[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":244},["ShallowReactive",2],{"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fas-is-vs-to-be-process-mapping":3,"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fas-is-vs-to-be-process-mapping-surround":231,"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fas-is-vs-to-be-process-mapping-alternates":238},{"id":4,"title":5,"authors":6,"badge":12,"body":14,"date":215,"description":216,"extension":217,"i18nKey":218,"image":219,"meta":222,"navigation":223,"path":224,"seo":225,"stem":228,"updated":229,"__hash__":230},"posts_en\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fas-is-vs-to-be-process-mapping.md","As-Is vs. To-Be Process Mapping",[7],{"name":8,"to":9,"avatar":10},"Olivier Pieksma","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.linkedin.com\u002Fin\u002Folivier-pieksma-4039b918a\u002F",{"src":11,"alt":8},"\u002Fcompany\u002Folivier.jpg",{"label":13},"Process Modeling",{"type":15,"value":16,"toc":197},"minimark",[17,27,30,37,40,43,46,51,54,58,61,65,68,72,75,80,83,87,90,94,97,132,136,139,143,146,150,153,157,160,163,166,169,172,175,179,182,185,188,191,194],[18,19,20,24,25],"p",{},[21,22],"span",{"style":23},"font-size:11.0pt;line-height:116%;\nfont-family:\"Cambria\",serif;mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria;mso-bidi-font-family:\nCambria;color:black;mso-themecolor:text1","One of the most common assignments in business process improvement sounds simple: map the current process and design the future process. ",[21,26],{},[18,28,29],{},"In process-management terminology:",[18,31,32],{},[33,34],"img",{"alt":35,"src":36},"A current As-Is process on the left and the improved To-Be process on the right, with the changed steps highlighted","\u002Fas-is-to-be.svg",[18,38,39],{},"The As-Is process shows how work happens today. The To-Be process shows how the organisation wants it to work in the future.",[18,41,42],{},"The concept is straightforward. The execution can become unnecessarily time-consuming. A consultant maps the entire current process, creates a polished diagram and validates it with stakeholders. Then the improvement phase starts, and much of the same process is effectively modeled again.",[18,44,45],{},"There is a better approach.",[47,48,50],"h2",{"id":49},"what-is-an-as-is-process","What is an As-Is process?",[18,52,53],{},"An As-Is process map documents the current state of a business process. It should represent what actually happens today — not what the procedure manual says should happen and not what management wishes happened. An As-Is model can capture activities, decisions, roles and responsibilities, handovers, systems, waiting times, exceptions, manual work, rework and approvals. The purpose is to create a shared understanding of the current process and a starting point for business process analysis.",[47,55,57],{"id":56},"what-is-a-to-be-process","What is a To-Be process?",[18,59,60],{},"A To-Be process map describes the desired future state. It answers: How should this process work? The future process might remove activities, automate manual tasks, change responsibilities, simplify approvals or eliminate unnecessary handovers. The To-Be model should be the result of understanding and improving the As-Is process.",[47,62,64],{"id":63},"why-teams-accidentally-double-the-work","Why teams accidentally double the work",[18,66,67],{},"A common approach is to interview stakeholders, create and format the As-Is model, validate it, analyse opportunities, start a new diagram, recreate unchanged activities, add improvements, format the To-Be model and validate it again. In many projects, most of the process does not change. If 70% of the future process is identical to the current process, there is little value in manually modeling that 70% again.",[47,69,71],{"id":70},"treat-the-as-is-as-your-baseline","Treat the As-Is as your baseline",[18,73,74],{},"The more efficient approach is: capture the As-Is once, then evolve it into the To-Be. Start by creating an accurate current-state model. Once validated, duplicate or version that process and use it as the foundation for the future-state model. The question changes from “How do we model the future process from scratch?” to “What specifically needs to change?”",[76,77,79],"h3",{"id":78},"step-1-map-reality-not-policy","Step 1: Map reality, not policy",[18,81,82],{},"Before designing improvements, make sure the As-Is is accurate. Ask people performing the process what happens first, what happens next, who does it, what happens when it fails, where they wait, which system they use and where work gets sent back. You are looking for reality, not merely the official procedure.",[76,84,86],{"id":85},"step-2-identify-friction-before-redesigning","Step 2: Identify friction before redesigning",[18,88,89],{},"Once the business process model exists, do not immediately start moving activities around. First identify waiting, rework, handovers, manual data entry, approvals, duplication, exceptions and bottlenecks. This turns process mapping into process analysis.",[76,91,93],{"id":92},"step-3-mark-what-stays-changes-and-disappears","Step 3: Mark what stays, changes and disappears",[18,95,96],{},"Classify the As-Is activities as Keep, Modify, Remove, Automate or Add. Now the To-Be process starts to emerge from the existing model. You are no longer staring at an empty canvas.",[98,99,100,108,114,120,126],"ul",{},[101,102,103,107],"li",{},[104,105,106],"strong",{},"Keep:"," Activity remains essentially unchanged",[101,109,110,113],{},[104,111,112],{},"Modify:"," Activity remains but needs improvement",[101,115,116,119],{},[104,117,118],{},"Remove:"," Activity provides insufficient value",[101,121,122,125],{},[104,123,124],{},"Automate:"," Manual activity can be performed by technology",[101,127,128,131],{},[104,129,130],{},"Add:"," New