What is an Enterprise Process Model?

Building a New Blueprint for Success

Everyone knows about the org chart – the vertical silos we use to manage our business. Enterprise processes are the horizontal workflows that create value for our customers.

The enterprise process model illustrates your organization’s value chains, including each core process component, the interaction between value chains, and key measures of success. It enables senior leaders to manage more effectively and shows every department / process / function how they contribute to organizational success.

How the Enterprise Process Model Works

Often, organizations are viewed as a collection of disparate processes rather than a coordinated system of value delivery. Value can come in the form of products or services. The process model (or blueprint) illustrates how functions and processes lineup within each major value chain. There are three steps to creating the model:

1. Identify core value chains, usually fewer than eight.
2. Consolidate redundant and/or outdated operations. (See example below.)
3. Establish governance – Select process owners and metrics

Some years ago, Orion worked with a state agency that wanted to optimize operations prior to an IT upgrade. This well-run organization had more than 100 major processes, 26 of which were considered “core” value chains. Using our staircase model, Orion consolidated the major processes to 64 and organized those activities into eight major flows.  As a result:

• Automation was much simpler
• Capacity was increased by 40%
• Operational costs fell by $2 million

This simple example does not show the governance factors –Process Owners, performance targets and handoff metrics– that convert a picture into a powerful management tool.