Eliminating Informational Waste Part 1

Today’s Topic: Informational Waste Part 1: Retyping

So, we all know what data is, right? Anything saved on a computer, written on a notepad or occupying your brain cells can be called data. But unlocking that data in a quick, usable format is where we separate data from information. And that’s where things get interesting.

Introduction to Informational Waste

How many times have you thought “Yeah, that would be great to know, but who has time to add all of that up?” or “I just entered that data, why do I have to enter it again?” If you recognize these phrases, congratulations! You’re already on the road to identifying what I call “informational waste.” And the workplace is full of informational waste. 

Learn to Spot It

First, let’s define waste: it’s any expense or time consumed that the customer isn’t willing to pay for. Customers are willing to pay for a product and pay for a professional supplier that obeys the law, protects the environment, pays fair wages, etc. What they won’t pay for is high defect rates, lost productivity due to inefficient systems or errors in your process.

First, let’s define waste: it’s any expense or time consumed that the customer isn’t willing to pay for. 

You can’t fix a problem that you don’t see, so let’s look at some simple questions to get the ball rolling. Here are some red flags to watch out for in your business:

1.      Are your individual contributors retyping things?

2.      Do you have paper file cabinets full of papers that are used once or twice a year?

3.      Is the data used by your individual contributors not available in real time – if the CEO asks for it?

If you answered yes, you’re not alone. In fact, most companies would say yes to all 3. Many would say that these are completely normal issues, or government regulations make us do it or money for systems is tight, etc. Today we will look at the first problem and understand how retyping is a sign that you have waste.

Retyping

We all know certain information needs to be recorded. The typical sales process involves identification of a need, a proposal, an acceptance, performance of the work, billing and collection. Let’s take a visit to the doctor’s office as an example.

1.      Your nose is stuffy, so you call the doctor, tell the scheduler your nose is stuffy, and they ask for your name, your birthdate, and when you can come in. You agree on a time.

2.      You arrive, and in most cases, you are asked your name, your birthday, your insurance info, and are handed a clipboard with 3 or 4 documents. Each one asks for your name, your date of birth, your insurance info and why you are seeing the doctor.

3.      When you complete all of that, they call you back. In many cases a nurse asks you most of the same questions.

4.      The doctor walks in, says “You have a stuffy nose?”, and either writes a prescription or sends you off. But that’s not the end of the process.

5.      The doctor’s office then takes the info from your forms, plus the notes the nurse and doctor wrote and fills out the insurance reimbursement. Yep, you guessed it – the insurance company wants to know the patient’s name, date of birth, insurance info, why you visited, etc.

6.      There’s also the potential for more retyping if something doesn’t match up, but we’ll leave that for now.

In this simple example, the patient’s name is requested, retyped or rewritten anywhere from 4 to 8 times, depending on the level of automation. Some will now say “but that’s because they use different systems!”, which is partially the answer. The real answer is one step farther: they use different systems that don’t talk to each other. 

Imagining the Alternative

Imagine this instead: you log into an app, select a code for runny nose, and the app shows the doctor’s available schedule. You pick a time, show up, and go to the exam room. The nurse will still verify that you are here for a running nose, no changes to allergies or prescriptions, and the doctor will make their recommendation for treatment.  The app has already pre-loaded your insurance info and bills you for the deductible. The doctor’s office gets insurance approval instantly, receives payment via ACH, and the records are stored electronically. The prescription is electronically sent to the pharmacy you choose.

We’ve now eliminated the retyping and the waste of misinformation within the process. We’ve also reduced the cycle time from arriving at the doctor to getting treatment and payment.

The Naysayers

The naysayers will always have their strongest voice when the current system is “good enough”. The phrase “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” is the official motto of the status quo crowd. So how do we respond to the naysayers. Here are some common issues and responses:

·        What if there is a mistake in my info?

o  Mistakes are everywhere, no matter how great your system is. Systems must be designed to allow data errors to be fixed quickly and easily. It must be easier to fix the mistake than to ignore it. Don’t assign one person the exclusive power to fix data, and then make that person unavailable.

It must be easier to fix the mistake than to ignore it.

·        What if someone can’t use a computer?

o  Would you rather spend resources to accommodate the exceptions, or allow an antiquated process to become your boat anchor? Companies must find solutions to address the outliers in a population, with the goal of keeping them in the process.

·        This is all great, but computers cost too much.

o  Your competitors will disagree. Eventually they will build upon their efficiencies, while you are still working around the same problems.

·        Each entity has their own system, it could never work.

o  This excuse falls under the much broader category of “But we’re different, so this doesn’t work for us.” Think for a moment: do you, your customer and your supplier really lack a common set of information? I doubt it. Whatever you are doing now with paper, spreadsheets or emails, do in a standardized format electronically.

·        I’m not an IT person, this is someone else’s job.

o  Truth be told, we’re all IT people. If you’re reading this article, you are using IT. And you don’t have to write the code in order to be part of the solution. Organizations that make information waste reduction a priority have more options for resource allocation than those who don’t.

This excuse falls under the much broader category of “But we’re different, so this doesn’t work for us.” Think for a moment: do you, your customer and your supplier really lack a common set of information? I doubt it. 

What Next?

Now that you are aware of what to look for, you will start to notice it more. And it will bother you. That’s a good thing, because you now have something tangible to fix. Investing company resources to eliminate waste is at the heart of continuous improvement. No one ever made a career out of defending the benefits of bad data.

Wrapping It Up

I can say from my experience, once data becomes useful information, the entire attitude and behavior of the firm changes. Employees will spend less time complaining about systems and more time keeping the data accurate. The “someone will catch it later” concept goes away very quickly when nothing is retyped. It’s similar to the broken windows theory. If a team trusts the system and uses the system, rather than having paper back ups and copies, the system will continue to improve. And resources can be focused on what really matters: producing what customers are willing to pay for.

I hope you enjoyed this article and found some useful insight. I have spent about 25 years finding value, reducing waste and simplifying the most annoying parts of work.  I’ve decided to share what I’ve learned – the good, the bad and the ugly – as a series of articles in LinkedIn.  You can reach me directly at [email protected] or https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/paul-bolinger/.