activity is required",[76,133,135],{"id":134},"step-4-challenge-the-process","Step 4: Challenge the process",[18,137,138],{},"For each activity, ask why it exists and what would happen if it were removed. This is particularly useful for approvals. Processes often accumulate controls over time, and the As-Is model makes those accumulated decisions visible. The To-Be exercise is an opportunity to challenge them.",[76,140,142],{"id":141},"step-5-separate-problems-from-solutions","Step 5: Separate problems from solutions",[18,144,145],{},"Do not jump from “This step takes too long” straight to a fashionable solution. Document the problem first, then evaluate solutions. For example, if an employee manually transfers customer information from a CRM to another system, a potential To-Be solution may be automated data exchange. The future-state change then has a clear reason.",[76,147,149],{"id":148},"step-6-create-the-to-be-from-the-existing-model","Step 6: Create the To-Be from the existing model",[18,151,152],{},"Once the changes are understood, create the future version. Keep the parts that work, remove what does not, modify what needs to change, and add the new activities. Change the relevant gateways, events, responsibilities and connections. This is particularly effective with BPMN process modeling. The principle is simple: don't redraw what you already know. Evolve it.",[76,154,156],{"id":155},"step-7-compare-as-is-and-to-be","Step 7: Compare As-Is and To-Be",[18,158,159],{},"Do not only present the To-Be diagram. Show what changed so stakeholders can understand the transformation.",[18,161,162],{},"The difference between the current and future process should be easy to understand. Instead of simply presenting two diagrams, describe the improvements that the To-Be process introduces. For example, an As-Is process might contain 12 activities, while the improved To-Be process contains only 8 activities.",[18,164,165],{},"The number of manual handovers could be reduced from 3 to 1, making the process less dependent on transferring work between people or departments. A process with 4 separate approvals might be redesigned to require only 2 approvals, removing unnecessary waiting time.",[18,167,168],{},"Manual data entry could be replaced by an automated data transfer between systems, reducing repetitive work and the risk of human error.",[18,170,171],{},"Finally, an average waiting time of 2 days could become a target of less than 4 hours in the redesigned process.",[18,173,174],{},"These differences make the purpose of the To-Be model clear. It is not simply another business process diagram; it shows exactly how process improvement can make the workflow faster, simpler and more efficient.",[76,176,178],{"id":177},"step-8-validate-the-future-process","Step 8: Validate the future process",[18,180,181],{},"A To-Be process can look excellent on paper and fail in reality. Walk through scenarios with the people who will actually perform the work. Test normal operation, failures, exception ownership, information requirements, system capabilities, controls and potential new bottlenecks.",[18,183,184],{},"Use process models as living documentation",[18,186,187],{},"One reason As-Is\u002FTo-Be projects become inefficient is that process diagrams are treated as static deliverables. Modern process modeling software can support a better lifecycle:",[18,189,190],{},"From process mapping to process improvement",[18,192,193],{},"The purpose of As-Is\u002FTo-Be mapping is not to create two diagrams. The purpose is to understand the difference between the current and desired process. The As-Is tells you where you are now. The To-Be tells you where you want to go. Process analysis tells you what needs to change to get there.",[18,195,196],{},"Instant Process helps teams create, refine and document business processes and BPMN models without spending unnecessary time manually drawing every element. Start with your current process, refine the model and use it as the basis for exploring how the process could evolve.",{"title":198,"searchDepth":199,"depth":199,"links":200},"",2,[201,202,203,204],{"id":49,"depth":199,"text":50},{"id":56,"depth":199,"text":57},{"id":63,"depth":199,"text":64},{"id":70,"depth":199,"text":71,"children":205},[206,208,209,210,211,212,213,214],{"id":78,"depth":207,"text":79},3,{"id":85,"depth":207,"text":86},{"id":92,"depth":207,"text":93},{"id":134,"depth":207,"text":135},{"id":141,"depth":207,"text":142},{"id":148,"depth":207,"text":149},{"id":155,"depth":207,"text":156},{"id":177,"depth":207,"text":178},"2026-08-17","How to improve a business process diagram without modeling everything twice","md","as-is-to-be",{"src":220,"alt":221},"\u002Fblogs\u002Fas-is-to-be-blog.png","An As-Is process diagram beside its To-Be redesign",{},true,"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fas-is-vs-to-be-process-mapping",{"title":226,"description":227},"As-Is vs. To-Be Process Mapping: A Practical Guide","Learn how to create as-is and to-be process maps without duplicating your work. A practical guide to business process modeling, BPMN and process improvement.","en\u002Fblog\u002Fas-is-vs-to-be-process-mapping","2026-08-28","Z0YVr2iHHvxp11Mdym9lAjiFBfitG1ekeepgcuSgiY4",[232,233],null,{"title":234,"path":235,"stem":236,"description":237,"children":-1},"How to Map a Business Process in One Meeting","\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fmap-business-process-one-meeting","en\u002Fblog\u002Fmap-business-process-one-meeting","A practical facilitator's guide to capturing a complete business process model in a single meeting, from the happy path to the exceptions that reveal how work really happens.",[239,241],{"code":240,"path":224},"en",{"code":242,"path":243},"nl","\u002Fnl\u002Fblog\u002Fas-is-vs-to-be-procesmodelleren",1787928890322]