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Tag: Business Process

Business Process — a purposeful set of interrelated, regularly recurring activities (a sequence of tasks) that, following a specific technology, transforms inputs into outputs according to defined rules using certain mechanisms

  • How to systematize and automate business with Notion. Step 3: Launch regular processes of ongoing business system development, maintenance and improvement

    How to systematize and automate business with Notion. Step 3: Launch regular processes of ongoing business system development, maintenance and improvement

    At this step, we will focus on explaining the mechanisms of the processes for building, developing, improving, and maintaining the business system.

    Implementing such a process mechanism addresses the core challenge of business systematization: before systematizing the business itself, it is necessary to first build and launch the systematization processes to reduce potential risks and achieve greater impact. It’s also impossible to create a perfect business system instantly. We can’t create it within a single project or even a series of projects. Because there are three main factors affected there:

    • The first factor is accepting reality — a realistic understanding of the current state of business systematization in relation to the desired outcome. That is, if you’ve attempted to complete Step 2, which is to develop a business system framework, you’ve probably already realized that even properly formalizing the structure of goals and processes is quite challenging. You’ll likely need to revisit, review, and adjust what has already been done from time to time. And sometimes, you may even need to pause the work to gather more information — for example, actual performance data to refine the goals, or feedback from process participants regarding how those processes are carried out.
    • The second factor is the external environment — everything happening around your business. Market changes, innovations, new methods, products and technologies, emerging markets, regulatory changes, and the appearance of new competitors will all require you to review and adjust your products, services, processes, goals, and strategies for achieving them. Accordingly, from time to time, it is necessary to make changes to the existing business system to ensure that the entire business aligns with market realities and remains profitable and competitive.
    • The third factor is the human factor. First, people within the business need to mature in order to embrace a systematic approach — and not everyone can do this quickly. It often takes several cycles or iterations before they begin to view the business as a system, think systematically, make decisions systematically, and act accordingly. Even more importantly, as new elements and functions of the business system are implemented, those involved in the business will begin to discover new opportunities for growth and generate fresh ideas for development. This will also lead to changes in the existing system, prompting further improvement and evolving of the business system.

    In other words, a recurring, cyclical (iterative) approach will be more effective than scattered, impulsive projects. Of course, there are businesses with extremely simple business models and technologies, or those operating in stable markets — and even there, such a cyclical approach can still be effective; the cycles of change and development in the business system will simply occur less frequently and at a smaller scale. However, for dynamic, growing businesses or those operating in highly competitive markets, one must be prepared for a large number of repeated business system development projects before reaching any level of stabilization.

    Before we move on to designing this process and developing services in Notion to support and automate it, we need to pause and consider the context of the process — that is, to understand its inputs and outputs. In the article where I discussed the development of a high-level process model of the entire business, I presented the following conceptual diagram:

    Figure 1 – The place of systematization process in the complete business process model

    In this diagram, the process “Developing the tool (business system) for implementing strategy and achieving the future state” represents the business system lifecycle process — or, for short, the Systematization Process.

    This diagram implies that the main input for the business systematization process is the outcome of the strategic management process: “Defining the current state of the business and developing the future state of the business.” These outcomes can be presented as innovative proposals for the development of the business system. In addition, such proposals can be created by managers or owners of various processes. Innovative proposals may also be formed within the systematization process itself, during the execution of operations supporting the current version of the business system. An innovative proposal is essentially an idea aimed at improving existing business processes. Small companies and solopreneurs may use the term ‘ideas’ for simplicity and convenience, while still understanding the purpose of these ideas.

    The output of the process is the business system framework in the form of Notion databases containing elements of the business system, the development of which was presented in the previous article, along with supporting documentation in the form of various regulations, procedures, or instructions. This documentation elaborates on the framework and can be stored directly in the corresponding database records. For example, we can store instructions in the description of a particular process, or a brief draft of a roadmap in the record of a specific goal, and so on. The structure and documentation of the business system are also used to ensure the correct execution and automation of all business and control processes—so we can make sure that all our processes are properly configured and functioning, and that any nonconformities identified are either resolved immediately or formalized as innovative proposals to be implemented in future iterations of business system development.

