Axion Innovations - 4TQ Process Management Software

Installing Compliance Plans with 4TQCompliancePlans.exe

Bob Digance — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 02:26:10 GMT

Go to the 4TQ application folder and find the 4TQCompliancePlans.exe application. Double click on the file to install a compliance plan.

The Select Script window will appear.

Select the appropriate compliance plan to install and click the Express button.

The Get User Details window will appear. Enter / modify the details as appropriate. Click Continue.

Setup will install the selected compliance plan. This can be used by following the instructions in the User Guide. Start at Mapping Compliance Issues in the User Guide.

4TQExplorer has a Compliance tab window which uses two tree list boxes to display the linkage of System Clauses and 4TQFlow Process map. This is demonstrated in the Compliance Tab section of the User Guide on page 80.

Moving 4TQ Files from One System / Location to Another

Bob Digance — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 03:04:20 GMT

4TQExplorer files cannot be successfully moved from one file system / location to another.

The “Make Redistribution Copy” feature creates a special copy of the current 4TQExplorer file. This can be relocated along with the referenced process map, Form and Policy documents without the need to re-build the 4TQExplorer frameworks.

Select Make Distribution Copy on the 4TQExplorer Tools Menu as shown in the figure above. The created copy can be found in the “REDIST” folder located in the SystemPath. Go to the REDIST folder and double click on the 4TQExplorer .FLK file. The following window will appear:

Select the Procedure Files directory location and Click OK. Relocate the procedures and documents to the new location.

Office 2010 - Changing Document Advanced Properties such as Version or Setting Next Review Date

Bob Digance — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 00:50:42 GMT

Document properties include details such as title, author name, subject, and keywords that identify the document's topic or contents. Advanced Properties can be used to set items such as Version, Status and Next Review Date to be displayed in 4TQExplorer.

For applications including Word, Excel, and Powerpoint to view or change the Advanced Properties for the current file:

1.    Click the File tab.

2.    Click Info to view the properties.

3.    To view custom properties, click Properties and select Advanced Properties as shown below.

4.    Click the Custom tab.

5.    In the Name box, type a name for the custom property, or select a name from the list.

6. In the Type list, select the data type for the property that you want to add.

7. In the Value box, type a value for the property. The value that you type must match the selection in the Type list. For example, if you select Number in the Type list, you must type a number in the Value box. Values that don't match the property type are stored as text.

8. Click the File tab again to return to your document.

Microsoft Office 2010 - Generate Report Settings

Bob Digance — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 07:38:42 GMT

To create the Process Report click on the File Generate button on the Menu Bar.

The Generate Report window will display the default File name and your default file format - Save as type:. For Microsoft Word, always select the Word 2.0 (.DOC) format.

The default setting for the File Block Settings in the Word Trust Centre is to block Word 2 documents.

To change the setting:In the Word program, click the File tab. The Microsoft Office Backstage view appears. Under Help, click Options. The Options dialog appears. Click Trust Center, and then click Trust Center Settings.

The following image is an example of the Trust Center and Trust Center Settings buttons.

From the list of options click on File Block Setings and the File Block Settings window will as shown below.

Untick the Word 2 Save box and click the OK button. Process Reports can now be created using Word 2010.

Installing the 4TQ Authoring Pack and 4TQWebGen

Bob Digance — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 10:05:16 GMT

You must perform the installation with "Admin" or "Computer Administrator" privileges to ensure that the common Microsoft redistributable files are updated as needed.

When the 4TQ setup program starts the Select Script dialog box is displayed.

Select the product you wish to install and select the appropriate install or remove and usage method radio buttons are selected. Then select either Custom or Express installation.

Express Installation

The Express installation automatically installs the software with a Program Path of c:\Program Files\Axion\4TQ and a System Path of My Documents\4TQ. This system pathfolder, and associated sub-folders, are used by the user community to store their work (data files). It also contains configuration files that are accessed and controlled by the 4TQ administrator.

The User Details information is used by 4TQ applications in reports and documents. Apart from entering your User Details and selecting Continue there is no further interaction with the user during the installation.

Custom Installation

The main reason to carry out a custom installation is to set up directories other then the default ones provided in the Express installation. If you wish to customize your installation, Select the Custom button at the bottom of the Select Script dialog box. The Custom Installation dialog box will appear.

Click on the Set Directories button and the Set Directories dialog box will appear.

