28 Oct
Business processes are the backbone of your business operation. If implemented properly, these processes can significantly improve the value of your business. In this article you will understand the business process, Types , lifecycle and reasons to improve business process.
What is Business Process?
A business process is defined as a collection of business activities and tasks that when performed by people or a system in a structured course, produce an outcome that contributes to the business goals. A business process includes the following elements.
- Activity/tasks
- System
- Data
- Workflow
- Employees
A business process is a series of steps performed by a group of stakeholders to achieve concrete goals. Each step in a business process denotes a task that is assigned to participants. It is a building block for several related ideas such as process automation, business process management, etc.
Examples of Business Processes
Processes differ depending upon the type, location, and industry of a business. There are a few processes that are practiced across all businesses around the globe. Following are a couple of business process examples that apply to almost any type of business.
Sale Process
The sale process is a fundamental business process across various industries. The common sales process observed by most businesses involves the following steps.
- Sharing the sales proposal
- Receiving orders for services/products
- Sending quotes
- Agreement to terms & conditions
- Delivery of products/services
- Billing
- Payments
- Updating records of sales
The order of these steps can be different for different businesses. But the general theme of the sale process remains the same.
Customer Service
Customer service is another important process that is a part of business operations globally. It involves the following steps.
- Receive customer complaints/issues through CRM
- Acknowledging the customer concern
- Resolving the issue
- Communicating the status to customer
- Officially recording the issues and it’s solution
Types of Business Processes
Here we have mentioned 3 types of business processes.
- Operating Process
Operating processes are the main functions of the business process. These processes are directly related to the fundamental values, mission, and vision of the business and are also known as primary processes.
- Managing Process
The processes that plan, organize, control and coordinate all the functions of the business fall under managing processes. These processes are goal-oriented, it includes motivating and helping your team to achieve their targets. These processes also help in forming a direction for the further growth of your business.
- Supporting Process
These are processes that are not directly related to the delivery of the service or products to the customer. But they help the business create an environment. Where the primary process can work better.
Lifecycle of Business Process
Besides having global business processes, businesses also need to set up their own processes unique to their business type. In order to successfully incorporate new processes, businesses need to follow the business process lifecycle.
There are 7 steps of the business process lifecycle.
Step 1: Define your goals
What is the purpose of the process?
Step 2: Plan and map your process
What are the strategies needed to achieve the goal? This is the broad roadmap for the process.
Step 3: Set action and assign stakeholders
Identify the individual tasks that your system and team need to do it in order to execute the plan.
step 4: Test the process
Run the process on the small scale to see how it performed. Observe any gaps and make required adjustments.
Step 5: Implement the process
Start the process in a live environment. Properly communicate and train all stakeholders.
Step 6: Monitor the result
Review the process and analyze its patterns. Documents the process history.
Step 7: Repeat
If the process is able to achieve the goal set for it, replicate it for future processes.
Why Should You Improve Your Business Processes?
Efficient and effective processes are the key to the rapid growth and sustainability of your business. Here are some reasons to get you started with business process improvement.
It Helps You Save Costs
Process improvement enables you to identify unnecessary spending of resources and find effective ways to produce the best process output. This allows you to save on costs that otherwise can be utilized for other important priorities.
It Enhances the Customer Experiences
Enhanced business processes directly contribute to business goals and ensure customer satisfaction. Effective and efficient business processes produce exceptional outcomes that delight your customer.
It Boosts Productivity Within Your Teams
Process improvement helps you to exterminate nonessential and unnecessary activities and tasks from your process. It enables you to re-engineer your existing process with more effective techniques. This encourages your employees to take up the more challenging tasks as opposed to clerical redundant activities.
It Helps You Live a Better Life
Improved business processes lead to better operation, better lives, and better business outcomes. Once your processes are streamlined, you can enjoy your personal life, without any stress because your processes will ensure smooth business operation for you.
Wrap up
When you start a business. It is important to create, understand, and implement the processes regardless of the scale of your business. Now that you have an idea of how to create and map out these processes, you can start working on them.
Marjina Muskaan has over 5+ years of experience writing about finance, accounting, and enterprise topics. She was previously a senior writer at Invyce.com, where she created engaging and informative content that made complex financial concepts easy to understand.
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