Process optimisation in community work

In addition to annual planning, the parish had well-established structures for managing recurring weekly tasks. Over time, these structures became more complex as the team grew in size. By the time they sought assistance, their resources were so deeply entangled in these processes that there was little room left for optimisation amid daily operations. They recognised that many of their processes involved extensive communication, but with a large, dispersed team working in different locations and at varying times, it became difficult to maintain alignment. As a result, misunderstandings were frequent, and there was a noticeable gap between the actual state of processes and the team’s awareness of them.

The issue wasn’t a lack of collaboration or innovative ideas—it was a breakdown in understanding and communication about each person’s role and actions. This led to duplicated efforts and wasted resources. Additionally, they were using multiple IT programs and file formats without a clear rationale, further complicating workflows. Their call for help was driven by the need for an external perspective to streamline their structures, reduce individual workloads, and create a unified, transparent workflow across the organisation.

To address the main issues of communication, self-developed structures, and the desire to stop wasting time and resources, we held a detailed discussion with the team leaders. It quickly became clear that a workshop involving as many team members as possible would be essential. The purpose of this workshop was to map out the existing structure of one of their key processes. Together, we selected the process of their Sunday service. By simply recording and displaying every small step of this process, we were able to highlight critical areas where tasks were not being performed smoothly or logically.

Additionally, our targeted questions, such as: "Why are you doing this in this way? Is there a better alternative?" encouraged them to reflect on their actions and their reasoning. Given the mix of full-time and part-time participants, special attention had to be paid to the communication surrounding the process, in addition to the technical aspects. The key managers expressed a desire to implement a clear and structured presentation of the procedures as a process flow. From this, we were able to identify and suggest optimisations, focusing on interfaces, activities, and time dependencies. This was then graphically represented and further optimised. Media discontinuities were identified, and the process was streamlined through restructuring. Finally, this graphical representation will be used in the procurement of supporting software for market research purposes.

By collaborating with EDIH.SH, the Luther-Melanchton-Gemeinde Lübeck achieved significant improvements. A key outcome was the identification of bottlenecks and inefficient system transfers, which reduced duplication and misunderstandings, significantly lowering the overall workload.

Some of the notable benefits include:

• Structured Data Management: The parish introduced a more organised system, enabling better collaboration between employees and volunteers.

• Process Template: A clear process template was created, serving as a blueprint for similar tasks and future projects, greatly improving planning and communication.

• Digital Competence: Increased understanding of digital requirements allowed the parish to identify suitable software solutions and test targeted systems for collaboration and planning, avoiding unnecessary costs.

Before these improvements, it was challenging to maintain a clear overview of ongoing activities and coordinate processes seamlessly. Now, tasks are better bundled, responsibilities are clearly distributed, and the entire workflow is efficiently managed with digital tools. This transformation has brought long-term relief to the team, enabling them to focus more on creative and substantive work while benefiting from an enhanced digital infrastructure.