Business Process Management in Games Galore - Report Example

BUSINESS PROCESS MANAGEMENT: GAMES GALORE Business Process Management: Games Galore Executive Summary The key concern of this report was to identify the inefficiencies that are observable in the prevailing processes and operations of Game Galore Company. The report found that there were inadequacies in the management of data and application of technology in the primary processes. It was also noted that inefficiency in the company was resulting from the delays made in the approving designs due to power concentration in a single position. Significant errors in estimations of costs and the lead times have been identified as serious causes of inefficiencies due to the rule of thumb applied in performing various functions. Among the key recommendations made in the report are the installation of a modern management information system and related software in the company. Amendments that would delegate power to authorise key processes to the operations manager to avoid delays have also been recommended. The company should establish an IT department and get the necessary skills required for its proper functioning and prepare the employees for the change through training and creating awareness. Table of Contents Executive Summary 2 Table of Contents 3 1.0 Introduction 4 2.0 Findings 4 2.1 Process Inefficiencies and Proposed Improvements 4 2.2 Impact on Stakeholders 6 2.3 Change Management Issues 7 3.0 Conclusions 7 4.0 Recommendations 8 1.0 Introduction Whether private or public, companies and other business enterprises must continually innovate and improve their business processes to satisfy their suppliers, retailers and customers (Agarwal, 2010). The report constitutes the areas in the business management processes of the Games Galore, the causes of these inefficiencies and the effects they have on the suppliers and customers. Under the findings caption of this report, a critical analysis of the inefficient processes and their impact on the stakeholders is and proposed potential improvements are made. The important aspects of change management that relate to the company in question are made in the report to help the management team implement the recommended changes. Conclusions from the discussions of the process inefficiencies and their improvements as made in the report highlight the major issues of concern constituting the story from across the major sections. Finally, the recommendations for change and the reasons for such recommendations have been made using the evidence gathered through this report concerning the Games Galore business process management. 2.0 Findings 2.1 Process Inefficiencies and Proposed Improvements Inefficiencies in the processes, as observed in the Games Galore, result in increased costs and sinking budgets, and the business is likely to lose its competitive advantage in the long-term. The management information system in use in the company is highly inefficient for the proper processing and management of the company’s data (Ahoy, 2009). There are a number of documents and formats that cost the workers a lot of time in adjusting them to fit the specific requirements of the customers and suppliers information. Lack of a uniform centralised database for use in performing the operations of the company actually has led to repetitive data entry tasks. In effect, the companys business intelligence reporting has been significantly limited. The information system currently in operation in the company is highly sophisticated. The running of the customer accounts with the increased number of supermarkets and independent retailers requires an information system that would ensure that efficiency and quality are achieved through their maintenance. The holding of purchase orders in spreadsheets and limits the comparison between large numbers of quotes from suppliers. The resultant effect is that the process is inefficiently done since cheaper options are missed (Bider, 2010). Additionally, the data relating to the various rejected quotes and the subsequent purchase orders are not kept for comparisons due to lack of an efficient database. Information about the previous quotes should be maintained to form the basis of future purchase orders and for comparisons to optimise on the economies of scale. Such a task can only be achieved if reliable management information system is installed in the company to monitor, evaluate and maintain the data on quotations. From the interview with the company’s operations manager, it is clearly observable that the concept development process and the systems of delivery are inefficient. Firstly, the authority structures on the approval of the designs require review since the delays involved may have severe costs for the company (Brock and Rosemann, 2014). Reliable customers are likely to lose confidence in the company and may shift to other suppliers in future. The use of the rule of thumb in estimating the production and delivery time results to erroneous estimations that turn costly to the company in the long run. The performance of these tasks requires the use of sophisticated software that will enhance accuracy and improve efficiency as opposed to guesswork. The costs of artwork and design are not correctly reported. In effect, the estimations of the costs in budgeting for the concept development costs and in calculating the contribution of each activity cannot be accurately done in the prevailing circumstances. There is inefficiency in the monitoring of production, calculation of the lead times and poor stock management practices that result to unnecessary accumulation stocks that result in increased stock management costs. Installation of an information system that can effectively monitor the production and accurately estimate the lead times for the proper management of stocks is hereby proposed. As a round up in addressing the identified business process problems, the company should consider process re-engineering. The adoption of cloud-computing and the use service-oriented architecture are essential for creating flexibility and a configured application environment for the company. 