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Difference between Process Map and Process Flow
- 1. Updated: 09/21/2011 1©2011 AT&T Intellectual Property. All rights reserved. Process Map vs Process Flow Diagrams Developed by Herrick Andrews, MBB June 2010
- 2. Difference Between a ProcessMap and a Process Flow Updated: 02/28/2011 2© 2011 AT&T Intellectual Property. All rights reserved.
- 3. Difference Between aProcess Map and a Process Flow Process Map A Process Map maps the process steps in chronological order. Just like a driving map shows you where you will make each turn in chronological succession, a process map shows you when each step will be performed in relation to other steps in the Process. Updated: 02/28/2011 3© 2011 AT&T Intellectual Property. All rights reserved. Process Flow Functional Area3 Functional Area2 Functional Area1 Start End Process Map Second Steps Third Steps First Steps End Start Process Flow A Process Flow shows how the process ownership flows from one “owner” to another “owner.” A Process Flow is part of the family of State Diagrams. Process Flows are very effective in documenting processes in an organization so people who are part of the process can understand how it works and how they fit in overall.
- 4. Difference Between aProcess Map and a Process Flow Updated: 02/28/2011 4© 2011 AT&T Intellectual Property. All rights reserved. Process Flow Functional Area3 Functional Area2 Functional Area1 Start End Process Map Second Steps Third Steps First Steps End Start For the Measure Phase of a Six Sigma project, a Process Map is generally more suitable to being measured, because each step immediately follows the other and, measurements from one step are usually related to measurements from the previous step. For example, • If a defect is found in step n, it’s likely the defect was created in step n-1. • The time that step n begins is often immediately after the time step n-1 ends. • If rework is required, it is easier to visualize moving back to a previous step, if the steps are in chronological order. If a problem being addressed is focused on issues with work moving from one team to another, a Process Flow might be the better choice.