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OnlineStudentGuide

OpusWorks2016,AllRightsReserved

MappingtheProcess

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TableofContentsLEARNINGOBJECTIVES......................................................................................................................................2INTRODUCTION....................................................................................................................................................3WHATISAPROCESS?................................................................................................................................................................3PROCESSMAPPING....................................................................................................................................................................3WHATCANPROCESSMAPPINGPROVIDE?...........................................................................................................................4BENEFITSOFPROCESSMAPPING...........................................................................................................................................4PROCESSMAPSSYMBOLS.........................................................................................................................................................4

THREETYPESOFCHARTSORMAPS..............................................................................................................4WHATISARELATIONSHIPMAP?...........................................................................................................................................5THERELATIONSHIPMAP.........................................................................................................................................................5SWIMLANECHART...................................................................................................................................................................6BOUNDARIES...............................................................................................................................................................................7REWORKLOOP...........................................................................................................................................................................8PROCESSMAPPINGHINT.........................................................................................................................................................8

LEVELSOFDETAILS............................................................................................................................................9LEVEL1.......................................................................................................................................................................................9LEVEL2....................................................................................................................................................................................10LEVEL3....................................................................................................................................................................................10

FIVESTEPSFORPROCESSMAPCREATION...............................................................................................11STEP1-PLANTHEPROCESSMAPPINGEXERCISE...........................................................................................................11STEP2-DETERMINETHEPROCESSSCOPE.......................................................................................................................12STEP3-GATHERDATAANDINFORMATION.....................................................................................................................12STEP4-CREATETHEDRAFTMAP.....................................................................................................................................13STEP5-VALIDATEANDFINALIZETHEMAP....................................................................................................................13RULESOFTHUMB...................................................................................................................................................................14USINGPROCESSMAPS-BLUEPRINT...................................................................................................................................14USINGPROCESSMAPS...........................................................................................................................................................15PROCESSMAPPERCEPTION.................................................................................................................................................16

SUMMARY.............................................................................................................................................................16©2016byOpusWorks.Allrightsreserved.Version5.5August,2016TermsofUseThisguidecanonlybeusedbythosewithapaidlicensetothecorrespondingcourseinthee-LearningcurriculumproducedanddistributedbyOpusWorks.NopartofthisStudentGuidemaybealtered,reproduced,stored,ortransmittedinanyformbyanymeanswithoutthepriorwrittenpermissionofOpusWorks.TrademarksAlltermsmentionedinthisguidethatareknowntobetrademarksorservicemarkshavebeenappropriatelycapitalized.CommentsPleaseaddressanyquestionsorcommentstoyourdistributorortoOpusWorksatinfo@OpusWorks.com.

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LearningObjectives

Uponcompletionofthiscourse,studentwillbeableto:• Defineaprocessandaprocessmap• Describethebenefitsofprocessmapping• Describethedifferencesbetweenrelationshipmaps,swimlanecharts,andprocessmaps• Discussthethreelevelsofdetailusedtodescribeacomplexprocess• Walkthroughthefivestepsofprocessmapping• Demonstratehowtoapplyaprocessmap

Introduction

WhatisaProcess?

Tobegin,let’sreviewthedefinitionofaprocess.Aprocessisachainoflogical,connected,andrepetitiveactivitiesthatutilizesanorganization’sresourcestorefineanobjectforthepurposeofachievingaspecifiedresultforitscustomers.Thecustomersmaybeeitherinternalorexternal.Becausethisdefinitionappliestobothserviceandproductionprocesses,theobjectbeingrefinedcanbeeitheraproductoraservice.Putsimply,aprocessisaseriesofactivitiesthattransformsasetofinputsintoaspecificsetofoutputs. ProcessMapping

Aprocessmapisusedtoshowthetransformationofmaterialsandresources,calledinputs,intoaproductorservice,calledtheoutput.Aprocessmapshowsthesequenceofactivitiesanddecisionpoints.Processmapscanbeconstructedseveralways,rangingfromstickynotesonawallorhand-drawndiagrams,tosophisticatedsoftware-generateddisplays,suchasMicrosoftPowerPointandVisio. Theterms“processflowdiagram”,“processflowchart”,orsimply“flowchart”areusedinterchangeablywith“processmap.”Allofthesetermsrefertomappingtoolsusedtoshowtheflowofmaterialsandproductsthroughthetransformationprocess.Forsimplicity,wewillsticktotheterm“processmap”throughoutthismodule.Processmappingisapplicabletoalltypesofenvironmentsandprocesseswhethertheyareservice,manufacturing,transactionaloradministrative.

