Everything is a process, whether you like it or not

We all know a version of this quote form Aristotle:

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence therefore is not an act, but a habit.

And then some may have heard about this quote, or read it in a book by Seth Godin:

Process saves us from the poverty of our intentions

When companies go through a lean transformation, a piece of resistance is often around the idea that in Lean everything needs to be ‘processed and documented’, creating this massive bureaucracy of documents, value stream maps etc.

They mistake the means with the ends. A documented, optimised process is not the objective. We formalise, standardise and optimise our processes because it helps us with our KPIs. Our KPIs are a way to measure whether we’re serving our customers properly. We map our processes to make sure we deliver good products, at the right price at the right time. We need to optimise our processes to prevent defects that lead to unsatisfied customers.

Everything you do more than once is a process and shouldn’t be thought about more than once

It’s a quote based on my personal interpretation. When I started out in marketing, I also hated processes. It was a waste of time and limiting creativity. Later, of course, I really understood what the role of processes is. It’s about standardising what you do more than once, with the objective of 1) repeatable results and 2) not having to worry about it ever again. Not having to worry about what the next step is in your launch planning of a new product allows you te spend more time on actually developing a Value Proposition that makes sense for the customer.

So go ahead, look at some things you do more than once (even if it is only twice a year) and think about how this is a process. What triggers the action, who do you need input from, what do you do and for whom? Who is the customers of your process? It it your boss, the sales team or the distribution partner serving your end customer? Map it out in a simple SIPOC-sheet and free up headspace and time for next time!