How to Map and Prioritise Your Processes for Automation

In large organisations, operational complexity often obscures inefficiencies. Before automating, digitising, or integrating your workflows, you need clarity — and that starts with mapping and prioritising your business processes.

Why Process Mapping Matters

Process mapping creates a visual representation of how work is done (who does what, in what order, and using which systems). It provides:

• A clear view of where time, effort, and resources are being spent.
• A shared understanding across departments.
• A baseline for identifying inefficiencies or compliance gaps.
• The foundation for successful automation and software implementation.

Done properly, process mapping reveals how things actually work (not just how they’re meant to) and prepares your organisation for structured, scalable improvements.

Step-by-Step: How to Map a Process

Choose A Process with Business Impact

Start with a high-visibility, high-friction process — something that regularly causes delays, errors, or complaints. Examples include procurement, onboarding, or approvals.

Define Start and End Points

Be specific. Is the process starting when a request is submitted, or when it’s approved? Ending when the task is completed, or when it’s reconciled in the system?

Involve The Right People

Include representatives from every role involved in the process, not just managers or IT. The people doing the work will give you the most accurate picture.

Break It Down Step-By-Step

List every task, handover, and decision point. For each step, capture:

• Who does it?
• What system or tool is used?
• What is captured, where and why?
• How long it typically takes?
• What inputs or approvals are needed?

Use A Simple Visual Format

Flowcharts, swimlane diagrams, or even sticky notes on a whiteboard can help. Keep it clear, not clever. Print a free BPMN Chart for easy reference.

Validate With the Team

Once mapped, review the process with all participants. Look for variations, missing steps, or assumptions that don’t hold up in practice.

How to Prioritise Processes for Automation

Once your processes are mapped, the next step is deciding which ones should be automated first. Consider the following factors:

• Repetition and Volume: The more often a process runs (and the more manual steps it involves) the more you stand to gain from automation.
• Standardisation: Processes that follow consistent rules are easier to automate than those with constant exceptions or one-off scenarios.
• Business Impact: Prioritise processes that affect revenue, compliance, customer experience, or staff morale.
• Complexity Versus Feasibility: Some processes may be impactful but technically difficult to automate. Others might be easy wins. A balanced roadmap should include both.
• Integration Potential: Choose processes that would benefit from being connected to your existing systems (such as finance, ERP, or CRM) to avoid duplicated data entry and fragmented workflows.

A simple scoring matrix or MoSCoW method (Must have, Should have, Could have, Won’t have) can help rank priorities objectively.

What Comes Next?

With your priority list in hand, you’re ready to:

• Build a roadmap for automation.
• Identify process owners and assign responsibilities.
• Engage a software partner who understands both the business and technical landscape.
• Prepare for system design, data validation, testing, and change management.

This upfront work reduces risk and rework later, and positions your business to gain lasting value from custom software.

FlowCentric Can Help

FlowCentric works with large organisations to build custom software that reflects how you actually work — not how someone else’s product assumes you do.

Our team helps you:

• Identify and map core operational processes.
• Prioritise what to automate for maximum business impact.
• Design, build, and support secure solutions that integrate with your existing systems.
• Improve governance, visibility, and performance.

We don’t offer generics. We build fit-for-purpose solutions that deliver clarity, control, and real-world efficiency. Take your business from #ChaosToClarity.