Let me share with you some real stories about how process mapping changed the game for several companies. 

I could share countless examples, but let’s focus on a few outside the manufacturing sector. We’re all familiar with how Lean Six Sigma has revolutionized manufacturing. But can these same principles be applied effectively in finance, insurance, and healthcare??

These stories are not from textbooks—they’re straight from the trenches, where businesses were facing real challenges. By taking a close look at how things worked, we found problems, fixed them, and turned chaos into success.

In the context of the article, “trenches” refers to the real, hands-on experiences and practical situations faced by businesses in their day-to-day operations. It’s a way of describing the actual, often challenging, environment where theories and strategies are put into practice. 

When we talk about “stories from the trenches,” we’re discussing real-world examples and the concrete issues encountered and solved in the field, rather than abstract or theoretical concepts.

The Legal Team Mystery

At a short-term insurance company, I was called in to look at the processes in a specific department. After some digging, I realized that the legal staff that formed part of this department was being severely underutilized—only working at 33% capacity when the industry standard is around 75-80%. That’s a huge gap!

When I presented this to the executive, her response was, “I expected it, but I couldn’t prove it.” Now, with the facts in hand, she had the evidence to make necessary changes. 

A simple analysis of their processes brought clarity, and suddenly, they had the tools to turn inefficiency into productivity.

The Panic in Durban

In another case, a short-term insurance company rolled out a new process nationwide. Within 10 days, they started getting frantic calls from their Durban office about severe backlogs. Their solution? Send more people to handle the issue. But then it happened again in Bloemfontein. More people were rushed in, but the same problem persisted.

The real issue? They were adding more resources without fixing the bottlenecks in the system. Instead of solving the problem, they were just delaying it. Stop chasing bottlenecks!

By simulating their process, we identified the choke points and made adjustments—without needing to throw more people at it.

The Case of the low productivity

During a simulation at another company, I noticed that the completion percentage of applications over a period of time was extremely low. – it was 32% to be exact. After tracing back the steps, I found the bottleneck in the claims division. Staff hated writing repudiation letters (declining claims), so the task bounced back and forth, causing massive delays. The letter was very technical and needed to reflect the reasons for the repudiation backed by the policy wording, policy schedule and terms and conditions of the policy.

We didn’t need more people to fix this. Instead, we focused one team member on writing the letters while the others processed claims. A small change, but it boosted the completion rate to 78%.

One swallow does not make a summer but one small process change made a huge difference.

The Debt Collection Dilemma

In a debt collection department, they were manually splitting client books to decide whether to trace a client or send them a garnish. When I asked why they did this manually, the answer was simple: “It’s always been done this way.”

I simulated the process and showed them how automating this step could save time and resources. The CEO smiled and thought the problem was solved. “Not quite,” I said. “You now have 13 new bottlenecks.” He was shocked by my response. I used the following illustration to explain the concept to him.

Think of it like squeezing a pipe: you’re restricting the flow of water. When you remove the blockage, more water flows through, which can overwhelm the people who are behind the bottleneck. They end up struggling to manage the sudden increase in work and are effectively ‘drowning’ in it.

By tweaking a few more processes, we doubled their efficiency without adding a single person to the team.

The Windscreen Fix

Lastly, a major insurance company was wasting valuable time on small claims like windscreen replacements. The process was tedious: confirming coverage, checking stock, scheduling appointments—it was all manual. By introducing a simple mobile app, the entire process became automated. Now, clients could log their claims, the system would check stock, and the fitting would be arranged without human intervention.

The result? The claims team could focus on bigger, more valuable claims while the small ones took care of themselves. It was a win-win.

---

These stories show how small changes in business processes can have a massive impact. Whether it’s spotting bottlenecks, reallocating resources, or using technology to automate tasks, process mapping is a powerful tool to optimize any organization. 

And remember never hard-code business rules into your systems—keep them flexible so they can adapt as your business grows and changes.

If you’re facing similar challenges and want help optimizing your processes, feel free to reach out. We’re here to help.