2.2 Impact on Stakeholders The inefficiencies observed in the processes and operations of the company have lasting effects on the customers, suppliers, and the management team members (Brocke, Seidel and Recker, 2012). The suppliers are likely to be affected when delays in the processing [of quotation approvals occur. Poor estimation of the costs may result in rejection of valid quotations. The suppliers expect that the company should maintain a proper account of their dealings. Wrong vendor information may lead to tainted relations where accurate invoice amounts are not submitted. The customer is a victim of two major aspects: price and quality. The conception development requires sophisticated software that will ensure that customers get products that meet their quality specifications. Inefficiency leads to increase the cost of production. The customers suffer increased prices of products. The morale of the employees in carrying out the operations depends on the complexity of the systems and processes. The simplistic process will improve the employee’s morale and hence productivity would increase (Doumeingts and Browne, 2012). 2.3 Change Management Issues The implementation of the recommendations contained in this report would result in a significant change in the entire business operations. More functions are likely to be created that would require new skills (Weske, 2012). The installation of the needed sophisticated software and the management information systems will require the establishment of an IT department that oversees this function (Dumas, 2013). The company shall be required to source workers with the relevant skills to serve in this unit. It cannot be assumed that the employees in the company would accept the proposed changes. The company needs to conduct training that aims at preparing the employees for the technical changes that will be implemented. Prior awareness among the employees on the effects of these changes and their importance should be created to reduce resistance. 3.0 Conclusions From the observations, discussions made from the available information sources on Games Galore Company, the purchase order and operations management processes are inefficient (Greasley, 2003). The technology applied in the running of the operations entailed in these processes is far way below the requirement. Most likely, the company is incurring costs that are more than what could be incurred under ideal operational efficiency. The accounting information management, the processing of purchase orders, the retention of the necessary information and the access to the information is to question. The estimations of the lead times, the costs, monitoring of the production and the delays in approving the designs are weaknesses of the operational processes (Lee and Dale, 2008). The inefficiency prevailing in the processes has the potential to increase the costs of operation and the quality of the work done. As a result, the customers perception of the company and its products may negatively change affecting the sales. Technological interventions in improving the current state of processes to the desired forms are to consider. 4.0 Recommendations Based on the findings, it is important to recommend that the management structure of the company requires review in order to reduce the effects of delays in approving the designs (Mohapatra, 2013). The prevailing structure that provides for Hillary alone is not adequate enough. Delegation of the power to authorise the designs and other procedures should be delegated to the operations manager rather than being kept as a reserve for Hillary alone. Such delegation would help avoid the delays and costs that accrue from them. A new management information system and relevant software that can provide for the data needs of the company should be installed in the company (Peppard and Rowland, 2010). The prevailing inefficiencies of data storage and processing require such installations. The modern management information system and related software shall help address the technological needs of the accounting, purchases and operations functions (Khosrow-Pour, 2006). Finally, the company should carry out training programmes that aim at installing the required skills for the proposed changes. An Information Technology department should be established by the company to cater for all the technological needs of the company (Valiris and Glykas, 2004). New recruitment of employees with relevant skills for the operations of this department should be recruited. The company should evaluate all the possible dimensions in which the proposed changes may affect the employees and prepare them in advance for the change. Monitoring of the changes within the processes should be consistently done. References Agarwal, O. (2010). Turnaround management with business process re-engineering. Mumbai [India]: Himalaya Pub. House. Ahoy, C. (2009). Customer-driven operations. New York: McGraw-Hill. Bider, I. (2010). Enterprise, business process and information systems modeling. Berlin: Springer-Verlag. Brock, J. and Rosemann, M. (2014). Handbook on Business Process Management 1. Dordrecht: Springer. Brocke, J., Seidel, S. and Recker, J. (2012). Green business process management. Heidelberg: Springer. Doumeingts, G. and Browne, J. (2012). Modelling techniques for business process re-engineering and benchmarking. 2nd ed. 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(2007). Business process management. Tampa, Fla.: Meghan-Kiffer Press. Valiris, G. and Glykas, M. (2004). Business analysis metrics for business process redesign. Business Process Mgmt Journal, 10(4), pp.445-480. Weske, M. (2012). Business process management. Berlin: Springer. Read More