Business Process Management (BPM) and how it delivers value to an organization

I listened to Anshuman Tiwari discussing all aspects of Business Process Management (BPM) and how it delivers value to an organization in a podcast hosted by Daniel Rayner that aired on 30th May. This is what I learned from the conversation:

Why do some organizations treat process-centricity well, while others do not?

Nobody wants to fail, and companies with more success tend to have a clear focus and don't experiment with new ideas all the time. The problem with less focused or less cognizant organizations is that they don't see any significant results in one or two quarters, no change in profitability, so they decide that it's not worth it and give it up. The more clear-headed and focused organizations know that they will suffer short-term pain, but they will come to appreciate it after a certain period of time, and then the fruitful period will arrive. As individuals build habits, organizations also require time to build habits, which is why it takes a long time. This is the main reason why some organizations are successful with processes-centric approaches, while others fail.

What drives an organization to adopt a process management approach, and what are the most common reasons for doing so?

Organizations that multiply and add departments, locations, products & services tend to have processes that are patchy or like Band-Aids, holding things together. It is common for companies to design processes in silos. Consequently, a lot of stuff is passed from department to department, for example, sales give items to operations, operations says it’s waiting for someone, etc. Eventually, it becomes overly complex to handle. Therefore, the end result is poor quality products or services that dissatisfy customers. Therefore number one driver when companies are looking to adopt a process management approach should be simplification combined with customer experience.

The second is cost because as you add parts to your process and everyone has to be paid, the process becomes more costly as a result because you are putting more in to get the same value out. Eventually, the process that is added is giving less return. 

The third driver is people being employed.

In view of limitations in the number of word characters in a LinkedIn post, part 2 of this conversation will appear tomorrow.

What challenges will an organization face as it embarks on this process management journey? 

Alignment, Infrastructure & Response

Organizational alignment is the biggest obstacle. Process Management is about taking steps to achieve an intended outcome and planning, improving, and controlling the process. It seems that processes have the highest priority in operations-related functions. Functions like sales, after-sales, HR, finance, procurement, etc. seem to be uncoordinated. If operations is only going to BPM, then the business part is already out and the process is also limited. So in a way, only a limited process is being optimized, a shorter process. Most process improvement projects are more effective when they are multifunctional.

It is also important to create an infrastructure that manages processes because nothing will happen by itself. People may notice you, but you won't get anything accomplished.

People engagement is another challenge. Picking and training the right people for BPM is the key to overcoming this challenge. Organizations need to recognize that every employee does not have the temperament to be an improvement professional. Some may be good at planning, others at compliance, hence recognize who is good at what and train them accordingly. 

How do you get different functions aligned to process management and ensure that it’s not just confined to one area or function?

Seek out quick wins and influencers. It can be done by starting where you are, don't wait for instructions from Senior Leadership, find some quick wins, and you will see you will always have takers, see them as examples, make them heroes, and eventually, they will do the talking for you, to bring more people in. 

Try to solve problems that affect a large group of people, since these will become your ultimate examples. E.g. Solve problems for HR or for Finance because their problems impact a large number of people and when people see that change, they will begin to think that this works, so maybe we can support this. Don’t go in for specalised solutions as nobody will get to know

Conclusion

Process management today - The last 2 to 3 years have shown that technology is critical, the world is fragmented and remote teams will work together in the future, this will continue in the foreseeable future

Process mining is going to become very important because a good process mining software can run incognito without any people intervention and can tell you how your processes are operating and where are the pitfalls. This is equivalent of you walking around the process and doing the Gemba. Process Management is more Gemba & Conversation, Are you visiting this part, are living this part, are you talking to people as compared to doing it on Powerpoint, Visio, Email, etc…