job instructions Archives • Tri-J Solutions

Use Procedures for the Elicitation of Requirements

Employee procedures are one of your strongest collaboration tools for the elicitation of business requirements. As you perform the elicitation analysis for process improvement projects, use your employee procedures as a platform to identify business needs, formulate requirements and conduct impact analysis.

Identifying Business Needs

The success of process improvement projects greatly relies on being able to properly identify business needs. Business needs are the issues that negatively affect the efficiency and/or the quality of the work performed in the process. The process has efficiency issues where the work being performed is taking too long or there are quality issues that require extra work steps to correct the quality problems.

Use your procedures to pinpoint these efficiency/quality issues by identifying the steps within the procedures that slow down the process or the extra steps required to address quality problems. Demonstrate with your procedures, the steps that will be removed or modified as part of your process improvement project. By using your procedures as a collaboration platform to develop this list, you can reduce the confusion that can accompany discussions about business needs.

Formulating Requirements

You can use your procedures to pinpoint where the new requirement functionality (user interface or automation) will be implemented in the process. Even before the requirement design details have been fully flushed out, you can present to stakeholders the procedure location where they can expect to see the new functionality. Using procedures, you can provide the stakeholders with simulations of how the new requirements will work in the process.

Conduct Impact Analysis

Procedures can be used to perform due diligence analysis to identify other process areas that may be adversely impacted by the new functionality. Then you can assess what (if any) procedural steps need to be adjusted to prepare the users for the new changes. The use of procedures allows you to conducted a comprehensive analysis of possible impacts resulting from the new requirements.

Post Elicitation Benefits

The procedure information identified during elicitation can further benefit stakeholders later in the development process. For example:

Process owners can factor in the procedure information to help make decisions on prioritizing which requirements will be developed and which will be placed on the backlog.
The procedure information will help guide developers with their programming efforts by providing them a better understanding of the purpose behind the requirements.
Employee training will greatly benefit from the use of procedures during elicitation of requirements. By identifying the affected procedures during elicitation, you have already performed a portion of the work needed for updating the procedures that will be used for training.

When you begin your next business analysis project, keep in mind that procedure information is a valuable knowledge resource that can be used from the beginning to the end of the process improvement project.

NotoWare Job Knowledge Video

This video illustrates how NotoWare empowers employees by providing them with quick access to process, procedure, and job knowledge information. They are able to locate processes and procedures within seconds, minimizing work interruptions and improving efficiency.

NotoWare’s flexible application design conveniently displays an individualized list of procedure information and detailed work instructions for each employee. NotoWare also helps managers save time with organizing and communicating process improvement changes so that employees are always working with the latest job information.

Maximize the Benefits of Work Instructions

Work instructions are the most dynamic of the elements included in a typical documentation pyramid. They are continuously changing and being updated which is a positive aspect of their nature since changes often represent an improvement to the status quo.

Historically, a lot of focus has been placed upon documenting policies and procedures which are at the top of the documentation pyramid. Policies define an organization’s goals and procedures describe the methods used to implement and perform the stated policies. Records indicate how the policies, procedures and work instructions have been followed and may consist of forms, spreadsheets, etc.

What about handling work instructions? They are towards the bottom of the pyramid but represent an important component of an employee’s job. Work instructions are the most detailed portion of the documentation pyramid and portray an employee’s explicit job knowledge.

System for Managing Work Instructions

Work instructions describe the detailed steps of how an employee performs their work. They are more dynamic in nature and contain job knowledge expertise, making them an ideal training reference. The question is how do most companies handle documentation of work instructions?

You can get the most benefit out of your work instructions if you have a reliable system in place to manage them. Important system requirements to consider are:

Is the system designed to provide answers to job-related questions about the work instructions within seconds and just a few mouse clicks?
Can employees obtain quick access to both routine and more complex scenarios for non-routine instructions (they may require branching with decision logic and https://unitygym.org.uk/where-to-buy-levitra-in-london related steps).
Does the system allow you to include options for adding images https://unitygym.org.uk/pantoprazole-generic-cost and videos if more content is needed to explain the work instructions?
How does the system handle changes and are they communicated to employees in an efficient way so that the user is always working with up-to date information?

These are just some of the things to consider when documenting work instructions. Having a consistent method and reliable system in place makes it easier for employees to perform their job. It promotes job efficiency and accuracy, leading to better quality and business practices.

Download Tip SheetSimiplify Procedure Management

Tri-J Solutions, Inc. Launches NotoWare Procedure Management Software

NotoWare is a new procedure management software application that provides an easy-to-use method for organizing job knowledge into procedures. It makes procedure information readily available to employees when they need it.

Collegeville, PA

Tri-J Solutions, Inc. today announced the release of NotoWare, a new procedure software application that simplifies the process of recording and communicating procedure information. NotoWare uses an innovative approach where policy and procedure information is managed in an application instead of a document management system. NotoWare organizes the information within the procedure into manageable sections so that it’s easy to access specific information. Employees can quickly look up job information as opposed to searching through a series of lengthy documents for instructions.

NotoWare’s design facilitates better communication of procedure information to the user. Employees can easily identify sections of the procedure that were modified and are automatically notified of any updates. The application’s user-friendly structure allows employees to get answers to job-related questions within seconds. Users can easily locate information by using a drill down menu or search engine.

Procedures are always changing due to the dynamic nature of the business environment. With NotoWare, procedure management becomes an ongoing process where job information is continuously updated and improved. The application incorporates work instructions within a procedure and also captures expert knowledge such as procedure enhancements and problem resolutions. Procedure information is kept current and accurate, allowing companies to build an ongoing knowledge resource.

“NotoWare makes it easy to manage procedures so that they become an integral part of the business process,” stated Michael J. Sinotte, founder of Tri-J Solutions, Inc. “The value of procedures can be measured by how useful they are to employees. With NotoWare, procedures become the go-to resource for expert job knowledge instead of documents that are written, read once and forgotten.”

Procedure information recorded in NotoWare can be used as an up-to-date reference for current employees and a training resource for new employees. NotoWare consolidates and organizes job information into a single application where procedures provide continuous training. Using procedures as a job knowledge management resource also minimizes the threat of knowledge loss within a company.

Another key benefit included in NotoWare’s design is automatic performance of administrative tasks. NotoWare has a built-in work flow system that processes and communicates procedure information. The application automatically sends out e-mails to notify users when procedures are assigned or modified. It has a built-in management approval process with e-signature sign-off of procedure modifications. NotoWare also ensures compliance by keeping an audit trail of procedure reviews and revisions.

NotoWare Features/Benefits:

Simplifies policy and procedure management
Go-to-source for job information
Allows quick access and easy updating
Streamlines procedure maintenance and review
Builds ongoing knowledge resource
Facilitates integration of new software applications
Provides employee training tool
Automates administrative tasks
Browser-based web application
No additional programming required

For more information about NotoWare, please visit our web-site at http://trijsolutions.com/ or e-mail [email protected]. Free online demo is available.

About Tri-J Solutions, Inc.:

Tri-J Solutions, Inc. is the developer of NotoWare and is committed to providing companies with a solution for optimizing the management of policies and procedures that can be easily used by all business areas. NotoWare helps organizations maximize efficiency and retain valuable job knowledge expertise. Tri-J Solutions, Inc. is headquartered in Collegeville, PA and was founded in 2008.

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