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WhatCanProcessMappingProvide?

Aprocessmapshowsaprocessasitcurrentlyexists.Byprovidingthisfundamentalknowledge,aprocessmapenablestheteamtoconfirmthescopeoftheproject.Ithelpstheteamunderstandanddefinesupplierandcustomerrequirements;andidentifygapsinmeetingthoserequirements.Theas-isprocessmapisgeneratedbytheprocessimprovementteamorasub-setofitsmembers. BenefitsofProcessMapping

Mappingaprocesscanhelpaprocessimprovementteaminmanyways,includingthefollowing:itimprovesteamcommunications;providesanoverviewoftheprocess;servesasanexcellentreferencedocument;facilitatesprocesschanges;helpsinprocessplanning;identifiesinter-relationshipsbetweenorganizations;andaidsintroubleshooting.ProcessMapSymbols

Althoughtherearemanywaystodrawaprocessmap,themostbasicwayistousesymbolstorepresentactivities,andconnectingarrowstoillustratetheconnectionandflowbetweentheactivities.Themostcommonsymbolsusedinprocessmapsareshownhere.

ThreeTypesofProcessMaps

Thereareseveraldifferenttypesofchartsormapsthatmaybeusedinprocessmapping.Threeofthemostcommontypesarerelationshipmap,swimlaneprocessmap,andprocessmap.Let’slookatabriefdescriptionofeach.Arelationshipmapprovidesanoverallviewofaprocess.Itshowsthedepartmentsofanorganization,andillustrateshowthedepartmentsinteractwitheachother,withsuppliers,andwithcustomers.Thismapprovidesaveryhighlevelviewofwhodoeswhatinaprocess.Itisusedprimarilyasafirststepwhenmappinglarge,complexprocesses.

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Aswimlaneprocessmap,alsoknownascross-functionalmap,showswhichdepartmentperformseachstepofaprocess,anditidentifiestheinputsandoutputsofeachstep.Thistypeofmapincludesmoredetailthanarelationshipmap,butlessdetailthanaprocessmap.

Aprocessmapmayfocusonasinglestepfromaswimlanemaporanoverallprocessinvolvingmultiplesteps.Itallowsthemappingteamtoexpandeachsteptoshowmoredetail,basedonthedefinedscopeoftheproject.Othertypesofprocessmapssuchasaspaghettidiagramandvaluestreammaparecoveredinanothermodule.WhatisaRelationshipMap?

Nowlet’stakeacloserlookatrelationshipmaps.Asyoujustlearned,arelationshipmapisamacro-levelpictureofaprocessthatshowswhichdepartmentsarepartoftheprocessandhowtheyrelatetoeachotherandtherestofthesystem.Relationshipmapsdonotdescribeactivitiesorsequencesinasmuchdetailastheothertypesofmaps.However,theycanhelpidentifyprocessboundaries,customers,suppliers,informationflow,andthemajorprocessflowthatlinkstheplayers.Relationshipmapsaremostapplicabletoextensiveandcomplexprocessesthatinvolvemanydepartments.Insuchcases,arelationshipmapcanbeaverygoodstartingpointforateam’sprocessmappingactivity.Beforeitcancreateadetailedprocessmapforacomplexprocess,ateammayfirstneedtocreatearelationshipmaptounderstandwhichdepartmentsareinvolvedandhowtheyrelatetotheprocess.Itisimportanttonotethatweareusingtheterm“departments”verygenerally,toencompassindividuals,departments,organizations,andcomputersystems.TheRelationshipMap

Therelationshipmapexampleyouseehereisforasimplesalesorderprocess.Tocreatethismap,ourfirststepistoidentifythevariousdepartmentsinvolvedintheprocess.Inthisexample,weidentifythefollowingdepartments:Customer,OrderEntry,Order

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ManagementSystem,Sales,andShipping.Oncewehaveidentifiedthedepartments,wedrawboxesaroundthem.Ournextstepistodrawarrowsbetweenthedepartmentstoshowtherelationships,orinteractions,betweenthem.Welabeltherelationshipswhereverpossible.SwimLaneProcessMap

Nowlet’stakeacloserlookatswimlaneprocessmaps.

