Process design
- Our expertise
- ›
- Operations
- ›
- Process design
We redesign core work and processes to avoid unnecessary cost.
Business processes must be designed around core work – those day-to-day activities that add value for its customers and are the reason it exists.
Process design is about making work as efficient and effective as possible and minimising the effort and cost absorbed by the supporting or enabling ‘boundary’ work that goes on around it. When some of this core work shifts or changes, support work may lose its purpose. If some core work ceases, support and boundary work related to it must also stop. And if new core work emerges, it may call for new support and boundary work not currently done.
Any process or individual left undisturbed for three years will inevitably become inefficient. To maintain productivity and effectiveness in the face of fast moving markets and global competitors, no company can afford to allow this. When employees do not have sufficient core work to do, they may fill time with other support and boundary activities. Eliminating redundant tasks and waste, simplifying and streamlining, consolidating and centralising, automating or outsourcing of support work should be considered – exploiting good practice where possible. And the need for boundary work should be challenged.
Our experience suggests that the ideal organisation expends:
- 75% of effort on core work
- 20% of effort on support and boundary activities
- 5% of work on making improvements.
Understanding how efficiently resources are converted into outputs is at the heart of what we do. We use a wide range of tools to help managers analyse and redesign existing processes and we enthuse front-line staff about implementing new ways of working. By finding ways to work smarter not harder, the business can achieve more for its customers, spend less, and have far greater flexibility to adapt to changes in demand.
We have applied this approach in airports, banking, construction, healthcare, manufacturing, services and many other sectors, as well as large government departments, executive agencies and non-departmental public bodies. We work closely with clients’ project teams, to understand processes better. To quantify the opportunity, we run workshops and collate data on effort (against processes, activities and tasks), organisation (jobs and structure) and cost.
Resources

Organisation and control in business
Read more
Managing restructuring
Read more
Collinson Grant - 50 years
Read more
Managing third party expenditure
Read more
Managing organisational design
Read more
Managing indirect costs
Read more
Six Sigma
Read more
Sharing services and outsourcing
Read more
Planning, initiating and managing change
Read more
Managing the supply chain
Read more
Managing complexity
Read more
Managing branch networks successfully
Read more
Lean transformation
Read more
Inter-company trading
Read more
Financial colleges in companies
Read more
Equivalent units
Read more
Earned Value Management (EVM)
Read more
Best practice in pricing processes
Read more
Benchmarking
Read more
Activity Based Costing (ABC)
Read more
Employment law for line managers
Read more
Managing productivity
Read moreOur success is measured by yours
We look beyond the data. Beyond your culture. Every recommendation is based on a holistic view of your business. And we’ll help you implement the changes you need to grow.
Telephone: +44 161 703 5600