    The Business Systematization Life Cycle Process

    Now let’s examine the internal structure of the process “Developing the tool (business system) for implementing strategy and achieving the future state.” When we look at this process as the life cycle of a business system, we can distinguish four categories of activities or tasks that must be performed to achieve optimal results. This approach allows for a more structured and effective design of the business process. These categories include:

    • Analytical tasks. These are discrete tasks that need to be performed periodically to assess whether the current state of the business system meets present needs. If it does not, we must prepare and approve a rationale for initiating changes, which serves as the basis for launching a change project and reserving and allocating the necessary resources for its implementation.
    • Project tasks. Once a project is initiated, we must clarify the requirements, carry out the design of the changes, implement those changes, and finally integrate them into the business operations.
    • Regular operations. This involves maintaining the current state of the system, which includes identifying and resolving nonconformities and deviations, making minor updates to the framework and documentation of the business system, or preparing innovative proposals for further development.
    • Management tasks. We must manage each type of activity (analytical, project-based, operational), meaning we need to plan, monitor execution, measure, and analyze the outcomes.

    Accordingly, we arrive at the following model of the business systematization lifecycle process.

    Figure 2 – Business Systematization Life Cycle Process: Developing the business system for implementing strategy and achieving the future state

    This process includes three sub processes: Analysis, Development, and Support of the Business System. The words ‘Iterative’ and ‘Ongoing’ are not necessary – I added them to emphasize this aspect. Now, let’s take a closer look at each of them.

    The Business System Analysis Subprocess

    Figure 3 – Business System Analysis Subprocess

    This process have the next logic:

    1. Innovative proposals are collected in a database table and, at a set interval—monthly, quarterly, or semi-annually—these proposals are reviewed. It is possible that there are no proposals at all, or too few and too minor to justify a system-development project. In that case, we simply continue supporting the current version of the business system.
    2. If, however, there are enough innovative proposals, the next step is to prepare a Feasibility Report to justify launching a new business-system development project. Once the report is drafted, it goes through an approval process:
      • If the Feasibility Report is approved, the business-system development project is initiated.
      • If the Feasibility Report is not approved, we continue to support the existing system until the next scheduled review of innovative proposals against the current state of the business system.

    The Business System Development Subprocess

    Figure 4 – Business System Develpment Subprocess

    The logic of this process is as follows. It consists of two subprocesses:

    1. Project Management Process, which includes the classic project management processes: Initiation, Planning, Monitoring and Control, and Project Closure.
    2. Project Execution Process: which involves the sequential steps of Defining Requirements, Designing Business System Elements and the structure of necessary documents, Developing Business System Elements and documents, and Implementation.

    The Business System Support Subprocess

    As in the previous case, the word ‘Ongoing’ is not necessary. I added it to emphasize this aspect as well.

    Figure 5 – Business System Supprot Subprocess

    The Business System Support process also consists of two sub processes:

    1. Support Operations Management Process, which includes Planning, Control, Measurement, and Analysis.
    2. Support Operations Execution Process, which includes the following execution steps:
      1. Identifying Nonconformities and Deviations in the Business System,
      2. Eliminating Nonconformities and Deviations in the Business System,
      3. Making Minor Changes to Business System Elements and Documentation,
      4. Preparing Proposals for the Development of the Business System.

    It is important to understand that at the start of the systematization activities, innovative proposals will mainly be formed based on strategic goals, which will indicate which projects we need to implement in order to achieve the desired business system. The frequency of such projects will be high at first; then, a stabilization period will follow, during which the frequency of such projects will decrease, and innovative proposals will mainly be generated by process owners or managers, as well as by the business system support process.

    Realization in Notion.

    The systematization life cycle diagrams clearly show which Notion database tables must be created next to launch the building, improvement, and support of the business system.

    So, we should add next portion of tasks in the Tasks database table with “Business System” tag and start executing them:

    1. Create Innovative Proposals database table;
    2. Create Feasibility Reports database table;
    3. Create Projects database table;
    4. Create Project Requirements database table
    5. Create Project Risks database table
    6. Create Nonconformities database table
    7. Create Business System Changes Log database table
    8. Create Project Reports database table – optional table of project information to track project’s progress.
    9. Create Operation Reports database table – optional table to prepare and tracking operational reports.
    Figure 6 – Task List with new systematiztion tasks

    Benefits of Work Done

    Innovative Proposals Notion Database Table

    Figure 7 – Innovative Proposals Notion database table example

    The ‘Innovative Proposals’ table is used to collect proposals on how to improve the existing business. Thanks to Process Tags, the ‘Innovative Proposals’ database becomes a universal tool that can be applied not only to systematization but to any aspect of the business — including new products, marketing tools, promotional campaigns, sales activities, and more.

    Feasibility Report Notion Database Table

    Figure 8 – Feasibility Reports Notion database table

    The ‘Feasibility Reports’ table is used to group proposals and justify the feasibility of their implementation through development projects. It is linked to the ‘Process Tags’ table to identify the area of the future project, and to the ‘Goals’ table to clarify which previously established goals the project’s implementation is intended to support. Like the Innovative Proposals table, the Feasibility Reports table applies not only to the systematization of activities but also to the business as a whole.

