Endless follow-ups, poor tracking and limited visibility.

The real costs of email and spreadsheets 

In an ideal world we would have custom or at the very least highly specific products at our disposal to implement every workflow and process. In fact for the most part we do. Our ERP, TMS, CRM and other Operational products take care of our workflows and process automation needs, until they don’t. 

Why else would we be sending emails and filling in spreadsheets?

It is at this point that things quickly break down, and we resort to coordinating work between multiple people though endless email chains and having users fill in spreadsheets to track work and vital information.

This is sub-optimal for many reasons;

• Users spend time reading and writing emails, instead of doing the actual processing of information required. Effort is wasted reading and sorting emails, on typing, on formatting, on writing sentences and following up to make sure that the next person has the prior person’s email and correct version of the documents. 

• Business critical information is stored in spreadsheets. With little if any data validation, documentation and data consistency. Users typically get to type anything into any columns. Most often the user or creator of the spreadsheet has the knowledge of how it works. Other users not so much.

• Many spreadsheets are really just used as another way to track work. Each time there is a new “case or incident” the spreadsheet is edited and a row added or updated. There is no understanding or certainly rarely a documented underlying process. Again emails are used to coordinate the work and the spreadsheet becomes a “fancy” tracking tool. There is no management of the underlying process.

  
  

By using a work and process management solution such as WorkOptima, we are able to;

• Remove the email overload and co-ordinate the process in a structured and organized system. 

• Create enforceable process flows, to ensure that users work through the “case or incident” in a way that is expected and produces consistent results. We can be certain that steps are not overlooked and that the users are performing the work in compliance with the expected company policies.

• When appropriate revise the process and make necessary operational changes, and ensure that the users responsible are now working with the revised process.

• By organizing the process in a structured and co-ordinated way, we can inform users when they need to take action. Likewise users and management are able to quickly review the processes to ensure that steps are being worked and that nothing is being overlooked. Time is spent doing the work, rather than reporting on the work. The system does the reporting and managing.

  
  

By moving to a structured work management system and away from email and spreadsheets you are able to reduce the time spent tracking work, co-ordinating activities and validating what has been done. Know that the work is being done and that your people are following the desired process. 

WorkOptima helps to deliver predictable outcomes, reduced workload and process visibility.