Best Practices for Socializing Business Process Improvement Initiatives

Transcription

1 Overview Best Practices fr Scializing BPI Initiatives Best Practices fr Scializing Business Prcess Imprvement Initiatives Gina Abudi, MBA T ften we jump int a business prcess imprvement (BPI) initiative withut taking the time t scialize the initiative thrughut the rganizatin. There may be a number f reasns fr this, including: Lack f understanding abut hw t scialize such initiatives Lack f interest in scializing such initiatives Lack f understanding abut the value and benefit f scializatin False belief that scializing is nt actually wrking n the initiative Hwever, experience shws that when BPI initiatives are scialized prir t the actual start f the prject, there is an increased likelihd f success f the initiative and buy-in thrughut the rganizatin. Additinally, it enables the back end - the actual design and implementatin f the initiative - t g much smther. Scializatin, while it des take a cncerted effrt t be successful, is far frm an nerus prcess and ne, which, when dne cnsistently, reduces the effrt invlved ver time as buy-in and cmmitment cme much quicker. This Article will discuss best practices fr scializing business prcess imprvement initiatives t ensure buy-in, supprt and increase the chances f a successful implementatin. Scializing Business Prcess Imprvement Initiatives Given the challenging nature f BPI prjects, which include the ptential that such prjects have t impact the entire rganizatin, the numerus tasks invlved in the undertaking, alng with the number f individuals invlved thrughut the rganizatin, it is essential that the initiative be effectively scialized prir t the utset. Let s step back and define scializing. Scializing, as we are discussing it in this Article, is the art and prcess f getting individuals cmfrtable with the success f a particular initiative. It des nt mean there will be an ptin nt t mve frward with the initiative if peple aren t happy abut it, but it prvides a way t increase the cnfidence level in an initiative that is ging t happen. The gal f scializing is t get buy-in and cmmitment fr the initiative. It is t cnvert thse wh are uncmfrtable and uncertain abut the prject int champins wh supprt the initiative and are prpnents fr it thrughut the rganizatin. Scializing is essential fr every prject undertaken in the rganizatin, but mst especially fr BPI initiatives given that such initiatives have a change management cmpnent. And change management initiatives ften fail when they are nt effectively scialized prir t implementatin. The larger the initiative (the greater the impact within the rganizatin and the mre peple impacted by what is ging n), the mre likely that yu will want t set up a separate team t scialize what is happening and why. The first task I want this team t d is t develp a cmmunicatin plan fr scializing the initiative thrughut the rganizatin. Cpyright 2012 Gina Abudi. All Rights Reserved. 1

2 Best Practices fr Scializing BPI Initiatives Develping a Cmmunicatin Plan Yu want t ensure cnsistency in the message yu are delivering t all emplyees affected by the BPI initiative. Yu are ging t want t cmmunicate differently (but cnsistently) with individuals depending n a variety f factrs, including: Hw much they will be affected by the BPI initiative Hw lng they have been with the rganizatin and in their particular rle Hw many change initiatives they have been invlved in within the rganizatin and their acceptance f such initiatives The success f past BPI initiatives within the rganizatin Yur cmmunicatins plan des nt need t be cmplex and shuld include the fllwing infrmatin: Wh What When Hw Frmat Fr example, let s assume we are changing prcesses arund hw we manage invice clients. This will entail all new prcesses fr thse in finance wh are tasked with invicing clients. Our cmmunicatin management plan - fr the Department in particular - may lk like this: Cmmunicatin Management Plan Wh What When Hw Frmat all Accunting Assistants Accunting Assistants Senir Management Explain business prcess imprvement initiative Understand current prcesses in use within grup Observe current wrkflw Reprt f prgress in data gathering Mid-March Weekly beginning n April 1 and thrugh the end f the mnth Weekly beginning n April 15 and cntinuing fr 2 weeks Mid-March thrugh mid-may Via discussin, presentatin Via small grup meetings Via bservatin Via presentatin 2 hur PwerPint presentatin and facilitated discussin Face-t-face meeting: 1/2 hur fcused discussins/data gathering at weekly department meeting Observatin f hw jb is currently dne by shadwing accunting assistants thrughut week 15 minute PwerPint presentatin t update senir management at biweekly management meeting Cpyright 2012 Gina Abudi. All Rights Reserved. 2

