Effective process redesign begins by identifying critical pain points that need long-term resolution. Think about the example of a company whose growth goals are being constrained by a lack of revenue. What’s the source of that problem? Is the sales process flawed? Are there distribution or supply chain issues? Drill down to the specific processes that are creating the problem you need to address, and make sure you’re not confusing wants with needs.

When evaluating pain points, take into account:

• Human and technological elements. Is the system driving the process, or is technology the enabler rather than the master? And in either scenario, what prompted the adoption of that technology? It’s essential to weigh each of these components in the course of assessing the process.
• Having a clear vision of where the business is going. This allows you to test prospective process redesigns for their ability to support and scale with the company’s evolution. At the same time, you’ll need to assess whether the company and its leadership have the appetite for change necessary to execute that evolution. Otherwise, the danger is that individuals and departments will create workarounds that defeat the attempt to do things differently.
• Getting team buy-in. You need to consider the importance of the people who touch the process, not just senior management. Successful implementation depends on training those people and ensuring that group dynamics and communication support the initiative.

Process redesign starts with validating that what you are observing is in fact a pain point. The next step is identifying inefficiencies and gaps in the process. Then, you need to define the set of activities that you need to follow to be able to do that.  

Read the Process Redesign Built for Team Speed guide to learn how you can redesign process to remove pain points and speed growth for the long haul.