Theswimlaneprocessmapreceiveditsnamebecauseorganizationalresponsibilitiesonthechartareseparatedintozonesbyhorizontalbars,whichresemblethelanemarkingsofanOlympicswimmingpool.Thezonesofthechartaredividedbyfunctionorfunctionalarea.Eachzoneisassignedtoagivenfunction,department,group,orindividual,andtheprocessstepsthatareperformedbyeachfunctionare

showninthezoneofthatfunction.Aswimlaneprocessmapmakesitveryeasytoseeandidentifywhichsteps,withintheoverallprocess,aretheresponsibilityofaspecificfunction,department,orindividual.Theswimlaneprocessmapexampleshownhereisforanorderentryprocess.Asyoucansee,itisdividedintothreezones,OrderEntry,Sales,andOrderManagement.Theprocessstepsforeachfunctionordepartmentarelistedwithinitszone.Forexample,“verifydiscount”islistedintheSaleszonebecausethesalesdepartmentisresponsibleforthatstepintheprocess.

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Boundaries

Processmapsarevaluabletoolsformanyimprovementactivities;andtheycanbeacriticalelementofaprocess’sdocumentation.Tocreateaneffectiveprocessmap,itisimportantfortheteamtoclearlyfocusonthecorrectactivity.Todothis,itmustdefinetheboundariesoftheprocess.Theboundariesestablishbeginningandendingpointsandhelpclarifyprocessownershipissues.Iftheboundariesarenotclear,theprocessmapwilltendtobegeneralized,anditwon’tpermitaccurateassessment.Inaddition,clearlydefinedboundariesallowtheprocessmaptofocusontheareawheretheactualvariationtotheprocessishappening.

Let’slookatanexamplethatdemonstrateshowboundariesaredetermined.Thispersonisprocessingandverifyingaccountspayable.Todevelopaprocessmapofthisprocess,wouldthemappingteamstartatthemailroomandendwhenthecheckismailed?Definingtheboundariesoftheprocesswillprovidetheanswer.

Todeterminethestartandstoppointsoftheprocess,theteammustfirstdefinetheboundaries,orthescope,oftheproject.Inthiscase,itdecidestomaptheprocessforexternalaccountspayableonly.Itthendeterminesthattheexternalaccountspayableprocessstartswiththereceiptofthebillbytheaccountspayabledepartment,anditendswithsystemverificationinfinance.Definingtheprocessboundarieshelpsprevent“scopecreep.”

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ReworkLoop

Animportantfeatureofprocessmapsisthereworkloop.

Atanydecisionpointontheprocessmap,ifthedecisionforcestheprocessbacktoanearlierpoint,anditleadsbacktothesamedecision,itiscalledareworkloop.Inthisdiagram,forexample,aboltandwasherareinstalledintoaplateandaretorquedtofivefootpounds.Thistorqueiscriticaltotheoverallassembly,andasaresult,itisverifiedbeforeattachingtheplateassemblytothebase.Iftheverificationstepshowsthetorqueiswithinspecification,theplateproceedstothenextprocessstep.Ifthetorquemeasuresoutofspecification,theentireplateandboltassemblyisreturnedforrework

viathereworklooppath.Ifthereworkissuccessful,andthetorqueisverifiedasOK,theassemblycanthenproceedtothenextstep.ProcessMappingHint

Tocreateitsprocessmap,theteammayfindithelpfultouseanerasablewhiteboardandstickynotes.Whenusingthistactic,theteamplacesthestickynotesonthewhiteboardtorepresenttheprocesssteps,andthendrawsflowarrowsconnectingthestickynotes.Becausethearrowscanbeeasilyerasedandredrawn,anddecisionblockscanbecreatedbyrotatingthestickynotes,thismethodisveryflexibleandallowstheteamtomakechangesinasnap.

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LevelsofDetails

Itisimportanttorememberthataprocessmapisnotsimplyadocumentationtool;itisalsoananalysistool.Whentheappropriateinformationisincludedonaprocessmap,itcanbetheprimarystandardoperatingprocedureforaprocess.Therearethreelevelsofdetailneededtocreateaprocessmapthatincludesallnecessaryinformation.Level1isahighlevelviewoftheprocessflow,withthemajorprocessesidentified.InLevel2,eachofthemajorprocessesisbrokendownintoitssub-processes.Additionalinformationisincludedtoshowthehand-offsbetweenpeople,organizations,andsystems.SwimlaneprocessmapsareanexampleofLevel2detail.InLevel3,eachsub-processmaybefurtherbrokendownuntiltheteamissatisfiedthatithasadequatelydocumentedtheprocess.Itshouldbeconfidentthatanyonewhoreadsitsprocessmapwillunderstandasmuchabouttheprocessastheteamdoesfromwalkingit.Level1

TheprocessmapyouseehereisaLevel1viewofanationalhealthandfitnesscompany’sprocessforactivatingmembershipcards.Itprovidesanend-to-endview,inonlythreetofivesteps,thatillustrateswhattheprocessmustdoinordertodeliverwhatisneeded,andexpected,bythecustomer.

