The most successful organizations routinely look at what their competitors are doing and ask themselves how they can do it better. All things being equal, gaining a leg up on the competition requires that your organization produce outputs more efficiently and cost-effectively than your competitors. Organizational efficiency and profitability are largely achieved through workflow optimization.
What is workflow optimization?
The definition of workflow optimization is the process of improving existing workflows through a combination of reducing costs, improving efficiency, and workflow automation. The process usually begins by conducting a workflow analysis. Many organizations that fail to improve their workflows make the mistake of applying automation to broken processes. While automation may be an important aspect of your workflow optimization strategy, it is not a cure-all and should only be implemented after careful planning. Those organizations that experience success with workflow optimization generally adhere to a core set of best practices. By following these practices, you will greatly boost organizational efficiency and gain a significant advantage over your competitors.
Workflow optimization best practices
Governance and Compliance
A lot of organizations ignore corporate governance and compliance altogether. There are several reasons for this. Some find the process boring and would rather jump into the work of implementing new and exciting digital technologies. Others simply prioritize governance and compliance incorrectly. The thinking there is that the process of workflow optimization itself will make compliance easier. For instance, by implementing visible audit trails. Yet, failing to consider these issues upfront can sabotage your organization’s workflow optimization efforts. You must be fully aware of all processes at the outset and be sure that your compliance and governance approach lines up with your workflows. This ensures organizational consistency and reduces risk.
