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is key. Process-based workflows are used in every single step of the process from client interactions to development and launch. Having documented process maps and workflows in place allows on-boarding of new employees to happen quickly and efficiently, employee turnover and lateral shift to be painless, and consistent delivery to take place. I can’t stress enough the importance of process and documentation, as bland as it may sound. Understanding your unique process and workflow for each project will not only allow you to make it more efficient through the analysis, but also helps you conceptualize the work that you do when speaking with clients who are inexperienced with the web design industry. You’ll be able to simply and succinctly describe the various milestones throughout the development process and sum up the stages of work, putting clients at ease and making sure that everyone on your team understands how their work fits into the overall design group structure.

The important factor of process-based operations to consider is that it is always changing and being improved upon. Creating and implementing a workflow is only the first step – analyzing it for bottlenecks, inefficiencies, needless steps, and under- or over-communication are important steps in analysis with the goal of smoother and timely operations.

Further Resources

• BNET Business Community

BNET business community white papers, webcasts, and resources regarding process improvement

• TIBCO Business Process Management

The TIBCO Business Process Management (BPM) resource center including purchasable software products as well as free seminar videos and articles

• Six Sigma

Six Sigma is an organization that offers certifications for various levels of process training with a focus on producing quality products and services within an organization

Summary and Take-Aways

• Compartmentalization

Learn to forget the people, specific projects, names, and individual tasks of a project or work environment and begin to develop a perspective of units, products, and process flow. Building this perspective takes time, but provides you with a unique view of the internal workings of a company and production process.

• Critique existing models

Striving to constantly improve the business and working environment around you makes you more profitable in a freelance setting, and gives you huge credit within a corporate setting. Use process flow knowledge and the perspective previously described to identify bottlenecks, unnecessary pieces of the workflow, and all other manner of improvements.

• Standardization and documentation are king

As mentioned in the content of this section, process workflows should be set up in a way that standardizes the production process, even to the extent that any new hire or replacement could quickly understand the business model and what needs to be done. Documentation is almost always an integral piece of this process.

Communication Skills

Communication in an office is extremely fast paced and often of a high volume. Emails, phone calls, voicemails, and IM’s can pile up – especially considering that many business professionals fail to use organizational tactics and prioritization. You’ve probably emailed a client at some point asking for information, only to be met with silence for quite some time. Are they ignoring you? Don’t they know that they’re under contract? Should you email again? These could be valid concerns, but more often than not in my experience the individuals are simply very busy people who, as I mentioned, may not be the best at prioritizing and responding to the hundreds of emails which they receive.

To help solve this problem, move things along quicker, and employ best practices in business communication, there are a few tips and tricks that can help increase your odds of getting a quick response.

1. Don’t send (or ask for) too much information in an email

If too much information or content is included, the recipient will either shelf the email for them to look at later (which increases risk that they forget),