    Project Register Database Table

    Figure 9 – Project Register Notion Database Table

    The ‘Project Register’ table is used to manage all projects across the entire business and the data related to them. It links with Process Tags, Feasibility Reports, Goals, Project Requirements, Project Risks, and Project Reports to provide a comprehensive view of each project’s context, rationale, objectives, constraints, and outcomes.

    Project Requirements Database Table

    Figure 10 – Project Requirements Notion Database Table

    The ‘Project Requirements’ table is used to define, collect, refine, prioritize, and manage project requirements throughout the project lifecycle, ensuring alignment with stakeholder expectations and project objectives.

    Project Risks Database Table

    Figure 11 – Project Risks Notion Database Table

    The ‘Project Risks’ table is used to manage all identified and documented risks by tracking their likelihood, impact, mitigation strategies, and status throughout the project lifecycle

    Nonconformities Database Table

    Figure 12 – Nonconformities Notion Database Table

    The Nonconformities Database Table is used to register, handle, and resolve identified nonconformities of the business system by documenting their nature, root causes, corrective actions, and resolution status to ensure compliance.

    Change Log Database Table

    Figure 13 – Change Log Notion Database Table

    The Change Log Database Table is used to register and analyze Business System changes, ensuring that all modifications are documented, evaluated for impact, and properly implemented to maintain system integrity and traceability.

    The Complete Set of Tools for Business Systematization

    Figure 14 – Business Systematization Tools

    Finally, a complete, ready-to-use set of tools supporting the business systematization process has been developed, ensuring continuous analysis, improvement, and development of the business system. It functions as a unified, cyclical mechanism that enables the business to evolve consistently, systematically, and cost-effectively, taking into account:

    • strategic vision and long-term goals,
    • initiatives from process participants,
    • changes in the external business environment.

    Project Management Tools

    Figure 15 – Project Management Tools

    Additionally, we have developed a set of project management tools designed to support not only systematization but the entire business. Unlike the business systematization tools placed in the ‘Business System’ section of the Notion workspace, project management tools are placed in the ‘Projects’ section according to the business process model.

    The Key Strategic Benefit

    The key strategic benefit of work done is that this systematization process model remains, on the one hand, simple and flexible, while on the other hand, it aligns with Level 5 (Optimizing) of the Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI). This provides the business with a number of advantages:

    1. Continuous Process Improvement
      • Organizations systematically identify weaknesses and strengthen processes.
      • Use of different business-analysis techniques ensures that problems are not just fixed, but prevented from recurring.
    2. Quantitative Decision-Making
      • Business and engineering decisions are based on data, not intuition.
      • Enables predictable outcomes in quality, cost, and schedule through statistical analysis.
    3. Innovation and Agility
      • Encourages the introduction of new tools, techniques, and technologies in a controlled and measured way.
      • High process maturity allows for faster adaptation to change while maintaining performance.
    4. High Customer Satisfaction
      • High reliability, predictable delivery, and consistent quality lead to stronger customer relationships and repeat business.
      • Organizations can offer clients customized improvements and better responsiveness.
    5. Operational Excellence
      • Reduced waste, rework, and defects through process optimization.
      • Higher productivity and lower costs over time.
    6. Competitive Advantage
      • Level 5 certification demonstrates world-class capability.
      • Often a requirement for large government or enterprise contracts, especially in defense, aerospace, and critical systems.
    7. Cultural Maturity
      • The entire organization is aligned around process excellence and learning culture.
      • Employees are empowered to propose improvements and are actively engaged in process performance.

    Summary and conclusions:

    In this article, we explored the development of the most optimal process model for building, developing, improving, and maintaining a business system. As a result, we arrived at a process mechanism that:

    1. Is universal, meaning it fits a wide range of businesses at any stage of development;
    2. Enables deeper engagement of the company’s personnel in business improvement activities, aligning with one of the key goals set by the business owner;
    3. Is fairly simple and flexible, allowing us to add certain operations and details to the described processes for more complex businesses—such as introducing audits to identify nonconformities—or, conversely, to simplify the process by replacing “Innovative Proposals” with simple “Ideas” and streamlining the development and approval of a Feasibility Report by replacing it with a “Project Candidate” for small businesses and startups;
    4. This process model for the life cycle of analysis, improvement, development, and support of the business system corresponds to the highest, fifth maturity level of the Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) (Optimizing), meaning the business focuses on continuous process improvement.

    We have also completed the development of a full set of tools for business systematization and project management across the entire business. Now, we’re ready to move on to the fourth step: launching systematization and development projects to elevate the business to the next level.

