Which of these are Processes and should have Process Maps and why?

[Peter Fraser]

“Things which matter most must never be at the mercy of things which matter least.” Goethe

I like it!

 

[Randy]

Thank you

I was looking for some quotes by Theodore Roosevelt and found this website.... www.quotationspage.com It's a pretty good resource.

 

[qualityboi]

It is implicit that the OP has decided to do them based on the poll they put together. I think its unwise to try and convince the OP that process maps are not useful.

Although I've only been in the business for 14 yrs I don't think anyone here could convince me that process maps or flow charts don't add value.

 

[Stijloor]

Friends,

Great thread, excellent and very passionate posts. Respectful and thoughtful responses. Wow!

I am impressed with all my Fellow Covers that participate in this thread.

Proud to be part of this Forum!

Stijloor.

 

[Coury Ferguson]

Thank you

I was looking for some quotes by Theodore Rosevelt and found this website.... www.quotationspage.com It's a pretty good resource.

Here is another quote from Theodore Rosevelt:

“It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or when the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by dust and sweet blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the enthusiasms, the great devotions and spends himself in worth cause; who, at best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement; and who, at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knows neither victory nor defeat.”

Does this not stand true for most of us.

 

[John Broomfield]

Identifying which processes are significant or key from a list of processes makes no sense. We are given no information about the business, its customers or its objectives. First analyze the system to identify the key processes.

One way to do this is to map the core process (at 30,000ft) from end to end (needs to cash) to show the interactions between the organization, its customers and its suppliers. This identifies to sequence and interaction of the key processes in the core process. These are the processes that add value. Then identify the key processes that support the core process. These are the processes that sustain and improve the core process. Support key processes come from the system standard and your common sense. For example, we know that competence requires the ability to apply skills and knowledge; that means that the recruiting and hiring process is key as well as the training process.

 

[JoCam]

They are all processes, some multi-step and some fairly basic. They all have inputs and outputs and added together create one big process, Quality Management.

Jo

 

[Nichole Faucheux]

Can someone help me to understand what "Key Processes" are? Do most companies generally have the same key processes? Does anyone have examples that they are willing to share?

 

[Stijloor]

Can someone help me to understand what "Key Processes" are? Do most companies generally have the same key processes? Does anyone have examples that they are willing to share?

Some organizations define a Key Process as a process of which results (output) have a direct/immediate impact on the customer (and satisfaction).

Examples:

• RFQ handling
• Order reviews and confirmations
• Product design and development
• Manufacturing processes
• Shipping
• Invoicing
• Etc.

In automotive, the term "Customer Oriented Process" (COP) is used.

Stijloor.

 

[Patricia Ravanello]

Can someone help me to understand what "Key Processes" are? Do most companies generally have the same key processes? Does anyone have examples that they are willing to share?

Nicole,

You're going to find as many answers to this as there are contributors on this website...so here's at least, one of possibly thousands of opinions...

There are two ways of approaching this question. Are we defining the Key processes of the Business Operating System, or the Key Processes of Product Realization? The answers to either will vary considerably.

My answer to "What are the Key Processes of the Business Operating System?" are as follows:

1 - System-oriented Processes

a) SOP-0001 Internal Audit
b) SOP-0002 Control of Documents and Records​

2 - Management-oriented Processes

a) SOP-0003 Business Planning and Management Review
b) SOP-0004 Monitoring, Measurement and Analysis
c) SOP-0005 Corrective & Preventive Action and Continual Improvement​

3 - Support-oriented Processes

a) SOP-0006 Employee Competence, Empowerment and Motivation
b) SOP-0007 Control of Monitoring and Measuring Devices
c) SOP-0008 Purchasing and Materials Management
d) SOP-0009 Infrastructure & Production Support​

4 - Customer-oriented Processes

a) SOP-0010 Product Realization
b) SOP-0011 Change Control - Product, Process and Sourcing
c) SOP-0012 Control of Non-Conforming Product & Materials​

In my opinion, all ISO-compliant companies should have these 12 key processes. They may not be mandatory in the standard, but they just make sense. I'm not going to defend or rationalize my choices in this post.

If you ask me, "What are the Key Processes of Product Realization?", my answer would be the following (for a typical automotive-parts supplier), but this list could easily be edited to comply with any service or manufacturing entity's processes:

I call them the Phases of Product Realization (SOP-0010 above):

Phase 1: Program Feasibility
Phase 2: Quotation and Approval
Phase 3: Concept Development
Phase 4: Product Design, Development and Verification
Phase 5: Production Process Design, Development and Verification
Phase 6: Product Design Validation
Phase 7: Production Process Design Validation
Phase 8: Production Process Part Approval
Phase 9: Product Launch, Production and Delivery
Phase 10: Product Close-Out​

These Phases are the sub-components of my SOP-0010 Product Realization (above). I do not consider them Key Processes of the Business Operating System, but sub-processes of Product Realization.

While this list can vary from one organization to the next, the Key Processes of the Business Operating System could, in fact, be identical for each company. I've used this same model for everything from educational, to automotive manufacturing, health care, composite pole-winding, and printing organizations. It's a perfect fit for any one of them.

The variations you will see proposed in this Forum, from company to company are the bi-product of the system owner's perspective on the "Big Picture" of their company, their understanding and interpretation of ISO, and their interpretation of the individual processes and their roles, sequences and interfaces.

In my experience, the Sequence and Interfaces of the B.O.S. processes should be the same for each company, since they are dictated by ISO, and so, it would make sense that they are the same from company to company.

However, Product Realization is really a list of "sequential" activities that are performed in the realization of the product, and hence can vary from one organization to another.

IMHO there's no need to re-invent the wheel with regard to KEY B.O.S. processes...but to each his/her own.

Patricia Ravanello