Processes: A framework for growth
Processes – they can sound like bureaucracy and forms. Yet, above all, processes are a handrail that helps people navigate complex organisations without having to renegotiate every detail. They are what make organizations scalable and, from a certain point on, essential to the growth of startups and SMEs.
The common thread is this: processes only work when the people behind them understand and support them. That is why every piece of process work starts with the people who deal with it every day—in workshops, alignment sessions and joint testing. A process is only truly implemented once the people involved say, “We can work with this.”
The same applies to digital tools. Their usability and overall user experience strongly influence whether people adopt them. Basic practical requirements also have to be met, such as ensuring that everyone can access the tool in their own working environment, whether on the move or externally.
Selected references
People processes
- Recruitment and onboarding for a rapidly growing SME
- Talent management and succession planning in international corporations
- Learning and development, from needs analysis to documentation
- Objective setting and performance management for managers and employees
- Workforce scheduling for healthcare teams
Technical processes
- Maintenance and inspection of fire dampers for a modern 75,000-seat stadium
- Defects-liability management in construction
- As-built documentation and change tracking for stadium construction plans
- VOC-emissions reporting for an industrial paint shop with an associated paint distributor
- Compliant operations across seven COVID-19 testing centres in Germany under one brand
Logistics
- Organising shuttle hubs for UEFA EURO 2024
- Developing a package of measures and revising standard operating procedures for crowd management at 69 regional rail stations across Greater Toronto
- Mobility and traffic management: temporary diversions for major events
- Inventory management for a medium-sized, family-owned manufacturing business
- Procuring and distributing critical pandemic supplies during ongoing testing-centre operations amid sharply fluctuating availability and prices
Quality
- Managing warehouse logistics, activation, final assembly and quality control for the delivery of trackers and gateways
- Establishing standardised issue-resolution and corrective-action processes among multiple partner companies in an IoT project
- Complaint management and 8D reports in an automotive project for a premium OEM
Image credit: Photo by Hai Nguyen on Unsplash.