Business Process Improvement & Optimisation

Work takes too long Too much administration The same work is repeated Too many errors or corrections Work gets stuck waiting for people Staff are unsure who is responsible for what The owner or manager has to be involved in too many routine decisions Customers wait too long Information is difficult to find Different departments do not work together smoothly Processes are difficult to manage as the business grows We rely too heavily on particular staff members Management cannot easily see what is happening We want to improve efficiency generally We know something is wrong but are not sure where the problem is

Clearly documented and generally followed Clearly understood but not formally documented Parts are documented Different people have different understandings of the process The process has developed informally over time There is no clearly defined process Not sure

Yes, consistently Mostly, with reasonable variations Different people use different methods Each department or team has developed its own method The process changes frequently There is no standard approach Not sure

Very clear Mostly clear Some responsibilities overlap Work is frequently passed around People are sometimes unsure who should act next Responsibility often depends on the owner or manager deciding Not sure

Waiting for approval Waiting for information Waiting for another employee or department Waiting for the owner or manager Finding documents or records Re-entering or checking information Correcting mistakes Customer or supplier responses Systems or software are slow or difficult Too much work for the available staff Priorities are unclear We do not know where the delays occur Work generally flows well

Mostly necessary for control or quality Some are necessary and some are not Several steps probably exist because that is how it has always been done We are not sure why some steps exist Not sure

Rarely Occasionally Several times per week Daily Rework is a significant part of the workload Not sure

Incorrect or incomplete information Miscommunication Unclear instructions Different versions of documents or data Customer requirements were not captured properly Work was not checked at the right point System or software problems Staff follow different methods Approvals happen too late We do not know

Most work continues normally A few decisions have to wait Several processes slow down Staff regularly need that person to answer questions Important work cannot continue without them Much of the business depends on knowledge that only a few people have Not sure

They hold important knowledge Only they are authorised to approve things Staff are unsure how to handle exceptions Important information is kept by them Customers or suppliers rely on them They manually coordinate work Systems require their involvement Habit or tradition rather than a clear reason Not sure

Yes, information is readily available Usually, with some manual checking We have to ask staff for updates Information has to be collected from several places Reports are often out of date It is difficult to know what is happening until there is a problem Not sure

Rarely Occasionally They sometimes experience delays They sometimes receive incorrect or inconsistent information Follow-up is regularly required Issues significantly affect service We don't know Not applicable

The process copes well Staff become busier but the process still works Delays increase noticeably More errors occur Management or owners have to become more involved Additional staff are needed mainly to handle administration The current process is already limiting growth Not sure

Very well Mostly well We use several disconnected tools Staff rely heavily on email, spreadsheets or manual workarounds Systems create additional work Important steps happen outside the systems We do not have suitable tools Not sure

Less administrative work Faster turnaround Fewer mistakes Clearer responsibilities Less dependence on particular people Better customer service Better management visibility Better control and accountability Easier staff training Ability to handle more work without proportionally adding staff Easier use of existing systems Better connection between systems More consistent ways of working Not sure yet