Operational Systems · Process design · Component
The time analysis
Where the elapsed time actually goes — processing against waiting — which is where the improvement opportunity nearly always sits.
The deliverable
What it is
In most processes, the time spent working on an item is a small fraction of the time the item takes. The rest is waiting, and waiting is usually cheaper to remove than work is to speed up.
This analysis is the reason the map is worth building, and it produces numbers that reliably surprise the people who run the process.
One level in
What it is made of
Each element is a constituent part of the component. Follow one to see the attributes it carries.
The processing time
Time when the work is actively being worked on.
3 attributes: Processing time · Step · Variability
LearnThe waiting time
Time when the work exists and nothing is happening to it.
3 attributes: Wait time · Wait type · Waiting for
LearnThe flow efficiency
Processing time as a share of elapsed time, for the process as a whole.
3 attributes: Flow efficiency · Total lead time · Constraint
Learn
Flow efficiency in the low single digits is common. The opportunity is in the waiting, not in working faster.
The other components in process design
The current-state map
How work actually moves today, including the queues and the workarounds — as observed rather than as described.
LearnThe future-state design
The redesigned process, built from the real one, with each change traced to what it is meant to fix.
Learn