These are the characteristics of processes that could benefit from process optimization:

• High volume, repetitive, structured, and labor intensive transactions
• Complex, composite, error-prone processes, requiring high degrees of accuracy
• Environments seeking standardization, best practice and accountability
• Regulated operations with internal and external governance
• High-value, priority-driven, business-essential transactions
• Large percentage of exceptions from processes
• Paper-based, manual processes that are serial in nature

Characteristics of sub-optimized processes:

• Disparate or poorly connected incumbent systems.
• Associates manually accumulate information before they can accomplish their work.
• Non-systemic processes where people, paper and file cabinets createthe work process.
• Redundant activity, high error rates, process lag time and random, non-prioritized work activity.
• Inefficient cross enterprise hand-offs where the work result of one department creates re-work for another.
• Large volume of exceptions that require special reviews and management involvement