e-Newsletter: Connect to Solutions
PROCESS MAPPING: A Capacity-Building Technique & Best Practice for Nonprofits of the Future
By CNE Affiliate, Nancy Vengrow
What if you could dramatically increase the capacity of your organization, determine clear accountability among staff, and identify opportunities for improvement? Process Mapping enables you to do these things and more.
WHAT IT IS: Process Mapping is both a capacity-building technique and a method to develop a performance management system and standards.
Process mapping has been around for decades, but gained in popularity during the rise of the Quality Movement of the 1980’s. American businesses were anxiously seeking ways to compete with Japanese imports by improving upon their quality, eliminating waste, and exceeding their customer expectations. Since then, process mapping evolved into a significant management technique for a service-based economy which is dependent on a design model, and an information system that supports the flow of work.
HOW IT WORKS: A process map is a way to graphically demonstrate how work gets done, by whom, and across functions within the organization.
The “as is” process map is similar to a modified flow chart and represents an opportunity to develop a shared understanding about how work gets done, who is supposed to do it, and it serves as the starting point for developing improvements.
Using the map as a visual aid makes it easier to identify where mistakes are most likely to be made, or where there might be delays or even confusion about who should do what. Problems that may appear to be caused by personnel conflict or a lack of cooperation can be a result of the work flow design itself.
A “should be” process map reveals how work is supposed to happen, by whom, and by when. It provides a method to identify how data might be captured, where and in what way, in order to improve efficiencies and ensure high quality process management. In addition, the map can assist in determining standard operating procedures (SOPs), organization structure, and employee job descriptions.
WHY USE IT: If you do not know what the processes are (or work that takes place) at a “worker bee” level, it is difficult to allocate costs to specific programs that may, in fact, be more expensive than you realize.
In addition, without a map, it is difficult to determine where there may be bottlenecks, identify improvement opportunities and determine clear accountability. With or without an external facilitator, process mapping is a proven technique that helps management as well as those responsible for the work. It also serves as a communication context to help management and staff engage in a constructive dialogue in order to free up hidden capacity, and improve overall performance for the clients in service to the mission. After all, isn’t that what we’re all about?
Contact Jeff Vengrow, Director of CNE Solutions at (330) 762-9670 or vengrow@cfnpe.org for more information or to speak with one of our staff.