What is Process Analysis? 

The term process analysis can be defined as breakdown of production process into different phases that converts inputs into output. A series of routine activities are incorporated using organizational resources with a view to achieve operational excellence. 

Process analysis involves a review of the entire process in order to understand the entire process. It also helps in setting targets for process improvement by eliminating activities that are not required, reducing wastage, and also increasing efficiency. Thus process analysis helps in improving the entire business process of the organization. 

Objectives of Process Analysis 

Following are the main objectives of process analysis: 

• Identification of those factors makes it difficult for the entire process to understand. 
• To ascertain if the entire process is complete. 
• For calculation of the processing time. 
• To find if there are any redundancies. 
• To understand the allocation of resources. 

Steps involved in process analysis: 

Following are the steps in process analysis: 

• The first and foremost step in the process is to interview the participants who take part in the process to collect information on various heads like what tasks they perform, why they perform etc. 
• The second step in the process analysis is having a group discussion in order to validate the information collected in the previous step. 
• The third step involves identifying bottlenecks in each and every task & taking suitable measures in order to remove those bottlenecks. 
• The fourth step is to create a sketch of the entire process depending upon the requirements of the business. 
• The last step would be to compare the current and the previous workflow in order to identify areas that require changes. 

Circumstances when Business Process Analysis needs to be used

Analysis of the entire business process would be done in situations like any kind of delays or if there are many complaints from the customer side which helps in improving the customer experience, a new process is required to replace the entire process. Also, if stakeholders are not clear with a particular process; and if the management wants to automate the entire process, then a new process is required. 

Business Process Techniques

Following are some of the techniques used in business process analysis: 

• Gap analysis
• Root cause analysis
• Value-added analysis
• Experience examination, etc. 

Benefits of Process Analysis

An organization can achieve the following benefits if they undertake the business process analysis: 

1. By employing business process analysis, it would be helpful for new employees taking on the process. 

2. It also helps in documentation and understanding of the entire process in a clear manner. 

Process Flow Diagram

The entry and exit points of input and output are represented by the process boundaries. Following are some of the symbols involved in process flow diagram: 

• Rectangle: This is a representation of the tasks. 
• Arrow:  Arrow is a solid line that explains the flow of materials 
• Inverted triangles: This represents inventory storage namely raw materials, work in progress, and finished goods. 
• Circles: Represents information storage. 

Tasks mentioned in the process flow diagram are performed in the sequential order. 

Business Process Maps

Business Process maps are one of the management tools which describe the workflow. Process maps are also known by various other names like a functional flowchart, process flowchart, process model, workflow diagram, etc. 

Purpose of Business process maps

The main purpose of process mapping is to achieve efficiency in operations. Process maps are considered to be a simple process and many organizations use diagrams to understand the various areas of the organization namely finance, marketing, supply chain, and accounting. 

BPA in Relevance to trade Facilitation

Trade when conducted across borders will require a huge amount of transactions conducted by many parties. Trade facilitation aims at streamlining the entire process in order to avoid delays. BPA can be used in these scenarios. BPA which is a structured process approach is a better method used to explain the diagrams which are responsible for the trade facilitation work. 

Business Process Modeling

Business process modeling can be defined as a graphical representation which explains the workflows in order to know the potential improvements in the entire business process. This particular model is used map two different state of process namely: 

• As-is process: This is the process without making any modifications. 
• To-be: This is the future status after making the required changes. 

Business Process Improvement (BPI): Business process improvement is a management exercise in which various methods are used in order to identify areas where accuracy, effectiveness, and efficiency can be achieved. BPI helps in finding ways to reduce the time to complete a particular process. 

Business Process Management (BPM) 

Business process management is an improvement discipline in which various methods are used to discover, analyze and automate the entire process. One of the examples of business process management is creating a marketing strategy for its customer. 

 Enterprise Architecture

Enterprise architecture can be defined as a blueprint that explains the structure and operations of an organization. The main role of enterprise architecture is to improve and upgrade enterprise services, hardware, and software. 

 Business Architecture

Business architecture can act as a bridge between business model and strategy on one hand and the functionality of the firm on the other side. 

Business Analysis

The term business analysis refers to a discipline of research that involved identifying the needs for business and also providing solutions to business-related problems. Part of this process involves software development, process improvement, organizational changes, and also the development of policies. 

Need for Business Analysis: 

• Business analysis helps in knowing the problems that exist in the organization. 
• It is useful for the organization to identify areas of improvement and also providing suitable solutions to the organizational problems. 
• Business analysis is a suitable tool to identify and bring changes at times of need. 
• Apart from all the above, the business analysis also helps the organization to increase its value in order to satisfy its stakeholders.

Context and Applications 

This topic is significant in the professional exams for both undergraduate and graduate courses, especially for         

• BBA 
• MBA