Toanalyzetheproblem,themappingteamwilldrilldownintotheareaitthinksiscausingthemostproblemsordefects.Inthiscase,theteambelievestheproblemisinthecardproductionprocess.Therefore,itwillcreateaLevel2viewofthecardproductionprocesstoseeitinmoredetail.

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Level2

Let’stakealookattheLevel2detailmaptheteamcreated.Here,theteamdrilleddownfromtheoverallmembershipcardactivationprocesstothecardproductionsub-process.Asyoucansee,thisLevel2mapshowstheprocessstepswithinthecardproductionprocess,andthehandoffsfromoneareatoanother.Canyounowidentifythevitalsystemsthatinfluencetheprocess?

ByanalyzingthisLevel2map,theteamdeterminesthatthereisanissueinthecardembossingstep.Next,itmustdrilldownevenfurthertoexaminethecardembossingstep.Todothis,itcreatesaLevel3map.Level3

HereyouseetheLevel3processmaptheteamcreated.Tocreatethismap,theteamdrilleddowntoexaminethecardembossingstep,orsub-process.Asyoucansee,theLevel3mapisverydetailed.Itprovidesalotofinformationaboutprocessperformance,includingdetailedhandoffs,allthedatasources,andtheinclusionofCycleTimeinformation.Level3processmapshighlightreworkloopsanddelays–itemsthatnegativelyimpacttheCycleTimeoftheprocess.Mappingteamsshouldpayparticularattentiontothemanualsteps,incontrasttoautomatedsteps,becausemanualstepsgenerallyhaveahigherprobabilityofdefectsandlongerCycleTimes.WhencreatingtheLevel3map,theteamcanalsoincludedatasuchasCostofPoorQuality(COPQ),DefectivePartsperMillionOpportunities(DPMO),andtheflowthroughthedecisionpoints.

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Anorganization’sinternalandexternalcustomersaretheultimatejudgeofprocessquality.BecauseNonValue-Addedactivityprovidesnobenefittothecustomer,itisimportantthattheteamidentifyandeliminateNonValue-Addedsteps.Duringitsfinalanalysisoftheprocess,theteammustdigdeepforanswers.Someexamplesofquestionsitmightaskincludethefollowing:Whatvolumeisflowingthroughtheprocess?Doesthisparticularprocessstepoccur30timesadayor300timesaday?Whataretheratesofthedifferentoptionsatadecisionpoint?Forexample,howmanytimesisthedecision"yes”andhowmanytimesisthedecision"no"?Thesedecisionrateswillgiveanindicationofaprocess’seffectiveness.FiveStepsforProcessMapCreation

Next,wewillwalkthoughthefivebasicstepsforcreatingaprocessmap.Thosestepsare:1)Plantheprocessmappingexercise;2)Determinetheprocessscope;3)Gatherdataandinformation;4)Createadraftmap;and5)Validateandfinalize.Step1-PlantheProcessMappingExercise

StepOneistoplantheprocessmappingexercise.TheprocessimprovementteamreviewstheproblemstatementasspecifiedintheProjectChartertoassuretheunderstandingandexpectationsarestillcorrect.Theobjectiveofthemappingexercise

mustalsobedeterminedinthisstep.Determiningtheobjectiveallowstheteamtounderstandthecomplexityoftheprocess.Dependingonthecomplexity,themappingactivitymaytakeafullday,ormultipledays.Allteammembersmustfullyunderstandwhattheirrolewillbe,andtheymustbewillingtocommitthetimenecessarytosupporttheproject.

