Early in 2014: Conduct a Business Process Review

As a best practice, consider evaluating your business processes at least once a year. As your business changes – grows or contracts, launches new products and services, hires new employees and gains new customers – your business processes will need to change or be updated for the business to continue to succeed. Too often organizations do not set aside time to evaluate their business processes with an eye toward improvement in how the work is getting done and the customer’s needs are being met. Let’s face it – businesses are changing every day! There is no way the same processes that enabled for past success will enable for future success. I’m not suggesting a complete haul-over of your busienss processes are necessary on an annual basis, sometimes even the smallest tweaks make such a difference!

As a leadership team, take these best practice steps to develop a plan to evaluate current business processes with a goal of refinement to ensure the organization can continue to succeed in a competitive, global marketplace. 

1. Begin by selecting those critical business processes that have not been evaluated in at least a one to two year period (choose no more than 2 – 3 initially)
2. Pull together small project teams that include managers and individual contributors from those areas where business processes need to be reviewed (e.g., if you are evaluating your sales processes, including sales managers and individual sales team members as well as individuals from marketing and operations and other areas that impact/work with sales.)
3. For each project team, select a team leader and provide them the following high level agenda to get started:
   1. Document current process (if already documented – ensure accurate and reflects what is actually being done!)
   2. Look for where the process can be improved for efficiencies and increased effectiveness.
   3. Design a new/updated process to enable for those efficiencies and increased effectiveness.
   4. Test it out!
   5. Make any adjustments and finalize the new process.

Ensure someone from the leadership team checks in frequently on progress, answering questions and providing support. Once the company goes through the process once, it is easier the next time around!

Make reviews of business processes an annual process within your organization!