Process Identification - Sub-Processes for Project Management

[sophiacarballo]

Dear all,

I have been trying to indentify processes in our firm and my supervisor has given me the following sub processes for Project Mangement:

1. Prepare agenda for Project Management Meeting
2. Chair Project Management Meeting
3. Write minutes with action items
4. Follow-up of pending action items and of missing SOP # 001 deliverables
5. Archive all SOP # 001delieverables, PM documents and records in ePHF and in prepare PHF
6. Check completeness of all SOP # 001 deliverables.

Would you call these sub processes or not

Thanks for you help

 

[RoxaneB]

Re: Process identfication

I have been trying to indentify processes in our firm and my supervisor has given me the following sub processes for Project Mangement:

1. Prepare agenda for Project Management Meeting
2. Chair Project Management Meeting
3. Write minutes with action items
4. Follow-up of pending action items and of missing SOP # 001 deliverables
5. Archive all SOP # 001delieverables, PM documents and records in ePHF and in prepare PHF
6. Check completeness of all SOP # 001 deliverables.

Would you call these sub processes or not

Thanks for you help

Honestly, no, I would not. In my opinion, Project Management would consist of such sub-processes like:

• Project identification
• Request for Capital
• Bidding Process
• Risk Analysis
• Project Review (that's everything you listed above)

I haven't listed everything, but as you can see, I believe that the sub-processes vastly differ from what your boss is saying.

 

[Duke Okes]

Re: Process Identfication - Sub-Processes for Project Mangement

They are tasks, not processes.

 

[Randy]

Re: Process Identfication - Sub-Processes for Project Mangement

They are tasks, not processes.

Well pardner you're incorrect in this case. Each of those steps will have an input-action-output. That's called a "process".

Additionally the outputs of them become an input of another.

Making a cup of tea or baking a cake can be broken into a process.

I believe a wise old gentleman once said that if we cannot define what we do in the form of process, then we do not know what it is we do and we cannot manage it. Or something like that.

Unless of course you have a different meaning for the word process.

 

[Duke Okes]

Re: Process Identfication - Sub-Processes for Project Mangement

Well pardner you're incorrect in this case. Each of those steps will have an input-action-output. That's called a "process".
Additionally the outputs of them become an input of another.
Making a cup of tea or baking a cake can be broken into a process.
I believe a wise old gentleman once said that if we cannot define what we do in the form of process, then we do not know what it is we do and we cannot manage it. Or something like that.
Unless of course you have a different meaning for the word process.

Have to admit this one I can't give a strong rationale to. However, in my mind the different is primarily scope and/or time frame. A task doesn't really produce anything if significant value on its own, only in conjunction with other tasks. A process does produce something of value that can stand alone.

This is based more on project management than quality management thinking, and I would not attempt to defend it to the end. Life is too short!

 

[Greg B]

Re: Process Identfication - Sub-Processes for Project Mangement

In light of Randy's reference to a cup of tea/Coffee here is my Powerpoint Presentation on just this subject.

Process Mapping

 

[Randy]

Re: Process Identfication - Sub-Processes for Project Mangement

Greg you learned that from me you sly old dog, didn't you?

That is an excellant presentation which really simplifies the subject.

What a process is, is so simple that people refuse to admit it.