"It's easier than you think…"

The most dreaded words for us are "BPM requires too much overhead". Why? Because the job just got harder by having to first get through a misaligned perception.

The earmarks of BPM academia can be found in most books on the subject and, to complicate matters even further, there are a number of practitioners who believe the only way to treat each engagement are to take a formal "top down" approach. On the other side of the coin there are the software vendors that would prefer you purchase the solution on the promise that the sun will shine brighter. This "bottom up" approach is viewed as the "what BPM is" because the marketing of BPM drives the perception that BPM is only a technology. Either approach, taken to the extreme, can be dangerous.

We've previously spoken of the confusion growing in the industry around whether BPM is a methodology, a technology or a way of thinking . The problem, or salvation, is that it is all that and more. We believe that the opportunity for Process Improvement can be a hybrid of both a top-down and bottom-up approach, add into that recipe experience, practicality and a dash of "Just Do It" enthusiasm. Given this mix you're likely to find that ROI achievements are closer, and less expensive, to obtain.

The CEO, CFO and/or CIO do not want to hear that in order to achieve BPM returns they have to ship everyone off to Tibet to learn the teachings from the masters for six months. They need solutions yesterday and, with the speed of change occurring in the business world, the tomorrows are coming faster than ever. By the same token senior management does not enjoy when a multi-million dollar system investment needs to be scrapped because it didn't do what they expected, or they didn't invest in the process definition and organization changes to support a new approach.

Not in this economy! Now, more than ever, realistic and practical approaches are needed. The economy has reduced the workforce for a number of companies, which are now faced with the burden of producing the same, if not more, with fewer resources. At some point when things pick up you need to ask whether you want to hire back into the same inefficient processes you've always had, or do you want to do something about it? And if you want to do something about it, has the perception of cost or approach dissuaded you from taking that step?

One of the major disappointments in the software development arena is most approaches (waterfall, RUP, Agile, etc.) are perceived to be a total and immutable commitment to a methodology. While each is somewhat malleable within their own framework, they aren't suited for every single problem. The more successful development manager is going to view each as being a different kind of tool and they have the flexibility to choose which tool is best suited to a set of architectural changes or feature requests.

So what do you do?

The BPM space is starting to trend the same way, so here are a few pointers we practice to keep approaches realistic, manageable and efficient:

·       Be Real: Change is not limited to a new technology. Often times a process and, more importantly, people need to change as well. A good look at both helps identify where roadblocks are likely to occur and a good head start on correcting those issues.

·       Think Like an Artisan: Start with the realization that the technologies, methodologies and types of cultural changes necessary are the tools to get the job done. An experienced and practical facilitator will recognize that and set about picking the right approach and right technologies to address the need. This requires an agility in thinking from the target audience be it middle, senior or executive management.

·       Leverage Existing Talent: Consider pairing up some of the more rigorous thinkers with the "out of the box", or more cavalier thinkers. It may take some getting used to, as both these types will need to learn and gain insight into the positive aspects of their respective approaches.

·       Go Iterative: Taking small “Just Do It” steps are a good way to avoid analysis paralysis. Put realistic boundaries around scope and accept that, in post-reviews, changes may be necessary. This is a kind of mini Process Improvement opportunity that may result in a slight increase of cost, but avoids a complete restart or abandoning of the effort.

·       Produce and Discuss Metrics: This must occur from various perspectives including the Customer, Finance, Process, Technology and People. Avoid glossing over indicators that may not look good, instead ask the question… “Why?” And then put in action plans to overcome the obstacles.

These are simplified descriptions but it holds true to the tenets that most things in Process Improvement and Technology changes don’t require boiling the ocean.

Until next time sports fans!

The hidden gems of quality...

There is a significant relationship between quality, metrics and Process Improvement endeavors. So much so that we've developed a white paper that shows, by example, where even minimal effort can realize appreciable rewards to ROI.

The white paper PDF can be read by clicking here . We hope you can find some value in the concepts and ideas and, of course, we welcome any feedback and opinions.

Until the next time sports fans...

Technology is not a BPM panacea...

Axiom: If you purchase the technology first you will pay magnitudes more in the long run.

You will end up spending more time which will delay the delivery of success, and money which in this economic environment that isn't exactly a recipe for advancement. Given that there are a few very practical steps that can be taken to achieve significant ROI while potentially transforming the company to meet the 21st century head on, why would you consider any other way?

BPM Technology

It is becoming more and more difficult to separate the technology of BPM from the practice. With many vendors hawking their products as BPM, versus the more appropriate Business Process Management System (BPMS), it is no wonder that confusion may abound.

There is no question that these technologies play a major role in realizing the benefits of a practical Business Process Transformation (BPT) endeavor. Furthermore, there is no question that a few vendors have truly remarkable products that can help, but buying the technology to achieve this results should never, not even ever, be the motivation for the activity.

The terrain is littered with the failed attempts that started with the purchase of a "silver bullet" technology (and the managers that recommended them), only to find their success as taking up space in the IT coffers and the finance groups maintenance accounts payable ledger.

Practical guidelines

Here is the short version of the types of questions that we ask at Axiom:1, Inc. when working with a new or existing client. While on the one hand we use this for structuring our engagement, it's primary purpose is to help us, and the client, get an understanding of the readiness to undertake a technology implementation:

1. Is your vision and mission defined? Depending on the scope of the perceived problem space this may be at the functional, organizational or company level.
2. Do you understand your processes? Especially the ones that are critical the success of the vision.
3. Are there process owners?
4. Do you understand your culture? Are they ready for the change?
5. Do you know your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats?
6. Do you have a modeled process that shows benefits to Customers, Finance, Process and/or Culture?
7. Do you have metrics, both performance and results oriented, in place? Are they significant and relevant?
8. Do you have a plan that covers the above?
9. Do you have a technology evaluation program?
10. Do you have the budget?
11. Is there support at the executive levels?