  • How to systematize and automate business with Notion. Second Step: Design Business System Framework

    How to systematize and automate business with Notion. Second Step: Design Business System Framework

    Building on the foundational steps of systematizing business using Notion, this article delves into the second crucial step: designing a comprehensive business system framework. Learn how to structure interconnected components like goals, processes, indicators, and organizational roles. By understanding these relationships, you’ll gain a clearer path to building the required business system with reduced effort, risk, and cost. This article provides actionable insights and a practical guide to designing a scalable, robust and efficient business system framework using Notion.

    The previous article outlined the first step to systematize the business and implement Notion, including defining a high-level model of all business processes, creating a Notion workspace structure based this model, creating “Process Tags” database table and master “Tasks” database table to organize current tasks by high-level processes. We also looked at the benefits this solution provides, demonstrating its value and the potential of the work accomplished. For some businesses, this might be enough, but what about companies striving to achieve more significant goals, as in the business case under consideration?

    Business transformation goals
    Figure 1 – Business transformation goals

    We have already established that achieving these goals is done through systematization—that is, by building and implementing an efficient business system. The next step, which we will unpack in this article, is designing the framework of this business system. This will help us gain a deeper understanding of how business processes should be structured and executed to achieve the set goals.

    The resulting framework will serve as:

    • A foundation for planning and executing the next steps in systematization and automation.
    • A basis for the business knowledge base, which will evolve as systematization and automation plans are implemented.

    This knowledge base will be used for training, minimizing errors among all individuals involved in business operations, and monitoring and resolving issues that arise in the course of business activities.

    Of course, to design like business system framework correctly, we must have the appropriate competencies, techniques, tools, and practical experience. I have done this multiple times using various tools, and that’s why I want to provide you with the best way to do this using Notion, as well as explain in detail how to use the resulting outcome as effectively as possible.

    Components of Business System

    A real complete business system that will really boost your business include the following interconnected component:

    • Goals – the goals list structured from high-level long-term strategic goals that shows what business want to achieve to operational level goals of processes.
    • Processes – structured list of business processes from high level business processes that defined as we describe in previous article to more low level processes. This list illustrate how all operations are structured and executed to achieve company’s objectives.
    • Indicators – a list of key performance indicators that show how we can measure results, ranging from individual processes to company-wide metrics, allowing tracking of whether the business is achieving its planned goals.
    • Organizational structure – a list of the company’s positions or team roles that defines the hierarchy and areas of responsibility.
    • Objects – a list of all material and non-material items, such as documents, assets, inventory, equipment, tools, materials, and other resources, with which the company operates through its processes.

    It is also necessary to highlight two categories of objects that play a crucial role in building a business system, making it convenient to include them separately as system components:

    • IT systems and apps – a structured list of IT systems and applications, along with their functions, that the business needs to use to improve efficiency and manage data properly.
    • Databases – list of databases, database tables, datasets, or database entities that IT systems can use to store business data. This list is optional because databases are also considered objects.
    Components of business system
    Figure 2 – Components of business system

    ‘Interconnected’ mean that items of this components connected to each other to fully understand how all aspects of the business system work:

    • Connections between Goals and Indicators show how are goals achievement measured
    • Connections between Indicators and Processes show which processes yield which indicators
    • Connections between Processes and Objects shows which objects are associated with which processes and what operations are performed on these objects within the processes
    • Connections between Processes and Oganizational Structure or Team Roles show which position (role) owns the process and which position (role) performs specific operations in each process
    • Connections between Processes and IT systems or apps show which IT systems and applications are needed for business processes and what functions they should have to ensure maximum process efficiency
    • Connections between Processes and Databases indicate which databases are used in specific business processes, detailing how these databases support data storage, retrieval, and management to ensure accurate and efficient process execution. These connections also define what data is created, updated, or utilized during the execution of each process.

    So, comprehensive lists of business system components and the connections between their items provide an extremely detailed picture of the business, offering invaluable support for building, implementing, maintaining, and improving the business system in the most rational and cost-effective way. Notion provides the tools to do this work quite effectively:

    • We can use database tables to create a structured and hierarchical lists.
    • We can use relations between database tables to build connections between items of business system components, and set up very useful views.
    • We can setup templates for items of database tables to show information as documents with additional schemes and diagrams where it is needed and create any kind of regulations, instructions and requirement specifications.

    But Notion also has its limitations. For example, we cannot implement a fully comprehensive and convenient functionality for describing an exhaustive activity model for any business within the Notion environment. Additionally, Notion databases are of the NoSQL type, which also affects the final result. However, the advantages and accessibility of the Notion product outweigh these shortcomings, so we simply need to take these limitations into account during the work process.

