The Sandia National Laboratories Small Business Utilization (SNL SBU) team serves as the primary liaison between the small business community and Sandia National Laboratories.  Each team member, or SBU Advocate, is responsible for recruiting and supporting a specific category of small business, as well as guiding them through the procurement process should they be contracted to work with SNL.  Additionally, the SBU team actively participates in outreach and matchmaking events to identify highly qualified suppliers that have the capability and capacity to meet SNL’s diverse purchasing needs.

Through various process mapping methods, the SNL SBU team had begun to understand the importance of process mapping and documentation, however, what they lacked was a comprehensive Quality Management System.  By taking their pre-developed process maps and documents, and integrating them into a Quality Management System such as our inProcess™ software, PMCS was able to assist the team to immediately improve upon their existing quality initiatives.

The SNL SBU team’s primary goals for process mapping include:

1. Documenting current processes
2. Establishing metrics and maintaining consistency
3. Capturing and retaining employee knowledge
4. Reducing training inconsistencies. 

The inputs and outputs involved in the vital key processes the SNL SBU team executes on a daily basis very frequently involve other departments within Sandia National Laboratories.  Through execution of PMCS' "Walk-the-Process" method, the SNL SBU team, as well as other departments whose work may directly or indirectly affect the SNL SBU team, have been able to bridge the departmental communication gap by making internal process information available to all areas involved.  Improving communication efforts and integrating the processes, that span across many departments within Sandia National Laboratories, have resulted in a more effective and cost-efficient realization of these processes.