Getting these ducks lined up will pay dividends galore in the long run:

• A significant reduction in costs and effort when guided by a solid plan.
• Tangible support from upper/senior management.
• A clear understanding of what process changes are going to truly be beneficial to the company.
• A plan of execution including transformations of the values/people/functions where needed.
• Ownership and accountability.
• Relevant measurement and feedback loops.
• The right technology to do the job.
• Significant reduction in the "fits and starts" that accompany ill guided approaches.

More to come sports fans, stay tuned....

Is that a culture in the petri dish?

Now that you've secured support from C-Level management you may feel lighter than a hot air balloon rising over a early morning sun on the Serengheti. Of course you do! That was the easy part and often mistaken as a sure fire ticket to success. Enter at your own risk as you are about to face the biggest challenge of them all... The Corporate Culture!!!

It is the corporate culture that has been breeding untended for possibly decades. If it is a positive "can do" or "let's try" culture you may have a good chance of smooth sailing. Ironically enough a predominate experience is that many organizational cultures have undergone a mutation resulting in a working force that doesn't trust management or coworkers, and is rife with politics. I say ironically because, after all, don't you all work for the same company? Don't you share the same goals and objectives?

In line with our comments that suggested senior management support would enhance your chance of success: If you are in a situation where the culture has grown around empire building, mistrust and contention, where the individuals desire for control and political maneuvering inhibits positive evolution you will not, let me repeat, you will not succeed.

How the organizations culture got to be this way may be an interesting intellectual endeavor, suffice it to say that it didn't just happen on it's own. More often than not the behavior of the organization is a reflection of the behavior of it's senior management and that could mean you as well (yes, we are pointing directly at you). Does "monkey see, monkey do" ring a bell? From a practical perspective it makes sense to become a change agent and start at the senior leaders and aim to adjust their thinking and practice to dramatically and significantly improve the odds of success.

The bigger and broader the changes you need to make for your business process improvement goals, the more important it is to focus on the organizations learning and growth potential. You will, should and better make it a point to focus on the individuals who will be doing the real work day after day with the changes before moving on to any implementation. Enlist your HR group to help in programs that affect an open and caring relationship with the entire organization. If you already have a communicative, collaborative and considerate culture that are all aimed in the right direction, count your lucky stars. However, most companies should consider addressing the culture issue as it stands to use some work... especially in todays environment.

There are numerous tome's written on the subject of being a positive change agent and one approach in particular is worth noting: Lift - Becoming a Positive Force in Any Situation is a insightful, thought provoking and practical perspective on positive influence that may be worth your time, and better enable you as a change agent.

Has anyone seen the mission?

Previously I spoke of the essential and necessary commitment to a process improvement program, be it facilitated by outside consulting or as part of an internal group: Commitment to change!

While what I am going to describe is not guaranteed to get the undying support needed, using certain techniques at the onset of the approach may strengthen the probability of commitment from the CEO or CIO as well as establishing a “thinking” Sr. Management team. All this for the price of a nice dinner with a reasonable bottle of wine for a few friends!

The activity is the establishment of the Vision and Mission statement for the organization and ensuring that they are clearly defined and understood. "Wait!", he/she says, "Don’t we already have those? Haven’t we been working for all those years looking at the company slogans on our internal portal? Seems like a waste of time to me!" Does it? Here’s a quick test: Perform one-on-one interviews, back to back, with the members of the Sr. Management team, as well as the CEO, and ask these questions:

1. What is the vision statement for the organization?
2. What does the vision statement mean to you?
3. What is the mission statement for the organization?
4. What does the mission statement mean to you?

Possible outcomes:

1. Each and every interview results in a rock solid shared understanding and meaning of the Vision and Mission statements.
2. The number of definitions and understanding of the statements are different for each interview! This assumes everyone can recite the vision and mission statements!! This assumes the organization even has them!!!
3. Some variation of #2.

OK, so what does it mean? Clearly, if the outcome of your work is that everyone can recite and has a shared understanding of them then you can move on to the next steps of the assessment. But, and this is where the majority of us will find ourselves, if the result is anything else then there is one very important indicator here:

If the Sr. Management team does not unanimously understand the Vision and Mission and what it means to their respective responsibilities… how can anyone expect that the organization is succeeding at driving to the same goals? How many cooks are in the kitchen?

Until the next time sportsfans…..

It starts at the beginning...

While clearly a play on words... it does support the logic of an axiom itself:

The first axiom (Axiom:1) is that all things must start at the beginning! (TM)

And the beginning, in the context of a Business Process improvement endeavor, is a commitment of the most Senior Manager (CEO, CIO, etc.) to support, invest and establish the activity as critical to the success of the organization. I refuse to quote the statistics of how many initiatives have failed due to lack of support! The field is littered with the 'good intent idea but do we have time for this now?' carnage.

Isn't that ironic? Let's see... hmmmmm.... should I invest the resources into galvanizing my organization around strategy, improvement and success? Or should I just push my senior staff to producing more of whatever it is we are producing?

I'll be benevolent here: Clearly CEO's and CIO's are not opting for a meatball sandwich over the welfare of the company. There are numerous dynamics at play given customer, competition and shareholder demand. But I do challenge that there are more important things than aligning to the strategy!