PROCESS MAPPING: A CASE STUDY IN THE CONTRACT SECTOR OF THE PUBLIC DEFENDER'S OFFICE IN THE STATE OF AMAZONAS

The objective of the study was to analyze, from the perspective of process management, the bottlenecks in lease contracts at the Public Defender's Office of the State of Amazonas. It consists of an applied case study, with a descriptive qualitative approach, using Business Process Management (BPM) as the guiding methodology and the 5W1H quality tool to suggest improvements in the processes. The results identified the main bottlenecks as the lack of procedure and flowchart development, absence of a schedule for opening branches, low synergy and communication among employees, as well as a lack of clear roles for those responsible for the processes. It is considered that through process mapping and bottleneck identification, it was possible to propose the following actions to ensure the continuous improvement of the process: development of procedures and flows, organizational climate research, meetings to understand departmental demands, and the creation of an opening schedule for processes and alignment of deadlines.


I. INTRODUCTION
According to Teixeira [1], "process mapping is an essential management and communication tool for leaders and organizations that want to promote improvements or implement a structure focused on new processes."For [2], public procurement processes are generally slow and bureaucratic.Therefore, implementing process management allows for documentation with a better understanding of workflow, role definitions, resulting in greater control over actions and improved process quality.Hence, public institutions should engage in intensive studies to provide excellent services.
The Public Defender's Office of the State of Amazonas plays a crucial role in providing access to justice, offering the opportunity for low-income individuals to resolve their legal conflicts, either judicially or extrajudicially, in various areas of law.Therefore, there is a need to provide high-quality services and optimize resources.
To meet this demand, the institution has its administrative headquarters and several units located in the capital of the Amazonas state.The entity is also undergoing an internalization process aimed at bringing the work of the DPE-AM closer to the rural population.Thus, the organization currently has 12 (twelve) branches in rural areas covering 48 municipalities and a population of 1.6 million people in the regions of Baixo and Médio Amazonas, Alto and Médio Solimões, Alto Rio Negro, Madeira and Médio Madeira, Purus, Maués, Coari, and Rio Negro-Solimões.Based on this expansion, the organization recognized the need to adapt and improve its processes, as not all demands can be met in the current way.
According to Gonçalves [3], the major challenge for organizations, whether public or private, is to integrate diverse organizational processes and efficiently manage business process management.In this context, the research problem is to analyze the bottlenecks in lease contracts at DPE-AM in order to seek improvement in the processes conducted in the support area, optimizing time, workflow, and standardizing activities.
The objective of the study was to analyze, from the perspective of process management, the bottlenecks in lease contracts at the Public Defender's Office of the State of Amazonas.To achieve this, the study aimed to select and identify a lease contract process at DPE-AM, map the selected process, identify existing bottlenecks, and propose improvements in the current processes, seeking institutional learning and aiming for the enhancement of institutional practices.
The study methodology was a case study, bibliographic, documentary, and field research.Concerning the research's nature, it was applied because it aims to generate new knowledge and apply it to solve specific problems, in this case, in the processes of the contracts sector of the Public Defender's Office of Amazonas State.According to Thiollent [4], "applied research focuses on problems present in the activities of institutions, organizations, groups, or social actors.It is engaged in diagnosis, problem identification, and solution-seeking." In terms of objectives, it was descriptive research since it seeks to analyze and describe the facts and phenomena of the contracts in DPE-AM.According to Gil [5], descriptive research aims primarily to describe the characteristics of a particular population or phenomenon or establish relationships between variables.
From an approach perspective, it is qualitative research since, as Marconi and Lakatos [6] explain, qualitative research aims to analyze and interpret deeper aspects, describing the complexity of human behavior and providing more detailed analyses of investigations, attitudes, and behavioral trends.
Regarding procedures, it is a case study, bibliographic, documentary, and field research.According to Yin [7], "a case study is an empirical investigation of a contemporary phenomenon within its real-life context, where the boundaries between the phenomenon and the context are not clearly defined."Thus, this work seeks to understand an event and, at the same time, analyze theories that explain it.
The chosen research unit was the contracts sector of the Public Defender's Office of the State of Amazonas, located at Avenida André Araújo, No. 679 -Aleixo neighborhood, Manaus-AM.The object of study was the lease contracts signed by DPE-AM in the period 2021-2022.It is a non-probabilistic intentional sample by judgment, as it does not have mathematical or statistical justification, relying solely on the researcher's criteria.
Initially, documentary research was conducted to gather information on the current contracts of DPE/AM through the folders and systems used in the institution, Protón and SEI (Electronic Information System), and a lease contract process was selected for study, specifically the lease of the property for the establishment of the Careiro Castanho branch in the interior of Amazonas state.Additionally, direct observation was carried out to verify how the lease processes are perceived and handled in the contracts sector.
Subsequently, a questionnaire was developed to find out how employees perceive the processes and existing problems.Then, the lease processes were mapped using the Bizagi software, which uses BPMN (Business Process Model and Notation).Finally, the 5W1H quality tool was used to propose improvements in the current lease processes, aiming to optimize work in the sectors.

II. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
In this section of the article, topics related to processes, their concepts, and the importance of mapping these processes, as well as the use of quality tools to contribute to improvement proposals in organizational activities, will be discussed.

II.1 PROCESSES IN ORGANIZATION
All types of organizations, whether public or private, have processes that are essential.Like any important type of work, these processes go beyond transforming inputs into outputs and generate value for the user, encompassing aspects such as feedback and repeatability [3].In this sense, the National Quality Foundation [8] defines a process as "a set of pre-established activities that, when executed in a predetermined sequence, will lead to an expected result that ensures meeting the needs and expectations of customers and other interested parties."Similarly, according to Palmeira [9], processes, in addition to being activities with inputs and outputs performed by people or systems, also aim to respond to the needs of an internal or external customer, thus being the grouping of operations that will lead to a specific end.Another definition, based on SharP and McDermott [10], is that a process is the means of organizing work and resources with the primary goal of providing a result, be it a product or service, adding value to the customer.The classification given by Gonçalves [3] categorizes processes into three types concerning the organization's objectives: • Business processes: These are directed towards the company's field of action and are supported by other internal processes, generating a product or service that is perceived by a customer.
• Organizational processes: These encompass all processes geared towards the organization and facilitate coordinated functioning among various subsystems of the organization, ensuring adequate support for business processes.
• Managerial processes: These focus on managers and aim to measure and make performance adjustments necessary in the organization.
According to ABPMP [11], organizational processes are support processes and, therefore, should deliver value.The uniqueness of this type is that the value is delivered to other processes, the business processes.Despite not delivering direct value to the end customer, organizational processes have a direct impact on the activities performed in primary processes.
According to Damelio [12], "the structured analysis of these processes allows for the reduction of service costs and integration failures between systems, in addition to enabling an understanding of current processes, eliminating or simplifying processes that require changes."For Silva and Guedes [13]: "The impacts of rework on the business are quite significant, and therefore, efforts should be made to minimize these losses.".

II.2 PROCESS MAPPING
In today's context, formal documentation of organizational processes does not necessarily imply successful procedures, as the current demand for organizations leans towards a more graphical representation, namely process mapping [14].
Rizzetti [15] asserts that "it is vital for the organization's processes to be disclosed and understood by all stakeholders.In this sense, a useful tool to meet this demand is process mapping."According to Pavani Junior and Sucucuglia [16], process mapping or modeling is a graphical representation of process activity sequences, clearly and objectively indicating its structure and functioning.
Drawing from Moreira [17], the primary benefits of process mapping include process agility, standardization of procedures, improvement in communication, and assistance in risk management.According to De Melo [18], choosing mapping as an improvement tool, based on its principles when applied correctly, allows not only the documentation of all activities comprising a process but also the correction of any problematic activities.It serves as a tool that aids in identifying non-value-added activities.
Process mapping can take various forms, but currently, the most accepted and widely used notation is BPMN -Business Process Model and Notation.ABPMP [11] states that "the notation is a standardized set of symbols and rules that determine the meaning of these symbols.These notations are used to compose process modeling with figures and connectors, thereby facilitating the representation of the relationship between components in the mapped process.".
According to Sganderla [19], BPMN allows processes to be represented by the chaining of events and activities connected through connectors that demonstrate the sequence in which they are performed.According to Campos [20], this tool is a highly dynamic technique, enabling the mapping of numerous types of business processes.It is the most widely used notation in the corporate world and is integrated with major process management software.

