Today's change maestro's management tip looks at another view of the continuous process improvement effort in your organization. We need to look at the very essence of the process. One of the initial tools in process improvement s the creation of a process map. It is used to track the various steps in the process so we can better understand the entire process. So the question is are you designing the process map completely or are you leaving out steps? The easiest way to complete a full process map is to start with your client's processes before yo look at yours.
This means you need to understand the process at the supplier as well as the end-user. You need to understand the process of getting materials to you from the supplier and then the process of getting your product or service to the end-user's client or customer.
The continuous process improvement process is in fact a chain. Each segment of the process feeds into the next. So having an understanding of the processes at both ends enables you to track ad improve your processes. You do not survive in a vacuum. Change your process map to a journey map- start with the client process before yours.