We hear this shouted many times over in our lives, from our children when we ask them to change their clothes, to people in business when we ask them to change the way they work. People do not like change. People get comfortable in what they do and do not want to leave that comfort zone. Fact is that change is inevitable and in order to survive and thrive, we must change. The question is what will drive the change.
As we all know, times today are difficult with a slumping economy and in order to survive in some cases, let alone grow, organizations face tough challenges and know they need to adapt and change. When we look at change and the need to change there are several reasons that surface. These are:
• Need/want to
– Reduce costs
– Reduce time to complete processes
– Improve customer/partner/employee satisfaction
– Grow revenues
– Explore new markets or exploit new strategic opportunities
• Or simply: times have changed
– And you need to change with them
In many cases, you can look at the process of an organization and begin there, to address changing how we operate and identify areas of improvement. To prepare for change, you must first determine if your organization is open and ready to change. Do the company and its employees understand the current processes? Are they prepared to consider changing those processes? In many cases, these questions will be difficult to answer because many processes happened serendipitously are not well defined or documented. My guess is that you will get different answers from different people about the same process.
As an initial step, you can identify and map the current processes within an organization and present your findings back to the employees for validation or correction. Use of simple flowcharting tools to deliver graphical representations is helpful and beneficial in that you may be able to use the finished flow chart as input to a BPM design tool in the future. I like flowcharts not only for the graphical representation but it also works as a communications tool serving to identify bottlenecks and loops, assist with problem analysis and identify variations in process activity.
In my view, these few simple steps are many times all that is needed to get the employees and management interested and to start participating in change. It helps instill a sense of control and input that we as humans desire in order to adopt change. The best scenarios and practices for change are found in organizations where participation and input are sought and welcome. Use of simple flow charts and allowing the employees to confirm reality and then propose potential improvements is truly the best beginning to gain maintain the support you need to implement change. Is your organization ready to move from “Don’t make me change” to “Let’s make the changes we need”?
What say you? Have you lived the change experience? Do you have a story to tell? I want to hear from you and learn what you and your organization are doing.
Looking to increase your level of knowledge? Join me in Chicago September 22-25 for the BPM Certificate course. I look forward to seeing you there.
Bob Larrivee, ECMm, ERMm, BPMm, IOAm, E20m, EMMm – AIIM
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