Make the work stop depending on memory.

This usually becomes a problem when:

• the same job is done differently depending on who picks it up
• work sits waiting because nobody owns the hand-off
• the owner is the only route between two parts of the business
• training a new person means a month of sitting beside someone
• every order needs a decision, because no rule was ever agreed

• follow real orders through the business and record where they wait
• define the steps, the owners and the rules for the cases that recur
• rebuild the steps that lose time, and leave the ones that work
• document the process as it is built

• a mapped process for quoting, ordering, delivery and service
• a named owner for every step and hand-off
• templates for the cases that keep needing a decision
• written documentation and a trained team
• a measure per stage, so the process can be seen

• Process mapping
• Step ownership
• Templates and rules
• Tool configuration
• Working documentation
• Stage measures

Systems work runs inside a client's business and is not published, so these projects show scope and execution rather than a measured outcome.