What is a process? Why is it worth talking about in business?
Do you remember when we wrote about spaghetti, processes, and how to eat without staining your shirt? If not – you can refresh your memory here.
Today, let’s start with a fundamental question: what is a process? And before you think this is a joke – we assure you, we’re being completely serious.
Processes are studied and described in many different ways. Does that mean misunderstandings don’t come up in projects with clients? Of course not – on the contrary, they’re an essential part of our daily work. And can we really talk about process optimization, automation, or work methods if we’re not sure we understand each other? We can – but effective communication is the key to success.
Processes – closer than you think
Before we dive into how we support our partners in managing business processes, let’s return for a moment to an example… spaghetti carbonara.
Cooking as a business process example
Imagine we want to prepare carbonara. Right from the start, questions arise:
-
Do we cook it ourselves or go to a restaurant?
-
What’s our budget?
-
Is the goal the highest quality of taste or simply satisfying hunger?
If we decide to cook it ourselves and don’t know the recipe, more questions appear:
-
Where do we get the recipe – the internet, a friend, a cookbook?
-
What ingredients do we need?
-
Who can help us?
Each answer raises further questions. And that’s exactly what a process is – we have a goal, we need a sequence of actions within a certain timeframe, leading to a result.
Will the result meet expectations? That depends on preparation and having a clearly defined goal. In business, it works exactly the same way.
Processes vs. tasks – how not to lose sight of the goal
Why talk about food? Because it’s easy to get tangled up in details and lose sight of the bigger goal. And in projects, that’s one of the greatest challenges.
With partners from the banking, e-commerce, logistics, and insurance sectors, we discuss processes in many contexts: customer service, complaints, leave management, or internal communication.
Examples of business processes:
-
After-sales process – tracking shipments, updating clients on status, responding to lost packages.
-
Complaint process – reducing customer dissatisfaction time, handling returns or product exchanges properly.
-
Leave request process – minimizing paperwork, enabling electronic approvals, providing feedback, and ensuring replacements.
In each of these cases, the goal is smoother operations and greater satisfaction for the client or employee.
Technology in process management
The larger the organization, the more tasks and challenges: increasing order volumes, changing legal regulations, limited time. This is where technology steps in.
Modern tools and systems:
-
automate task assignments,
-
generate documents,
-
support communication,
-
help model processes (BPA, low-code).
Questions worth asking:
-
Do you treat challenges as part of business processes?
-
Do you model processes in your organization?
-
Do you use BPA tools or low-code applications?
Summary
If you’ve never analyzed processes in your company, it’s worth starting with the definition. Everyone – an analyst, a developer, a customer service employee – sees them from a different perspective. Only by combining these perspectives can we truly talk about business process optimization.
And how do you see processes in your organization?
The optimal tool
for process automation
Seamlessly combines work management, business process management, and business process automation functions. Revolutionize how you work, increase productivity, and streamline processes in your organization.
