Flovio
    Reference · Glossary

    The language we use with clients.

    Short, opinionated definitions of the process, operating-model and AI-native terms that come up in every engagement. Built to be linked, scanned and disagreed with.

    A

    AI-native process
    A process designed from the start for humans, automation and AI agents to operate as one system not a legacy process with an LLM bolted on. Decisions, data and handoffs are explicitly assigned to the actor best placed to make them.

    RelatedAI-native process service ·Why AI initiatives stall

    B

    Business process
    A repeating set of activities that turns an input into a customer or business outcome. Defined by its trigger, its steps, the roles that own those steps, and the result it is accountable for not by the system that happens to run it.

    RelatedWhat a process really is

    C

    Change management
    The deliberate work of moving an organisation from the current way of operating to a new one communication, training, role redefinition and reinforcement. Process redesign without change management ends up on paper, not in behaviour.

    D

    Digital twin
    A live, data-fed model of a physical operation (a factory, a warehouse, a supply network) used to simulate decisions before they are committed in reality. In process work, the twin is the bridge from reactive planning to intelligent operations.

    RelatedFactory digital twin case

    E

    ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning)
    The system of record that ties finance, supply chain, manufacturing and HR data together. ERP rollouts succeed or fail on process work that happens before the system is configured not on the system itself.

    RelatedWhy ERP implementations fail

    K

    Kaizen
    Continuous, incremental improvement driven by the people who actually do the work. Effective when the underlying process is sound; insufficient when the process itself needs redesign.

    L

    Lean
    A management system originating at Toyota that defines value from the customer's perspective and eliminates everything that does not produce it. In process work, the contribution is rigorous waste identification not the slogans.

    RelatedThree myths of process thinking

    O

    Operating model
    The combination of processes, roles, decision rights, performance metrics and governance that turns strategy into day-to-day execution. The translation layer between what the company says it does and what it actually does.

    RelatedOperating model service

    Order-to-Cash (O2C)
    The value stream from a customer placing an order through fulfilment, invoicing and cash collection. The single most common process where ERP and process design collide.
    OTIF (On-Time-In-Full)
    The share of orders delivered to the customer on the promised date, complete and in the agreed quantity. A single number that exposes the health of the whole Order-to-Cash chain.

    P

    Process architecture
    The hierarchical map of how an organisation's processes relate strategic-level value streams at the top, operational-level steps at the bottom. A good architecture lets anyone find where their work lives and how it connects to adjacent functions.

    RelatedProcess transformation ·Vaisala case

    Process KPI
    A small set of metrics that show whether a process is delivering its intended outcome typically cycle time, first-pass yield, on-time-in-full and cost-to-serve. Good KPIs are owned by the process owner, not by a reporting team.
    Process mining
    Reconstructing the actual flow of a process from event logs in the underlying systems, rather than from interviews and assumptions. Useful for diagnosing where reality diverges from the documented process.

    RelatedData and process

    Process owner
    The named person accountable for a process end-to-end: its design, its performance metrics, its improvement backlog and the decisions that cross functional borders. Without one, every process is everyone's job and therefore no one's.
    Process sprint
    A 4, 6 week fixed-scope engagement that diagnoses one process, quantifies the loss and ships a redesign the team can act on Monday. The opposite of a 90-slide assessment.

    RelatedProcess sprint service

    R

    RACI
    A matrix that assigns Responsible, Accountable, Consulted and Informed roles to each step of a process. Useful as a sanity check on decision rights; dangerous when treated as a substitute for actual process design.
    RPA (Robotic Process Automation)
    Software bots that mimic clicks and keystrokes inside existing UIs to automate repetitive work. RPA delivers fast wins on stable processes; on broken ones it locks the dysfunction in place.

    RelatedProcess automation service

    S

    S&OP / S&OE
    Sales & Operations Planning balances demand and supply on a monthly cycle; Sales & Operations Execution closes the gap between the plan and what the factory and warehouse actually do this week. Both depend on a clean underlying process not just a better tool.

    RelatedFactory digital twin case

    Swimlane diagram
    A process diagram laid out so each role or function has its own horizontal lane and handoffs cross those lanes visibly. The fastest way to surface where work is dropped between teams.

    V

    Value stream
    The end-to-end sequence of activities across functions and systems that delivers a specific outcome to a customer. Order-to-Cash, Hire-to-Retire and Idea-to-Launch are classic examples.