II.3 QUALITY TOOL: 5W1H
According to Carpinetti [21], the quality tool or methodology 5W1H is an organizational tool and consists of displaying in a table format the answers to basic questions to show the actions for improvements."This table consists of questions such as: What, where a description of what is being implemented is made; Why, where the justification for the implementation of the action is provided; Where, where the location of the action's implementation is described; Who, where those responsible for implementing the action are specified; When, where the start and end dates of the action are defined; How, where it is described how the action will be implemented; and How much, where the involved costs are indicated" [21].
According [22], the 5W1H tool can be defined as an organized document that identifies the actions and responsibilities of those who will execute them, through a questioning approach, capable of guiding the various actions that must be implemented and should be structured to allow quick identification of the elements necessary for the project's implementation.The 5W1H tool (What, Where, Why, Who, When, How) is a model tool with the capacity for effective planning of future actions.This tool is successful due to its ability to detail actions with descriptions of the activities, when these activities will be carried out, who will carry them out, how they will be carried out, where the activities will be executed, and the reasons for executing such activities [23].

III. METHODOLOGY
Based on [24], methodology is the logic of scientific procedures in their genesis and development, and therefore, it is not merely a "metrology" or technology of measuring scientific facts.
The research unit chosen was the contracts department of the Public Defender's Office of the State of Amazonas, located at Avenida André Araújo, No. 679 -Aleixo Neighborhood, Manaus -AM.
As for its nature, the research is applied, as it aims to generate new knowledge and apply it to solve specific problems, in this case, in the processes of the contract sector of the Public Defender's Office of Amazonas.According to Thiollent [4], "applied research is focused on the problems present in the activities of institutions, organizations, groups, or social actors.It is committed to the development of diagnostics, identification of problems, and searching for solutions." Regarding the objectives, it is descriptive research, as it seeks to analyze and describe the facts and phenomena of the reality of contracts of DPE-AM.According to Gil [5], descriptive researches aim primarily at "describing the characteristics of a certain population or phenomenon or establishing relationships between variables." From the point of view of the approach, it is qualitative research, since, as Marconi and Lakatos [6] explain, the qualitative approach deals with a research that presupposes analyzing and interpreting deeper aspects, describing the complexity of human behavior, and providing more detailed analyses on investigations, attitudes, and behavioral trends.
Regarding procedures, it is a case study, bibliographic, documentary, and field research.According to Yin [7], "the case study is an empirical investigation of a contemporary phenomenon within a real-life context, where the boundaries between the phenomenon and context are not clearly defined."Thus, this work seeks to understand an event and, at the same time, analyze theories that explain it.
The research unit chosen was the contracts department of the Public Defender's Office of the State of Amazonas, located at Avenida André Araújo, No. 679 -Aleixo Neighborhood, Manaus-AM, and its study object is the contracts made at DPE-AM in the period 2021-2022.It is an intentional non-probabilistic sample by judgment, as according to Gil [5], they do not have a mathematical or statistical basis, depending solely on the researcher's criteria.
Initially, documentary research was conducted to gather information on the current contracts of DPE/AM through the folders and systems used in the institution, Protón and SEI (Electronic Information System), and a contracting process for rental study was selected, the rental of the property for the implementation of the Careiro Castanho hub in the interior of the state of Amazonas.In addition, direct observation was made to verify how the rental processes are perceived and treated in the contracts department.
Subsequently, a questionnaire was created to understand how the employees perceive the processes and existing problems.Then, the mapping of rental processes was carried out using bizagi, which uses the BPMN notation (Business Process Model and Notation).
These allowed for the identification of the main bottlenecks, and after a situational diagnosis, to propose improvements in the processes to refine the institutional processes through content analysis to process the information, using the 5W1H tool for proposing improvements in the current rental processes aiming at the optimization of work in the sectors.

