Business Process Redesign - Book Report/Review Example

Business Process Redesign Table of Contents 1.Summary 2 2.Critical Analysis 3 3.Application 5 References 7 1. Summary The fundamental objective that the research is centered on is to explain the interrelationship between process and technological innovations through a relevant framework, and to illustrate the mutuality that exists between these two organizational aspects with respect to inter-organizational business process redesign. The proposed framework may be used both for the examination of the distinctive characteristics that reengineering exhibits within the boundaries of one organization as well as across several organizations. The above mentioned framework is employed in order to elucidate the discrepancy that may be observed in various literary works concerning the advantages of electronic data exchange (EDI) as well as additional inter-organizational systems (IOS). It further describes the significance of blending process and technological innovations in the achievement of the potential that is necessary for the transformation of organizations as well as inter-organizational relationships and processes. Clark and Stoddard (1996) have conceived inter-organizational business process reengineering as “a logical extension of discussions in the 1980s of the potential for inter-organizational systems to fundamentally redefine relationships between buyers and sellers and even competitors within an industry context” (Clark & Stoddard, 1996, “Abstract”). By centering the research on this premise it has been found that the framework finds support from evidence provided by case studies that describe business process reengineering (BPR) as an amalgamation of process as well as technological innovations that is required for the achievement of remarkable performance improvements – in terms of the organization as well as its channel partners. It has also been found that EDI alone cannot provide sufficient performance improvements. Finally it has been observed that though technological innovation and process innovation take place as independent functions, their combination ensures superior performance benefits, thereby validating the proposed framework. 2. Critical Analysis BPR has been found to have gained immense importance in the present business scenario. Owing to the fastness with which globalization is taking place of late that companies are striving to enhance their competences with every passing day. Under such circumstances it has been found that inter-organizational collaboration plays a major role in shaping the business prospects. Clark and Stoddard (1996) have been successful in evaluating the potential of IOS and the role that it plays in manifesting inter-organizational collaboration, and “to improve firm performance and change industry structure” (Clark & Stoddard, 1996, “Literature Review”). Their attempts may be substantially justified by the opinion of Barnes and Hunt (2001) who have found evidence on inter-organization alliance through IOS (Barnes & Hunt, 2001, P. 239). The case studies that were employed in their research “suggest that inter-firm collaborations based on IOS are progressing beyond electronic trading and routine transactions to strategically more important processes” (Barnes & Hunt, 2001, P. 241). Reflection of the same may be found in the work of Clark and Stoddard (1996) that had identified “Performance gains from ED1 use alone were limited, and the incremental benefits of implementing CRP without ED1 were also limited” (Clark & Stoddard, 1996, “Conclusion”). It has been found in the context of Coles Meyer Limited (CML) that the company gains “little from the global connectivity of traditional EDI” (Barnes & Hunt, 2001, P. 241), which in turn augments the inference of Clark and Stoddard that “Interorganizational business process design, in the form of CRP using EDI, represented a dramatic performance improvement for the channel overall, with both retailers and manufacturers benefiting” (Clark & Stoddard, 1996, “Conclusion”), and confirms the necessity of blending technological innovation and process innovation. However, Eom (2005) has observed that “adoption of EDI has been somewhat dependent on the relative power of the exchange partners” (Eom, 2005, P. 48), thereby suggesting that the channel partners should be compatible in terms of technological capabilities as well as infrastructure in order to achieve synergy. Nevertheless, “organizations are concerned that the partner will use proprietary information opportunistically, causing harm to the organization” (Eom, 2005, P. 48), and hence are cautious about merging process and technological innovations with the latter. Despite these shortcomings, the fact remains undisputed that innovations in these two fronts, when merged, can bring about sustainable changes within an organization’s business framework and enhance its performance substantially. 3. Application Figure 1: Application Mapping and Selection (Source: Ayers, 2002, P. 233) Based on the ideas and suggestions put forward by the authors – Clark and Stoddard – and the findings of the literature review, it may be inferred that the effective application of IOS as a tool for business process redesign, will call for a comprehensive application mapping as well as selection, as has been depicted in the figure appended above. The various stages involved in the application process will be enumeration of the evaluation criteria in terms of functionality-fit, information technology-fit, and business-fit. Under the first category, the organization should analyze and evaluate the control as well as measurement of changes in terms of process and technology. Subsequently it should formulate financial control measures in order to ensure financial viability of the change initiative. The company should also revise and improve its EDI platform(s). Coming to the IT-fit, the company must make sure that the “platform must be open system compliant” (Ayers, 2002, P. 233). This is necessary for the sharing of information among channel partners and is a prerequisite for the achievement of operational synergy. Moreover, organizations should evaluate their current database structures and make necessary changes to them in order to make them compatible with the desired strategic change. Finally, it is also necessary to assess the business-fit in terms of “presence and support in key markets” (Ayers, 2002, P. 233), in order to analyze whether or not the change should be implemented. The companies should also be in a position to provide training to their employees so that they may adapt to the change. Global organizations should employ multi-language versions to support cross border partners. These initiatives, if adopted, may bring about substantial changes that will bring about inter-organizational collaboration and help channel partners achieve synergy. References 1. Ayers, B. J. Making Supply Chain Management Work: Design, Implementation, Partnerships, Technology, and Profits. CRC Press. 2002. 2. Barnes, S. & Hunt, B. E-Commerce and V-Business: Business Models for Global Success. Butterworth-Heinemann. 2001. 3. Clark, H. T. & Stoddard, B. D. Abstract. Interorganizational Business Process Redesign: Merging Technological and Process Innovation. Proceedings of the 29th Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences. 1996. 4. Clark, H. T. & Stoddard, B. D. Literature Review. 1996. Interorganizational Business Process Redesign: Merging Technological and Process Innovation. Proceedings of the 29th Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences. 5. Eom, B. S. Inter-Organizational Information Systems in the Internet Age. Idea Group, Inc. (IGI). 2005. Read More