Business Systems Reengineering 

5. How To Do It?

A. Initialization

4. Write a Plan

Decide what you want to accomplish—be fairly specific (i.e., reduce mean design release time to 2 weeks for variants of standard products). Develop or refine applicable mission/goal statements, which should flow down from the organization's strategic business plan.

The project team may have to make certain working assumptions of what these are in the absence of guidance from up higher in the chain of command. These assumptions should be specifically and vocally stated, to cover posteriors, if not to validate these assumptions with those paying the bills.

We have been successful in using our own straw-man versions as substitutes, which have sometimes even earned subsequent com­pany endorsements as official strategic missions and goals.

• Planned Outcome Mission Goals

• Objectives and Performance Measurements Operating Plan

• Supporting Business Systems Processes Subsidiary missions

• Process flow—inputs, process, outputs in sequence Responsibilities

• Applicable policies, procedures, algorithms Cycle times Decision points Issues, constraints Tools (Computers, software, networks, forms, etc.)

Figure 1. Planning Hierarchy

Develop a list of rough quantified benefits and estimates for achieving them. Focus on time compression, waste elimination, quality, and flexibility improvement. These will lead you to financial performance. Try to reconcile these with existing com­pany financial objectives. It may not be easy. Then, list major known constraints to achieving objectives. Develop an overall milestone schedule.

B. Provide First Level Education

Conduct broader based education for people to be affected by planned changes. Don't think a small elite group will do this alone. You'll have to enlist the active support and participation of many of the troops. This will take more than edicts, or even inspiration. It will require a comprehensive education and training program.

This program may be part of an overall company effort (pre­ferred), or just part of a more limited program.

What should education cover?

• Executive overview education—Goals, objectives, concepts, benefits, alternate approaches, enabling philosophies, organi­zation, performance measurement, implementation, even gen­eral systems architecture.

• General group education—ditto. 

• Enabling education—Things like Total Quality Management, JIT, Continuous Rapid Improvement, Focused Facto­ries/Cells, Concurrent Engineering, Design to Cost/Design for Manufacture, Activity Based Management, Total Employee Involvement, Statistical Process Control, QCO (Quick Change Over).

• Behavioral modification skills—including teamwork, manage­ment styles, conflict resolution, etc.

• Application education—in work skills such as planning, design, procurement, accounting, scheduling, contracts, pre­ventive maintenance, material control, quality, etc. Not only for primary job responsibilities, but some cross-functional education as well.

• Procedural training—Comes later, after tools have been selected, and the process is far enough along so that you are planning for the tailoring and deployment of tools, such as applications software, computers, communications networks, production and material handling equipment, using procedures developed.

How to provide education? Colleges, consultants, seminar com­panies, in-house trainers, books, video-based education (used judiciously in the context of a balanced and well-facilitated program only), on-job training.

C. Analyze Existing System

1. Flow out the Existing As-ls Process

Break it down into subsystems, phases, and supporting activities. Identify: responsibilities by job title, inputs, process descriptions, outputs, cycle times, decision points, approvals, applicable pro­cedures, policies, Customer or government requirements, con­straints, or bottlenecks.

Emphasis should be less on totally comprehensive detail docu­mentation and more on understanding process flow, relationships, identifying bottlenecks, waste or non-value-added activities, and cost drivers. To comprehend needed changes, determine desired end results and where performance now falls short.

We recommend a process for doing this that involves most affected people actually doing the work, and that a cross-func­tional team review it.

The Living Flow Chart method: Try putting flow charts up on the walls, life size, using actual forms, screens and reports. Connect the flows together with highly visible arrows. Record cycle times, responsibilities and applicable policies/procedures for each pro­cess. Put notes on the wall explaining what is being done, how and why. Review these flows with various departments, auditors, even Customer and government people—anybody who will listen and provide feedback! On a recent project, the president of one of the companies using this approach was out with the team as they were working on the wall charts—making suggestions! When's the last time that happened at your company? An amazing array of people have contributed to the process at this company.

2. Identify problems and opportunities

Put great emphasis on identifying "non-value added" activities (not needed, redundant, inefficient), bottlenecks, and cost drivers. By the way, if you see obvious problems, don't wait for the millennia or the new system to arrive before doing something about them. Implement quick wins ASAP for maximum payback, morale, career and ego-building. You'd be amazed at the simple, effective and ingenious suggestions that the participants supply!

Have people write down all their suggestions/ issues/problems, their name and the date on little cards or yellow "Post-It" notes and put them up on the wall where they apply. The project team can record, classify, edit and prioritize them on an issues list, used to drive change activities. Once the as-is configuration is documented, discuss issues and direction, then start on the to-be.

PART IX. 

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