{"id":1170,"date":"2017-01-27T08:37:43","date_gmt":"2017-01-27T16:37:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/b-spoke.net\/?p=1170"},"modified":"2026-06-29T22:00:30","modified_gmt":"2026-06-29T22:00:30","slug":"process-adaptability","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thirdactmedia.com\/b-spoke\/2017\/01\/27\/process-adaptability\/","title":{"rendered":"Design Adaptability Into Your Process"},"content":{"rendered":"
A Six-Minute Read<\/h6>\n

I recently needed to purchase an advance ticket on Indian Railways. Reservations can only be made on registered, verified accounts. Accounts can only be verified via text message to an Indian mobile phone.<\/h3>\n

Before anyone can purchase an Indian SIM card \u2013 in order to receive that text message \u2013 one must have a local\"processes\"<\/a> Indian address and someone who can vouch for them (a hotel address is enough, as is an introduction to the SIM card vendor by, say, a bellman). Also, one must provide two recent visa photos as well as photocopies of their passport\u2019s picture page, and the page with the Indian visa stamped in it (along with presentation of originals); these copies must be signed in the presence of the SIM vendor. One visa photo is affixed to the Application for Activation, and then must be signed over the photo, verifying the applicant was present as the pasting was completed; the second photo is similarly glued into the vendor\u2019s log book, which is also signed by the applicant.<\/h3>\n

The paperwork is physically submitted the following morning to the local authorities and reviewed. Presuming all goes well, after a 24-48 hour waiting period, the phone number will be active.<\/h3>\n

Stories such as this explain why people cringe when they hear about business \u201cProcess\u201d \u2013 they imagine their lives have been forfeited to a byzantine, bureaucratic mousetrap of paperwork, signatures, reviews, and perhaps even a few walking tours through the alleys of Mumbai to find a tout willing to negotiate the price of a visa photo.<\/p>\n

This is not \u201cProcess\u201d, it is \u201cprocedure\u201d, and the two should not be confused.<\/p>\n

A successful business process is three things \u2013 Effective, Efficient, and Adaptable. In other words, it needs to do what it needs to do; it should consume as few resources (time, people, money) as possible; and it needs to react to \u201creal world\u201d situations.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s that last piece \u2013 Adaptability \u2013 that\u2019s always tough.<\/p>\n

Rigid Process is a Waste (of Time, Money, and Human Spirit)<\/h4>\n

Processes need to be adaptable, not because employees can\u2019t be trusted to implement consistently, but precisely because the circumstances they face will differ from time to time, from customer to customer, from region to region. Shoehorning every situation into a common set of procedures is a fool\u2019s errand for two reasons.<\/p>\n

The first is, when conditions don\u2019t perfectly fit, they are \"london-underground-tube-map\"<\/a>summarily rejected until they do fit (how many forms are returned and resubmitted as particular boxes are ticked?). The second is, in order to create a set of procedures that can encompass every conceivable permutation creates a flowchart that more closely resembles a transit map designed by the manic five-year-old stepchild of lunatic bureaucrats than a useful tool for busy professionals. And, when the customer shows up with a situation that doesn\u2019t align neatly with the maze\u2019s entry points \u2013 or the user\u2019s understanding of the process \u2013 we\u2019re back to the first scenario of rejected paperwork and wasted time.<\/p>\n

Design Intelligently<\/h4>\n

We can\u2019t rely on smart, good employees to adapt as necessary; bad Process will beat good People, every time. Process Adaptability is not improvisation; to assure effectiveness and efficiency, the flexibility must be designed in.<\/p>\n

Process Objectives.<\/em><\/p>\n

Before going directly to boxes and arrows, the design team needs a holistic understanding of what the process should achieve. What are the objectives<\/u> of this process? What are you really trying to accomplish? Try not to define objectives as pre-existing artifacts (\u201cWe want Customer Activation forms filled out more completely\u201d) as actual business results (\u201cCentralized database of new users\u201d).<\/p>\n