While this is from Computerworld, it really speaks to any business process that just goes awry over time because no one is either watching over things or asking questions:
At this construction company, there’s a regular need to document conditions at the job sites, reports a pilot fish on the inside.
And it’s down to a regular routine. "Employee A takes a digital camera to a construction site and takes some pictures," fish explains.
When A returns to the office, he hands off the camera’s memory card to employee B. B saves the pictures to the server and prints copies, which go back to A for review.
A picks out some of the pictures and gives the selected copies to employee C, who hands them off to employee D to scan, save as PDF files and e-mail those files back to C.
D scans the photos, saves them as in JPG format and e-mails them to employee E, who converts them to PDFs and then e-mails them to D, who forwards them to C, who e-mails them to whichever subcontractor needs to know about conditions at the construction site.
Says fish, "I have been asked if there is a better way to do this. …"
If it seems confusing, try this: A to B to A to C to D to C. D to E to D to C to the intended subcontractor.
Got that? Got a better one?
