support tasks vs. empowerment • Overly complex material
sequential for workflow outcomes coding
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Traction
for
“Process”
4 – Make it visible: choose appropriate techniques

Challenge – Showing how the process really works,

in a way that everyone can understand, highlighting what matters.
Decomposition Process
Many techniques to choose from… Area
• Simple swimlane diagram
• Traditional ANSI flowchart Initially! Process Process Process Process

• Data Flow Diagram (DFD) We use

Sub- Sub- Sub-
• Process action diagram Process Process Process decomposition
to clarify scope
• IDEF0 diagram
• ARIS EPC -
Event-response Process Chain)
• Business Interaction Model
• OMG BPMN BPD -
Business Process Modeling Not’n
Business Process Diagram
• OMG UML Activity Diagram Workflow Model
(Swimlane Diagram)
• and many more… Later!
Initially, use simple swimlane diagrams
to show the reality of process workflow.
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Traction
for
“Process”
4 – Graphic principles for involvement & understanding

Models should aid

understanding by:

9 Abstracting
9 Using visual cues
consistently
9 Masking
unnecessary detail
9 Highlighting
what matters
9 Keeping implementation-
level widgets out of
business-level diagrams

Practice
voluntary
simplicity!
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Traction
for
“Process”
4 – Simple swimlane diagrams support understanding

Complete semester enrollment (partial)

yes
Prepare Submit Provide
Decide to
enrollment enrollment supporting
proceed
package package documentation
Give up
no

Submit Decide if yes

enrollment supporting
package documentation Note - This is simplified - we haven't
needed shown the "transport mechanisms."

no
days later!

no
Confirm Decide if Enroll student
Prepare
course waiver per Etc.
confirmation
prerequisites required instructions
yes Must be printed
and signed.
Key points!
Approve or
• Simple – easy to read reject waiver
request
• Shows all actors and
therefore all handoffs
• Shows sequence and
dependency left to right
Grant
• Shows reality – Financial Aid
not “sugar-coated”

25
Traction
for
“Process”
4 - Detail and complexity impede understanding

Might be a fine system or

” data flow diagrams,
s.
ert but from a business
x p perspective…
r e • Visually intimidating
o
i sf (too many symbols)
i t y • Hard to follow
li c (left to right flow?)
p
sim • Doesn’t illuminate
, what matters to the
u rs business
e
at (who, what, when)
am And so…,
for It may be inaccurate
s
it yi because the client
x
ple
can’t verify it, so it
m probably misses a lot
o
“C of “interesting” human
activity

26
Traction
for
“Process”
4 – Comparison - a “great” workflow model

bj e ct.”
!
yof a su
ste r
s to ma
te p
fi rs t s
the
n are
p l i ficatio
d sim
r an
“Or de
ann
Thom
a s M
!

27
Traction
for
“Process”
4 – Three keys to keeping workflow models relevant
1) Visual – show sequence and dependency:
flow lines strictly go in from the left, out from the right

Wrong! Right!

2) Accessible – use the simplest possible set of symbols

Sorry – maybe it’s time to get rid of the old
2 flowchart template, and re-think your tools !
3

3) Honest – no “deception by sanitization”:

shows every actor that holds the work
28
Traction
for
“Process” An ongoing issue
Sharp’s postulate:
Implementation-level techniques will always
swim upstream into the domain of business analysis
• Relational Database Design –> data modeling
(and most data modeling tools were at least originally
thinly disguised physical DB design tools)
• O-O technologies –> OOAD
• UML –> E-R modeling, workflow modeling, etc.
• BPMN –> business process workflow modeling

Corollary:
Any successful technique will be applied outside the
domain for which it is suitable
• “Everything’s an object!”
• “A business process is simply a very large use case!”

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Traction
for
“Process” 5 – Simplicity matters!

There just isn’t time anymore for unnecessary complexity

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Traction
for
“Process” 5 – The lost art of progressive detail

Scope Concept Detail

• Planning • Understanding • Specification

• A “context diagram”
• Clarify boundaries,
process vs. organization
• Decomposition
• Boxes
• “Business-oriented”
overview of concepts
• Maximize participation
• The “flow of work,” case
by case (“tell a story”)
• Boxes and lines
• All detail needed for
implementation
• Completeness and rigor
• Detailed flow (perhaps in
BPMN form) plus “out of
context” rules, procedures,
logic, etc.
• Boxes, lines, operators, …

Key points!
Org. Org. Org. Org. Org.
• Multiple diagrams for each
process – “one process,
Process
one case, one scenario” per
diagram.
• Possibly two levels of detail
– “handoff” & “service”
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Traction
for
“Process” 5 – Progressive detail – the key points
ƒ All types of modeling should progress through three
well defined levels of detail, each providing a
different perspective for different audiences
Scope

Concept

Detail

ƒ Key Point! Getting through the “concept” level

• takes approximately 20% of the effort
• delivers very high business value
ƒ The level of precision and rigor that you need
in order to build something is far greater than that
which is necessary for the business to understand
if they’re going to like what you build.

*** Finalist – run-on sentence of the year ***

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Traction
for
“Process” Key points

1. Recognize that not everyone is The products

thrilled by “process”
2. Provide clarity on what a
“business process” is
3. Address cross-functional issues,
and make it blame free
4. Avoid the deep dive into detailed
and complex models
5. Simplicity and conceptual
thinking
9 Simplicity
9 Consistency and repetition
Attitude
9 “It’s a privilege to learn
about your business!”
9 “It’s new to me!”
9 “Seek first to understand”
9 Business first,
technology later

Thanks!
Alec Sharp
asharp@clariteq.com
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