Transforming a Process A Change Team rearranges the steps in a process and often eliminating some of them. After the reinvention, each step adds some measurable value to the material flowing through the process. The team creates a new way to work that is easier and more sensible. A way to work that virtually guarantee error-free results that customers value. A way that gives more control to the individuals doing the day-to-day work. Look at the difference between Change Teams and quality teams. Process improvement streamlines the steps of a process. Improvements must contribute to a measurable increase in efficiency or productivity (for instance, reducing cycle time by 15 percent). This is not the work of Change Teams, but rather of Quality Teams. Process transformation, on the other hand, significantly changes the structure of a process and the way it operates (for instance, combining three cycles into one). After transformation, people should spend less time checking for -- and correcting -- errors. People who do the work should have a closer connection to the end product. Reinventing processes can radically change the costs, time to produce and quality of the end product, thereby creating leaps in customer satisfaction. Change Teams transform processes (or parts of processes). Quality teams leave processes as they are and make them better. As it plans and monitors its work, a smart Change Team includes the opinions and insights of lots of people and it looks at lots of possibilities. Keep a close watch on what people -- customers, employees and stockholders -- need. Are there others who have a stake in this process? The more that the people who do the work are active participants in implementing the change, the less they will resist the change later. They are a vital source of information about the process now and about the effectiveness of the Change Team's work as it progresses. The same goes for people in the organization whose work is affected by the process in question. The more you involve customers who are interested in the process (and its results) as you implement the change, the more support and power they will offer you to get the change made. By including customers throughout the process, they will be more understanding during the awkward period of moving from the old process to the new one. Be sure to gather information about the stockholders' needs and interests from the managers involved in the work you are reinventing. Only announce your plan for the change after everyone who has to work in the new process has had a chance to give input AND after you've worked to include their suggestions. Talk openly, honestly and frequently with the people who work in the changing process. These people can, and will offer the Change Team insights and suggestions that it may never have considered. Actively soliciting their participation in the Change Initiative and blending their suggestions into the final plan significantly reduces their opposition to the new process. The implementation plan provided by the Change Agent estimates the resources needed and possible obstacles to accomplishment. As the team changes that plan, the resource demands and the obstacles will change as well. The Champion helps the Change Team find the needed resources and develops a strategy to remove or avoid the obstacles. Typically, to get resources, your team must have a
new design for the process (accounting for the savings, costs and benefits it will
generate) and a fairly detailed implementation plan. Here are some items you should
include in your implementation plan: 1. Developing (or acquiring) the new skills needed 2. A schedule for moving from the old to the new 3. Impact on people, equipment and organizations Coming up with an idea or a recommendation doesn't create change. Even implementing a process change may not be enough. Be sure the people who are responsible for working with the new process know how to make it work and support it. They must have all the skills they need to do good work. And they must have the time to create some early successes with the new process. Change Teams are responsible for all of this. If the Change Team fails in this follow-through, those who support the old values and beliefs will be able to undermine the changes you've made. Written by Heidi Jeanne Hess and Doug Wesley (Veronica Boaz contributed, James Lloyd edited) Check Point (Please complete and submit the Form below) When
you are finished Updated: July 5, 1998 |