3 Best Practices fr Scializing BPI Initiatives The gal in cmmunicatin planning is t be sure that there is a plan in place t cmmunicate with everyne wh needs t be cmmunicated with but als prvides fr an effective frum t get infrmatin acrss and keep them engaged. As a best practice, re-visit yur cmmunicatin plan n a regular basis t keep it updated. As the BPI initiative prgresses, cmmunicatins will need t change and be updated t reflect the prgress f the initiative. Yu may have an initial cmmunicatin plan fcused n selling the initiative thrughut the rganizatin; hwever, as yu gain buy-in and secure champins fr the initiative, yu will change yur cmmunicatin plan t be less f a selling effrt and fcus mre n regular cmmunicatin n prgress. Use a Variety f Techniques t Scialize the Initiative In every business it is imprtant t use a variety f techniques t scialize BPI initiatives. This technique helps in reaching the greatest number f peple and prviding individuals with a variety f avenues fr reaching back t yu. Nt everyne will d well in cntributing in small grup meetings, and yu may get mre infrmatin frm them if yu fcus n ne-n-ne cmmunicatins. One f yur primary gals is t engage them in cnversatin and keep them engaged thrughut implementatin. Other gals include: Determining wh is n bard and wh is nt (r, yur champins and resisters) Getting cmmitment fr the initiative and supprt t implement Keeping buy-in thrughut the initiative Use any f the fllwing cmmunicatin channels t scialize the initiative: One-n-ne cnversatins Department/business unit meetings All staff r all hands meetings Lunch & learns After hurs events Surveys Hallway (water cler) cnversatins Small grup meetings that include a variety f individuals (nt simply frm ne department) s and ther internal ffice cmmunicatin channels such as newsletters, psters in the hallways, and intranet sites/prtals Q&A sessins Obviusly sme methds will wrk better than thers in certain rganizatins. What is essential t remember is that yu must use a variety f methds t be sure yu reach the greatest number f individuals within the rganizatin in a way that wrks fr them. I particularly like t keep my ears pen at the water cler and cffee machine. I ften hear things abut the initiative that I may nt therwise hear. I have n prblem with jumping in t a cnversatin t prvide accurate infrmatin, crrect misinfrmatin and therwise cntribute t keep the gssip at a minimum (r at least ensure accurate infrmatin is being cnveyed). Cpyright 2012 Gina Abudi. All Rights Reserved. 3

4 Best Practices fr Scializing BPI Initiatives Determine Wh is n Bard and Wh is nt Identifying bth yur champins and resisters is essential t BPI prject success. While yur gal is t cnvert the resisters t champins, this is nt always pssible and rarely can yu cnvert all resisters. That s fine. Yur primary gal shuld be t cnvert as many resisters as pssible via multiple, strng cmmunicatin channels and sharing f infrmatin and, fr thse yu cannt cnvert, keep them engaged in the initiative. Here is where many prject managers/leads n BPI initiatives take a wrng turn - keeping champins as champins and keeping resisters engaged. D nt assume that because smene supprts the initiative in the beginning that they will cntinue t d s. A number f events culd ccur that wuld change their champin status t resister status. In ne example, a client was launching a BPI initiative and did an excellent jb in the beginning in reaching ut t thers in the rganizatin t get buy-in and supprt. Once the client had their list f champins, they fcused all cmmunicatins ging frward n the resisters and neglected the champins. Lng stry shrt - a small change in the directin affected sme f the champins, effectively mving them back t resister status and the prject lead had n idea this had happened. When they launched the initiative, they were taken by surprise by a number f earlier champins wh nw were penly against it.. Damage cntrl was required. T avid this situatin,, keep champins as well as resisters engaged thrugh sharing infrmatin and cmmunicating regularly. Check in t see if they have any questins r cncerns. Any small change can easily cnvert a champin t a resister. Smetimes it is bvius wh the resisters are smetimes, nt. By paying attentin t hallway cnversatins, watching bdy language in meetings, and listening carefully when thers speak - yu ll sn identify the resisters. A Client Example Let s lk at an example f scializing a BPI prject fr a client. The client is a public relatins/marketing cnsulting firm. This prject entailed changing prcesses in hw the rganizatin captured and utilized custmer data. Given the extent f the prcess changes, we began scializing the initiative 15 days prir t starting the prject. We cnvinced the client this was the best apprach because there were a number f individuals (mainly in marketing and sales) wh were displeased with the idea f changing hw they were currently wrking. This shuld nt cme as a shck. Mst peple when faced with change balk at it initially. Yur challenge is getting them n bard. If we hadn t taken the time t get these individuals cmfrtable with what we were ding and why, we wuld have put the prject at risk fr failure. Additinally (and a cmmn issue unfrtunately), the client (read: leadership team) was assuming that they knew hw t change the prcess. And while they might be n the right track, the individuals making the decisin were all executives - nt thse wh were actually wrking under the current prcess. While the executives are certainly the final decisin makers, it is essential t take int accunt hw the wrk is actually being dne. We started ur initiative by meeting with the sales and marketing flks t prvide them with ur visin as t whywe needed t change the prcesses, and t present the value and benefit f ding s as well. We emphasized that while we had ideas f hw the prcesses might lk, we had nt yet settled n a slutin (it was imprtant that the executives did nt cme t the table with a slutin already settled upn therwise credibility is lst in the prcess f scializing the initiative), and ur gal at this juncture was t get their input. Cpyright 2012 Gina Abudi. All Rights Reserved. 4

