How to map a workflow in an afternoon

Before you automate or buy anything, it helps to see how the work really happens. You do not need special software for that. A pen, a whiteboard and the person who does the work are enough.

The steps

1. Pick one workflow. Choose something that happens often and annoys people, such as onboarding a client or preparing a monthly report.
2. Define the start and the end. What triggers it, and what does “done” look like?
3. Walk through it with the person who does it. Ask them to show a real example, not to describe the ideal version.
4. Write each step on a sticky note. Add who does it, which tool they use and what they pass to the next person.
5. Mark the friction. Highlight waiting, re-typing, copying between tools, checking, and anything that goes back for rework.
6. Circle the top three problems. Do not try to fix everything at once.
7. Sketch a simpler version. Remove steps first. Only then ask what could be automated or connected.

What to do with it

A map like this can show that some steps are not needed at all. What remains is a short, specific list of problems you can discuss with a colleague, a vendor or a studio like ours.

If you would rather do this with someone, that is what our Workflow Discovery is for.