Question

The REA diagram does need to change as the business evolves. Many companies have a process in place for reviewing and updating their process charts and diagrams. What is a typically interval in which that should be done; monthly? yearly?  

Answer 1

Reviewing and updating the process charts and diagrams is an important exercise as part of the business eco system of any modern company. Process charts and diagrams are created in a company for the purpose of standardization, reduction of redundancies and for other reasons in order to carry out large scale operations with minimum stoppages which in turn helps in providing value to the customers. However, most organizations do not review and update the processes so developed on a regular basis as they do not find them vital for their business operations. Many a times lot of other factors such as achievement of annual operational or financial targets, customer retention and service targets and so on, leave very less or no time for the management to focus on the reviewing of documented process charts and diagrams. Reviewing activity of process charts gets sidelined by other crucial business assignments.

However, in the long run the success of any business of a company is directly dependent on the updated processes as redundancy in processes shall leave behind the company in growing competition in modern markets. Therefore, the in order for the documented processes to keep pace with the changing markets shall have to be updated in regular intervals. Typically the process charts and diagrams should be reviewed once every quarter and should be benchmarked with the best of processes prevailing in the domestic as well as international markets. Post the review if there are amendments required then such amendments be made on priorities and should be brought into effect within a short period of time after educating the process owners. Once the process reaches a certain level of maturity and if the process engineers and find that the frequency is too short based on the market scenerios then the company can switch to a half yearly schedule.