    So, let’s do it to see real example and better understand benefits of work done.

    Planned Tasks in Designing a Business System Framework

    Having understood the components that make up a business system, we can begin creating a tool within the Notion environment to design these components and, ultimately, build the business system framework and its further development into an effective, resilient, and viable system. That is why we create the following list of tasks with “Business System” tag in our “Task” database table and start executing them:

    1. Create Goals database table.
    2. Create Processes database table.
    3. Create Organization database table.
    4. Create Indicators database table.
    5. Create Objects database table
    6. Create some additional databases for processes. As we now the definition of term ‘Process’ any process – a purposeful set of interrelated, regularly recurring activities (a sequence of tasks) that, following a specific technology, transforms inputs into outputs according to defined rules using certain mechanisms:
      • ‘Objects. Usage in process’ database table to connect Processes database with Objects database table that are used as Inputs, Controls, Outputs, Mechanisms of Processes (ICOM) and help us understand in which process which object is used;
      • ‘Organization. Participation in processes’ database table to connect Processes with organization units and roles and helps us understand in which process which position or role performs which function;
      • ‘Object. Categories’ for easy object structuring;
      • ‘Object. Usage Types’ to mark object in ‘Objects. Usage in process’ database table as Input, Output, Control or Mechanism.
    7. Create, one more, important database to store definition of terms named Definitions.
    8. Create relations between databases:
      • Goals with Indicators;
      • Indicators with Processes;
      • Processes with Objects. Usage in process;
      • Processes with Organization. Participation in processes;
      • Organization with Organization. Participation in processes.
    9. Populate Processes Database with real business processes list.
    10. Populate others Databases with some example data and show results.
    First business systematization tasks
    Figure 3 – First scheduled tasks with ‘Business System’ tag

    Notice! We are already using our Notion workspace to build our system and accumulate historical information about our activities, which can be used for analysis and to draw valuable conclusions in the future.

    Benefits of the Work Done

    Goals database table

    Notion Goals database table with hierarchically structured strategic goals example
    Figure 4 – The “Goals” database table example with hierarchically structured strategic goals example.

    Using the “Goals” database table, along with Notion’s capabilities and the proposed methodology, provides businesses with a strategic management tool that enables them to:

    • Create a structured list of strategic goals and break them down to the level of individual projects, processes, and positions. This ensures that the strategy is communicated to every employee, allowing all individuals involved in the business to understand their contribution to both current operations and the company’s future.
    • Simplify and optimize strategic management processes, making them accessible even to relatively small businesses.
    • Manage long-term vision, strategy, and strategic plans as they evolve and as new data becomes available, including actual company performance metrics.

    Indicators database table

    Figure 5 – The “Indicators” database table example with list of Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) example.

    Using the “Indicators” database table allows us to define and classify the indicators (KPI’s) needed to measure the business. We can also set target control values that the business must achieve to realize its vision and strategy. Later, we will use these indicators for project management and regular operations management within the corresponding processes to monitor and optimize them.

    Figure 6 – Goals table with Indicators.

    Relation between Goals and Indicators shows us how goals are measured and how we can monitor their achievement

    Processes database table

    Figure 7 – The “Processes” database table fragment.

    Using the “Processes” database table, along with Notion’s capabilities and the proposed methodology, provides a fundamental tool for process management. Built on the process model from the previous article, it allows us to:

    • Structure our processes by adding sub processes.
    • Define the initial event, outcome, and other key parameters for each process.
    • Include visual materials such as flowcharts and business process diagrams.
    • Prepare for process optimization and automation projects.

    This approach helps identify bottlenecks in current operations that can be improved or optimized to enhance business efficiency. Additionally, it provides a deeper understanding of the scope of business optimization and automation efforts, preparing us for the next steps, including process automation.

    Figure 8 – The “Processes” database table fragment with indicators.

    The relationship between Processes and Indicators shows where the indicators originate from and how we can monitor and measure their effectiveness.

    Organization database table

    Figure 9 – The “Organization” database table fragment.

    The ‘Organization’ database table helps us create our organizational or team structure by defining current positions along with their duties and responsibilities.

    “Organization: Participation in Processes” database

    Figure 10 – The “Organization. Participation in processes” database table fragment.

    The ‘Organization: Participation in Processes’ database table is used to establish relationships between processes and the organizational structure. This relationship helps define who owns, manages, and performs process operations, providing a clear understanding of required human resources and enabling their more effective use.

    Objects database table

    Figure 11 – The “Objects” database table fragment

    The “Objects” database table helps as to list all objects that using by business to understand for further optimization and automation too.

