Business process transformation may seem overwhelming at first because it entails changes in the process, alterations in the flow of activities, and an improved focus on business goals.
Seeing that the global landscape is always shifting due to globalization, businesses likewise need to prioritize improving their processes to maximize efficiency and boost productivity. That said, businesses face the challenge of having to innovate to stay afloat, but also to enhance their competitive edge in the market.
Business process transformation is one of those enhancements deemed mandatory for survival, regardless of the type of industry you operate in. Since these processes serve as the lifeblood of the business, it’s just right to always keep it up-to-date. Thus, the necessity for process integration and upgrades. In addition, it would be a great help to managed cloud services from Buchanan online for easy accessibility within the organization.
In business process transformation, you’re either improving an existing process or adopting a completely new system. Nonetheless, business process efficiency matters because it determines how value is created. Different businesses have different objectives, targets, products, and services. What matters most is how you execute business process transformation to increase your chances of succeeding.
That being said, here are some of the dos and don’ts of business process transformation that can serve as a guide while implementing it.
The Do’s
Be Proactive And Not Reactive
In business, being proactive is crucial, as the old adage, ‘prevention is better than cure,' is applicable here. As much as possible, businesses should always stay on top of things. As a leader, you should always have a contingency plan in place, in case a problem arises along the way.
On the contrary, being reactive is the act of waiting for problems to manifest first before finding a solution. Waiting for an issue to exacerbate before implementing change may cost your business in the long run. Keep in mind consequences brought about by neglect and lack of forecasting usually results to massive damages.
Therefore, you need to ensure that your business processes are up to date. You can even make use of benchmarking to see what other industry players are doing in terms of process innovation. The objective is that your company shouldn’t be left behind.
With that being said, always be certain that you and your team are proactive, to optimize your business process to the best of your ability for your company’s continuous growth and success.
Include Stakeholders In The Process
Whenever you embark on a business process transformation effort, involve everyone in the organization, especially relevant stakeholders. To execute changes and improvements within the company, everyone should understand the purpose of the transformation.
Stakeholders need to be involved during this process for their approval since they’re the ones who are going to benefit or lose when you implement changes to the business process. When stakeholders see through your positive intentions to transform the system for the better, they’ll surely approve everything that you’ll propose.
Moreover, upon implementing such changes in the process, your supply chain partners need to be informed of any adjustments or changes you’re planning to impose.
Maximize On Automation
Business process transformation invariably involves automation. Automation creates room for businesses to salvage efficiency gains. When you automate a business process, you can execute it faster and better. Also, depending on the type of business, process automation has amazing benefits for the employees because it makes their work easier.
The great thing about automation is that it can be integrated easily. Most systems are flexible for immediate changes like this. You can design your automation project in such a way that it’s integrated with everything in your system. Automation may cost a hefty amount of money for the company, but keep in mind the advantages it brings will surely be worth every penny.
Prioritize Process Integration
For your business process transformation efforts to succeed, your business systems should prioritize integration. For instance, all the systems for your accounting, inventory management, human resource, order fulfillment, and customer relationship should be integrated for greater operational efficiency. There are various interdependencies in these processes. This means that one process can affect another and so on. All the more reason that you need to look for a Business Process Management (BPM) solution.
Additionally, integration is relevant, especially when dealing with mobile applications or software. This specific type of integration is termed as Application Programming Interface (API). You can design an application in such a way that it links with another application so that they can share data and communicate with each other, e.g., an online store application can be linked to a payment processing application (provided there are no native integrations), Native integration is when there is seamless consolidation between all software and applications.
Moreover, you need to also consider the cloud solutions that are available to you in business process transformation. Cloud solutions are a great example of third-party integrations. The cloud is a great way to store your data and manage your business effectively. Cloud-based management systems allow your business to bring everything together in one space, for example you can access customer information (a CRM system), track and make payments (accounting & invoice management system), and track employee performance (HRM system) all via the cloud. The cloud enables you to access data quicker and manage various aspects of your business on the go.
Don'ts
Don’t Neglect To Instill The Importance Of Change
Some employees prefer to stay in their comfort zone and just continue to go through their jobs every day with the same outdated system, often than not these kinds of employees resist change. But for a company to thrive in this competitive world, change is inevitable, and improving a business process is necessary.
With that being said, you should instill in your employees the need to transform the existing business process to make their work much easier for them in the long run. By implementing such improvement in the system, it will not only boost productivity, lessen the workload of the employees, but will also increase the revenue of the company eventually.
It would be advisable to involve everyone in the organization while carrying out these changes, you can conduct an open forum for their suggestions and questions, or enlighten the employees regarding the advantages of the new system through training.
Don’t Complicate Things
In business process transformation, there will be some business process models that you’re going to have to draw up. These models are visualizations of what you have in mind. So, when you are making any presentation regarding business process transformation, you may want to make sure that it’s simple and understandable.
A business process should be decentralized. Decentralization enables departments to follow through on their targets more effectively, improves communication, and employee morale. On the contrary, a centralized business process can cause inconsistent communication between departments and teams which may ultimately affect productivity. If a problem arises in one department, a centralized decision-making process will likely delay in addressing that issue. Centralization creates divergent priorities between departments and complicates the entire transformation process.
Keep in mind that complexity is an enemy of efficiency. That being said, as much as possible, simplify the areas of business process transformation to prevent confusion and mistakes along the way.
Don’t Forget To Monitor Progress
Usually, at the start of every business process transformation effort, you will set goals for what you want to achieve. This needs to be monitored consistently to check whether everything is on track regarding implementation.
Something could go wrong if no one’s actively monitoring the progress. If neglected, a transformation like this can be prone to errors, that can eventually affect the outcome. It is imperative to be cautious and observant while in the process of integrating information and systems. Therefore, monitoring is an important qualitative aspect of any business process transformation effort.
Don’t Lose Sight Of The Business’ Perspective
Before doing any business transformation, consider your organization’s values, plans, and targets. Then design your business process transformation around those things. In business, alignment is important. You want all your business processes to align with the company's strategy, vision, mission, ethical standards, and so forth. Accordingly, there is use in having a business perspective mindset when carrying out business process transformation. It provides guidance and parameters within which you can operate. When the limits are defined, then you can construct a proper plan and implementation program.
Conclusion
In this day and age, business process transformation is a necessity rather than just a luxury that businesses should implement. The main goal of a business transformation is integration, innovation, and the adoption of new technology, and concepts. It helps in streamlining business functions and organize workflows.
Make this article your guide to properly implement an improved and functional business process transformation that would be beneficial for your thriving business. Always remember that doing this early on would make your business run efficiently, boost productivity, and yield high revenue returns in the long run.
Julie Moss is a digital marketing specialist with eight years of industry experience in this field. She has been a business consultant for various top companies. She enjoys sharing experiences through blogs online. Julie enjoys spending time with the family, fishing, canoeing, and traveling in her spare time.