The System Path can either be a drive identifier or fully defined UNC path. At least one sub directory must be specified as root level. Drive mappings are not supported e.g. X:\4TQ is a valid 4TQ system path but X:\ is not. Enter the required paths and Click on the Continue button to return to the Custom Installation dialog box.

On the Custom Installation dialog box, we recommend that all other installations be left as default. Click the Install button ro continue the installation. The User Details dialog box will be displayed. Enter the information and Click the Continue button to install the 4TQ software.

4TQ Software Removal

To remove the 4TQ applications for the stand alone mode installation follow the steps below.

Run the setup.exe program from the 4TQ-application directory.
Select the Custom install button in the Select Script dialog box.
When the Custom Installation dialog box appears Click on the Remove button.
Wait for the program to exit.

4TQConf Installation Diagnostic Tool

Bob Digance — Sat, 20 Nov 2010 05:40:00 GMT

General

This note details the use of 4TQConf.exe, an installation diagnostic aid, used to create and forward the resultant configuration information (file *.4cfg) to Axion support (support@4tq.com) for analysis. The 4TQConf utility is installed during the initial installation procedure (R6 or later). It is not added to the Start - Programs 4TQToolkit Menu list. It can be used with all 4TQToolkit versions.

Procedure

If you can run one of the 4TQToolKit applications, do so. Then select that application’s Help ->About menu item. Click the 4TQCONF button to launch the 4TQConf.exe program. Once the program has initialized, it will automatically begin collecting the configuration information. If you can’t run a 4TQToolkit application Click the Windows Start button and select the Run item. In use the Browse button to locate the 4TQ program folder and select the 4TQConf.exe application. Run it and then press the “F5” key to start the diagnostic routines.

The Status bar (bottom) will display the “Busy collecting information” message. Wait until this the message changes to “Total Time for collecting information was …” This function may take 30 seconds to a couple of minutes to complete, dependant on the speed of the PC itself and the Network connections involved. Use the File ->Send menu item to email the 4CFG file to Axion Support. Selecting the File Send item will invoke the PC’s Outlook email package (if installed) and a normal Email message dialog should appear containing the .4CFG file as an attachment

How to Create Absolute Hyperlinks in Word Documents

Bob Digance — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 02:49:00 GMT

When you create a hyperlink in a Word document, Word converts this hyperlink into a relative hyperlink. This means that when 4TQwebGen generates a website for your system information that the hyperlinks within Word documents do not work.

This can be fixed by using absolute hyperlinks. To use an absolute hyperlink in a Word document, the Hyperlink Base box in the Summary tab of Document Properties needs to have x typed in it.

Word 2010

Open the document which will have the absolute hyperlink.
On the File menu click Info.
Click the Properties drop down for the document window.
Click Advanced Properties.
Click the Summary tab.
In the Hyperlink Base box, type x, and then click OK .

Word 2007

Open the document which will have the absolute hyperlink
Click the Microsoft Office Button, point to Prepare, and then click Properties.
Click Document Properties, and then click Advanced Properties.
Click the Summary tab.
In the Hyperlink Base box, type x, and then click OK.

Word 2003

Open the document which will have the absolute hyperlink
On the File menu, click Properties.
Click the Summary tab.
In the Hyperlink Base box, type x, and then click OK.

For further information regarding hyperlinks in Word documents go to http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=903163

4TQ Evaluation Software Installation and Removal

Bob Digance — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 04:56:00 GMT

The evaluation software should be installed in stand alone mode. If you are using a protected Operating System (such as Windows XP) you must perform the installation with "Admin" or "Computer Administrator" privileges to ensure that the common Microsoft redistributable files are updated as needed.

When the 4TQ setup program starts the Select Script dialog box is displayed.

Select the product you wish to install and ensure the install or remove Standalone and Single User radio buttons are selected. Then select either Custom or Express installation.

Express Installation

Custom Installation

The main reason to carry out a custom installation is to set up directories other then the default ones provided in the Express installation. If you wish to customize your installation, Select the Custom button at the bottom of the Select Script dialog box. The Custom Installation dialog box will appear.

Click on the Set Directories button and the Set Directories dialog box will appear.

The System Path can either be a drive identifier or fully defined UNC path. At least one sub directory must be specified as root level. Drive mappings are not supported e.g. X:\4TQ is a valid 4TQ system path but X:\ is not. Enter the required paths and Click on the Continue button to return to the Custom Installation dialog box.

