From a Business Process Improvement Group on LinkedIn…
The people in this group share thoughts and ideas daily. The following question came up and it has garnered a lot of comments:
Is it right to automate the As-Is Process?
My thoughts…
I tell people to start with the as-is process for several reasons.
First, companies that have improved processes have followed this tried and true process: Document the process; Check to be sure you have it documented properly; Measure how long that process takes today; Improve the process; and measure again to see if you really did improve it.
Using this process, you have defined the status quo and can actually measure your results.
Second, if you thought you could come up with the ‘perfect’ process – I guarantee that by the time you implement it, you will find new ways to improve it. So, the search for perfection is a wasted effort.
Third, implementing your ‘perfect’ process without measuring the existing process leaves you with no way to show that you actually have made any improvement. ‘It just feels better’ isn’t measurable.
Your Thoughts…
Where do you stand in this argument?
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Hi Scott,
I came here through Adam’s post and really like the quote “implementing your ‘perfect’ process without measuring the existing process leaves you with no way to show that you actually have made any improvement. ‘It just feels better’ isn’t measurable.”
This ties into the latest discussion of Wil van der Aalst on whether process mining discovers ‘desire lines’ or ‘cow paths’ (see LinkedIn discussion here: http://fluxicon.com/s/4v) because in the end it’s a discussion about ‘as-is’ analysis.
I believe measuring ‘as-is’ before you do anything else is very important.