IV.1 RENTAL PROCESS OF INLAND PROPERTIES
According to Table 1, the Public Defender's Office of the State of Amazonas entered into 4 (four) rental contracts in 2021, three of which were for inland properties, and in 2022, 5 (five) contracts for the same purpose, two of which were for rentals in the inland areas.The contracts for inland rentals are illustrated in gray, as follows: Additionally, the DPE-AM (Public Defender's Office of the State of Amazonas) signed 4 (four) technical cooperation agreements in 2022 with several municipalities in Amazonas, with the purpose of improving the performance of the institutional activities of the Public Defender's Office in these inland municipalities, through the provision of rooms for the Public Defender's Office to carry out its activities, the so-called Inland Decentralized Units (UDIs).
According to preliminary analysis, the processes follow similar flows, and the main objective of this work is to analyze, from a process management perspective, the bottlenecks in the rental contracts of the Public Defender's Office.Thus, one process was selected to serve as the subject of this study.
The process chosen for the study was the procedural flow of renting property to accommodate the Public Defender's Office of the State of Amazonas' hub in the inland, in the municipality of Careiro Castanho.It should be noted that the analyzed process is directly aligned with resolutions No. 31/2017 and No. 33/2017, which create and regulate the service hubs, as well as the objectives of the institution's strategic planning for the period 2021-2024, specifically with objective 12, which aims to expand the process of DPE-AM's expansion in the interior, capital, in itinerant actions both physically and virtually.
For this purpose, data from the systems administratively used in the institution and commonly used for procedural instruction were used: Próton, Electronic Information System (SEI), and files in the Public Defender's Office network folder.Therefore, this selection comes from direct observation that notes the significant difficulties in following procedural steps from the initial phase to the contract's supervision itself, a continuous act after the contractual formalization.This perspective confirms the need to analyze this type of process and find the best sequence of steps to meet the expectations and needs of stakeholders.This assertion aligns with the definition of the National Quality Foundation [8], which defines processes as a "set of pre-established activities that, executed in a determined sequence, will lead to an expected result that ensures the meeting of the needs and expectations of customers and other interested parties." The property rental contract is usually formalized between the DPE-AM and an individual or legal entity; in the case of Careiro Castanho, it was signed with an individual and occurs through a bidding waiver.The clauses contain the main characteristics of the contract, such as the object, duration, and obligations of the lessor and lessee.It should be noted that at the time of this study's elaboration, the contracts are still based on law 8.666/1993.
In the current perspective, the processes are not mapped, and the flow is not well defined, so the employees and departments that do not understand the process systemically end up generating incorrect documents in the system and consequently, rework, which reflects in delays in completing the process, among other bottlenecks presented later.According to Silva and Guedes [13]: "the impacts of rework on the business are quite significant, and therefore, these losses should be minimized as much as possible." Moreover, this type of process needs to be strategically studied, as it is directly linked to the mission of the institution: "to guarantee, as an agent of social transformation, comprehensive and free legal assistance to people in situations of vulnerability, promoting human rights and reducing social inequalities." Thus, with the mapping of the rental process, it is possible to identify the bottlenecks and then propose the improvement actions to be implemented in the Public Defender's Office to optimize the processes.

