Process Analysis

Business Analysis Methods, Tips and Techniques

In order to help align a business with the organization's goals and objectives, the business analyst must understand the interactions that the organization has (or wants to have) with its suppliers and customers.

The business analyst must understand all business events that initiate interactions.  He or she must also examine how the business responds (or should respond) to each of those events.

The business analyst illustrates the business processes in a business process model.  The process model describes each business processes from a conceptual perspective.  It describes "what" the business does to respond to a business event; not "how" it responds.

In other words, the conceptual process model does not make reference to paper forms, computer systems or procedures that are followed.

Process Analysis

Normally, the process model is depicted as a hierarchy consisting of three or four levels.  The organization's main business functions are shown at the top of the hierarchy.

At the bottom of the hierarchy are the "elementary processes" or EPs.  The EPs are the holy grail of process modeling.  Each elementary process represents the business's complete response to an external business event.

During business system design, the analyst will revisit each of the elementary processes to determine the best way to physically implement or automate the elementary process in the future state.

There can be one or more "physical" implementations of a single elementary process (e.g. "self-serve" Internet implementation, "full service" over-the-counter implementation)