On the Custom Installation dialog box, we recommend that all other installations be left as default. Click the Install button ro continue the installation. The User Details dialog box will be displayed. Enter the information and Click the Continue button to install the 4TQ software.

4TQ Evaluation Software Removal

To remove the 4TQ applications for the stand alone mode installation follow the steps below.

Run the setup.exe program from the 4TQ-application directory.
Select the Custom install button in the Select Script dialog box.
When the Custom Installation dialog box appears Click on the Remove button.
Wait for the program to exit.

Printing a Process Checksheet

Bob Digance — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 00:34:00 GMT

Apart from printing the standard Word Documents in differing layouts you can also produce a process CheckSheet.

Let us do an example. Below is process chart for the Tendering / Contracting process. A checksheet is needed as a record for individual tenders / contracts.

Below is a process checksheet derived from the process map.

Individual Process Steps may be included or excluded from the report by checking
or un-checking the "CheckPoint" flag which can be found on the lower left hand
side of the Figure dialog as shown below.

he Process Checksheet report is available from the File menu.

If the Process has Sub-Processes you can select the depth that will be included in the CheckSheet.
You can change the label wording from "Job or Batch Number" to suit your purpose. The Label text is stored
separately in each 4TQFlow Template (FLT).

You can include The Process Owner and or the Performer on Process Checksheet form.

To customise the CheckSheet use the Menu -> Options -> Customise -> Headings Tab (shown below) in 4TQFlow.

Recent Changes to 4TQ Applications

Bob Digance — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 06:33:00 GMT

Recent changes include:

•         Upgrade from Release 6 to Release 7 which is Word 12 and Vista compatible.

•         Critical Checks capability in process map that enables listing on website as a critical procedure.

•         Capability to colour value adding figures in 4TQFlow.

•         Ability to designate the default path in a process chart.

•         XML capability for Website.

•         Includes RSS feed capability to notify amendments.

•         Improved email facility to notify audits and also tasking capability in Outlook for audits and reviews

For compatibility with Word 12 you must have at least version 6.17.

Displaying Documents in the 4TQWebGen "Document Reference List"

Bob Digance — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 05:46:32 GMT

To display documents in the Document Reference List as shown in the figure below requires the completion of the Document reference field in 4TQExplorer.

To complete the fields for Document number (Reference in 4TQExplorer), Version, Status, and Next Review enter them for Word, PowerPoint, Excel and MSProjects as below.

For later versions of Acrobat:

Entering Outputs and Outcomes in the 4TQFlow Finish Figure

Bob Digance — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 10:27:00 GMT

The 4TQFlow Finish figure has the facility to enter descriptions of process outputs and outcomes.

What is the difference between a process output and outcome?

Process

A process represents what an organizations does - work! It is a series of inter-related activities that transforms inputs such as materials and information into outputs and outcomes that have value for stakeholders.

Outputs and Outcomes

The process outputs can be considered to be a product or a result that is related in some way to the process inputs.

Outputs are measured before they emerge from the process whereas outcomes are the impact the processes have. For example, an outcome could be an impact on the business or an unforeseen impact on the environment. Let us take the budget process where the output is all the budget details entered into the financial management system. One of the outcomes is that resources are provided for the business to function effectively.

4TQFlow Example

Managing Reviews / Audits of Policies and Forms in 4TQExplorer

Bob Digance — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 08:01:00 GMT

4TQExplorer allows viewing of a Review Schedule for 4TQFlow procedures. Also the Next Review date is displayed in the Details window of 4TQExplorer.

Often we are asked, "How can we manage the reviews or audits of our policies and forms?"

One solution is to use the Document Properties of Microsoft Office docments to insert a custom NextReview field.

Document properties, also known as metadata (metadata: Data that describes other data. For example, the words in a document are data; the word count is an example of metadata.), are details about a file that describe or identify it.

Document properties include details such as title, author name, subject, and keywords that identify the document's topic or contents. 4TQExplorer uses the document properties to display informations including the Title and Process Owner.

To insert a NextReview date in the document properties go to the custom window in the document properties as shown below.

In the Name box, type NextReview. Then select the data type which is Date. In the Value box, type a value date using the dd/mm/yyyy format. Click Add and exit document properties and Save the file.

Add the file to the 4TQExplorer framework or if it is already in the framework Update the file.

In 4TQExplorer Click the Details tab. The date will appear in the Next Review column. If the Next Review column is not visible, enable it using the Customize function accessed at the bottom of the Explore window.

