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Process optimization: how to implement?

Planning and organization are essential tasks to stay focused, increase productivity, and increase a company’s results. For that, process optimization and the promotion of improvements is a necessity and can bring lasting results for your company. So, check out this step-by-step article about how to efficiently implement process optimization in your company.

Good reading!

Why is process optimization important?

how to implement process optimization.

Optimization is based on the interaction between activities carried out in different sectors of the company. It involves understanding, planning, organizing, measuring, and monitoring activities in order to achieve the objectives and goals of the company.

By implementing management actions and tools, the company is able to increase productivity, reduce costs and resources, increase market competitiveness, boost results, and make work processes more efficient.

Read more: What are the benefits of standardizing processes?

Check out below a step-by-step about how to implement this action in your company.

Step-by-step for efficient process optimization

Process optimization is a constant action within a company. It ensures greater team productivity, process efficiency, eliminating failures, reducing costs, and improving results.

To help you, we brought a quick guide on how to implement good process management in your company, check it out.

1. Perform a mapping

Now that you know the importance of implementing process optimization in your company, it’s time to get your hands dirty.

The first step is to map and understand the company’s processes. To do this, you can use schemes to help you understand how each sector works, what the functions are, and who is responsible for each sector. In addition, it helps you to understand how activities are integrated between sectors.

At this first moment, you can identify which are the weaknesses and strengths, which are the most complex operations, if there are flaws in the procedures, among other important aspects.

In other words, with the mapping carried out, it’s possible to make a critical analysis of all activities and to identify which sectors require the most effort and should undergo modifications.

Therefore, through process management, it’s possible to promote improvements and optimize results.

2. Track and analyze the workflow

Tracking and analyzing the workflow after the mapping is an important step in optimizing processes.

At this stage, it’s possible to eliminate activities that are unnecessary, to recognize practices that are well implemented, to know how the sectors are integrating, and to identify failures with more precision.

Having all this material in hand, it’s time to make strategic decisions to improve and control the productivity of the team, as well as to increase efficiency and seek solutions to solve practices that need improvement.

3. Improve communication

Improve team communication

Communication is important in any sector of the company. It facilitates processes and avoids considerable failures.

In other words, communication influences the success of the operation.

When the information is not clear, all sectors can be harmed and, as a result, cause errors that compromise the entire process and reduce the results.

In addition, communication failure can delay productivity, so improving communication is an important aspect when implementing process optimization in your company.

Use a standard communication system to send information in a correct and accurate manner. This way, you make sure that important information is not lost.

Finally, communication can provide a greater connection not only between team members but also between customers and suppliers, facilitating the processes.

4. Train your team

Changes demand adaptation and constant training.

There is no point in creating a whole strategy without communicating to the team or without providing proper training.

Therefore, inform all employees about the new work processes and make them aware of the need to reach new standards of excellence for an improvement in the processes.

All mapping and development of improvements must involve the team and count on the participation of all. This means that everyone must participate in the changes for the common good of the organization.

After all, the entire team must know exactly what their responsibilities are, what are the changes, and how to carry out activities to become more efficient.

And yet, when you have a team that is fully committed to promoting change, everyone can collaborate to find flaws and also suggest improvements in processes.

5. Use technology to facilitate the process optimization

technology-to-improve-productivity

Betting on process optimization without the use of technology can be a difficult task and a waste of time.

Therefore, use technology to facilitate processes and computerize your company.

The adoption of technology reduces the time, increases the speed in the processing of information, and promotes the optimization of processes, making them more practical and efficient.

And yet, technology is also a strong ally of productivity and also facilitates cost reduction.

Another benefit is the possibility of making activities more flexible for process improvements. That is, with integrated systems and cloud management tools, processes become more agile, and employees can access information online.

Finally, technology can also facilitate communication between sectors and between employees, avoiding failures and inconsistencies.

Check out in the video below how to use technology to organize company processes.

6. Delegate Responsibilities

This story of keeping a single person in charge of the sector can be a lag in productivity.

Because, when the manager is not in the company for a certain reason, the whole team can be harmed. After all, all the important information was concentrated on just one person.

Focusing all decisions on a manager is bad, so the process needs to be fluid and make the roles of each participant in the process clear. The greater the clarity, the better the flow and performance of the process.

Therefore, delegate responsibilities to more than one person. Thus, you will have more than one person trained and able to make important decisions at any time, with or without the presence of the sector manager.

7. Monitor and track results

Finally, performance indicators should be monitored frequently, so everyone can focus on results, and can actively act to optimize processes.

Even after an analyzed and improved process, monitoring and constant follow-up are important.

This enables a complete analysis of how new processes are carried out. And also allows the detection of new failures and continuous improvement.

In conclusion, mapping, analyzing, and organizing processes, using technology as an ally, and adopting efficient project management strategies are ways to enable the optimization of processes in your company.

By taking this step-by-step, the chances of increasing productivity, reducing company costs and resources, and increasing results only increase.

What did you think about this content? Leave your opinion in the comments and share this material with other companies and managers.

