Overview

Most people struggle to distinguish between “process” and “procedure” because they are often closely related and used interchangeably. Knowing the key differences between them helps you formalize business processes and boost company profitability. A process is a high-level or broad approach to achieve an outcome in a series of steps, while a procedure is a set of instructions for completing a particular task within a process.

Processes and their related procedures are essential in every area of the company’s operation. To keep it simple, let’s take a familiar example of making a spice cake. The process is the action of making a cake and the procedure is the recipe that explains how to create the cake, like preheating the oven to a certain temperature, mixing the required ingredients and amount of baking time.

IT processes and their related procedures help improve the functioning of the entire company and affect the greater efficiency of business operations. An IT process is a series of related activities or tasks that solve a specific problem or achieve a specific result like a service or product. A procedure is a set way of “carrying out” a process to help achieve the intended goals.

A thorough evaluation of current IT processes and their related procedures often lays the groundwork for optimizing broader organizational mechanisms, such as project approval workflows. By understanding and refining IT processes, companies can ensure that project evaluations align with strategic goals and operational efficiencies. For example, introducing or updating IT-related processes and procedures can streamline how new projects are assessed and approved, minimizing resource conflicts and prioritizing efforts. Let’s dive deeper into the project approval process to see how this interplay unfolds.

Understanding the Project Approval Process

Project approval is a formalized business mechanism required before initiating any project. It involves a structured procedure where decision-makers assess and validate all aspects of the project to ensure alignment with organizational goals and readiness for implementation. Rarely, though, do they evaluate the project requirements and goals against recently approved or current projects.

New project requests should, in fact, have a strong relationship with projects in the queue or in progress, as well as with the organization’s strategy plan. So, I have developed a new process for doing this by having a weighted project ranking matrix below that highlights the interconnectedness of your company’s current and potential projects and will help determine whether to redlight or greenlight proposals.

Ranking a project in terms of urgency and likelihood of success in addition to its financial prospects can eliminate some or all the political motivation for the proposal. In doing so, the balance is shifted to what the new technology can bring to the company, its partners, and users, rather than just the estimated return on investment, which is often divorced from true business gains.

When comparing the new request with funded projects in progress, you may discover that because of resource constraints, work can’t begin until another project wraps up. Likewise, you may discover you do not have the staff for a new project, which would delay its start and/or completion. Also, you might temporarily freeze a funded project in progress because the new project might have a bigger and faster impact for the organization.

The matrix below focuses on six key criteria. Each is assigned a weight which, when combined with the others, will determine a new project’s relative performance compared with that of already approved projects (Projects A and Z).

Instructions

Fill in your own numbers in the “Your Project Request” columns by rating the criteria (from 1 to 5) of your project request and scoring on its assigned weight. Add the funded projects currently underway in your organization and complete the criteria scoring exercise. You may decide to modify the criteria and/or their weights to best fit your goals. The criteria and weighted total scores you produce should be reusable for future projects but expect some of the project rankings to change.

Key Takeaways:

1. The matrix serves as both a template and a procedure for project evaluation, offering clarity and consistency.
2. Adjust weights or criteria based on organizational priorities to align with strategic goals effectively.
3. Reusability: Save the matrix for future evaluations, allowing adaptability while maintaining structure.

“To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often” – Winston Churchill

Your feedback is always welcome here in the comments, and in the Community Discussion Forum!

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