How Business Rules Help You Avoid Slippery Slope of Unchecked Violations in Processes

Are you one of those companies?

Good. We have one more tip for you, then: today, more than ever before, it's necessary to keep your operational efficiency at the highest levels possible. And here's what can help you exactly with that.

Free Guide: Business Process Reengineering as a way out of crisis

Process Compliance Leads to Operational Efficiency

Do you remember our article about how businesses can survive a crisis? As the mentioned study suggests, companies that were able to maintain operational costs low while making smart investments, came out of the crisis stronger.

The key to operational efficiency is keeping your processes transparent to all the stakeholders and compliant with company standards. And exactly for that, our unique Business Rules feature comes in handy.

Read these 3 examples to get the idea in more detail.

1. Don't Pay Invoices After Due Date

In the time of crisis, you need to keep the budget tight and preserve cash as much as possible. You should pay the invoices neither too soon, nor too late - late-payment fees in the time of strict cash savings are not an option.

So, let's say you have a standard rule that if up to 10% of all invoices are delayed no more than 2 days, you are safe.

To keep an eye on this limit, you create a business rule in your Accounts Payable process. It could go like this: if the ratio of delayed invoices to all the invoices is over 10%, you want to see an "Error" message. If it's between 2-9%, you want to get a "Warning". Everything else is "OK."

Getting the thumb on the pulse of the Business Rules? Shall we continue? Good.

2. Keep Up With Customer Demand

Every business fights for its customers and strives to satisfy the demand through exceptional services.

One such service is timely delivery of ordered goods. If that fails, customers are likely to leave to the competition. Not to be on the wrong side, you should regularly check the warehouse logistics and durations of the activities.

For example, you know that a single activity should not take longer than 40 minutes. With Minit Business Rules, you'll be able to set up a rule which will pinpoint where the activities take longer than 40 minutes - the "Error" icon, and where they are within the limits of 40 mins - the "OK" icon.

3. Avoid Unapproved Invoices to Be Paid Out

A common violation of a business standard lies in paying invoices before the responsible higher-level manager approved them. Such a practice can be dangerous, especially in a crisis when you need to be aware of how much money, where and how often is leaving the company.

What if there is an issue with the delivery or errors in the invoice?

Once paid, there is no going back, no back-checking possible. Sure, it can happen from time to time, especially in the case of smaller sums. But not having invoices approved shouldn't be generally accepted practice.

How to keep an eye on the situation? Set up a Minit business rule defined as "the ratio of invoices paid before approval to all the invoices must be lower than 2%". Everything up to 2% is within the "OK" boundaries, otherwise you'll see an “Error” message.

Use Business Rules as Your Lighthouse in Process Fog

Setting up a business rule in the Minit Analyst will help you intervene quickly.

You'll have the information about compliance issues right when you look into the process map or the statistics view. Once you put the rule out into action, you'll instantly see how the process is performing based on the company standards.

Thus, reporting to your operations manager or process owner and potential intervention can happen immediately.

Business rules act as a lighthouse in a process fog, signalling you that the vessel is out of its course and you should pay attention. Don't let potential standards violations in your operations lead the company down the slippery slope of unchecked dangers.

Let us demonstrate to you how Business Rules can be applied to your specific business case, and start using this unique Minit's feature in your everyday operations.

Just get in touch to schedule an interactive demo session.