    Objects. Usage in processes database table

    Figure 12 – The “Objects. Usage in processes” database table fragment

    The ‘Objects. Usage in Processes’ database table is used to establish relationships between processes and objects. Objects serve as inputs, outputs, controls, and mechanisms within processes. This information enhances our understanding of process structures and their automation potential. It also helps identify objects that can be eliminated to reduce costs, as well as objects that should be introduced because they currently lack associated processes, even though such processes are necessary for the business system.

    Finally, creating and populating the database of business system elements with accurate data provides us with a more precise and comprehensive view of the key components of the business system. This information can be effectively communicated to all stakeholders involved in the business. Proper use of the obtained tools will enable the business to avoid many mistakes and risks in the future, ultimately reducing costs for implementing business improvement projects.

    Summary and conclusions

    As a result of the work done, we have created a set of tools for structuring the key elements of the system. Filling them with accurate data ensures the outcome of systematization, while their further use enables solving a wide range of management tasks to achieve planned goals. Among these management tasks, for example, may be:

    1. Process optimization to reduce costs and increase productivity.
    2. Design and implementation of new processes that were previously missing, ensuring the business operates as a system rather than a collection of chaotic activities.
    3. Business process automation using existing market solutions or developing custom IT systems and applications to enhance competitiveness.
    4. Development and implementation of training and professional development programs for team members, enabled by a clearer understanding of goals, processes, and employee roles.
    5. Minimization of errors, poor decisions, and risks through a deeper and more visual understanding of how all processes should work, allowing for faster achievement of necessary results with lower costs.

    In the future, it will only be necessary to update and supplement the database tables as internal and external conditions change and the business system evolves. This way, the business will always have an up-to-date and comprehensive knowledge base at hand, covering: where we are heading (goals), how we will achieve it (strategy), how everything operates (processes), who is responsible for what (organizational structure/team roles), what we measure to track results (indicators), and which objects are used or transformed in which processes, and so on.

    However, it is also important to understand that not every business, at the start of its systematization and improvement efforts, has sufficient competencies and personnel to correctly formalize goals, indicators, processes, organizational structures, and objects—and to complete all this work properly within a single project. That is why, in the next article, I will explain how systematization processes should be structured so that this issue is fully addressed, allowing us to move forward.

  • How to systematize and automate business with Notion. First Step: Define high-level holistic and integrated process model

    How to systematize and automate business with Notion. First Step: Define high-level holistic and integrated process model

    In previous article I briefly described business case, goals, approach and methodology to universal method of systematization and automation business based on Notion and Make. In this article, I will cover the First Step: Defining a high-level, holistic and integrated process model for the entire business. But before diving in, it is necessary to understand a number of key concepts and definitions.

    Key Concepts and Definitions

    The goal of first step is defining a high-level holistic and integrated model of processes for the entire business but before doing so, it is necessary to clarify some definitions and key concepts.

    Key principles:

    • Call things by their name and use clear and precise terminology. This mean avoid overly complex terminology terms, fashionable or confusing abbreviations that confuse all persons involved in the processes and management of the business and complicate the understanding of the system. The simpler, the better.
    • Abstract approach. The application of an abstract approach enables the development of universal process models that can be adapted to various types of activities and business cases, which also simplifies and facilitates the understanding of business as a cohesive system.

    Why Start with Defining High-Level Processes?

    A common practice is to design Low-Code/No-Code solutions (as well as solutions based on hardcore coding 🙂) using a functional-based approach. A typical example is creating a TeamSpace’s aligned with the organizational or teams structure. While this is a standard solution, it inherits all the drawbacks of the functional management approach and fails to deliver the same level of business efficiency as a system architecture built on a process-based approach.

    This is because, in the functional approach, the system is constructed around the existing or anticipated human resource structure rather than the natural flow of value-creating processes tailored to the chosen business activities and goals. As a result, the outcome is a bureaucratic system that operates less efficiently than one designed with a process-driven methodology. It’s also essential to remember that the ultimate goal of business automation is to automate processes, so it’s best to start with processes from the outset. The rest of this article will help you gain a deeper understanding of the application of the process-based approach.

    Now let’s break down what the terms ‘high-level,’ ‘holistic,’ and ‘integrated’ mean.

    High-level – at the initial stage, in order to build and use the system, we need the top level of the process model to see how the company creates value, provides resources, and manages the business without delving into details (details will be addressed in the following steps).

    Holistic – processes are presented as a unified and complete business mechanism without omissions or disconnected parts, providing a full representation of the business processes required to achieve the company’s strategic and operational goals.

    Integrated – all processes are interconnected; there are no isolated or ‘out-of-context’ processes.

