Process analysis
School of Music
New leaders often ask the UIT Strategic Planning and Process Team to help document their teams’ existing processes. We capture workflows so they can decide if updates are needed.
The challenge
The new director for the School of Music contacted our team, requesting help with documenting, understanding, and improving the organization’s processes, from recruitment to enrollment of a student seeking to become a School of Music major. The processes had lived with a few team members for quite some time. The director wanted to better understand the staff’s roles and responsibilities and how the school could update its processes to be more effective, automate them, if possible, and better support students through the admissions process.
The director and their team asked the Strategic Planning and Process Team to assist with the following outcomes:
- Simplify and clarify the process through which students become a music major
- Gain a shared understanding of the school’s processes and improve coordination among the school’s administrative team and faculty
- Update documentation of the school’s recruitment and enrollment processes
In addition, the documentation could possibly identify requirements to support an upcoming software integration. The school anticipated the software would improve application, admissions, and yield numbers of music majors.
Our approach
To satisfy the outcomes, our team facilitated six 90-minute sessions with a small group of stakeholders. The goal was to develop a visual of the current workflow, identify inefficiencies, and brainstorm ideas for improvements. Our facilitator guided the documentation of an improved future state. It included clear “next steps,” assigned action items, and updated roles and responsibilities.
Impact
- We helped the team document its processes
- The team came to a shared understanding of the student recruitment and yield processes
- Leadership updated the roles and responsibilities of each team member
- The team found better ways to capture and store information
- The team identified gaps and improvement opportunities
Need help documenting or updating your processes?
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You can also email us at strategyconsult@utah.edu.