Integration of Technology in Business Processes - Assignment Example

Organizational Change Organizational Change: Integration of Technology in Business Processes Introduction The only constant element of life is change. Nothing can escape the effect of the changing times and processes. The incremental changes in technology have also taken their toll on all fields and professions, such as education has been modified with the introduction of virtual learning management systems, the experience of shopping has been changed with the integration of e-commerce etc. Business processes and organizational operations are no different. Due to the intervention of technology in the lives of humans, it has become inevitable for companies to commence their business with the aid of conventional business processes and stay aloof from the technological changes in the industry; this aspect provokes many organizations to change their conventional processes and adopt new ones. Change management is vital to enable organizations to stay competitive in the market and updated with the changing nature of the times. The paper discusses the introduction of a change in a bank that aims to streamline the business processes in a better manner and enhance productivity for the organization. The nature of the change is technological since it encompasses the introduction of new information systems in the organization. Section 2 discusses the portfolio of the company, while section 3 includes the driving forces that created the need for such a change in the organization. Section 4 highlights the stakeholders of the change and how they might be affected by it. Section 5 discusses the possible barriers of change in the organization, which is followed by effective strategies that might be adopted to ensure a smooth implementation of changes. Finally, the seventh section includes the foreseeable effects of the implemented change. 2. Company Portfolio The bank under discussion is one of the oldest banks in the region and has survived over the years due to its wide coverage and network. The bank had not been affected by the intervention of technology in the banking industry and chose to maintain most of their operations on paper. After following the same business processes and policies for decades, it has been felt by the management that the market share is deteriorating at an incremental rate. The introduction of newer banks and automated processes in the market is bearing an effect on its market share and causing brand shifts. 3. Drivers of Change Efficiency, convenience and quality bear great relevance in the banking industry in the modern times. The fast paced nature of the modern times demands efficient service from a bank that would also focus on the quality of the service being provided by the sales representatives of the bank. The conventional processes of the bank under discussion were not formulated with such incentives since it was established in the times of limited competition in the market; customers bore whatever quality of service that was provided to them due to the lack of options in the market. However, the exponential increase in the number of banks in the market has increased the level of competition and enables the customers to choose other banks if effective service is not provided. The management has decided to revolutionize their business processes and quality of service by introducing information systems and automated processes that have been adopted by their competitors in the recent history. The lack of information and strategic management systems in the organization do not facilitate the presence of effective data that can enable the top management to take corrective actions against their prevailing policies therefore appropriate technological processes have been decided to replace the conventional paper-based processes. 4. Stakeholders of the Change The foremost stakeholders of this change are considered to be the employees who will eventually be using the systems in their routine operations. The introduction of information and strategic management systems are likely to change their work processes to an extensive degree since their earlier processes are not automated, rather based on manual entries. The integration of technological processes in their routine paper-based operations is a new domain for them and is likely to change their job descriptions to a certain extent. The supervisors and managers are also counted among the employees that would be making use of the systems; their usage will include the monitoring services on the systems to evaluate the quality of service and pace of transactions being provided by their front desk executives and sales representatives. The other important stakeholders in the introduction of this change are the top management executives of the organization. The deployment of information systems and strategic management systems is expected to facilitate the availability of valuable data and reports for the management. The reports and valuable figures will provide aid in reaching effective decisions and corrective actions to improve the quality and pace of their service. Customers can also be considered as the stakeholders of this change since the effectiveness of the incorporation of information systems in the processes of the bank can be analyzed by the increment in the market share and feedback from the customers. Surveys will be conducted with the customers to investigate the level of improvement in the pace and quality of the service of the respective bank. 5. Barriers for the Change The foremost barrier of the respective change is expected to be posed by the employees of the company. The incorporation of technology in the routine operations will bring about a certain degree of insecurity among the employees since they might assume that automated processes will decrease the work load and hence create the need to lay off some number of employees. Many employees are not very technology savvy in the organization; due to which, they might fear the possibility of not being able to do their job with the same proficiency as they did with the conventional processes. It is also witnessed that a natural reaction of discomfort is usually felt with the introduction of any change as it results in learning the new processes, getting the employees come out of their comfort zone and leading them towards unexplored domains. The concept of putting in extra effort to learn new technologies will be discomforting for the bank employees for such reasons. 