Consulting - Practice Process Workshops
In order to build a scaleable business, it's imperative that you understand the core processes related to how your business runs. You probably already have a good idea about your processes at a high level. Where true business improvement occurs, however, is when everyone has a clear mental model at the detail level on what every task is, who is responsible for completion, and where the dependencies lie. When fully mapped out, processes can be embedded into technology, creating true efficiencies and a systematized business that scales over time.
Understanding Your Business
To experience the benefits of process in a practice and to improve a core business function, ActiFi recommends that clients engage in a Process Workshop. This allows the advisory firm to analyze their business objectively – where they are today and where they want to be – and then drill down to the task level on a specific process. ActiFi has found that for many firms, the Process Workshop is the first time where everyone within a firm comes away with a true understanding of the specifics related to setting business goals and defining executable tactics associated with achieving the goal.
ActiFi’s Process Workshop will provide your executive team and key employees with clarity about where you are going and how you can get there. It provides materials that can be shared with employees, partners and even clients that give a clear picture of what you do, and how you do it.
The baseline provided by a Process Workshop allows you to take several steps toward improving your practice and achieving your firm-level goals:
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Define selected processes to the task level for implementation (or automation within a workflow or CRM solution).
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Initiate change management with current employees and partners.
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Plan for resource alignment within the processes and start to address gaps.
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Communicate to new and prospective employees what you do and their role in the business.
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Evaluate potential technology solutions within the framework of your process model.
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Investigate potential partners for new services or solutions to be offered.
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Sample Process Diagrams - Click to Enlarge |
How it Works
A Process Workshop itself is typically an on-site program lasting two or three days (depending on the scope of processes to be addressed) and requires ActiFi to work closely with individuals throughout your practice. The typical starting point for your firm is to identify the key processes within your organization. ActiFi facilitates this discovery by working with you to complete the Process Questionnaire.
The total Process Workshop program schedule includes preparation time and the creation of Process Maps, Workflow diagrams, recommendations, and other deliverables. The time from signing an engagement letter to delivery of final documents can vary greatly depending on scope. If the engagement is to provide a thorough analysis of the most commonly-used processes (e.g., client acquisition; client service meeting; investment management meeting), then start-to-finish time is typically six to ten weeks.
The key steps and deliverables in a Process Workshop include:
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Capture process inventory, develop process scoping placemat and validate scope of this engagement.
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Conduct onsite Process Workshop.
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Create and validate all process visual representations and gap analysis.
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Analyze staffing requirements and enabling technologies and develop initial recommendations to address both. Develop high-level plan covering definition and implementation phases.
Depending upon scope, ActiFi will assign a core Engagement Team of three to four consultants, who will be supported by various specialists, to ensure the best results and highest levels of value for your investment.
For more information on Process Workshops, contact ActiFi today.
