 >

 BPM Software >

 Business Process Mapping - The Ultimate Guide

Business Process Mapping - The Ultimate

Guide
Team Kissflow

Updated on 19 Mar 2024 • 6 min read

At the heart of every successful business are complex processes. These can range from smoothly

onboarding new hires to carefully managing purchase orders. These processes are like highways for data,

leading to productivity and success.

Imagine asking your team to draw the exact flow of one of these processes. What would they produce?

Would it be a detailed blueprint or a confusing web of lines and question marks?

Understanding and improving these processes is essential for people like CIOs or business technology

partners. This is where business process mapping becomes important.

We'll explore business process mapping and how it helps organizations coordinate operations, boost

efficiency, and plan for digital transformation and innovation.

What is business process mapping?

Business process mapping is a powerful technique inside business process management (BPM) to visually

depict process steps and show how a process should function from start to finish. With this

technique, business processes are laid out visually so every stakeholder in your organization can

understand and adhere to the proper functioning.

Business process mapping uses charts, flowcharts, and symbols to answer the following three essential

questions:

1. What are the tasks in the process?

2. Who does each task?

3. When does each task occur?

What are the tasks in the process?

Processes are made up of individual tasks that must be done in a particular sequence in order to complete

an item. When you map business processes, you clearly identify every step in the process and make sure

everyone knows where one task ends and another begins.

Who does each task?
In business process mapping, you must identify exactly who is responsible for a particular task. Task

assignment might be static (Karen always does it), or dynamic (the initiator’s manager always does it), or

might be dependent on data in the form. But business process mapping makes it clear on roles and

responsibilities.

When does each task occur?

A process mapping tool will set each task within the sequence of the entire process. Does it happen first?

After another task? Can this task happen simultaneously with other tasks, or is it dependent on other data

being processed first?

You can also set deadlines and SLAs with business process mapping. How long should each step take? 24

hours? Two business days? Does it depend on the priority of the item?

Streamline and Enhance your Business Processes with these Compelling Business Process Mapping

Techniques

What’s the difference between mapping

and modeling?
Business process mapping is often used interchangeably for business process modeling. Mapping can

usually be done on any medium, including a piece of paper or a whiteboard. However, business process

modeling is always done in some kind of software to create a digital model that can be automated.

Why do you need business process

mapping?
Business process mapping is an essential part of running an efficient business. Without a visual

representation around how predictable processes run in your company, employees are left to guess and
make mistakes as to what the best practices are. If you don’t clearly define a business process through

mapping, each department and individual is left to create his/her own sequence and assignment. This leads

to chaos, confusion, and blame when the task owners are not clearly assigned.

The benefits of business process

mapping
Here are the benefits of incorporating business process mapping in your organization;

 Corporate Clarity Around the Process

 Systematic Control Over How the Process Functions

 Established Operational Norms

 Elimination of Redundancies

 Increased Process Visibility

 Better Compliance with Industry Standards

 More Uniform Employee Training

How to create a process map?

Here are the steps involved in getting started and creating a process map.

1. Gather all the stakeholders

You need several voices of people who are both responsible for the process and who are actively involved

in the day-to-day activities.

2. List out all the human tasks

What are all the things that humans do as a part of this process? Initially, this is often best done with sticky

notes that can be easily moved around later.

3. List out all the system tasks
There are many tasks such as data transfers, sending emails, or simple folder creation that can be done

better by a machine than a human.

4. Identify redundancies
Go back and check your list of tasks and see if some can be eliminated, converted to a notification, or

switched to a system task.

5. Determine who is responsible for Each task

Most tasks will have a single owner. Some might be able to be assigned to a group of people, but someone

should be ultimately held accountable for the timely completion. System tasks also need someone

responsible in case there are any errors.

6. Set the sequence of tasks

What needs to happen first? Can some tasks be done at the same time? Which tasks are dependent on

others? When is the process complete? While this phase is best done with physical objects like moveable

cards, eventually, you will want to move to a business process mapping tool that can digitize what you’ve

created.

Thinking of BPM, but unsure which way to use it? We've written about choosing the right BPM

methodology here.

Best practices for business process

mapping
1. Reduce complexity
The process map should be as simple as possible and easy for anyone to follow.
2. Don’t let it go stale
Revisit the process map regularly to determine if it can be improved.

