Business Process Reengineering:

BUSINESS PROCESS REENGINEERING: PUTTING THEORY INTO PRACTICE^
BRIAN FITZGERALD AND CIARAN MURPHY
Executive Systems Research Centre, University College, Cork, Ireland.

ABSTRACT
Business Process Reengineering (BPR) advocates the fundamental examination and redesign of business processes, recognising tb-at the legacy of scientific management has been the excessive fragmentation of work practices in organisations today. This is reflected in the hierarchical structuring of organisations around functional departments, with individual aind departmental goals displacing overall organisational goals. This paper discusses the development of a specific methodology for BPR. The practical application of this methodology in an actual BPR project in one organisation is discussed sind some of the findings and lessons learned from the project are presented.

Keywords: Business process reengineering, business process redesign, business reengineering, methodology, manufacturing, electronics industry, case study, action research
RESUME Le Reengineering d 'entreprise, ou Business Process Reengineering (BPR), est fonde sur un examen systematique et une reconfiguration fondamentale des processus de l 'entreprise, motives par le constat de la fragmentation excessive des taches dans les entreprises modernes. Cette fragmentation, heritage du Scientific Management, est refietee dans la structure tres hierarchique et departementale des entreprises ou, trop souvent, les objectife des departements entrent en confiit avec les objectifs de l 'entreprise. Cet article presente une methodologie specialeinent aidaptee au
Reengineering d entreprise et son application a un projet reel de redesign dans une entreprise.
L 'article conclut en presentant les legons tirees de cette application.
1. INTRODUCTION
Interest in the Business Process Reengineering (BPR) concept is quite recent, emerging in the work of writers such as Davenport and Short (1990), Hammer (1990), Hammer gmd Champy

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