I spent most of this afternoon developing a set of process design templates (more of that tomorrow) and got to thinking about the main activities involved in process definition. I’m mentoring graduates business analysts and walking them through the ABCs of process design. It’s baby steps for now. Here’s what we came up with this afternoon.
Depending on the nature of the project, the process definition lifecycle will involve several of the following steps:

1. Identifying high-priority process tasks – This is based on analysis of process requirements and by identifying who is best qualified to create the processes.

2. Analyze Process Requirements – Maintain a clear understanding of what the process is intended to do, how it should be done, and how it should be expressed, for example in MS Word process narratives or in MS Visio flowcharts.

3. Create the Process Architecture – Define and/or refine the organization’s current process architecture.

4. Define the Processes – Add, refine, restructure, and/or delete the processes.

5. Perform the Defined Process(es) – Test the defined processes, and gather measurements as well as identifying process improvements.

6. Assess Results & Identify Improvements – Use the test results to analyze the accuracy of the process. Recommend process improvements if appropriate.

Once the process is completed, the next step is to implement the process and start the knowledge transfer activities.

This involves training and raising awareness amongst staff, partners, and clients depending on the scope of work involved.

I know this isn’t everything.

What did I miss?

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