How to design a process for the exceptions
Learning to design for exceptions is what separates a process people follow from one they work around. The happy path is easy and rarely the problem. What determines adoption is whether the process has a path for the cases that do not fit.
Why workarounds appear immediately
A process built only for the standard case leaves everyone facing an unusual situation with two options: force it into a shape that does not fit, or bypass the process.
Both corrupt the data, and the second one spreads, because once bypassing is normal it extends to cases the process handled perfectly well.
Exceptions that always exist:
- The urgent case that cannot wait for approval
- The record missing information that is genuinely unavailable
- The decision that needs reversing after approval
- The request that belongs to no category
- The case requiring an authority nobody was given
Designing each exception
| Exception | Path to provide | Control |
|---|---|---|
| Urgency | An expedited route | Retrospective review |
| Missing information | Provisional record | Completion deadline |
| Reversal | Explicit reversal action | Approval and reason |
| Uncategorized | An open category | Reviewed periodically |
| Beyond authority | Escalation path | Recorded decision |
Step by step to build them
- Ask what happens when this does not fit, for each stage.
- Provide an expedited route, with review afterwards rather than a block.
- Allow provisional records, with a deadline to complete them.
- Build reversal explicitly, since it will be needed.
- Keep an open category, and review what lands in it.
- Define escalation for cases beyond anyone's authority.
- Monitor exception volume, since a rising rate means the design is wrong.
Why exception volume is a design metric
A process where one in twenty cases takes an exception path is working. One where a third do is telling you the standard path does not match reality. That ratio is the most useful signal you will get about whether a process fits the work.
Why choose Jestor
In Jestor, exception paths are conditional routes rather than separate processes, provisional records can carry required completion deadlines, reversal can be an action with its own approval and justification, and the volume taking each path is measurable on the same data.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do people bypass internal processes?
Because the process has no path for the case they are facing. See jestor.com.
Should urgent cases be blocked?
No. Provide an expedited route with review afterwards, or it will be bypassed.
What does a high exception rate mean?
That the standard path does not match how the work actually happens.
Video Tutorial: Step by Step
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