IV.2 MAPPING OF THE RENTAL PROCESS AND IDENTIFIED BOTTLENECKS
In this stage, from the results of the questionnaire, it was possible to characterize and identify the degree of knowledge of the actors through whom the rental process passes and their perception of how these activities occur and the points to be improved.
When responding to their level of knowledge of the rental process, on a scale of 0 to 5, 75% of the total of 8 participants confirmed knowing the process at level 4 or 5, as shown in the figure 1.While it is observable that the respondents characterize themselves as knowledgeable about the process, the majority state that there is a need for standardization of procedures, as well as a clearer and more dynamic definition of tasks, with the aim of better defining the stages and responsibilities of the respective actors in each sector.Nowadays, institutions formally documenting their processes does not equate to successful procedures, since the current requirement of organizations is a more graphical presentation, that is, process mapping [14].
Today, institutions formally documenting their processes does not mean successful procedures, as the current requirement of organizations is a more graphical representation, namely process mapping [14].In this regard, according to the respondents, concerning the existing characteristics in the current rental process, 62.5% stated that there is no process mapping, which also generates vulnerability for the institution, as it is impossible to know the stepby-step of the process in the Public Defender's Office.Meanwhile, 25% claim that the information is conflicting, meaning that diagnosing the process leads to the conclusion of a lack of standardization and insufficient mapping to understand the essence of the process.A significant point is that many of the survey participants stated there are employees or departments possessing knowledge that is not disseminated, resulting in dependence and vulnerability of the institution.Chaves [25] asserts that "processes must be recorded and not just remain in the memory of the employees."Thus, Gissoni [26] highlights process mapping as a tool for recording processes.
Similarly, the actors of the process conclude that with the ingrained culture and resistance of employees to change and innovation, those involved do not fully understand the process.Contributing to this topic, Rizzetti [15] states that "it is vital that Answers Knowledge level 0,00% 0,00% Well-mapped processes

Disseminated information
Clear objectives Misinformation Shallow mapping the organization's processes be disclosed and understood by all involved.In this sense, a useful tool to meet this demand is process mapping." In addition to this response, the survey participants also conclude that the advantages of mapping are numerous, such as the reduction of errors and rework, improved flow and speed in processing, standardized dissemination of information to those involved, and better visualization for decision-making.Based on Moreira [17], the main benefits of process mapping are agility in processes, standardization of procedures, improvement in communication, and assistance in risk management.
According to Pavani Junior and Sucucuglia [16], process mapping or modeling is a graphical representation of the sequences of activities in processes, indicating, in a clear and objective manner, their structure and functioning.Thus, mapping is a tool that allows for a broad visualization of the process, enabling the identification of value activities and tasks that are subject to change and elimination, with the aim of improving the procedural flow.
In this context, from the observation of procedural flows, an attempt was made to understand how the process works in the institution, through BPMN modeling.As stated by [20], this tool is a very dynamic technique, as it allows mapping numerous types of business processes, being the most used notation in the corporate world, integrated with the main process management software.Based on Damelio [12], analyzing processes in a structured way not only reduces integration failures between systems but also enables an understanding of current processes, the elimination, or simplification of processes that need changes.Thus, with the mapping carried out, the set of questionnaire responses, and the researcher's observation, it was possible to identify the main impediments to the progress of the Public Defender's Office's rental process.
The lack of development of procedures and flows to standardize processes, as well as the lack of synergy and communication between employees and top management, creates problems in the decision-making by the general public defender regarding the property, as the choice is based on market research, which in turn provides superficial information on these rentals.In this sense, according to Campos [27], standardization should be maintained within companies as something that will bring improvements in quality, cost, compliance with deadlines, safety, encouraging people to discuss what will be standardized, and establishing and adhering to the standard procedure.Furthermore, its alteration is encouraged as a means of improving processes.This decision, based on the apparently most advantageous property, leads to various problems in the process, as from that moment on, those involved view the chosen rental as the only one capable of meeting the institution's demands.Consequently, any missing documentation or requirement from the landlord causes a stagnation in the process.
Another point related to communication and visibility of the departments is the lack of a schedule for initiating processes and, consequently, better alignment with the deadlines and goals of the strategic objective, as well as a better definition of the responsibilities of those involved.In line with De Melo [18], choosing mapping as a tool for improvement, based on its principles, when correctly employed, allows not only documenting all the activities that make up a process but also correcting any of these activities that are problematic, being a tool that aids in detecting non-value-adding activities.
Moreover, the paths for the institution's expansion need to be more planned and studied, to avoid hastily formalizing a contract, leading to future problems with incessant notifications to the landlord and work that could be avoided.Likewise, every department in the DPE-AM has its daily demands, and they usually become aware of this project and its urgency when the process moves to their process box, along with the demand for promptness in the activities to be carried out, which consequently leads to errors and rework.

