Business problem analysis checklist
All process redesign problems are divided into one of six broad types: (1) output problems, (2) input problems, (3) guide or constraint problems, (4) enabler or resource problems, (5) activity or flow problems, or (6) process management problems. As a generalization, we identify the majority of the first four types of problems when we create a scope diagram and we define most of the latter two types of problems when we create process flow diagrams.
Each of these six broad problem types can be subdivided into more specific problem categories.
Output Problems
This type of problem occurs because the customer or some other stakeholder of the process isn’t getting what is needed. It’s possible the outputs are unrealistic, or unnecessary and should be changed, but as things stand the quality, quantity, or timeliness of the outputs of the process-in-scope aren't satisfying one or more relationships. Outputs can take different forms, including physical entities, information or data, or decisions and approvals. In service industries there can be multiple customers, and the nature and frequency of the interactions between the process and customers can be many, dynamic, and very complex.
Quality of Output
Quantity of Output
Timeliness of Output
Flow of Output
Appropriateness of Output
Input Problems
This type of problem occurs because the “suppliers” of the process-in-scope aren’t producing what’s needed by the process-in-scope. As with outputs, inputs to the process-in-scope can be deficient in quality, quantity, or timeliness. Similarly, inputs can take different forms, including physical entities, information or data, or decisions and approvals.
Quality on Inputs
Quantity of Input
Timeliness of Inputs
Flow of Input
Appropriateness of Input
Guide Problems
Guides refer to requirements and constraints that the organization places on a process. Guides are usually policies, business rules, or documents that define what the process should or should not do. Employee manuals and published safety regulations are an example of guides. Reporting requirements and memos sent by accounting or by outside government agencies also constitute guidance.
Process-in-Scope Not Aligned to Organization or Value Chain Strategy
Processes are the way organizations execute their strategies. An organization might decide to pursue a low-cost provider strategy. A given process, however, for whatever reason, might be doing things that assure that its outputs are anything but low cost. This is a strategy alignment problem. Similarly, some processes pursue strategies that are incompatible with the value chain of which they are a part. The assumption is that organization strategy trumps value chain strategy and that value chain strategy preempts process strategy. Process strategies should be changed to assure they actually implement organizational and value chain strategies:
- • Organization strategy with regard to the process-in-scope is unclear.
- • The process is pursuing a strategy incompatible with the stated organization strategy.
- • The value chain strategy is unclear and two or more processes are pursuing uncoordinated or incompatible strategies (e.g., one process is doing something to save money that is costing another process more money).
Problems With Policies or Business Rules
Policies are statements of how an organization intends to do business. Business rules are more specific statements that define how specific situations are to be handled. Logically, business rules should be derived from and aligned with organizational policies:
- • Full implementation of stated policies would make it impossible for the process-in-scope to function.
- • The process-in-scope consistently ignores one or more organizational policies.
- • The process-in-scope consistently ignores one or more specific business rules.
- • Individual employees working in the process-in-scope ignore one or more specific policies or business rules.
- • The process-in-scope is tasked with implementing incompatible goals or policies.
- • The priority of goals or policies that the process-in-scope is tasked with implementing is unclear.
- • The priority of goals or policies that the process-in-scope is tasked with implementing can shift rapidly and the process is unable to make the switch quickly or completely enough.
Problems With Documentation, Manuals, etc.
Problems in this area can be closely related to Problem Category 5.2. They usually arise because documentation is out of date and policies or rules in the documentation are wrong, or because two or more sources of information are incompatible:
- • Documentation is incomplete, out-of-date, or wrong.
- • Documentation is obscure and hard to read or understand.
- • Documentation is written in the wrong language.
- • Documentation is in the wrong format (e.g., electronic instead of digital, wall poster rather than pocket notebook).
- • Documentation is unavailable to people who need it when they need it.
Enabler Problems
Enabler problems occur when the resources needed to perform a process on a day-by-day basis aren’t available or don’t perform as they should. Enabling resources include the employees who actually perform the activities that make up the process, software systems and infrastructure, facilities and equipment, and in some cases bookkeeping or accounting materials that managers or employees need to perform their work or are required to submit.
Employee Problems
- • The process-in-scope is understaffed, or HR cannot find or hire enough employees to adequately staff the process-in-scope.
- • The jobs or roles defined for employees assigned to the process do not match the needs and requirements of the process-in-scope.
- • The employees lack the skills needed to perform the work required to accomplish the process-in-scope.
- • The employees have never been told who is responsible for the various tasks that are part of the process-in-scope.
- • The employees lack skills.
- • The training provided is inadequate or offered at the wrong times.
- • Manuals or other documentation do not offer complete or adequate guidance.
- • The rewards or incentives provided for employees do not support the performance required by the process-in-scope.
- • The employees lack the time, space, or tools required for the performance of some of the tasks involved in the process-in-scope.
- • The employees working on the process-in-scope are given lagging data, but no leading data that they can use to anticipate work, plans, schedule, etc.
- • The employees believe that some or all of the performance required by the process-in-scope is unnecessary, not properly part of their job, or shouldn’t be performed for whatever reason.
IT Problems
- • IT applications require inputs or generate outputs that are out of sync with the actual flow and activities of the process-in-scope.
- • Data are required or are generated that are out of sync with the actual flow and activities of the process-in-scope.
- • IT applications or tools require inputs or make outputs that are hard to interpret, and thus they are inadequate user interfaces leading to inefficiencies or errors.
- • IT applications or tools support normal processing but do not adequately support exception handling, which is a special problem whenever the number of exceptions spike.
