Work optimization
Finding the friction is the first step. The next one is removing it.
We redesign tasks, processes and ways of coordinating to cut unnecessary work, simplify operations and recover capacity.
It isn't about asking the team to work faster. It's about the team needing less effort to get the same result, or a better one.
Many productivity problems aren't people problems.
A task may take too long because it needs information from three places.
A salesperson may spend hours on admin because the process kept growing around them.
An approval may go through four people even though only one actually decides.
A team may keep a spreadsheet because two systems don't share information.
A meeting may exist simply because it always has.
Over time, organizations pile up small layers of complexity. DeepWork works on those layers.
What we optimize
We don't try to make everything more efficient. We find out what deserves to keep existing.
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01
Tasks
We review recurring activities to see which add value, which can be reduced and which no longer make sense.
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02
Processes
We analyze steps, sequences, waiting time, exceptions and needlessly complex paths.
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03
Approvals
We review checks and authorization levels that add time without necessarily reducing risk.
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04
Coordination
We cut questions, follow-ups and dependencies that make people chase information.
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05
Information and knowledge
We cut the time lost searching for, checking and rebuilding information: scattered documents, inconsistent versions, parallel spreadsheets and knowledge that depends on one person.
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06
Meetings
We review purpose, frequency, length, attendees and asynchronous alternatives when appropriate.
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07
Tools
We find friction caused by disconnected systems, parallel spreadsheets or poor use of existing tools.
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08
High-value work
We identify which activities need judgment, analysis, relationships or creativity, and what is getting in their way.
Not every problem needs automation
Before automating a task, we ask why it exists.
Picture a report that takes 20 hours a month.
We could automate it. But first we need to know:
Does anyone actually use that report?
If the answer is no, automating it would mean investing to produce something unnecessary more efficiently.
That is why we follow an order
- EliminateDo we need to do it?
- SimplifyCan we do it in a simpler way?
- AutomateDoes it need human intervention?
- FocusWhere does a person really add value?
The best automation for an unnecessary task may be to simply stop doing it.
How we intervene
From a finding to a new way of working.
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01
Prioritize
We don't try to change everything at once. We pick opportunities by recoverable capacity, impact, difficulty, investment and dependencies.
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02
Redesign
We define how the task or process should work once unnecessary steps and complexity are removed.
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03
Implement
We support the changes in processes, responsibilities, tools and ways of coordinating.
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04
Automate when it fits
If a necessary activity is still repetitive or predictable, we evaluate technology, integrations or AI.
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05
Measure
We compare how things work afterwards with the starting point.
An example
A request for sales information.
Before
- Salesperson
- WhatsApp to Admin
- Admin checks the system
- Asks another department
- Answer back to Admin
- WhatsApp to the salesperson
- Salesperson replies to the customer
6 steps · 3 people · several interruptions
After
- Salesperson
- Information available directly
- Customer
2 steps · 1 person
The goal wasn't for Admin to answer faster. It was to remove the need to ask them.
Three kinds of solution
The solution depends on the problem.
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01
Operational change
Removing tasks, cutting steps, changing responsibilities, adjusting an approval, reorganizing information or dropping a meeting.
It may not need any technology.
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02
Existing technology
Configuring a tool better, connecting systems you already have or adopting a solution available on the market.
Building something new doesn't always make sense.
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03
Automation or development
When there is a real need that isn't well solved, we can implement automations, AI, integrations or specific solutions.
Technology comes in when it delivers a justifiable improvement.
People
Recovering capacity doesn't necessarily mean reducing teams.
A company can use recovered capacity to:
- Serve more customers
- Sell more
- Shorten response times
- Absorb growth
- Reduce overtime
- Clear backlogs
- Improve quality
- Free up time for higher-value work
The goal is to increase available capacity without assuming the answer is always to add people.
Result
Less unnecessary work. More available capacity.
After an intervention, we should be able to compare:
Before
- Time used
- Steps
- Interactions
- People involved
- Waiting time
- Rework
- Operating cost
After
- Time required
- Steps removed
- Fewer interactions
- Automation
- Recovered capacity
- Economic impact
An implemented recommendation isn't a result yet. The result shows up when we can see that the way of working has changed.
How it relates to the diagnostic
Evidence first. Intervention second.
The redesign can start from a DeepWork diagnostic or from an operational problem the organization has already identified.
When the cause of the problem isn't clear yet, we recommend starting with the diagnostic.
Learn about the DeepWork diagnosticThere may be a redesign opportunity when…
- “We have too many steps to do something simple.”
- “Everything needs approval.”
- “Our salespeople spend too much time on admin.”
- “The same information gets entered more than once.”
- “We have systems, but we still use parallel spreadsheets.”
- “Everything ends up being handled over WhatsApp.”
- “Everything is in Google Drive and nobody can find anything.”
- “We hire people because the team can’t keep up.”
- “We automated a few things, but the process is still slow.”
- “Some tasks only one person knows how to do.”
- “Each department works well on its own, but coordinating between them is hard.”
The symptom may show up in a person. The cause may lie in the system of work.
Frequently asked questions
About the redesign.
What is Work Redesign and Optimization?
It is the intervention that fixes what uses up capacity in a team or process. We remove unnecessary tasks and steps, simplify processes and approvals, streamline coordination and how information flows and, when it really makes sense, add technology. Then we compare with the starting point to see whether the way of working changed.
Do I need the diagnostic first?
Not always. The redesign can start from an operational problem you've already identified. If the cause isn't clear yet, we recommend starting with the DeepWork diagnostic.
Does it always end in software or automation?
No. Often the solution is an operational change: removing steps, adjusting an approval or dropping a meeting. Other times it is enough to make better use of an existing tool. Automation or development come in when they deliver a justifiable improvement.
Does recovering capacity mean cutting staff?
Not necessarily. Recovered capacity can be used to serve more customers, sell more, respond faster, absorb growth, reduce overtime or spend time on higher-value work. How to use it is each company’s decision.
How do you know it worked?
We compare how things work afterwards with the starting point: time, steps, interactions, waiting time and rework. For us, an implemented recommendation isn't a result yet: the result is that the way of working has changed.
Will you organize our folders or our Drive?
It isn't about tidying folders, it's about reducing the friction of working with disorganized information. Scattered information → searching → questions → interruptions → duplication → rework → lost capacity. We look at how information is created, stored, shared and found, and redesign access whatever the tool: Drive, SharePoint, Dropbox or network folders.
Redesign and optimization
Before asking your team for more capacity,
let's review how much work
could stop existing.
We identify what to eliminate, what to simplify and what deserves to be automated.