{"id":5784,"date":"2024-06-27T09:12:03","date_gmt":"2024-06-27T14:12:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/?p=5784"},"modified":"2025-05-05T18:06:16","modified_gmt":"2025-05-05T23:06:16","slug":"7-principles-of-business-process-reengineering-bpr","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/flevy.com\/blog\/7-principles-of-business-process-reengineering-bpr\/","title":{"rendered":"7 Principles of Business Process Reengineering (BPR)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"With the advancement in technology, the usual emphasis on cost, growth, and control has been replaced by a laser focus on Innovation<\/a>, Customer Service<\/a>, Quality<\/a>, and Employee Empowerment<\/a>.\u00a0 Obsolete business processes, disjointed organizations, fragmented work routines, and complex performance management mechanisms in traditional firms have not been able to cope with the revolutionary business models<\/a> and practices that startups are employing to disrupt established players.<\/p>\n

Automation of existing processes alone to achieve productivity gains does not benefit the organizations much.\u00a0 In fact, this is one of the chief reasons for sub-standard performance.\u00a0 With time, these work routines become deep rooted and hard to challenge despite their significant flaws.\u00a0 Fragmented conventional processes and disjointed structures are the main cause of bureaucratic red tapes, slipups, cost inefficiencies, and unclear roles and responsibilities.<\/p>\n

All these problems and inefficiencies document the need for Business Process Reengineering (BPR)<\/a>.\u00a0 Business Process Reengineering, also known as Business Process Redesign, Business Transformation, or Business Process Change Management, is the practice of rethinking and redesigning the way work is done to better support an organization\u2019s mission and reduce costs.<\/p>\n

BPR helps organizations get rid of outmoded business processes, fundamental beliefs and values, and replace them altogether.\u00a0 Competing against Lean startups necessitates examining the businesses processes from a holistic and cross-departmental perspective, and dissecting every step of the existing processes in terms of the value they add.<\/p>\n

A BRP initiative requires deploying a cross-functional team to develop innovative ideas, conceptualize efficient processes, and lay out new systems and policies to trigger breakthrough product and process improvements<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The reengineering effort holds numerous opportunities\u2014especially for established companies, as they are typically fraught with redundant layers of management and workforce as well as ineffective overhead costs.\u00a0 However, for the BPR implementation efforts to be effective and fruitful, we should follow leading business process reengineering principles.\u00a0 Specifically, organizations need to focus on the following 7 principles of Business Process Reengineering<\/a> while overhauling their ways of doing business, existing processes, and work routines:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Be outcome-oriented<\/li>\n
  2. Have those who use process’s output perform the process<\/li>\n
  3. Incorporate data processing into the process<\/li>\n
  4. Aim to centralize resources<\/li>\n
  5. Link parallel activities<\/li>\n
  6. Build decision making into the process<\/li>\n
  7. Capture data only once, at the source<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    \"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

    Now, let\u2019s discuss the first 3 principles of BPR in detail.<\/p>\n

    1. Be Outcome-oriented <\/strong><\/h2>\n

    The centuries-old philosophy of specialized departments dedicated to deal with a certain type of work sequentially\u2014having teams possessing a specific skill-set\u2014has become obsolete.\u00a0 This way of doing business experiences various issues\u2014numerous handoffs, delays, lack of proper communication, misinterpretation of information, and rework.<\/p>\n

    BPR calls for elimination of multiple handoffs, elimination of redundancies, and allocation of responsibilities judiciously to the right persons, who supervise the entire process\u2014for instance, from order entry, to product delivery, through to installation.\u00a0 Reengineering begins by redesigning all jobs with a focus on outcomes rather than tasks.\u00a0 The initiative expedites organizational processes and offers the customer a single point of contact.<\/p>\n

    2. Have Those Who Use Process’s Output Perform the Process<\/strong><\/h2>\n

    \"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

    Specialized departments handling specialized processes are often slow to react and are quite bureaucratic, marred with red tapes. With this type of structure, even to get new paper clips, a department formally requests the procurement department<\/a>, which contacts the vendors, places orders, makes payment, eventually gets the paper clips, and delivers to the department that requested the item. This cumbersome process is time-consuming and inefficient.<\/p>\n

    It is important that the people that own a process perform it.\u00a0 This aids in getting rid of a number of liaisons and planning capacity for the process performers appropriately.\u00a0 Through automation and process reengineering individual units can avoid too many handoffs and uncalled for delays thereby saving precious time and expenditure.\u00a0 For instance, to procure something, specific units can place their order themselves and purchase what they need from pre-approved vendors through credit cards. This method significantly reduces the number of handoffs and uncalled-for delays, thereby saving valuable time and reducing expenditures on nonstrategic purchases.<\/p>\n

    Robotic process automation<\/a>, further, offers numerous benefits, such as enhanced productivity, better quality, more robust processes, and increased consistency of output. By streamlining processes through automation, organizations can ensure that tasks are completed more efficiently and with greater accuracy. Specialized purchasers should then only be used for strategic and expensive items, such as raw materials and high-end equipment, allowing them to focus on more critical tasks rather than routine purchases.<\/p>\n

    By having the people who use the process’s output perform the process, organizations can achieve a higher level of efficiency and responsiveness, ultimately leading to better overall performance and satisfaction.<\/p>\n

    3. Incorporate Data Processing into the Process<\/strong><\/h2>\n

    Traditionally, most leaders believed that workforce at the lower organizational tiers is incapable of taking any action on the information they produce.\u00a0 Many organizations, even today, create specialized teams and units to do that, as the people who produce the information often do not have the time and capabilities to process that.<\/p>\n

    Leadership needs to believe in, coach, and encourage their people in the lower ranks\u2014who produce the information\u2014to acquire the capabilities required to process data and make sound decisions. \u00a0Utilizing technology, organizations now can develop and deploy systems to help their people compare and process data received from different units and initiate appropriate action.<\/p>\n

    By following these BPR principles, organizations can achieve the following results:<\/p>\n