Reference Material

  1. YouTube – Personal and Business Productivity
  2. Zapier – How to Automate your Business and Gain Efficiency
  3. Google Calendar – Organize your Calendar Practically and Effectively
Categories
blog Process

What are the benefits of standardizing processes?

Standardizing processes is an effective strategy for the company. When correctly implemented, it is able to increase results, improve productivity, and promote the quality of the company’s products or services. So, check out in this article, what is standardization, what are the benefits of process standardization, and how to use technology to your favor.

What is the standardization of processes?

In general, the standardizing processes describes the set of rules and standards that govern how employees in an organization must perform a certain task.

It’s about organizing and developing a form of work common to all employees, who understand what is expected of them in each one of the activities. In addition, standardization guarantees the assertiveness and quality of the product or service offered by the company.

what is standardizing processes

Standardization aims to answer the following questions:

  • What is the process and what is its purpose?
  • Who is part of the process?
  • How is the process carried out?
  • What are the functions and activities of the process?
  • Why does this process exist and what is its contribution to the organization?
  • What is the expected result?

Check below how to start standardizing processes effectively, based on these questions.

How to start standardizing processes

The standardization of processes is important, as it guarantees a better way to perform a task. Standardizing means presenting a more effective way to achieve the desired result.

And to start a standardization, first, you need to understand what the process is and what the purpose of the process to that organization. In addition, all employees must participate.

After understanding what your objective is, you need to perform a mapping of the functions, that is:

  • How will the process be done?
  • What are the steps of the process?
  • What are the functions and the activities and who is responsible for each of the steps?
  • How many sectors will be involved?
  • And, finally, what is the expected result of this process?

Thus, during the process, it’s possible to identify failures and make improvements. It’s necessary to measure the performance of the processes and monitor the indicators for an efficient standardization of processes.

But why is process standardization important? Check out the next topic.

Benefits of process standardization

Now that you know what process standardization is and what you need to do to get started, check out the main benefits of process standardization for your company.

1. Allows you to use resources more appropriately

By standardizing, it’s possible to distribute resources more intelligently and with better planning.

That is, when process standardization is applied, it’s easier to predict where resources will be applied and how they can be used.

Another benefit is that managers acquire more security to predict where it is possible to save resources, without spoil the process.

2. Increase productivity

how to boost productivity with the organization of processes

Boost productivity is something that is sought with enormous frequency.

And when you have a good strategic plan, with efficient process management and well-trained professionals, the resources are used correctly and, with that, the production can work in excellent conditions to achieve the results that the company expects.

By standardizing processes, employees work in a more organized way, without having to search for answers to carry out the activities, as everything will be in one place. And with that, productivity is increased.

Also, standardization promotes greater employee performance, and this means reduced waste and the possibility of doing more with the available resources. It eliminates the inefficiency and ambiguity of information and increases not only productivity but also quality.

3. Reduce costs

The cost reduction is a consequence of the standardization of processes.

What does that mean?

That is, by performing an efficient standardization, management is able to predict where to reduce costs to also reduce product prices, attract new customers, and thereby increase profitability.

And not only does it increase profitability, but it also reduces process costs, due to the intelligent use of resources and the reduction of waste.

Impressive, isn’t it?

4. Improves the quality of products/services with standardizing processes

The market is competitive, and it is necessary to use all the necessary resources to attract new customers.

Therefore, the standardization of processes makes the production steps clearer, more objective, and well defined. This way, it is easier to monitor and improve the qualities of the products or services offered.

That is, when performing a standardization, you can check failures and predict improvements in a timely manner, thus increasing customer satisfaction.

5. Facilitates process control

By standardization, the processes become clearer and more objective, and the lack of information is reduced. In addition, by identifying unnecessary steps, it is possible to eliminate them efficiently, in order to optimize the process.

Finally, the activities are delegated to the people responsible, so it is easy to control the process and also the performance of each employee.

6. Improves employee engagement and motivation by standardizing processes

How to start process standardization

With well-defined standards, it is possible to invest in employees well-trained. And an employee who feels valued will work with more engagement and more motivation.

In addition, with standardization, employees are able to visualize what, how, and why it should be done. That way, they will feel more confident when performing the task. And they will be proud to be able to visualize the result.

After all, most activities are the responsibility of employees. And when they receive training compatible with the company’s objectives, it’s possible to count on a productive and focus team.

Therefore, all employees must be informed about the standardization of processes from beginning to end, to avoid doubts, and to make them feel part of the organization.

7. Eliminates failures and provides for improvements

When you are clear about what needs to be done, you perform the activities optimally, avoiding failures, or avoiding having to perform the activities again. And that goes for the whole team.

When performing the standardization, you create a routine for performing the functions, and, with that, you will be able to identify failures in time to propose improvements.

As a result, you increase team productivity and promote efficiency.

Use technology to standardizing processes

In conclusion, investing in technology to manage the company’s processes can result in time and resource savings, and a low cost. In addition to optimizing the results that the company wants to achieve.

With appropriate management software, planning becomes easier and decision making becomes faster. So, invest in technology.

Learn in the video below how to use technology to organize company processes.

Reference material

  1. Youtube – Personal and Business Productivity
  2. Zapier – How to Automate your Business and Gain Efficiency