- • Activities are performed manually that could be more efficiently performed by a software application.
- • Data must be input more than once because the software applications being used do not share the relevant data.
- • Data or reports provided to employees are inadequate, wrong, incomplete, or out of date.
- • Data arrive that require translation or reformatting to be used.
- • Data that are required don’t arrive, or don’t arrive in a timely manner.
Facilities, Equipment, and Location Problems
- • Resources or tools required by the process-in-scope are unavailable when they are needed.
- • Facilities are inadequate.
- • The equipment is inadequate.
- • The process-in-scope is geographically distributed, and this causes inefficiencies.
- • The layout of the facility causes flow problems or storage problems.
Bookkeeping and Accounting Problems
Process Activity and Flow Problems
This type of problem occurs because the activities within a process don’t work as they should, because the flow between activities isn’t well organized, or because the manager responsible for one or more of the activities on a day-to-day basis isn’t doing an effective job. In many cases the internal process will need to be diagrammed (e.g., with a Business Process Model and Notation diagram) to clarify the problems.
Subprocess or Activity Problems
- • An activity isn’t producing the desired output.
- • An activity isn’t producing anything of value.
- • An activity is taking too long.
- • An activity costs too much.
- • Is the activity well structured, or is it very dynamic? Do performers have to restructure the activity each time it’s performed? Is each individual case treated differently?
- • Do performers need to consult with others frequently as they solve problems and perform the activity?
Flow Problems
Problems with logical completeness
Sequencing and duplication problems
- • Some activities are performed in the wrong order.
- • Some activities are performed sequentially that could be performed in parallel.
- • Work is done and then put into inventory until needed.
- • Some activities are performed more than once.
- • There are no rules for determining or prioritizing flows between certain activities or individuals.
Subprocess inputs and outputs
- • The inputs and outputs of subprocesses are wrong or inadequately specified.
- • Subprocess inputs or outputs can be of inadequate quality, insufficient quantity, or untimely.
- • Subprocesses get inputs or make outputs that are unnecessary.
- • Some subprocesses do things that make for more unnecessary work for other subprocesses.
Process decision making
- • The process-in-scope or one of its subprocesses is called upon to make decisions without adequate or necessary information.
- • The process-in-scope or one of its subprocesses is required to make decisions without adequate or complete guidance from the value chain or organization (e.g., decisions must be made without stated policies or without specific business rules).
- • The organization does not have a clear hierarchy of decision models or rules, and some rules conflict with others.
Process and subprocess measures
Problems With the Management of a Process
This type of problem results from the activities of the individual responsible for managing the process on a day-by-day basis, or from management systems that place constraints on the individual managing the process. Some managers may know they are responsible for managing a process. Other managers may think of themselves as a functional manager—a regional sales manager, or a factory or line manager—and may not have the knowledge or skills needed to manage a process effectively. (In any case they are all employees and the same general considerations apply to managers as to any other employees.)
Day-to-Day Management Problems
The managers or supervisors who oversee the day-to-day operations of specific processes are employees who are associated with the process. They enable the process, and their management practices help determine the success, smooth functioning, or the failure of the process-in-scope. Day-to-day managers are often a source of problems. Here are some typical day-to-day management problems.
Planning and organization problems
- • The manager does not have a clear plan for the process.
- • The manager's schedule is unrealistic.
- • The budget, resources, or staffing are unrealistic.
- • Budget information isn’t correct or available as needed.
- • Known flows in process are ignored.
- • The process manager working on the process-in-scope is given lagging data, but no leading data to use to anticipate work, plans, schedule, etc.
Communication problems
- • The employees don’t understand the goals of the process.
- • The employees don’t believe management is committed to goals.
- • The employees have conflicting goals or incentives.
- • The manager doesn’t communicate with upstream, downstream, or support managers.
- • The manager doesn’t communicate changes to the process when they are required.
Monitoring and control problems
- • Managers do not have appropriate information (measures) on the performance of the process.
- • Managers do not know how senior managers will be evaluating the success of the process (or the performance of the manager).
- • Employees working on the process-in-scope are not held responsible for achieving one or more key process goals.
- • The employees working on the process-in-scope are punished for pursuing one or more key process goals.
- • The employees working on the process-in-scope are not given adequate information about the performance of the process he or she is responsible for managing.
- • The employees working on the process-in-scope are given lagging data, but no leading data that they can use to anticipate work, plans, schedule, etc.
- • The employees working on the process-in-scope are either not rewarded for achieving key process goals, or they are punished for achieving key process goals (e.g., the employee who works the hardest to assure that the process-in-scope meets a deadline is given more work to do).
Manager's goals and incentives conflict
- • The process manager is trying to achieve functional and departmental goals that are incompatible with the goals of the process-in-scope.
- • The process manager does not have the authority, budget, or resources required to effectively manage the process-in-scope.
- • The process manager is not held responsible for achieving one or more key process goals.
- • The process manager is punished for pursuing one or more key process goals.
- • The process manager is not given adequate information about the performance of the process he or she is responsible for managing.
Management Problems Caused by Higher Level Managers
- • External management processes require information that the process-in-scope is unable to provide.
- • External management processes provide information or directions that the process-in-scope is unable to use or implement.
- • External management uses measures not aligned with process goals.
- • External management does not provide feedback about downstream results.
Note that accounting processes, such as budgeting and forecasting, are either management processes and fall under guidance (i.e., they provide managers and employees with information to guide their decisions), or they are support processes, in the sense that accounting data are information that the individual process manager needs to do his or her job.