Click on the Procedure Review tab to view the review schedule where the review is indicated as set by the letter S.

Operational efficiency and risk management are critical in the current financial crisis

Bob Digance — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 23:22:00 GMT

As the financial crisis unfolds, the implications for companies are becoming clearer. Companies need to:

improve operational efficiency, and
manage risk more effectively.

As the financial crisis unfolds, the implications for companies are becoming clearer. Companies need to:

improve operational efficiency, and
manage risk more effectively.

How can this be achieved? - by focusing on the critical processes in the business. Profitability can be improved and risk reduced and it does not require process redesign to achieve significant operational improvements.

Gartner claims that by "making the current-state handoffs, timings and responsibilities explicit, productivity improvements of more than 12 percent are normally realized." Business Process Management Success Hinges on Business-Led Initiatives, Gartner, 26July 2005. This can be achieved quickly and easily by simple process mapping. Risk is also reduced by a common understanding of processes, handoffs, timings and responsibilities.

Many organizations have documented, managed and improved their business processes by implementing formal process management systems. A study by Surrey University of 222 companies showed:

profit margins - more than twice the industry average,
return on capital employed (ROCE) - averaged more than double the industry average,
sales per employee - 40 percent higher, and
profit per employee - three times the industry average.

The first step is to quickly gain a common understanding of your key business processes through process mapping and identifying process simplification opportunities. Simplification can produce quick gains with minimum resources and upheaval to the business.

4TQToolKit Process Management software provides the tools for you to quickly and easily process map and simplify your operational processes.

For further information, go to www.axioninnovations.com.au

Welcome

Bob Digance — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 10:30:00 GMT

The Axion Innovations blog was created to provide an online space for people to connect and talk about managing and improving business processes and 4TQ products. Whether you have used the 4TQ products, sell them, or are interested in learning more, you have come to the right place!

You can find videos about 4TQ, read articles written by experts, provide comments and submit articles, and even meet other 4TQ users! You can view and subscribe to a RSS Feed in the Syndicate window. To receive blog entries or entry comments via email please subscribe by entering your email address in the Subscribe window. For further information on 4TQ software, you can also go to www.axioninnovations.com.au

Adding images to 4TQFlow process maps

Bob Digance — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 17:54:24 GMT

The text tool in 4TQFlow can be used to display additional information regarding the process map. The information can be in text or small image form.

Add a text figure to the process map by accessing the text tool in the Toolbox menu or via the pop-up menu on the workspace. A dialogue box will appear allowing the insertion of a link to a picture file as shown in the example below. Step 1 in the process map has an action that requires the wearing of hearing protection. The hearing protection image is inserted by entering in c:\4tq\Images|PPE\EAR_52X52.BMP" in the field between the Picture and the Edit button and Save the file.

Only small images may displayed in the text figure. If the image does not appear in the text figure it may be too large. Text figure size can be changed by increasing the font size or the figure scale size say from 5 X 2 to 5 X 3 in Preferences.

Sample images are provided in the Images folder in the System Path. For further information contact Bob Digance at www.axioninnovations.com.au

Text Image Example

Improving the performance of intranet sites made with 4TQWebGen

Bob Digance — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 07:19:00 GMT

User acceptance of process information deployed using an internet site is dependent on the speed of accessing the information. There are a number of simple design rules that will speed up the site significantly.

Most clients use the Site_Index.htm file as the entry point to the web site. This utilizes the internal Java script of your computer and therefore speed is dependent on your computer’s resources processing capability.

Processing capability can be improved by:

· The number of items (4TQFlow process maps, documents, and forms) within a 4TQExplorer framework is the main determinant of processing speed. Use less than 40 items per categories.

· Keep the source file names and file paths as short as possible.

· Do not use the space character in file or folder names. Use the underscore character ( _ ) as a replacement.

· The site supports the use of multiple frameworks (4TQExplorer files) for the one main entry point (Site_Index.htm file). You are not restricted to just one framework, and splitting up a large framework into two or more smaller ones will make a significant difference to the speed of the site refresh.

About the Author

Bob Digance is a principal consultant with Axion Innovations specializing in business process management and improvement and the effective use of 4TQ business process management applications.

For further information go to www.axioninnovations.com.au

Formatting text in 4TQFlow

Bob Digance — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 04:34:03 GMT

Text can be formatted and pictures files and hyperlinks can be inserted into text boxes in 4TQFlow by using format tags. The table lists the tags and the resulting actions that occur in MD Word and 4TQWebGen. The tags table is shown below.

