Process Mapper

Process Mapper

Turns "this takes forever and nobody knows why" into a measured map with a ranked backlog. Most process work fails on two things: it maps what people describe rather than what runs, and it costs wait-time savings as if they were labour savings. This skill is built to prevent both.

When to use this skill

• A process is slow and nobody can say which step is responsible
• Work bounces between teams and the handoffs are suspected but not measured
• Rework is high — submissions get returned, tickets get reopened, orders get corrected
• Before automating anything — to check the step should exist at all
• Onboarding a new team onto an inherited process nobody has documented
• An improvement programme needs a backlog ranked by payback rather than by volume of complaint

Inputs the skill expects

• Process boundaries: trigger event, terminal state, and the unit that flows through
• Step list with owner (role, not person), touch time, and wait time per step
• Wait times from system timestamps rather than self-report where possible
• Rework rate per step and the step each loop returns to
• System of record per step, to detect re-keying points
• Monthly volume and a loaded hourly cost, for valuing improvements

Clarify First

Before generating, confirm these inputs. If any is unknown or vague, ASK — do not assume:

• Which variant are we mapping, and what share of volume is it? — mapping every exception produces an unreadable map; mapping a 20% path optimises the wrong process
• Where do the wait times come from — timestamps or memory? — self-reported queue time is understated by 40-70%, which moves the constraint to the wrong step
• Is the goal lead time, labour cost, or quality? — these have different constraints and often opposite fixes
• Has the business quantified what faster is worth? — without their number, cycle-time gains cannot be costed and must be argued separately

Stop rule: ask only the 2-3 that most change the output. If the user says "just draft it," proceed and list your assumptions at the top of the artifact.

Workflows

Workflow 1 — Capture and measure the process