How to ensure lasting benefits of business transformation?
In a previous post, we have discussed the reasons that will lead executive management of your enterprise or business unit to initiate a business transformation. Note: We are not talking about a change that affects only one department but a deeper set of changes that impact all (or a large subset) of the corporation.
However, although there might be a compelling case to change at the onset of the business transformation, a few cautious steps should be taken before embarking on the transformation per say.
Simply put, “Think before you act” and “Connect the dots” could be the very short summary for this phase, to avoid getting into costly evolutions of revolutions of your organization or business model that will not deliver the expected outcomes.
Strong alignment between the corporation’s strategy and the envisioned business transformation program is a must. Therefore, here are a few healthy questions you should ask yourself before jumping into action:
• Which business problem(s) will the transformation program resolve? Will the corporation penetrate an untapped market, catch-up and stop losing share in an existing market? Fix financial performance issues? Stop operational performance downfall? Address customer service repetitive complaints?
• What are the transformation’s expected outcomes? Additional product distribution channels? More profitable business model? New products or services? More agile enterprise organization? More powerful capabilities (IT systems, processes, human resources, skills) in marketing, sales, supply chain, HR, finance …? More efficient operating model, including off-shoring, near-shoring, outsourcing, insourcing? More attractive customer experience design? Opening of subsidiaries or stores abroad? Expansion of production capabilities?
• Which business benefits will the transformation provide to the corporation? Will there be access to new markets? Revenue increase? Cost savings? Higher margins? Customer experience enhancements? Employee engagement improvements? Positive brand impact?
• Are benefits expected from the transformation aligned with your corporation or business unit’s strategic business objectives? Do the benefits resulting from the transformation contribute to the business objectives included in the corporation’s strategic plan? Is the transformation accelerating the execution of the strategy?
Once these key topics have been clarified, your organization and management team might be ready for the next discussion: How do you deal efficiently and effectively with the complexity of business transformation?
See our next posts for possible answers.
