Business Process: Process vs Procedure
What is Business Process?
A business process is a collection of business tasks and activities. When the process is performed in a structured way, it produces an outcome that contributes to the business goals. A business process includes at least one of, but not limited to, the following elements:
- Task/ activity
- System
- Employee(s)
- Workflow
- Data
Characteristics of a Business Process:
- A process is repeatable,
- A process is flexible and not rigid,
- A process is specific and has established start and endpoints,
- A process is measurable.
An example of the employee offboarding process, which has the following steps:
- Acknowledging the resignation/termination,
- Negotiation with the employee for retaining him,
- Notice period and final settlement procedures,
- Planning for pending projects and assigned tasks,
- Hand over and knowledge transfer of project and company details &
- Exit interview.
Distinguish between Business Process and Procedure
- A process is a flow of business activities that are connected toward the achievement of a business outcome. Whereas a procedure is a prescribed way of undertaking a process or part of a process.
- A process is a set of defined actions; a procedure is a set of instructions that are detailed in nature.
- For instance, onboarding a new employee in the organization is a process. Whereas onboarding documentation is a procedure.
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