Benefits of “As-Is”

Process Analysis
www.western-consultants.co.uk
and the Power of Business Rules

The less radical Business Process Improvement (BPI) can

deliver improved service response, give better quality service
and greater efficiencies. Examples are changing processes in
conjunction with implementing a new call centre or a CRM
system.
BPI is often used as well when organisations merge and it is
necessary to understand why they handle similar work
differently and use varying levels of resources. These are some
of the reasons why the WCG’s Business Process Methodology
includes an As-Is stage.

As-Is analysis will identify: Local Authority

• the Aims and Objectives of the process
• Who, Where and How work is undertaken
• what Resources are being applied and its cost
• where Delays, Rework and Wastage occur
• whether Performance Measures are being met
• the Business Rules that guide the process
Purchase to Pay (P2P) Survey
A ValueAdding.com survey across Unitary,
County and District /Borough councils
showed a variation in P2P processing costs
from £3 to over £80 per transaction. See
www.valueadding.com/P2P_Benchmarking.htm
to download the full report.

We have mentioned the first of these in previous papers along with

the tools and techniques we use. This paper looks at gathering
Business Rules during As-Is analysis as this activity is often over-
looked as a task. Yet Business Rules can fundamentally shape a
process, its IT support, and its service delivery. So identifying
Business Rules at an early stage will reap long-term rewards. Over
the page we look at the types of Business Rules and their application.

Whilst all these techniques appear analytical in nature they do bring

many organisational benefits. These include developing teamwork,
building a cross-organisational understanding, creating a consensus
for change, and becoming customer focused.
Continues….
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Types of Business Rules

Level Description Example

Primary and Secondary legislation often defines a mix The Environmental Protection Act 1990
of specific rules and principles. UK legislation may be establishes a "Duty of Care". The Secretary of
introduced as a result of EC directives. State may define any licencing fees payable.

Increasingly, government departments charged with
introducing and policing legislation issue guidelines and
procedures (frameworks) often based on their
interpretation of the legislation. They may also define
compliance and reporting procedures.
The DoH defined a Single Assessment
Process for Older People with implementation
guidelines, high-level processes and
checklists.

Organisations responsible for implementing legislation For Low Value items under £5,000 we will
will, where permissible, define local regulations. They obtain written quotes and purchase on a best
will also translate principles into local policies, rules & buy basis. /// A Blue Badge costs £2.
guidelines.

Sometimes cross-functional departments, e.g. audit, Payments are only paid on 1st of the month,
finance, may be charged with setting organisational rules. must be authorised by a senior manager and
be input by the 25th.

Many rules are often defined to facilitate departmental You can pay by cheque; do not send cash.
procedures and outdated IT. The origins of the rules may Applications are processed within 15 days.
be steeped in history and no longer be relevant.

Applying Business Rules

Having determined which Business Rules are still applicable and

ensuring they are consistent, they need to be incorporated into the new
processes. Rules can be embedded within the manual processes or
within an IT system. Automated rules engines help with rules
management and support faster IT change requests without re-
programming.

There are some fundamentals when applying Business Rules:

• applying a rule at the earliest stage possible, e.g. at service request
• ensuring the rules are clear, understood and are applied fairly and consistently
• defining rules only once and then referring to as necessary
• being clear which rules are mandatory and which are discretionary and when
• defining whom can apply or over-ride the rules
• avoiding high compliance costs, for example, by taking a risk-based approach.

WCG consultants are members of the IMC and abide by its

Code of Practice. Our Business Process Practice provides in-
Issue 1.1 10/10/06

house and public training courses in process analysis,

improvement, re-engineering and management. See the
Business Process section of our web site.
To learn more please call Alan Cooper, Head of Business Processing Practice on 01225 719153 or 07866 749964 or email at
alan.cooper@western-consultants.co.uk . Alan is the Managing Director of Managing Change Ltd.. Reg. in E&W no. 3591060
Registered at 1 Broadcloth Lane, Trowbridge, BA14 7HE. Managing Change is a founder member of the Western Consultants Group.