Consulting Approaches to Process Improvement
Consulting approaches to process improvement Bain & Co.
Kai A. Simon
Viktoria Institute
Author’s Note: This is a part of an early draft of my doctoral dissertation that was shortened considerably for the final version. Nevertheless, it might be a useful collection of insight for organizations that face a need for redesigning their business processes and wish to learn more about the basic concept and how some major consulting firms approach it methodologically. The series consists of 7 parts – Introduction, descriptions of the methodologies of Andersen Consulting, Bain, BCG and McKinsey, a high level comparison, and some guidelines or selecting consultants.
Bain & Co.
Bain uses five key success imperatives for BPR projects. The approach used by Bain & Co. also differs from the definition outlined by the early advocates Hammer & Champy. Hammer & Champy’s definition The radical redesign of business processes to achieve dramatic improvements in critical measures of performance, such as cost, quality, capital, service, and speed. Bain’s definition The holistic redesign and optimization of a business to achieve full potential and build strategic competitive advantage. This includes the radical redesign of core processes as well as the application of the entire Bain tool kit of performance enhancing techniques.
The definition of Hammer & Champy is focusing the aspect of business process performance improvement in quantitative terms. Conducting a BPR-project with this definition as startingpoint, the targeted improvements would primarily be defined in terms of quality, cycle-time and cost efficiency. The Bain definition, on the other hand, takes a wider perspective and includes the aspect of strategic competitive advantage in an explicit way.
1
Reengineering principles
• Top management sponsorship. Senior management is obliged to provide an inspirational vision of the ultimate goal to be achieved. This includes the slaughter of ”sacred cows”, allowing the
Kai A. Simon
Viktoria Institute
Author’s Note: This is a part of an early draft of my doctoral dissertation that was shortened considerably for the final version. Nevertheless, it might be a useful collection of insight for organizations that face a need for redesigning their business processes and wish to learn more about the basic concept and how some major consulting firms approach it methodologically. The series consists of 7 parts – Introduction, descriptions of the methodologies of Andersen Consulting, Bain, BCG and McKinsey, a high level comparison, and some guidelines or selecting consultants.
Bain & Co.
Bain uses five key success imperatives for BPR projects. The approach used by Bain & Co. also differs from the definition outlined by the early advocates Hammer & Champy. Hammer & Champy’s definition The radical redesign of business processes to achieve dramatic improvements in critical measures of performance, such as cost, quality, capital, service, and speed. Bain’s definition The holistic redesign and optimization of a business to achieve full potential and build strategic competitive advantage. This includes the radical redesign of core processes as well as the application of the entire Bain tool kit of performance enhancing techniques.
The definition of Hammer & Champy is focusing the aspect of business process performance improvement in quantitative terms. Conducting a BPR-project with this definition as startingpoint, the targeted improvements would primarily be defined in terms of quality, cycle-time and cost efficiency. The Bain definition, on the other hand, takes a wider perspective and includes the aspect of strategic competitive advantage in an explicit way.
1
Reengineering principles
• Top management sponsorship. Senior management is obliged to provide an inspirational vision of the ultimate goal to be achieved. This includes the slaughter of ”sacred cows”, allowing the