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Step2–ConfirmtheProcessScope

StepTwoistoconfirmtheprocessscope.TheprocessimprovementteamreviewstheprocessboundariesthatarespecifiedintheProjectCharterasitbeginstodevelopanas-isprocessmap.Itmustdeterminewhattriggersthestartoftheprocess.Therearetwowaysinwhichaprocesscanbegin.First,aconditioncanbeperceived,suchasalowinventorylevel,thattriggersaresponse.Alternately,theprocesscanbetriggeredwhenademandoccurs,suchasarequestfromacustomer.Onceithasdeterminedthestartingpointoftheprocess,theteammustdeterminetheoutputsorconsequencesthatendtheprocess.Duringthisstep,theteammustalsoidentifywhichorganizationallevelsneedtobeincludedintheprocessmap.Todothis,itmayaskitselfquestionssuchas,“Doestheprocesscutacrossorganizations,orisitconfinedtoasingleorganizationorbusinessunit?”;“Doestheprocessinvolveseveralfunctionsorjustone?”;and“Howmanyworkgroupsareinvolved?”Step3-GatherDataandInformation

StepThreeistogatherdataandinformation.Tobegin,allteammembersshouldwalkthroughtheprocessasagroup.Often,thiswalkthroughisomitted.Skippingthewalkthroughisabigmistake,however,becauseitisacriticalstepindevelopinganaccurateprocessmap.Duringthewalkthrough,theteamphysicallyfollowstheprocessflow,frombeginningtoend.Thepurposeistounderstandwhatisactuallybeingdone,andwhyitisbeingdone.Thisinitialwalkthroughshouldbebriefandquick,butshouldallowthetimenecessaryforeachmembertogainagoodbasic

understandingoftheprocessflow.Togetagoodsenseofhowtheprocessissupposedtowork,theteammayalsofindithelpfultoconductone-on-oneorgroupinterviewsandevaluateexistingdocumentation.

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Step4-CreatetheDraftMap

StepFouristocreateadraftmapoftheprocess.Aprocessmapisananalysistool,butalsotellsthestory.Anorganization’sprocessmapshouldtellthestoryofitsprocessbyshowingwhathappensinawaythatisclear,eventopeoplewhoarenotfamiliarwiththeprocess.Todothis,themappingteammustestablishsomemaplayoutrulesregardingtheuseofsymbols,arrows,andhowtheprocessflowwillbeshown.Toavoidconfusion,theteamshouldkeeptheuseofsymbolstoaminimum.Tocreateadraftmap,theteambeginsbydrawingouttheprocessinitscurrentstate,orhowitishappeningatthetimeofthemapping.

Asyoulearnedearlierinthismodule,stickynotesareaneasyandconvenientwayfortheteamtofillintheadditionalstepsthatoccurintheprocess.Whencreatingthedraftmap,theteamshouldpostordrawenoughdetailtomakethemapuseful.However,itshouldavoidgettingsidetrackedwithminoractivitiesthatmayoccur,butaren’treallypartoftheprocess.Ifateamweremappingitsshippingprocess,forexample,itwouldincludethepackagelabelingdetail,butnottheactivityoffillingoutthelabel.

Increatingthedraftmap,theteammustbesuretodrawconnectingarrowstodefinematerials,information,orproductmovementthrougheachstepoftheprocess.Itmustalsoincludedecisionpoints,reworkloops,andinspectionpoints,allofwhichmayhelpidentifyNonValue-Addstepswithintheprocess.Step5-ValidateandFinalizetheMap

StepFive,thefinalstepofprocessmapping,istovalidateandfinalizethemap.

Oncetheteamhascompleteditsinitialdraftofthecurrentstateprocessmap,itshouldwalkthemappedprocessagain.Basedontheactualdataitcollectsfromthiswalkthrough,theteammakesanynecessarycorrectionstoitsmap.Next,theentireteamshouldreviewtheresult.Initsfinalreview,theteammustdeterminewhethereverystephasbeencaptured.Italsomustensurethatallreworkloopshavebeenidentified.Todothis,theteamshouldaskaquestionrelatingtoeachspecificprocessstep.Forexample,inashippingprocess,ifapackageisleavingthe

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labelingstep,theteammightaskthequestion,“Doesthepackagehavealabel?"Iftheanswerisyes,thepackagecontinuesontothenextstep.Iftheanswerisno,themapmustshowhowthepackageisreturnedtoapreviousstepforlabelplacement.Thisexamplecouldbeidentifiedonthemapbyadecision“diamond”symbol,withconnectingarrowstoindicatethenextstepoftheprocess,dependentupontheoutcomeofthedecision.RulesofThumb

