Business Process Management Methodology

Harrington’s Process Breakthrough Methodology

The Harrington’s Process Breakthrough Methodology formulated by James H Harrington focuses on the advantages of applying cross functional management to the performance of an organization. This is done for the reason of increasing profitability. (Harrington, 1991)

Nature of BPM

Business Process management (BPM) is methodological approach aimed at increasing the efficiency and adaptability of an organization. The aim of business process management is to maximize productivity in an organization by ensuring that all the stakeholders in an organization are aware of their functions. The nature of business process management is not static; it is dynamic and ever changing. (Harmon, 2007)

Change Agents

The concept of change agents in management is used in reference to an individual whose purpose is to initiate change in an organization with the aim of increasing profitability, productivity, efficiency and client satisfaction. An effective change agent is distinguished by enabling an organization to fulfill its full potential and effect changes that last. Essentially, an effective change agent enables an organization to achieve that which was unattainable in the past. (Burnes, 2009)

Specific reasons of resisting change

The work of a change agent is complicated by people who are resistant to change. According to Dawson (2003), people may resist change because fear of job loss, uncertainty whether they have the requisite skills for their altered roles and psychological threats, be they real or perceived. Resistance to change is also caused by loss of authority ad status and disruptions in the status quo

The Group Dynamics School of change Management

The group dynamics school of change Management was advanced by Kurt Lewin, an eminent social psychologist. Lewin highlighted the influence of management styles on the decision making of a group. Moreover, the theorist is credited with highlighting the effects of group dynamics on training and the development of an organization. (Lewin, 1973)

Forces that act as stimulants to organizational change

A factor that stimulates organizational change is multiculturalism and globalization. These days, most organizations have staff from different cultures, nationalities and ethnicities; this fact acts as a catalyst for organizational change. (Stephen, and Judge, 2010)

Technology is an essential catalyst for organizational change. The use of technology, especially computers has led to the re-orientation and replacement of many roles in the workplace. Furthermore, organizational change is stimulated by economic shocks, (Ibid) an illustration of this are the changes instituted in organizations after the global credit crunch.

Organizational change has been necessitated by competition. In recent times, organizations in virtually all sectors of the economy are experiencing stiff completion. To be able to deal with this, it has become necessary for organizations to adapt. In addition, organizational change has been attributed to shifting trends and attitudes that influence the popularity of a certain product or service in the consumer market. (Stephen and Judge, 2008)

Process management frameworks

Process management frameworks are similar actions that are geared towards streamlining the functions of an organization towards the client needs. This is done in order to maximize efficiency and productivity in the organization. The process management frameworks also have the advantage of ensuring organizations can respond faster to emerging situations in the market. (Brocke, 2010)

There are various process management frameworks in use by organizations. One of these is the corporate performance management; this framework is aimed primarily at the executives of a given organization. Corporate performance framework has the advantage of ensuring the executives in a company work efficiently and productively. (Wade and Recardo 2001)

Another process management framework is focused on the line of business that the company is involved in. For instance, a company that is involved in the I.T sector may adopt a process management framework that is suitable to their particular line of business as opposed to a grocery business that may apply a different framework. (Ibid)

The final process management framework is described as the operational performance framework. This framework deals with monitoring and evaluating the business activities of the organization. To illustrate this fact, an organization that deals with retail trade may use this framework to evaluate sales and supplies. (Ibid)

Does training for business and industry cost, or does it pay?

In recent times, a debate has been raging about the benefits of training vis-à-vis the cost implications of the initiative. Most organizations recognize the importance of training for their employees and yet are reluctant to implement the training programmes. The primary reason for this is the question of expense. Training is costly to the organization especially if the service is performed by an externally contracted company.

For example, in the illustration given, the company would probably be charged a considerable amount of money by the University, to carry out training of their employees. The cost implications are also extended to time.

Most training programs are time consuming and this time consumed is usually at the expense of the organization as few employees would be willing to sacrifice their personal time for the purposes of training. The time lost would have been utilized to increase productivity for the organization. Moreover, organizations are not assured that the trained employee will remain with the company, they might use the skills gained for the benefit of competitors. (Brinkerhoff, 2008)

However, there are several advantages for an organization to train its employees. Training has the advantage of increasing efficiency and productivity and in consequence, profitability. For instance, in the illustration given, the study done by the university determined that the employees of the company should receive training in benchmarking, continuous process improvement, use of quality tools, and problem solving. These are essential skills that would enable the employees to increase their efficiency and productivity.

Training also has the benefit of increasing job satisfaction, motivation, adaptability and morale among employees. Moreover, training better enables employees to be more innovative and enable them to adapt better to new technological advancements. In addition, training enables employees to work better in a multi-cultural workplace. It has also been observed that organizations that have training programs experience significantly less employee turnover. (McNamara, 2008)

It is clear that the benefits of training far outweigh the associated cost implications. Consequently, it is my opinion that training for businesses and industries.

References

Brinkerhoff, R. O. (2008). Evaluating training programs in business and industry. USA. Jossey-Bass Publishing Inc.

Brocke, J. (2010). Handbook on Business Process Management. Berlin. Springer Science Books, Inc.

Burnes, B. (2009). Managing Change: 5th ed. Harlow, UK. FT/Prentice Hall Inc.

Dawson, P. (2003). Understanding organizational change: the contemporary experience of people. London. Sage Publications Inc.

Harmon, P. (2007). Business process change: a guide for business managers and BPM and six sigma. USA. Elsevier Publishing Inc

Harrington, J. (1991). Business process improvement: the breakthrough strategy for total Quality. USA. McGraw Hill Inc.

Lewin, K. (1973). Resolving social conflicts: selected papers on group dynamics. Michigan. Souvenir Press Inc.

McNamara, C. (2008). The Free Management Library: Employee Training and Development: Reasons and Benefit. Web.

Stephen, R. P & Judge, T. (2008). Organizational behavior. USA. Prentice Hall Publishing Inc.

Wade, D. &. Recardo, R. (2001). Corporate performance management: how to build a better organization. USA. Butterworth-Heinemann Inc.