Process mapping is a method that promotes a better understanding of processes and helps organizations identify areas for improvement.
Process mapping visually represents a workflow, enabling teams to understand a process and its components more clearly. There are various process maps, which you might know by different names, such as:
These visual diagrams are typically a component of a company’s business process management (BPM).
A process map outlines the individual steps within a process, identifying task owners and detailing expected timelines. They help communicate processes among stakeholders and reveal areas of improvement. Most process maps start at a macro level and then provide more detail as necessary.
There are several different types of process maps. Some mapping techniques include:
Process maps use visual representations, such as basic symbols to describe each element in the process. Some of the most common symbols are arrows, circles, diamonds, boxes, ovals and rectangles. These symbols can come from the Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN) or Unified Modeling Language (UML) (link resides outside ibm.com), which are graphical methods of notation for process maps.
Most organizations need to use only a few of the most common symbols to complete a process map. Some of these symbols include:
When developing your business process map, you’ll want to use this methodology:
The primary purpose of business process mapping is to assist organizations in becoming more efficient and effective at achieving a specific task or goal. It does this by providing greater transparency around decision-making and process flow that in turn helps to identify redundancies and bottlenecks within and between processes.
Because process maps use visual cues and symbols, they make it simpler to communicate a process to a broad audience. This can lead to increased engagement, as long-form documentation can be more tedious for both owners to create and for users to interact with.
By using premade templates within process mapping software, teams can easily collaborate and brainstorm ways to streamline work processes, enabling business process improvement. In doing so, businesses can also better address specific challenges, such as employee onboarding and retention or declining sales.
Some specific benefits of process mapping include:
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