York Information Management and Systems

1. York Information Management and Systems Process Mapping Workshop

2. Agenda 2.00 Introduction Why are you here? What is a business process? Why adopt a process view? Methodology Mapping Tools 2.45 Break 3.00 Group exercise 3.45 Feedback 4.15 Summary 4.30 Finish

3. What is a business process? “The unique way in which an organisation co-ordinates and organises its work activities, information and knowledge to produce a valuable product or service” (Laudon and Laudon, 1998)

4. What is a business process? Primary processes Support processes Manage processes Add Provide infrastructure and other support Co-ordinate and control Recruit students Teach students Assess students Graduate students Personnel Finance IT Payroll Set direction Make strategy

5. Primary Processes Postgraduate Education - Taught Postgraduate Education - Research Applied Research & Consultancy Undergraduate Education Research Develop Proposal Develop Courses Get Student Develop Courses Get Order Get Students Develop Proposal Get Funding Fulfil Order Get Students Carry Out Research Get Funding Teach Students Teach Students Support Assess Students Supervise Research Disseminate Findings Assess Students Report to Sponsor Graduate Assess Graduate

6. Traditional functional view of an organisation SALES AND MARKETING • OTHER FINANCE PLANNING PRODUCTION

7. Recording exam results DEPARTMENT EXAM BOARD • DEGREE CERTIFICATE • SIGNATORY REGISTRY MARKER SECRETARY • leaves room for error • encourages duplication • encourages waste

8. The process view ... ? ACADEMIC DEPARTMENT PLANNING PERSONNEL FINANCE OTHER .... provides a complete uninterrupted view of how things are actually done.

9. Why Adopt A Process View? • it encourages a customer focus • it allows flexibility needed to meet changing environment • it makes duplication and waste more visible • it encourages innovation and creativity • it facilitates cost reduction • it facilitates team ownership • it helps address quality issues

10. Process review in other Universities Nottingham Trent Staffordshire Northumbria at Newcastle The Open University Glasgow-Caledonian Loughborough • Surrey Aberdeen Sheffield Hallam London Guildhall Essex Napier Keele Queens University of Belfast Herriot-Watt Abertay Newcastle-upon-Tyne Glasgow Hull Leeds Ulster UWE Liverpool John Moores Leicester Cranfield De Montford Bath Aston Thames Valley

11. Drivers for Change • Financial pressures • Growth • Desire for transparency and quality of information • Concern over increasing administration costs • Information systems review and implementation of new systems

12. Success Factors • Readiness for Change • Change Agent • Ownership • Support from Senior Management • Communication • Team’s ability to listen • Non-threatening approach

13. Problems/Barriers • Structures set in stone • Lack of leadership and drive • Politics • Bureaucracy • People defend their own interests • Lack of performance measures • “Just another initiative” syndrome

14. BPR in UK Universities Methodology(Dr J MacBryde, Strathclyde University) • Phase 1: Planning & Preparation • Phase 2: Understand Existing Processes • Phase 3: Redesign • Phase 4: Plan Implementation • Phase 5: Implementation • Phase 6: Continuous Process Improvement & Measurement

15. Phase 1: Planning &Preparation • identify opportunity/need for review • develop and sell business case • communicate • build and train the team • produce a detailed plan including responsibilities

16. Phase 2: Understand Existing Processes • Identify customer/stakeholder requirements • model processes • identify value adding activities

17. Phase 3: Redesign • identify duplication and waste • simplify processes • identify where technology can be used • gain consensus and support • identify training requirements • define new working procedures • specify job changes and team roles

18. Phase 4: Plan Implementation • design change management programme • plan implementation

19. Phase 5: Implementation • train staff • pilot redesigned processes and seek feedback • full scale implementation

20. Phase 6 : Continuous Process Improvement and Measurement • measure improvements and communicate benefits • set up periodic reviews to ensure processes are still effective • encourage continuous analytical thinking “why am I doing this? Do I need to? Is there a better way to do this?”

21. Why map current processes? • it shows exactly where existing processes fall down • it gives you a benchmark • which allows you to measure improvements • and savings made following redesign

22. Requirements for a mapping tool • easy to learn • guidelines to ensure everyone uses a common language • show why an activity is carried out • show who does the activity • highlight bottlenecks and waste

23. What are you looking for? • what are the key steps/activities/tasks that are performed? • how long does the whole process take ? • how long does each task take ? • what are the delays, waiting times etc.. • where do bottlenecks build up • question whether each step is necessary

24. How do we map processes? • Structured Systems Analysis & Design Method (SSADM) • Soft systems methods • IDEF diagrams • Flow charts • Role activity diagrams

25. IDEF Diagram

26. Flowchart

27. Flow Chart • The starting point of a process is depicted by a circle • Each processing step is indicated by a rectangle • the process ends with an oval • a decision point is shown by a diamond • a parallelogram contains useful information but is not a processing step • arrows show flow (material or information)

28. Flow Chart • good because it has a common language • good because it’s quite simple • an established method used in work study and quality programmes • drawback is that it doesn’t show why an activity takes place • doesn’t explicitly show who carried out each activity

29. Role Activity Diagram (RAD)

30. Role Activity Diagram (RAD) • Similar to a flow chart, but it also shows: • how activities are divided amongst roles • interactions between individual roles • how many roles are involved

31. Role Activity Diagram (RAD) • In a workshop setting: • Easy to produce using Post-Its • Don’t worry about circles, diamonds etc • Don’t be afraid to get it wrong- easy to move things around • Don’t write on anything else!

32. Process improvement • we look for waste: • waiting • transport (e.g. internal mail) • inappropriate processing • unnecessary transport • duplication • correction of mistakes • unnecessary controls

33. Process improvement • number of staff involved in steps in the process • time spent by staff on steps in the process • delay time associated with each step • quality measurements such as error rates, customer complaints etc. • why errors or quality problems arise • what are the value adding steps in the eyes of the customer • where (location) is each step performed • the number of controls and approvals required - and reasons why these are needed • any seasonal or cyclical changes to the volume of transactions

34. Some problems with mapping • teams can get bogged down in existing (“as is”) processes • which in turn encourages the team to stick with what they know and only look for incremental improvements rather than radical change

35. Example Role Activity Diagrams • Recruitment • Course Transfers • Tuition fees • Accommodation applications

36. ExerciseMapping York’s Processes • STEP 1 Role Activity Diagram for what happens now • STEP 2 Look for improvements

38. Summary • Did you find it easy or difficult? • Were the start & end of the process clear? • Did mapping the process help in identifying improvements? • Next steps?