IV.3 PROPOSAL FOR IMPROVEMENT ACTIONS
After creating the mapping of the existing process, analyzing the responses of the actors in the procedural flow, and identifying the bottlenecks, efforts were made to present improvements to be implemented, aimed at optimizing the execution of work in the departments.The compilation of this information enabled the use of the 5W1H tool, presented in the table below.Based on Pontes et al, [22], the 5W1H tool is defined as an organized document that presents the actions and responsibilities of those who will execute them, through questions capable of guiding the implementations, and has a structure that allows for quick identification of the elements necessary for the project's implementation.The development of procedures and workflows is necessary to guide, standardize, and optimize the process of renting properties from third parties by the Public Defender's Office of the State of Amazonas.This will be possible after the actors meet, understand the mapping carried out in this work, propose improvements, and eliminate non-value-adding steps in the process.Once they are aware of this mapping, they will also know the roles of each sector, facilitating the work and also the explanation for future employees who will develop activities in the said process.
To improve the synergy and communication of the employees, as well as to increase the effectiveness of the work carried out, it is necessary for the institution to hold regular meetings to understand the demands of the sectors and employees.Furthermore, conducting an organizational climate survey will enable the public agency's management to understand what their employees think, identify areas for improvement, and develop an action plan based on these findings.
The development of a schedule for the opening of processes and alignment of deadlines needs to be discussed, as with the strategic planning already in place, the centers that will be inaugurated and the deadlines to achieve these goals are known.Therefore, the creation of a document predicting these dates would be feasible for the planning of those responsible for the property rental process.The planning director, along with the general public defender and the administrative director, can meet to discuss the dates and determine the schedule for opening processes.

V. CONCLUSIONS
The main objective of this research was to analyze, through the perspective of process management, a rental contract of the Public Defender's Office of the State of Amazonas, identifying bottlenecks and suggesting actions for improvement, with the aim of optimizing these processes.
It was observed in the identification of rental processes how important they are for the development of the institution's activities, and that even though the workflows were similar, the main difficulties were found in following the procedures regularly.
It is noted that the process mapping was efficient in highlighting the bottlenecks.During the analysis for the mapping, it was observed that the actors were not aware of their respective tasks, the employees had poor communication and low synergy, which generated rework in the sectors.With the mapping of the rental process, it was also possible to verify that despite being foreseen in the strategic planning of the institution, there was no schedule for opening these processes, which also generated rework, as it had always been a test experience.
It is observed that once the work is defined, as per the presented mapping, the proposals for improvements directly address the causes of the problems and allow proceeding to the next step of optimizing these processes, the standardization that allows all sectors to be aware of the tasks to be carried out in the process.
It is worth mentioning that BPMN notation proved effective in the chosen process to be mapped, as did the Bizagi Modeler software, which was intuitive for modeling and easy to visualize for the process actors.Moreover, even though the objectives were achieved, the present work had a limitation: the lack of practical results from the presented proposals prevented a conclusive analysis of the study.
Therefore, it is suggested that the institution analyze the improvement proposals in order to implement them in the property rental processes of the Public Defender's Office of the State of Amazonas.Finally, it is suggested that process mapping be used in the other administrative processes of the institution to identify their bottlenecks, optimizing these activities and consequently contributing to the advancement of the public agency.

Figure 1 -
Figure 1 -Level of Knowledge of the Rental Process by the Actors.Source: Authors, (2023).

Table 1 -
Rental Contracts Signed in 2021 and 2022.

Table 3 :
Application of the 5W1H Tool.