    Now, understanding the essence of these meanings, let’s explore how to define such a top-level model at a conceptual level, that is, briefly and without going into deep details.

    Defining High-Level Value Stream Process

    First, we define the core business process as the value creation flow. A basic example of a value creation flow can be represented by the abstract model shown in the diagram below:

    Figure 1 – Basic abstract value stream process

    In a sense, this is a classic value creation process (value chain) that has been utilized by manufacturing corporations for decades:

    Figure 2 – Typical value creation process

    Depending on the type of activity, market niche, and specific characteristics, this approach can be adjusted and adapted to suit any business type:

    For example, in some cases, it is convenient to combine the processes of promotion and sales:

    Figure 3 – An example of combining promotion and sales processes

    Here is an example of how this might look for a service-oriented business:

    Figure 4 – Example of a value creation process for the service industry

    There are also businesses where different value creation process models can be used. For example, in real estate development, I have encountered two different models:

    First model for property development: The company first conducts marketing to determine market demand and develop a basic concept for the real estate project, and then, based on the concept, proceeds with the search and acquisition of the land:

    Figure 5 -Property development: first example

    Second model for property development: The company first finds and acquires the land, and then carries out the marketing processes and develops the marketing concept.

    Figure 6 – Property development: second example

    That is, any variations of the basic value creation flow process model are acceptable, as long as they suit your business case.

    Defining the high-level processes that provide the value creation process with the necessary resources

    A common problem in many companies is the presence of excessive providing processes or those that are overly complex and redundant. However, in most cases, these processes can be distilled into the following:

    • the process of providing financial resources,
    • the process of providing people (it can be called human resource provision, talent acquisition, or champion sourcing, but the essence remains the same),
    • the process of providing infrastructure,
    • procurement of resources.

    Conceptually, the resource providing processes are illustrated in the diagram below.

    Figure 7 – Adding resource providing processes to the overall picture

    For clarity, let me highlight three important details:

    First, it is essential to accurately understand the process of providing infrastructure. For instance, according to ISO 9001 standards :
    The organization shall determine, provide and maintain the infrastructure necessary for the operation of its processes and to achieve conformity of products and services. NOTE Infrastructure can include:

    • a) buildings and associated utilities;
    • b) equipment, including hardware and software;
    • c) transportation resources;
    • d) information and communication technology.

    That is, infrastructure is not limited to buildings, structures, or equipment; it also includes IT infrastructure, software, and cloud resources. In future articles, I will demonstrate how this process should be optimally organized to be efficient and account for all these details.

    Second, readers of this article might argue that most businesses typically have far more support processes. However, if you aim to build the most efficient business model, almost all of these processes can be outsourced, consolidating them into a well-structured procurement process (which will also be examined in detail in future articles). At the same time, I fully acknowledge that in some business cases, additional processes may be required, such as legal support, PR, reputation management, and so on.

    Figure 8 – Legal services included to providing processes

    And sometimes, even parts of the value stream process can be moved to the provisioning process or outsourced through procurement. For example, the figure below shows that accounting is moved to a separate supporting process.

    Figure 9 – Accounting services included to providing processes

    Defining the High Level Management Processes

    On the one hand, these processes neither create value nor provide resources for the business. On the other hand, they are critically important for ensuring growth, scalability, and, at the same time, providing stability, reliability, and assurances to investors. However, practice shows that in most companies, this is the least systematized and optimized category of processes and often looks as shown in the next diagram. Over time, this leads to deep-seated business problems that are difficult to resolve because the company’s management does not understand the root causes of their origin.

    Figure 10 – How business management works in many companies

    So, to build an effective management system, we must define, design, and implement the following high-level processes:

    1. Defining the current state of the business – A process for identifying, evaluating, and managing information about the company’s current state to figuratively understand where we are now.
    2. Defining the future state of the business and developing strategy to achieve it– A process for defining, formalizing, and managing the company’s vision for the future, as well as developing strategies and strategic plans to achieve that vision. Figuratively speaking, it is the formalization of where we want to go.
    3. Developing the tool(system) for implementing strategy and achieving the future state – The process of creating, developing and supporting a business system, that is, a tool that will ensure the achievement of strategic goals.
    4. Managing projects for strategy realization and achieving the future state – A process for managing internal development projects, i.e., projects (or portfolios of projects and programs for larger businesses) that enable the development of the company’s products/services, the building and improvement of business systems, and the execution of various unique tasks aimed at achieving strategic goals. In other words, it is about creating the conditions necessary to achieve the planned outcomes.
    5. Managing regular operations for strategy realization and achieving the future state – A process for managing operational activities aimed at delivering planned outcomes, such as productivity, sales volume, customer satisfaction, revenue, profitability, net income, and so on. In other words, all the process metrics used to evaluate results and determine whether the company is progressing toward its goals.
    6. Governance Decision Management – the pinnacle of the business system: a process of senior business leadership where the highest management decisions are prepared, made, and their execution is monitored.

