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Standardize business processes during a Dynamics 365 implementation

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Applies to: Dynamics 365, Power Platform

This article describes the benefits, a high-level approach, risks, and recommendations for organizations that are standardizing business processes before, during, or after an implementation project with Dynamics 365 apps.

Standardizing business processes in an organization involves establishing uniform methods, procedures, and practices across various departments, functions, geographical locations, or legal entities, for example. The process entails identifying the best practices, streamlining workflows, and eliminating unnecessary variations to create consistency and efficiency.

By standardizing processes, organizations typically aim to achieve several objectives such as:

  • increased productivity

  • improved quality and reliability of outputs

  • enhanced collaboration

  • easier compliance with regulations

  • better risk management

Standardization also facilitates scalability, as it provides a foundation for growth and expansion while maintaining operational coherence. Ultimately, standardizing business processes fosters a culture of continuous improvement and innovation, enabling organizations to adapt to changing market conditions and drive sustainable success.

When an organization is implementing a new technology solution like Dynamics 365, there's an opportune time to take on a business process standardization within the organization. This is because many processes need to change anyways in order to align with the new technology.

Benefits of standardizing processes

There are many benefits an organization can achieve by standardizing business processes. The following list includes some of the key benefits.

  • Increased efficiency: Standardizing processes streamlines workflows, eliminates redundant tasks, and reduces manual errors. This efficiency improvement can lead to faster turnaround times and increased productivity across the organization.

  • Consistency and quality: Standardized processes ensure consistency in how tasks are executed, resulting in a higher quality of outputs and customer experiences. By standardizing the data inputs and outputs that are required in your business processes, you can simplify the requirements and users can rely on consistent procedures, leading to improved reliability and satisfaction.

  • Cost reduction: By eliminating inefficiencies and optimizing resources, standardization can lead to cost savings for the organization. When you reduce the duplication of efforts, decrease rework, and allocate resources better, those steps contribute to an overall cost reduction.

  • Simplified compliance and risk management: Standardized processes make it easier to comply with regulatory requirements and mitigate risks. Clear procedures and documentation enable organizations to demonstrate compliance more effectively and proactively identify and address risks.

  • Enhanced collaboration and communication: Standardization fosters a common understanding and language across departments, improving collaboration and communication. Employees can easily exchange information, share best practices, and work together towards common goals. When you use Dynamics 365 and Microsoft technologies these benefits can increase significantly. Especially with the use and integration of copilots into your business processes.

Approach for mindful standardization

Although there are many approaches that you can take to help standardize business processes across the organization, the following steps are a high-level approach that we recommend to get your organization started.

  • Assess the current state

    Begin by conducting a thorough assessment of existing processes to identify inefficiencies, variations, and areas for improvement. We recommend that you start by downloading the Business Process Catalog as a starting point for the list of processes. Identify which processes your organization does, delete any that don't apply, and add any extra processes that are specific to your organization or industry. Engage stakeholders from different departments to gain insight into their needs and challenges.

  • Define goals for standardization

    Clearly define the objectives and outcomes expected from standardizing processes. Identify key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure success and align standardization efforts with organizational goals and priorities.

  • Involve stakeholders

    Collaborate with stakeholders throughout the standardization process to ensure buy-in and alignment with their needs. Solicit feedback, address concerns, and involve employees in designing and implementing standardized processes. Make sure that there's good executive sponsorship and vision for driving the need for business process standardization.

  • Prioritize flexibility and adaptability

    While standardizing processes, maintain flexibility to accommodate department-specific requirements and evolving business needs. Design processes with built-in flexibility to allow for adjustments and refinements over time. When you use Dynamics 365 to support your processes, there's much flexibility in the configurations, and you can control many settings at a legal entity or business unit level. So ensure that the design of your organizational structure supports the needs of your business process standardization.

  • Provide training and support

    Invest in comprehensive training and support programs to help employees adapt to standardized processes. Offer resources, guidance, and ongoing coaching to facilitate a smooth transition and ensure successful adoption.

  • Monitor and iterate

    Continuously monitor the effectiveness of standardized processes and solicit feedback from stakeholders. Use data and feedback to identify areas for improvement and refine processes iteratively, ensuring continuous optimization and alignment with organizational goals.

By approaching process standardization in a mindful manner, organizations can reap the full benefits of Dynamics 365 while fostering a culture of efficiency, collaboration, and continuous improvement.

Key performance indicators (KPIs) for successful process standardization

Below are two examples of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that an organization might use to measure the success of standardizing business processes. For each example, we have included a sample of a technology in the Microsoft technology stack that organizations can use to help monitor and measure these KPIs.

Remember that simply identifying a KPI doesn't provide a way for your organization to measure it, so it's critical in your project to include a mechanism and process for monitoring and measuring the success of your efforts.

