Interesting article by Alan Bowling, Chair of the SAP UK and Ireland User Group (http://www.computerweekly.com/Articles/2009/10/20/238224/why-processes-not-technology-will-drive-business-improvement.htm) on the changing role of the IT department in achieving business change through improved business processes. Alan makes the point that business processes are actually more important than the technology that supports and enables them. In my view the two are inseparable as technology in itself will achieve very little. It is the way the business uses the technology that creates value. The technology and the business processes need to be designed together as a seamless whole if success is to be achieved in any business change initiative. Building revised business processes around pre-defined IT functionality is a surefire recipe for disaster - as many enterprises have found out to their cost.
The article talks about how the IT department can and should take a leading role in enhancing and improving business processes as it is often best placed to understand how the technology and the processes can be leveraged together for best effect. This already works extremely well within many enterprises but lack of integration and partnership between the IT and business functions still causes problems within too many organisations.
Given the importance of business processes and the evolving role of the IT department it is perhaps time to re-label IT departments as Business Process Departments and extend the skill set of staff within the renamed and refocused department. This might have the beneficial effect of neutralising the often negative technology centric perception of IT that still persists within many private and public sector entities. A useful concept to debate?
The article talks about how the IT department can and should take a leading role in enhancing and improving business processes as it is often best placed to understand how the technology and the processes can be leveraged together for best effect. This already works extremely well within many enterprises but lack of integration and partnership between the IT and business functions still causes problems within too many organisations.
Given the importance of business processes and the evolving role of the IT department it is perhaps time to re-label IT departments as Business Process Departments and extend the skill set of staff within the renamed and refocused department. This might have the beneficial effect of neutralising the often negative technology centric perception of IT that still persists within many private and public sector entities. A useful concept to debate?
Paul,
If you look at the successful organisations they have already grasped this concept. In turn it is continuing to bring forward a new generation of business knowledgeable CIO's who now play a role that is much wider than the remit of pure IT. Sadly there still remains a large number of organisations that so often chase the system before the process, a formula that so often leads to tales of disastrous implementations for which the software vendors receive the blame.
The difficulty is knowing how the awareness can be spread throughout organisations so that more informed and effective procurement and then implementation of IT solutions takes place that removes stigma attached to IT.