6 Critical Steps of Business Transformation Programs - Step 3 and 4
So far we have seen the first two critical steps in any business transformation program (http://www.infosysblogs.com/retail-cpg/2011/04/6_critical_steps_of_business_t_1.html). Let us continue the discussion on what the other steps are.
Step 3 - Right technology choice
The next step is the most interesting and complicated step in the whole process. What should be the technology choice to enable the transformation?
- Should it be an ERP solution like SAP or Oracle?
- Should it be a conglomerate of best-of-breed packages?
- Should it be a custom built solution?
- Should it be a combination of all of the above
It is not a simple decision to make. There has to be a thorough analysis on what the needs are and which option will give the highest bank for the buck. While choosing a COTS solution, the intent has to be to leverage out of box functionality as much as possible.
Step 4 - Is the new process old wine in new bottle?
As I mentioned before, the going in strategy will be to leverage the functionalities that are available out of box. Though this ideology is retained during blueprinting, there will lots of push and pull to customize the package during realization, due to the following main reasons
- The chosen technology solution might not satisfy all the needs out of box
- To retain competitive advantage, customization is a must
- The business will resist to change a business process from the current model and change it to what is available in the product out of box
While the first two reasons have some justification for customization, the last one will be the killer. If stringent change control processes are not there and the business users are let to influence the decision making, lot of the existing processes will be retained in the future design too. The repercussions of this are multiple, but mainly the following
- By retaining the existing process, the organization might not be leveraging the value the product can offer
- Customization would mean that future technology upgrades will be expensive
- TCO of maintaining the new solution will be higher due to customization
Stringent change control processes needs to be in place to ensure that any customization request is backed up by solid ROI
