# Business process inventory

Make work across people, inboxes and systems visible. Complete one worksheet per process with the people doing the work, using recent cases rather than an ideal procedure.

Revision: 2026-09-24

## When to use it

Before choosing software or requesting a proposal, when nobody has a complete account of the steps, handoffs and exceptions.

## Expected output

A verifiable process map with a beginning, an end, an accountable owner and a baseline. Attach it to your project brief.

## 1. Set the boundaries

Choose a concrete outcome. Avoid broad labels such as “administration”: separate activities with different starting events, data and responsibilities.

### Starting event and completed outcome

Describe what initiates the work and what evidence confirms that it is complete.

________________

### Owner and contributors

List roles, a backup owner and who resolves disagreements between departments.

________________

### Included and excluded cases

Separate the standard path, urgent requests and cases requiring specialist judgement.

________________

> Illustrative example, replace with your own: Illustrative example: incoming quotation request → complete draft in the CRM. A salesperson approves the draft; negotiation and sending are outside this process.

## 2. Trace actual work

Follow recent cases from the first request to completion. Distinguish handling time, waiting time and steps that require copying information.

### Steps, systems and handoffs

For each step record who acts, which system they use and what they pass on.

________________

### Observed volume and time

Record the period, case count and measurement method; distinguish estimates from measured observations.

________________

### Exceptions and rework

Capture missing information, duplicates and reasons a case returns to an earlier step.

________________

> Illustrative example, replace with your own: Illustrative example: of 30 requests observed over two weeks, 8 need clarification. Preparing a draft takes 12 minutes; waiting for the customer can take days.

## 3. Pick the next improvement

Compare the bottleneck with the desired outcome. A shared rule or a better intake form may resolve the problem before AI is needed.

### Priority problem and its consequence

Connect the difficult step to an observable delay, error or repeated task.

________________

### Smallest useful intervention

Describe a limited change, the data it needs and the work a person will retain.

________________

### Review owner and measure

Specify who checks the result, when they check it and which comparison they use.

________________

> Illustrative example, replace with your own: Illustrative example: trial field extraction into CRM drafts only. Compare completeness and review minutes before considering additional teams or external actions.

## Pitfalls to avoid

- Treating elapsed time as hours of labour.

- Mapping only the standard path and discovering exceptions after launch.

- Automating a step without assigning an owner to the final outcome.

Stolen Orbit — https://stolenorbit.com/en/templates/process-inventory/