Business process management aims to take the pain out of process inflexibility

Rethink IT, Oct, 2004

Even when a suitably high level sponsor has been found, however, an appropriate culture has to be in place to ensure that they are willing to be accountable for managing continual process improvement into the long-term. "The issue is the management system and the way that management is rewarded and motivated. That has to change too," Lloyd explained.

The next step down the BPM route, meanwhile, is to define the desired business model and architecture for the organization and map the relevant processes on to that. The final--and least important--stage, despite being the one that is focused on most, is to examine the suitability of the business' IT architecture in supporting a process rather than functionally oriented approach.

In most instances, this will require a rearchitecting of the environment and the introduction of "multiple pieces of technology from at least three vendors to provide the full spectrum of functionality necessary", said Lloyd.

But he added: "This is a five-year change management programme and by the time you come to do anything seriously about the technology piece, the problem of the multitude of vendors will probably have sorted itself out."

The long term, complex nature of such a programme, however, requires the drafting of an integrated 'enterprise architecture' plan, which is essentially a business plan and documented roadmap to define how the organization and its underlying IT infrastructure will evolve over time.

"This requires a much closer link between the business and the IT function, but is a key linkage that has to exist in order to generate the drive and support change," Lloyd says.

This linkage has to be at the highest echelons of the business, however, because as he concluded: "The big prize requires a big commitment. But interest is growing due to competitive pressures and because it offers the chance to do something that rivals are not. This means that although projects are small-scale and limited at the moment, we'll start to see things really happening here over the next five years."

CASE STUDY: AC NIELSEN

AC Nielsen is using business process management technology to underpin its new Global Passport product description harmonization service for consumer packaged goods (CPG) manufacturers and retailers.

The market research organisation employs 10,000 scarf in more than 100 countries and has over 7,000 customers, mainly in the corporate space. Its Global Services unit, which accounts for about 10% of the organization's turnover, operates on a cross-regional basis and co-ordinates the activities of local teams.

After 60 years of working in the CPG space, the division had compiled a database of standardized descriptions and codes relating to products and product attributes for its own internal use. Due to the lack of industry standards elsewhere, however, it decided to use this as the basis of a 'translation' service and to sell it to both existing customers and potentially new ones in the shape of small to medium-sized enterprises.