    It is crucial to understand that most companies attempt to implement strategic management by developing a vision, mission, and strategy without defining or understanding their current state. In other words, they design a roadmap for where the company wants to go without having a clear picture of where it is now. This is a critical mistake! The outcome is entirely predictable 🙂

    As a result, we have arrived at a simple, fairly understandable, yet holistic and integrated model of high-level processes. The next step involves detailing these processes and formalizing them through the development of guidelines and automation. However, at this stage, it is essential to focus on other, more important and valuable actions, which will be carried out in the Notion environment so that users can see the system’s framework and utilize its basic elements.

    Figure 11 – Complete high-level business process model

    Defining a list of high-level tags reflecting the process model in our workspace

    Based on the resulting model of high-level processes, we will define a list of tags that will play a central role in our system. The process names can be chosen arbitrarily, but it’s preferable to keep them concise and ensure they reflect the essence of the process. For this case, I arrived at the following tag structure

    Figure 12- High-level tags reflecting the process model in our workspace

    Let’s start using Notion

    Create a Notion Workspace for Our Business Case

    Then, we create a database table for process categories and a database table for process tags .

    Figure 13 – List of process categories as a table in the Notion database
    Figure 14 – List of process tags as a table in the Notion database

    This list of tags will be used as a relational field (Relations) in various system elements, such as tasks, projects, issues, goals, and other system components.

    Figure 15 – From Model Process Tags to Notion Workspace Process Tags

    Creating the workspace structure or team spaces reflecting the process model.

    Now, we create the workspace structure or team spaces that correspond to the structure of process tags.

    Figure 16 – Notion Workspace structure reflects process model tags

    Move Process Categories and Process Tags to the Business System section

    In the Governance section create a central Tasks database table and add a Process Tag column

    Figure 17 – Tasks database table

    That’s it! The first stage is complete! We defined high level process model of entire business and set up Notion workspace according of this model. This is simple!

    Benefits of the Work Done and Next Step

    We did a simple and quick job but in line with a long-term systematization and automation strategy of business to build efficient business system. Without yet having a complete and detailed understanding of the algorithms behind specific processes, company employees can add tasks linked to specific process tags. This enables the collection of objective data for accurate and realistic process design. Additionally, employees using the system begin to develop habits of structuring and systematizing tasks while becoming engaged in the design and development of the business system. For example, they can identify recurring tasks related to specific processes and contribute to finding automation solutions. For each process, task views can already be configured to display tasks related to that process and integrated into the corresponding sections or TeamSpace’s of the system

    Figure 18 – Procurement tasks view in Procurement section of workspace

    Create database tables for Process Registry, System Objects, Goals, and Metrics to further design the elements of the business system. This topic will be covered in detail in the next article.

    Depending on their roles and responsibilities, users can already create the necessary business content within the system’s sections. This ensures that valuable content is centralized in one place while simultaneously being organized and linked to specific processes.

    Summary and conclusions:

    1. The optimal way to start systematize business is define conceptual model of high-level business processes. Start designing the system by defining value stream processes, followed by resource-providing processes, and then business management processes.
    2. If the goal of the systematization is to create conditions for sustainable, growing, and scalable business, it is critically important to establish and implement management processes as outlined above. These processes are suitable for any business and require only minor adaptations in certain details, depending on the specifics of the particular business.
      Figure 19 – Management processes are the key to creating conditions for a sustainable, growing, and scalable business
    3. Once the high-level process model is established, you can immediately take the first steps in developing and using a business system based on LowCode/NoCode platforms such as Notion. This approach allows you to see the full picture of systematization and create a proper structure. This structure enables gradual system functionality growth, user engagement, risk minimization, and avoids chaos and information clutter in the future.
    4. As mentioned at the beginning, this approach can be used not only by different types of companies but also by solopreneurs, portfolio managers, and investment companies:
      • For individual entrepreneurs, systematizing their activities into processes proves to be highly beneficial. It helps with better planning and prioritization, reducing the risk of overload, missed deadlines, or emergency tasks, while providing a clear framework for analyzing their activities. This structured, process-based approach not only aids in identifying routine tasks that can be automated but also facilitates delegating such tasks through outsourcing.
      • Portfolio Management and Investment Companies can leverage this approach to build an efficient business system, where the core process flows from selecting a startup or investment object, through its development, to its sale and exit. And, of course, they can use this approach to improve the performance of their portfolio companies or startups.