Is Internal Process Optimization Best Done by Someone External?

Need to embark upon creating, improving, or documenting processes internally? Whether this is a need for developing a program that supports your growth, revamping processes internally, or documenting processes for the first time to ensure consistency and norms across the organization, this work is essential.  

Now the question is, who should “own” this responsibility?  

Understandably so, organizations often start by looking internally. However, there are compelling reasons why partnering with a consultant external to the organization might be the best option. 

Expertise 

It’s rare that small and mid-size organizations have business process optimization professionals up-skilled and available to walk the organization through all the steps to understand, advise, and document internal processes. Even if you do, few organizations also have change management expertise. If you are revamping processes or defining processes internally, we highly recommend you look to work with someone who is not only a process expert but also a change management practitioner, so that they can support the full roll out of the change and ensure adoption is most likely to be a success.

Perspective 

A downside of having someone internally map out processes is that you lose the “fresh set of eyes” benefit. Having someone external to the company be the one to support this exercise can help dig a level deeper, ask the right “why” questions, and never assume that things have to continue to be done the way they are today. We often work with companies who think they’ve mapped out their processes effectively only to find out that there are a lot of undocumented steps because the person doing the work was too close to the material to remember all of the granular steps they actually take. Someone else should guide these discussions. 

Prioritization 

Though process work can help lay the foundation to operational excellence, it’s often not prioritized within organizations. By partnering with an outside expert, you can show your team members that this is a priority and walk the walk. Contracting for this support allows you all to continue to focus on your day-to-day in favor of outsourcing this responsibility. 

This also gives you the flexibility to work on your processes on a project-by-project basis. 

Budget 

Many organizations are not large enough to justify a full-time employee to focus on internal process optimization. This is especially the case when the work has yet to be done to spell out your internal processes or when your processes are inconsistent internally. In this case, working with the right external partner will allow you to get your processes in order and then either you can maintain them from there or work with them to have them maintain them on a temporary basis. This saves the overhead of a full-time hire. 

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Especially in the age of rapid technological advancements, expanding use of AI, and more dispersed teams, it is so important to identify operating standards and define your “what good looks like” for your organizations key processes. Whether it’s through working with us at Process First Consulting or another trusted consultant, we recommend considering outside support to help you gain the expertise you need, be able to prioritize the work, and save you the cost of a full-time hire.