Ideale vs. gelebte Prozesse: Ein Leitfaden zur systematischen Prozesserhebung am Beispiel der TGW Logistics Group

Abstract

In an increasingly globalized and competitive environment, companies face the challenge of continuously reviewing and improving their internal processes. Customer-facing processes, especially the sales department, have a direct impact on market success. This means they must not only be efficient and transparent, but also flexible enough to adapt to changing market conditions. The TGW Logistics Group, an international system integrator for intralogistics solutions, is actively addressing this challenge. A key issue is the gap between the documented process and the actual process that is practiced daily. These discrepancies often lead to inefficiencies, unclear responsibilities, and in some cases, even lost business opportunities. The goal of this thesis was to develop a practical guideline that companies can use to systematically capture, analyse, and improve their business processes. The focus was on how to identify and evaluate differences between the planned and the actual process to uncover areas for improvement. To illustrate this, a process analysis was conducted using the Brown-Paper method, focusing on the concepting phase within the sales process at TGW. This approach made both formal steps and informal workflows, interfaces, and responsibilities visible. The overarching goal was to derive practical recommendations for improvement, both organizational and communicative, that would directly contribute to increased efficiency and quality. The outcome of the process analysis confirms that the developed guideline is applicable in real-world settings, if it is tailored to the specific context of the company and the process under review. In TGW’s case, the lived sales process was generally found to be efficient and purpose driven. However, the analysis revealed potential for improvement, particularly in the areas of role assignment, interfaces, and documentation. Based on these findings, concrete recommendations were formulated to support targeted improvements. Moreover, the developed guideline provides a valuable foundation for future process analyses in other departments. Finally, the thesis highlights that sustainable process improvements are not solely based on technical adjustments. They primarily require organizational changes and continuous process capturing, which is essential for establishing efficient and successful workflows over the long term.

Date of Award	2025
Original language	German (Austria)
Supervisor	Wolfgang Ortner (Supervisor)