3. Establish the main goal

Are you trying to make this process faster? Or produce better quality items? Or reduce communication

breakdowns? Focus on these as you map.

4. Recognize the “as-is” and “could-be”

differences
If a certain step usually takes three days to complete, don’t mark it as 24 hours even though you’d like it to

be that way.

5. Start with common

There will always be exceptions to how your process flows, but it’s best to start with the normal situations

and build exceptions in later.

3 types of flowcharts for business

process mapping
The most common business process mapping examples are with flowcharts. This is a schematic drawing

or an outline of the process you are mapping and/or trying to improve. There are three main flowchart

types you can use for this purpose.

1. Basic flowchart
This is the simplest type. A top-down flowchart lets you identify the clusters of activity–points where you

can find tasks that are essential to the overall process. Using this flowchart, you can visualize how the

process looks like after you streamline it–after you remove all the redundant, unnecessary tasks that bloat it

and slow it down.

In a top-down flowchart, you simply list all the major tasks involved in a workflow process. Major tasks

can be divided into sub-tasks. Once you create the top-down flowchart, you can then look at

your workflow from a fresh perspective, and remove the tasks that you feel slow down work, reduce

productivity and make for a less-than-satisfactory experience for your clientele.

2. Business process modelling diagram

This style uses a fixed language of symbols called BPMN 2.0 to represent different tasks. Someone

familiar with BPMN 2.0 should be able to see a BPM diagram and immediately be able to identify

conditional tasks, how to process rejections, and many other insights.

Check out why these five Business Process Modeling Tools are at the top of the competition!

3. Data flow diagram

The data flow diagram focuses mostly on the path the data takes from unprocessed to processed. It will

show the systems that need to be linked in order to make sure that information is shared in the right way.
The anatomy of business process
mapping
Certain mapping techniques make use of particular symbols

Here are some that are a part of BPMN 2.0:

 ▢ = Task start/stop

 ▭ = Step

 → = Flow/Connectors

 O = Event

 ◇ = Yes/No decisions

 ? = Artifacts

 D = Delay

 ⏢ = Manual input
Case study
The challenge:

RENU Contracting and Restoration grappled with unreliable manual processes, difficulty managing

complex tasks, and inefficient tracking of process issues. They needed a solution to transform their

operations, increase productivity, and ensure accountability.

The solution:

Michael Casamento, Director of Process and Procedure at RENU, discovered Kissflow during a web
search. Impressed by its features, ease of use, and value for money, he implemented it. RENU began

building workflows for check requests and merchandise returns. The success of these implementations led

to the automation of other operations, such as claims processing, debit memo processing, and maintenance

requests.

The outcome:

Kissflow has become essential for managing many of RENU's critical processes. The company has

experienced enhanced productivity, time-saving in process creation, increased accountability, minimal

development time, and improved end-to-end trackability of processes. Michael praises Kissflow for its

well-designed user interface and responsiveness to community input. Integrations with other apps via
Zapier have further improved operations. Now, RENU looks forward to building an on/off-boarding

process using Kissflow.

How can I start using business process

mapping?
A good BPM tool can help you sort out your process complexities. Kickstart a business process mapping

exercise in your organization and collect definitive as-is process data so you can invest wisely in BPM

software that fits your needs.

“BPM tool increases visibility into work across operations which has allowed us to align teams, leverage

best practices across silos and deploy resources in a more effective manner."

- Stephanie Licht, Director of enterprise business process management and automation at Bremer Bank"

Find quality business process mapping software that makes it easy to transition your analog map onto a

platform that can automate the entire process.

Business process mapping doesn’t have to be boring or formal. You can pick a low-impact process and

make it a fun activity by inviting everyone to come up with their own case diagrams and activity charts.

Once the process mapping activity gains momentum, it becomes a journey mapping experience for your

business to realize what’s critical for you to succeed in your market.

Kissflow is a dynamic low-code platform designed to streamline your business operations. It employs an

intuitive visual approach to handle the complex business processes that unfold within your organization on

a daily basis. With a user-friendly interface that's as straightforward as crafting a top-down flowchart,

Kissflow empowers you to transform intricate business procedures into streamlined, efficient workflows

with ease!