What Is a Business Process and How Is It Used?

A business process can provide a framework for organizational success in achieving specific goals or objectives. Businesses have a range of processes they rely on daily to function, develop, and grow. Employees and stakeholders know and engage with the processes, and following them increases the likelihood of tasks being completed. 

Discover what business process means and its purpose, the different types of business processes, and how to design your own. 

Business process defined  

A business process establishes a way of doing things to get work done. Typically, this refers to a set of interrelated tasks or activities individuals perform to achieve a specific objective. For example, a business usually has a process in place for taking time off. You may need to submit a written request, perhaps to your manager and HR, and wait for their authorization. Then, you might have to make arrangements to cover your shifts while away. 

Notice how this process could involve your team and other business departments. A business process can have many stakeholders and may require the use of different resources, such as technology, equipment, and materials.

A business process delivers value by offering a standardized approach to achieving a desired result. A repeatable, measurable process can offer efficiency gains, provide agility, support scalability, and ensure compliance with industry or governmental regulations where needed.

Today, with digital transformation making it easier to streamline processes and gain competitive advantage, organizations often invest significant time and resources into analyzing, optimizing, and automating their business processes.

The purpose of a business process 

Business processes get things done. Effective management of business processes can offer many advantages, from saving money to improving performance and customer relations.

• Reduce costs: Providing a standard framework can ensure consistency and minimize errors. This can save time and reduce wastage. Standardization can also support organizational cooperation, performance benchmarking, and understanding whether outsourcing that process makes sense.

• Increase productivity: Standardizing tasks and streamlining your processes can boost efficiency and improve internal and external communications. Identifying processes for automation can also free your employees up for more value-added responsibilities.

• Improve customer satisfaction: Processes drive better performance, which can help increase customer satisfaction with your business.

• Enhance employee experience: With processes in place to improve efficiency and support standardization for benchmarking, employee engagement can benefit.

• Support compliance: Many industries are subject to regulatory requirements that dictate how certain tasks and activities must be performed. Business processes can help ensure these requirements are met, reducing the risk of fines and penalties.

Types of business processes 

Any set of activities that accomplish a company’s goals, often streamlined for efficiency, counts as a business process. To help focus the discussion of the business process, this section outlines some of the main types you might encounter.

Core processes

Core processes are business processes critical to organizational functioning. These processes contribute to the creation and delivery of value to customers. Without these processes, the organization's mission may go unmet, and achieving strategic goals becomes more difficult.

Operations processes

Operational processes involve people, equipment, policies, and procedures in achieving distribution, manufacturing, service delivery, and sales processes. These processes address the production and delivery of goods or services.

Management processes

Management processes manage overall business operations. Common examples include strategic planning, budgeting, and performance management processes.

Customer-facing processes 

Customer-facing processes involve interacting with customers. These might include marketing, sales, and customer service processes.

Support processes 

This category includes processes that support the business's operational and management processes. Examples include processes done by HR, IT, and supply chain logistics.

Some business processes may fall into multiple categories. For example, a customer service process may qualify as both a customer-facing process and a support or management process.

How to develop a business process 

Business process design relies on several steps. You might develop a business process by taking the following actions:

• Identify what processes exist now.

• Map stages in that business process in a flow chart fashion.

• Identify the goals of the process.

• Prepare a case for improving the business process.

• Consult with stakeholders—taking customers into account, too—to ensure you’re solving the right problem.

• Leverage technology where needed.

• Establish a way to measure business process efficacy. 

• Introduce the change.

• Seek feedback from those involved.

• Assess and review the progress made with that business process.

Business process examples

You can find examples of business processes throughout an organization. Options could include order fulfillment, inventory management, supply chain management, payroll processing, customer service, and marketing campaigns. 

Order fulfillment highlights a cross-functional business process. Say a customer orders a product online. The company receives the order, and its systems check inventory levels. If the product is in stock, it is retrieved and packaged for the customer. Finally, the customer receives the product.

A business will often have a process in place for customer service as well. For instance, when a customer contacts a company's customer service department with a question or concern, the representative accesses the customer's account information and assists them in resolving their issue or answering their question. Sometimes, that representative may have to call on a supervisor or other department for help.

Quality control, an operations process, is another example. A manufacturing company that wants to ensure its product meets certain standards will have procedures to test quality. Often, the testing will take place at various stages of production. This helps identify any issues or defects for resolution before the product ships to customers.

Business process management (BPM) 

If business process development interests you, you may want to pursue business process management (BPM). Managing business processes involves measuring performance, finding operational efficiencies, and maximizing budget. 

Combining data, automation, and other technology, you can identify trends that might lead to cost reductions, less waste, or lower risks. You’ll review existing business processes, analyze various business functions, and consider how they align with strategic goals. Then, you can develop models to optimize processes. 

Next, you’ll need to coordinate systems, data, and people effectively. Business process management also increasingly relies on digital tools to streamline processes, automate manual and repetitive tasks, and use data to drive decision-making.

Getting started with Coursera

Business processes provide a system to follow, allowing uniformity, streamlining, and a way for everyone in an organization to work effectively towards business goals. If you are a process-driven person, you might thrive as a business process manager. 

Start by learning about data-driven decision-making with the Business Analytics Specialization offered by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign on Coursera. This will introduce you to making informed business decisions via analytics across business areas. You might also focus on Business Process Management in Healthcare Organizations and learn to make systems better, more efficient, and more customer-friendly with Rutgers.

Additionally, consider learning more about business intelligence with Google, starting with the Foundations of Business Intelligence course that is part of the Google Business Intelligence Professional Certificate.