Follow one item from start to finish
Show me one real one.
Before suggesting anything, I ask to follow one real item through the business, from the moment it arrives to the moment it is finished.
Not every business has this problem, and some should leave it alone.
Most of these can be handled better. Whether it's worth doing is a separate question. What follows is one common form of the problem, described in general terms, because your version will differ. These are possible challenges, not a description of your business, and some should be left exactly as they are. If it sounds like your week, that's worth a conversation.
Watch: How to Look Before Changing Anything
Sound familiar?
- Everyone describes the process a little differently.
- The written procedure does not match what happens.
- Nobody has watched the whole thing from end to end.
- The problem is somewhere in the middle, and nobody is sure where.
What it looks like
Ask how a process works and you get a summary: the invoice comes in, we enter it, we pay it. The summary is true, and it hides everything that matters.
Follow one real invoice instead. Where did it arrive? Who saw it first? Where did it wait? Who typed what, into what? What did they check, and what did they trust? Following the item can show steps nobody mentioned, and sometimes that is where the time goes.
What it costs
Summaries skip the work. The steps people do not think of as steps are the ones that cost time.
Changes built on a summary miss. Fixing the described process can leave the real one untouched.
The handoffs are invisible. Each person knows their part, and nobody sees the gaps between parts.
Where it goes wrong
- The process is described, not watched. From memory, by the person furthest from it.
- The easy example is chosen. The typical item, not the messy one.
- Only one person is asked. Each person sees their own part.
- Exceptions are left out. Following a messy item can show how much work they take.
What a better version looks like
Pick one real item, a recent one and ideally an awkward one, and follow it through every hand it passed. Write down each step, each wait, each place it was typed or checked. Then do it again with a second item. What they share is the process. Where they differ is where the judgment is.
What still needs a person
The people who do the work are the source. Following an item means asking them, not observing them from a distance. The point is to understand the work, not to judge it.
Questions worth asking about your own operation
- Could you follow one recent invoice, job, or order from start to finish?
- How many people touched it?
- Where did it wait longest?
- Which step would surprise the owner?
If this sounds familiar
Bring me the version you actually have. I'll learn how the process really works before I suggest anything. If it isn't worth changing, or isn't a fit for me, I'll say so. Talk through a problem