5 Best Practices fr Scializing BPI Initiatives We asked the fllwing questins during the meeting: What are yur biggest challenges in capturing custmer infrmatin? Hw d yu develp relatinships with custmers based n the data captured? Hw d yu currently utilize the data captured? What additinal data wuld help yu better perfrm yur rle? Hw wuld yu (r d yu currently) change hw yu nw wrk in rder t better supprt ur custmers? What ther infrmatin wuld yu like t share that wuld help us in this initiative? During the 15 days, we used a variety f techniques t scialize the upcming business prcess imprvement prject. We develped a cmmunicatin plan t ensure effective cmmunicatins during the scializatin stage and updated it as we tried a variety f scializatin channels. We identified thse wh were champins and recruited them t help us in ur scializatin effrts and spent mre time with the resistrs t get them n bard. At the end f the initiative f scializing the prcess, we had extensive buy-in and had new prcesses fairly well mapped ut. While fr sme cmpanies the time spent in scializing appears t be a waste f time; it is essential t the success f the initiative. When yu spend the time up frnt scializing and getting buy-in, yu will find that the back end - the prject implementatin - ges much mre smthly than if yu hadn t invested the time. Summary Business prcess imprvement (BPI) initiatives are very challenging prjects in many rganizatins. The impact thrughut the rganizatin is usually great and, in additin, ften requires selling f the changes thrughut the business because yu are impacting hw individuals will be ding the wrk. Spending time upfrnt in scializing and getting buy-in actually decreases the amunt f wrk n the back end. Develp yur cmmunicatin plan fr scializing the initiative and cmmunicating thrughut the prject. And update it regularly since as the prject prgresses and yu begin t cnvert resistrs t champins - cmmunicatin needs will change. Remember t use a variety f channels and methds fr scializing and cmmunicating with the BPI prject; yu ll reach and cnnect with the greatest number f peple in this way. Authr Gina Abudi, MBA, President f Abudi Cnsulting Grup, LLC has 20+ years experience in prject and prcess management and management/leadership strategy, including strategic learning and develpment prgrams, and business impact and ROI. She is c-authr f The Cmplete Idit s Guide t Best Practices fr Small Business (Alpha Bks, 2011) and cntributing authr t Gantthead s Prject Pain Reliever (J. Rss Publishing, 2011). Gina is President f the PMI Massachusetts Bay Chapter Bard f Directrs and an active member f The Bstn Club. She can be reached via her website: BPTrends Linkedin Discussin Grup We created a BPTrends Discussin Grup n Linkedin t allw ur members, readers and friends t freely exchange ideas n a wide variety f BPM related tpics. We encurage yu t initiate a new discussin n this publicatin, r n ther BPM related tpics f interest t yu, r t cntribute t existing discussins. G t Linkedin and jin the BPTrends Discussin Grup. Cpyright 2012 Gina Abudi. All Rights Reserved. 5