6. Strategies Adopted for Effective Change Management The management should be able to detect the vibes of resistance and discomfort among the employees after dissemination of the information of the introduction of changes in the organization. The management should formulate effective strategies to ensure that the transition from conventional, paper-based processes to automated, paper-less ones prove to be a smooth one. The management should follow the Lewin’s model of change that promotes the change management process to encompass three phases; unfreezing, movement and refreezing. Levasseur (2001) also stated that the most important and foremost step in change management is unfreezing. The word ‘unfreezing’ signifies that the existing systems and processes need to be unfrozen to provide an opportunity for the newer processes to come forward. Kritsonis (2004) provided some effective steps that can be adopted to facilitate the success of the unfreezing phase; motivating the participants to embrace the change, making them aware of the need of the respective change in the organization and attain feedback from the participants about effective techniques that can be used to make the transition easy for everyone. The management should adopt a facilitating tone to unfreeze the existing processes, rather than a dictating one. The fears and insecurities of the employees should be addressed by assuring them that the change will not result in any lay-offs and reduction of workforce. The employees should be made aware of the technologies and information systems that have been adopted by the competitors in the market and thus makes the transition vital for their survival. In the movement phase, the benefits and efficiency of the new systems and processes should be explained to the employees to make them appreciate the improvement of service that can be brought about with the embracement of the change. The union leaders of the employee wing should be convinced about the advantages of the information systems and how it would make their work processes easier. It is natural for people to follow their peers more than the higher authority. It is due to such realization that the union leaders should be convinced about the benefits of the change which will then be communicated to other employees by them. This strategy is adopted to eradicate the need of the status quo in the minds of the employees to make the implementation of the change possible in the organization. Philip (2009) also proposed such strategies and stated that the status quo has to be killed to make changes and create an improved future. After the movement and implementation of the change, the information systems should be made a part of the routine processes by the formulation of new policies and procedures. Formal training and workshops should be held to make the employees comfortable with the transition and the changes in their work processes. Training sessions can prove to be beneficial in bringing back the morale of the employees since their fears regarding the adoption of the new systems can be addressed in this way. The employees (who are not proficient with the usage of technology) can gain confidence and command over the automated functions of the systems at the end of the training sessions. 7. Effect of the Successful Implementation of the Change Levasseur (2001) stated that one of the most vital forces that play a role in the successful implementation of any change is the commitment of the top management. The effectiveness of the change in the respective bank also depends on the support by the top management. The top management of the bank should be focused on bringing about this change and plan their strategies in accordance with the resisting forces arising in the organization. The motivation and commitment of bringing about a change can be easily induced among the employees if it is backed by the support of the top management executives. The paper-based processes were not providing quality and required pace in the customer service. The introduction of information systems and strategic management system can help the sales representatives to fulfill the requirements of the customers through automated and fast-paced transactions. Functions and data will become more streamlined which will also help the sales representatives to provide efficient service. The managers can monitor the pace of service, identify the transactions through the incorporated systems and evaluate the level of quality that is being provided to the customers. The manager can identify the aspects where the service can be improved by analyzing the durations of all the steps of every transaction. The data regarding the quality and pace of service proves to be fruitful for the top management as well. Strategic management systems enable the top management executives to take correct and effective actions for the improvement of the customer service, such as increment of workforce in a certain branch or region to cater to the increasing business in the respective area, decreasing the number of employees from a certain region, establishment of more workstations at a certain branch to ensure that the customers do not have to wait long to meet the front desk representatives or sales representatives. 8. Conclusion Changes are inevitable in any business or organization. Changes in business operations and processes enable the company to meet the challenges of the existing times and help them to improve their services. However, the changes need to be incorporated in a facilitating manner, rather than a dictating one to ensure that the employees do not create obstacles in the process. Changes can be integrated successfully in any organization if the process is based on three steps; unfreezing, movement and refreezing. The bank that was chosen for discussion in this paper needs to follow effective strategies due to which they will be able to attain required pace and quality of service. Another probable reason for the effectiveness of the implementation of the change can be the commitment and support of the top management executives. The incorporation of the change can enable the bank to improve their services and facilitate strategic analysis regarding different aspects of their business. References Kritsonis, A. (2004), Comparison of Change Theories, International Journal of Scholarly Academic Intellectual Diversity, Vol. 8, No.1. Levasseur, R. (2001), People Skills: Change Management Tools- Lewin’s Change Model, Interfaces, Vol. 31, No. 4, pp. 71–73. Philip, A. (2009), Fast and Effective Change Management, Asian Development Bank, Issue 70. Read More