Herearesomebasicguidelinesandrulesofthumbforcreatingeffectiveprocessmaps:1)Processmapsareusednotonlytodocumentaprocess,butalsotoanalyzeit.Inotherwords,aprocessmapdoesn’tjustshowwhattheteamknowsabouttheprocess,butcanalsobeusedtoexaminewhatitlearned.2)Aprocessmapshouldbean“asis”representation.Forthisreason,itisimportanttolabelallreworkloops.3)Aprocessmapshouldcontaindata.Eachstepshouldbequantified,ifpossible,andincludethingslikesigmalevel,CostofPoorQuality(COPQ),anddefectrate.4)AprocessmappingactivityshouldinvolveaBlackBeltoraGreenBelt“walkingtheprocess.”5)Aprocessmapshouldbeconsidereda“livingdocument”andtherefore,itshouldbereviewedandrevisedfromtimetotimeasimprovementsdevelop.UsingProcessMaps-Blueprint

Aprocessmapprovidesablueprintofaprocess.Thisblueprintenhancesteamcommunicationasitworkstosolveprocessproblems.Itisalsoaveryhelpfultoolduringtherootcauseanalysisstageandforidentifyingwhichprocessinputsandoutputsshouldbemeasured.Inthecontinuousimprovementcycle,teamsalsouseprocessmapstoidentifyareasoftheprocessthatmightbeimproved.Next,wewillshowyouanexampleofaprocessimprovementteamusingaprocessmapasitworkstogethertosolveaproblem.Notethatintheexampleyouareabouttosee,theteamreferstoitsprocessmapasaflowchart.Asyoulearnedearlierinthismodule,bothtermshavethesamemeaningandareoftenusedinterchangeably.

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UsingProcessMaps

Rob:Wearegettingcustomercomplaintsregardingourinvoices.Ourcustomersarefrustratedbecausewhentheirbillarrives,theyhavelessthanaweekuntiltheDUEDATE.NowIhaveaskedHollytobringinthecurrentinvoiceprocessflowchartsothatwehaveastartingpointforourdiscussioninfindingtherootcauseofourproblem.Andy:That’sgoodbecauseIhaven’tseentheprocessflowchartinsixmonths.YouknowasIlookatit,Idon’tthinkwe’rereallydoingitthisway.

Rob:Wellwhydon’tIjustdrawupacompanionflowbaseduponwhatwethinkishappeningtoday.Astheteamdrawsupwhatishappeningnow,itisimportanttonoticethattheteamismoreefficientandfocusedontheissue.Theyalsoareontracktomakesomediscoveries.Holly:Whenwearereadytoshipthecustomer’sorderwechecktoseeifwecanshipanyotherorderstheyhavewithusbeforeweinvoice.Sometimestheseordersareheldacoupleofdays.I’mwonderingwhenistheinvoicedated.Andy:Itappearstomethatourprocessassumesshipmentwithin24hoursaftertheorderisputtogether.Now,thesystemthinksitiscompletebutthewarehouseisstilllookingforotherorderstoconsolidateitwith.Rob:Ithinkweneedtolookatthatportionoftheprocessmoreclosely.Let’ssetupaproceduretomeasurethenumberoforderconsolidations,verifytheshipdate,theinvoicedate,andmeasureourcycletime.Ithinkwemayhavelocatedtherootcauseoftheproblem.Holly:Yeah,thatsoundsgoodtomeRob.Rob:Holly,whydon’tyoutaketheleadandpulltheplantogether.

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ProcessMapPerception

Theteamhascometorealize,asistoooftenthecase,thatwhattheythinktheprocessis,maynotbeaccurate.Often,althoughchangesmayhavebeenmadeintheprocess,thedocumentationdoesnotalwaysreflectthechanges.Comparingthedocumentedflowwiththecurrentprocessflowallowstheteamtobegintounderstandwhatisactuallyoccurringintheprocess.Thisnewunderstandinghelpstheteamvisualizewhattheywanttheprocesstobe.InLean,thisdesiredvisionoftheprocessisreferredtoasthe“FutureStateValueStream.”ItisimportantthatthemappingteamnotsimplyrelyonitsSubjectMatterExpert’sinterpretationoftheprocess.EveniftheSubjectMatterExpertiscurrentlyworkingtheprocess,theteamshouldalwayswalktheprocessitselftovalidateit.

Summary

Processmappingcanbeapowerfultoolforbothidentifyingperformanceimprovementopportunitiesanddeterminingtheunderlyingcausesofperformanceproblems.Afteraprocessismapped,itiseasytospotwaste,redundancies,omissions,communicationproblems,andworkflowinefficiencies.