Leaders who successfully transform businesses do eight things right (and they do them in the right order).
John P. Kotter
“Ohh no, not change management – it’s something for the IT guys. It is not necessary when implementing Business Process Management. We’ll just draw the processes and publish them…”
You couldn’t be more wrong; change management must be an integral part of launching Business Process Management projects. Launching a Business Process Management project is one of the largest transformations you can do as a manager.
Have you launched a BPM project – how many of the below mentioned have you remembered:
- Establish a sense of urgency
- Form a powerful guiding coalition
- Create a vision
- Communicate the vision
- Empower others to act on the vision
- Plan for and create short term wins
- Consolidate improvements and produce more change
- Institutionalize new approaches
Have you performed 40 %, 50 %, 60 % or 80 % of the above? Than you have probably failed or been lucky if you have been successful. This is not just a casual blogger that writes this, but a leading transformation expert that states this – John P. Kotter in his article called: Leading Change – Why Transformation Efforts Fail, which can be found at www.hbrreprints.org
Have I tried to fail in change management – I most certainly have – but I have learned by the experience: The article by John P. Kotter now hangs in my office in poster size – even though the poster hangs and tries to remember of what to do I’ll probably fail again.
But I’m only human, using BPM to find and eliminate the failures.
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So many companies fail at step #4. Having a vision is great, but if you can’t make others see it then your vision won’t get far. Being able to effectively communicate where you are vs. where you want to be is essential.
I think change management shouldn’t happen after a BPM project but before. It starts way before and throughout the journey the message should be reinforced constantly. There is a book by Chip and Dan Heath which explains it better.
BPM can be called MBP better: Your goal is to manage your organization by process. (So BPM is not a project, it’s daily business)
So it’s not about having processes, it’s about using them. Using them to deliver products or services to your customers.
And during execution and managing your organization by process things change. And those changes will definitely influence your process.
So the ultimate goal is to create processes that are able to cope with change; processes that are sustainable for the future.
Processes that can adapt to change….so process and change; they belong together!
Hi Emiel
Implementation of BPM is a project, so I don´t agree with your point. But I agree with you on that BPM doesn´t stop after the project – has been launched (and the consultants have left the burning house) – it is actually there the REAL BPM starts. Agree with BPM is daily business – but the implementation of BPM – is a major change management task.
Anders,
Oh yes, implementation (when is that actually ready?) might be seen (and is often seen) as a project.
But if BPM should stop after the project, I would not even bother starting it.
And actually every company is already doing BPM at this moment. They are executing and managing their processes to deliver their products and services to their customers. Maybe not really aware, maybe not that well, but they are doing it.
So getting a company on a higher level of MbP (managing by process) might be seen as a project, but the danger is that BPM is seen as something separate, done by ‘those process guys’.
So that makes it ‘just another project’. And I don’t believe that is what BPM is about.
That’s why I should always try to integrate process awareness in daily business as soon as possible. And that’s about change a lot.
Hi Emiel
Sorry for the late answer, is for the time being on a SAP course….
A pre-project before the BPM project (SORRY) – would most certainly be a strategy which stretches after the project. Do not do BPM – if you lack the BPM strategy – which is approved by top management. I agree with do not even think about starting up the BPM initiative – if is only a project STOP…
Best Regards Anders
Change Management is not easy even if it is well planned as there will be always three types of Employees.
1. Who believes Change is good
2. Who believes change will create uncertainity be it job or be it work performed
3. Who are neutral
Management have to identify the employees who believe in change and needs to become the Champions for the change. Be it communicating how it benefits them or be it providing answers to their concerns.
I have seen this model works well as it is well supported by their own team members, the employees believe the change is for the benefit of the employees.
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