Amir
I agree with other comments posted in reply to your query.
One problem is terminology and how people "see" a process. Processes run "horizontally" through a business (ie across departments and functions) and most will not therefore belong within a business unit (unless the BU is totally self-contained in terms of purchasing, IT support etc).
You are, I think, implying another question, namely "Should you define one generic process for eg "selling" throughout all BUs, or do you define each "selling" process separately for each BU?" The answer is that it will depend on how standard the sales process is - if you are selling a wide range of goods and services to a range of different business sectors, the selling process may vary from "just taking an order" to "prospecting for business, pre-qualification then tendering for a contract". If everything is similar, the same single process will apply, and you can deal with variations within the process definition (if the software you use is designed to allow this).
The other point (ref Ilia) is that each instance of a process (eg each sales order) should be recognised as being different, even though the basic process is the same. In any case, you need to have a clear view of the structure of the overall system and how the processes inter-relate. [Our article www.mandos.co.uk/articles/ArticlePoM.PDF explains our approach in more detail].
As an aside, BSI appear to be promoting an approach to process mapping which uses what is described as "bottom up process discovery" (I don't know what this means - does anyone else?). I am a strong believer in a "top down" approach, which I believe ensures not only that you have a clear picture of how the organisation is run but also enables the objectives of the business to be clarified and cascaded down to the appropriate level.
Good luck!
Regards
Peter
______________________________________
Peter K Fraser
MandOS
(Management & Operational Systems Limited)
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