Processes—every company in the world has them, no matter their size. If you think your company is the exception, think again. You probably have processes, they’re just not documented; they live inside your employees’ heads. And even though processes are the common among businesses, few properly manage associated procedures—keeping them up to date and making them accessible for all employees.

Employees don’t follow processes for various reasons.

They can’t find them: Your processes may be kept in an obscure location or buried among other documents. No one can follow a process if they can’t find it.

They’re inaccurate or outdated: Your longer-term employees know when a process is inaccurate or not up to date. And if even a portion of a process is inaccurate, employees will do away with them, potentially missing critical steps.

Hard to follow: Not all processes are straightforward. In fact, most processes are documented when there’s a lot of detail or the process is particularly complex. If your processes aren’t intuitive or if they’re difficult to follow, your employees will try to find shortcuts or faster ways to execute them.

Boring processes: A process could have all the right information, be up to date and be logical. But if it’s too long or too text-heavy, your employees won’t read it.

The Impact of Not Following Company Processes: Not adhering to company processes can negatively affect your employees and your customers.

Inconsistent customer service: For every customer interaction—whether it’s responding to a support call or handling a return—there’s always a process to carry out. If these processes aren’t followed, customers receive inconsistent levels of service. And that jeopardizes your ability to retain customers and acquire new ones.

Increased errors: When processes aren’t followed correctly, employees find their own shortcuts and must make a lot of judgement calls. This means that important steps are skipped—and someone must correct those mistakes later.

Higher costs: All of the implications listed directly affect your bottom line. Many of these costs are hidden, but they add up over time and can prevent growth.

Safety concerns: For certain organizations, incorrectly executing a process can cause life-threatening injuries to employees. In fact, neglecting safety procedures is one of the leading causes of workplace injuries.

Create Processes Employees Will Use

No one can follow processes that they can’t find. The first step to create processes that your employees will use, and follow, is to ensure that they’re accessible to all employees—anytime, anywhere. Then, thoroughly evaluate your processes to determine what’s accurate and what you need to archive. Once this is done, fill each process with accurate up to date information and watch your process adoption soar.

Your processes need owners; as your company grows, your processes will change. This is where many people get lost. Multiple versions will be created and employees won’t know which process is the correct one. But when a process has a clear owner, you can ensure that there will be one consistent version, and that it will always be accurate and up to date. This also helps with accountability and engages process owners.

It’s also critical to ensure that your processes are laid out logically. This prevents employees from feeling confused or overwhelmed. While this step takes time, it’s critical if you want your employees to always follow processes. Create a clear path for employees to follow so they don’t get lost.

No one wants to read through several pages of dry process documentation that’s filled entirely with text. Fill your processes with visuals, such as colors, images and screenshots. This will also break information into smaller digestible pieces. Finally, get employees involved. Leverage their knowledge and expertise. This not only gets your team to follow the processes but it also improves your processes so they’re the best they can be.

Adopting Processes That Succeed

Integrating ProcedureFlow into the Genesys multichannel contact center architecture gives agents the exact process steps they need to assist your customers. They’ll know who the customer is, what they need and which process to execute—all before even saying hello.

To learn more about how Genesys AppFoundry partner ProcedureFlow can improve process adoption in your contact center, visit the application listing on the AppFoundry Marketplace. or watch their featured AppFoundry webinar on-demand at your convenience.

This blog post was co-authored Amanda Verner. Amanda is the Marketing Manager at ProcedureFlow and specializes in business-to-business marketing in the knowledge management industry. She is passionate about creating effective digital marketing strategies and supporting companies as they grow. When she’s not working her marketing magic, she enjoys spending time with family, baking and teaching dance classes.