As businesses grow and more people join the team, business processes evolve. Naturally, different people carry out processes differently. Non-standard procedures creep in and with them, confusion and a decrease in productivity.
Implementing business process standardisation is vital to increase productivity, customer satisfaction, employee retention and much more. By understanding the areas of friction in particular processes, standardising and furthermore digitising them, you’ll set your business up for continued scalable success.
What is process standardisation and why is it important?
Business process standardisation defines how a business process will be performed so that it’s done the same way, by the same person, or group of people, every time.
So why is it important to have a standard process? Business process standardisation is the first step towards business process automation or business process management. Standardising processes increases accountability, transparency and traceability and it is the direction that most modern businesses are taking to improve efficiency, regardless of whether they are in a people or product industry.
How to implement standardisation of processes
- Identify the process that needs standardising
Take a step back from the day-to-day and take a broad view of your business. What processes are in place to keep the business moving forward? Perhaps you own a chain of cafes and your store managers carry out a regular stock take before placing orders. Each store manager has their own way of organising their branch, some keep a spreadsheet of stock and update it on a weekly basis, while others have a printed list on the wall in their stock room, which they update manually.
- Map the process
Once you have identified the processes that need improvement you’ll need to map them out to understand the sticking points. Process mapping will help you to visualise these areas.
- Create a standard process
Once you have an understanding of the process it’s time to standardise it. In the case of the cafe chain, creating a central stock-taking process for all branches is part of standardising the stock and ordering process. Branch managers are able to see available stock across all branches and existing stock can be relocated before making new orders.
Adopt appropriate technologies
Introducing a digital tool such as Kizeo Forms to standardise processes such as stock takes, quality inspections, work reports and much more creates a centralised store of data that is updated in real-time. By using a digital tool such as Kizeo Forms you can generate customised reports and set up automation and alerts. You can learn more about the benefits of digital forms here.
What are the benefits of business process standardisation?
Productivity
With less deliberation and guesswork going into business processes, employees can carry out tasks more quickly. For example, the process of quoting for a building project was standardised through the use of Kizeo Forms to input all necessary data on an iPad during the site visit. Paper notes were retired and quotes could be generated in just 24 hours as opposed to the 3-4 day turnaround previously.
Employee motivation
Giving employees a clear framework to complete tasks gives them visible milestones to aim for. By understanding what is required of you you’re able to plan your time effectively and to feel a sense of achievement when a process is completed in the way that it should be. Using digital tools can increase employee motivation by up to 40%.
Transparency and accountability
Defining roles and responsibilities for standard procedures gives a clear picture of who should be doing what and when. Detailing what is required by somebody as part of a process makes them accountable. For example, an estate agency standardised the process of completing inventories for rental properties. They now complete the inspection using Kizeo Forms and capture images of the condition of the property in real-time with the tenant present. There is agreement on the property condition and fewer disputes between landlord and tenant.
Accuracy
Data capture is vitally important in all areas of business, and having a standard process for this increases accuracy. For example, the payroll process in a consultancy business was standardised with the use of Kizeo Forms to record employee data such as salaries, commission payments and expenses. Historically these three elements of payroll were separate and employee pay was often inaccurate. By linking expense forms and commission payments with payroll data through Kizeo Forms, the accuracy of pay has increased considerably.
Conclusion
Start enhancing your business now by standardising one or two processes, by introducing digital technology such as Kizeo Forms, you’ll be able to scale business process standardisation across the company and apply it to processes in multiple departments. Scale your business and maintain quality, efficiency and profitability.
"Kizeo helps us to be more reactive and provide information to clients quicker"
Overall: Facility optimization has been improving because of using Kizeo. Improving data accuracy and accoutability help us to jump a step further in the process optimization and reliability.
Pros: The Kizeo application is userfriendly and can be use no matter internet connection works. No specific training is required for a new user, only the motivation to quite pen and paper!
-Marien Z., Suez