Examples are provided in the attached 4TQFlow demonstration file TAGS_DMO.flw. Click on the link http://www.axioninnovations.com.au/TAGS_DMO.FLW to download or run the examples file.

4TQFlow Tags Table

Create 4TQFlow process maps with ease using 4TQScribe

Bob Digance — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 20:02:20 GMT

4TQScribe helps you create process maps quickly and accurately from existing procedures or by using the “Brainstorm” mode to capture the process by listing the process steps. Either way 4TQscibe will automate the geneation of 4TQFlow process maps for you.

4TQScribe Video

Click on the following link http://www.axioninnovations.com.au/4TQscribe.htm to view a video on how to use 4TQScibe to reduce your process mapping time and improve process mapping effectiveness.

For further information go to www.axioninnovations.com.au

Managing compliance requirements with 4TQPolicy Compliance Manager

Bob Digance — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 18:02:42 GMT

Introduction

What is compliance? "Adhering to the requirements of laws, industry and organizational standards and codes, principles of good governance and accepted community and ethical standards." AS 3806-2006 Compliance programs

The number of compliance requirements has increased in the last few years to a level where it takes significant resources to design, develop, implement, and maintain effective compliance programs. Also non compliance can result in penalties and damage to your reputation (which in the long term can have the greater impact than penalties).

How do organizations cope with managing compliance? Generally they have a range of policies and procedures for the conduct of their business that include compliance management issues. However they generally lack a coherent structure for managing and demonstrating compliance. In particular, there is inadequate risk assessment and mitigation of compliance requirements.

4TQPolicy Compliance Manager is designed to assist organizations manage compliance requirements effectively. Our approach is focused on:

Providing a coherent structure that enables you to identify and assess your compliance obligations,
Doing risk assessments to prioritize activities such as policy development and procedure development so compliance obligations are translated into practice.
Providing a means of integrating compliance obligations into existing practices and procedures.

The challenge in designing and developing a compliance program is to quickly get an overview of your compliance requirements and how these are currently being addressed and then produce a gap analysis.

Purpose

This article outlines how to:

use 4TQPolicy to develop a coherent structure of compliance obligations;
carry out an initial risk assessment of these obligations to prioritize the development of policies and procedures that translate the compliance obligations into practice; and
identify work needed to implement a compliance program.

Compliance Program Development Outline

Review compliance obligations documentation to determine the plan categories (such as Government, Legal, Financial, Business and Standards) and compliance plans (such as Business Objectives, Legislation and Standards).
Enter compliance plans into 4TQPolicy and produce the compliance plan register.
Determine the top priority plans for your organization.
Develop the initial policy sections and clauses based on your priority plans.
Map the compliance obligations in the plans to policy clauses.
Identify existing written policies for policy clauses and enter references in the policy statement text windows.
Carry out a high level initial risk assessment of policy clauses including tagging of clauses that do not have identified written policies.
Produce a gap analysis report based on the risks.
Determine and enter in section implementation or review dates as appropriate.
Load compliance obligation information into 4TQExplorer to allow mapping into the ways of working procedures.
Review the 4TQPolicy compliance management information to identify next steps such as:

Verification of compliance obligations and mapping, and initial risk assessments by appropriate managers.
Development of policy statements.
Documentation of associated processes.
Produce project closure report.

Outcomes

Compliance Obligation Plan Register in 4TQPolicy.
Policy framework in 4TQPolicy.
Compliance obligations clauses mapped to policy clauses.
High level risk assessment for the purpose of prioritizing implementation activities.
Risk register for compliance obligations.
Gap analysis report.
Identification of outstanding work.

Conclusions

The benefits of this approach include:

Simplification of the compliance obligations information so it is easier to read and understand.

Better understanding of compliance obligations’ risks and their associated controls so these obligations can be more effectively managed.
Producing a prioritised output report that enables focus on the highest risk items first.
A means of deploying compliance obligations into the ways of working so these obligations are translated into practice.
The ability to produce up-to-date compliance status reports that demonstrate how compliance obligations are being managed.

4TQPolicy Video

Click on the following link www.axioninnovations.com.au/4TQPolicy.htm to view a video on how to use 4TQPolicy to help manage compliance.

About the Author

Bob Digance is a principal consultant with Axion Innovations specializing in business process management and improvement and the effective use of 4TQ business process management applications.

For further information go to www.axioninnovations.com.au