  • Process efficiency

    This KPI measures the time and resources required to complete a specific process before and after standardization. For example, measure the KPI by one of the following measures:

    • Average process cycle time

      The average time it takes to complete a process from start to finish. A decrease in average cycle time indicates improved efficiency as a result of standardization. Simple time trials during your user acceptance testing (UAT) can provide a length of time, but make sure you have a baseline time to compare to. Power Automate process mining can be used to get detailed analysis of a process and the time and sequence each step takes. Dynamics 365 data can be exported and imported into the tool to help measure the process. So make sure to plan for this data as a requirement in your project.

    • Resource use

      The percentage of available resources (such as staff, equipment, or materials) used during the execution of a process. Standardization aims to optimize resource use, leading to higher efficiency and cost savings. Simple time tracking can be done in an Excel spreadsheet. Depending on your industry the project complexity, you can use timesheets in Dynamics 365 Project Operations, or manufacturing execution times can be tracked using the Job card device available in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management.

  • Quality and accuracy

    This KPI assesses the quality and accuracy of outputs or outcomes generated by standardized processes. Examples include:

    • Error rate

      The percentage of errors or defects in the outputs of a process. Standardization should lead to a reduction in errors and defects, resulting in higher-quality outcomes. Errors and defects can be tracked in many different ways depending on the business process. Simple Excel spreadsheets or SharePoint lists can be used for simple processes. In more complex processes, you can use Cases in Dynamics 365 Customer Service or Supply Chain Management. For manufacturing scenarios, you can use Quality orders in Supply Chain Management to keep track of errors and defects.

    • Customer satisfaction score

      A measure of customer satisfaction with the products or services delivered by the organization. Standardized processes often lead to more consistent and reliable customer experiences, reflected in higher satisfaction scores. There are many tools available to help measure customer or employee satisfaction including Microsoft Forms, Viva Glint, or for more complex scenarios you can use tools like Customer Voice or data in Dynamics 365 Customer Insights, for example to monitor your customer satisfaction. Make sure that you have a consistent way to gather and monitor the scores across the process for a good baseline and delta comparison.

These KPIs provide quantifiable metrics to evaluate the impact of standardizing business processes on efficiency, quality, and customer satisfaction, helping organizations track progress and make informed decisions for continuous improvement. Make sure that you have a baseline from the current process, and a way to track the new or delta in time with the newly designed process.

Risks of process standardization

While standardizing processes can lead to greater efficiency and consistency, there are also potential risks to consider during the implementation of Dynamics 365:

  • Resistance to change

    Employees might resist standardized processes if they perceive them as disrupting familiar workflows or reducing autonomy. Resistance to change could result in decreased productivity and adoption challenges.

  • Overlooked departmental/geographical needs

    Standardization efforts might inadvertently overlook the unique requirements of certain departments or functions within the organization. Failing to address these specific needs could lead to dissatisfaction and inefficiencies.

  • Integration challenges

    Integrating Dynamics 365 with existing systems and technologies across the organization might pose technical challenges. Data migration, system compatibility issues, and customization requirements could impact implementation timelines and costs.

  • Compliance and regulatory concerns

    Standardized processes must also comply with industry regulations and organizational policies. Failure to address compliance requirements could result in legal issues, fines, or damage to the organization's reputation, for example.

  • Lack of flexibility

    Overly rigid standardization may limit agility and innovation within the organization. Balancing standardization with the need for flexibility to adapt to changing business requirements is essential to long-term success.

By proactively addressing these risks and applying best practices, organizations can successfully implement Dynamics 365 while achieving their goal of standardizing processes across the organization.

Recommendations for standardizing processes

Here are some of our recommendations to consider when undertaking the standardizing process:

  • Begin by conducting a comprehensive analysis of existing processes within different departments. Documenting these processes provides a clear understanding of current workflows and areas where standardization can be achieved.

  • Involve stakeholders from various departments/geographies early in the implementation process. Their input and feedback is invaluable in identifying commonalities and differences in processes across the organization.

  • Develop a standardized framework or model that outlines the core processes to be implemented across the organization. This framework should be flexible enough to accommodate department-specific variations while ensuring consistency in key areas.

  • Invest in robust training programs and change management initiatives to support employees in adapting to standardized processes. Clear communication about the benefits of standardization and ongoing support is essential for successful adoption.

  • Implement mechanisms for continuous improvement to refine standardized processes over time. Regular reviews and feedback loops help identify areas for optimization and ensure that processes remain aligned with organizational goals.

Contributors

This article is maintained by Microsoft. It was originally authored by the following contributors:

  • Rachel Profitt | Principal Program Manager, Microsoft Dynamics 365 FastTrack Solution Architect