November 2008

Online Version of This Newsletter

Business Process Management Articles

Dashboard Design
Karen Tricomi, BPM Institute Newsletter and Website, September 17, 2008.
This month’s article provides tips on ways to display information in a way that is content rich. These methods display information in a way that enhances understanding, highlights important elements, and minimizes distractions. 

Using Critical Path Analysis to Prioritize Projects
Monique Renault, MDS Inc., BPTrends Newsletter and Website, October 7, 2008.
Deciding how to prioritize among the many possible process improvement projects in your organization can be a vexing problem. In this Article, Monique Renault, a Black Belt in Lean Six Sigma, presents a method of analysis that will help to determine where and in what sequence to allocate your organization’s resources.

Top Down Business Execution
Dr.Raj Ramesh, Business Cybernetics, BPM Institute Website and Newsletter, November 4, 2008.
Before an organization chooses to leverage disciplines such as business architecture, it needs to define it business goals clearly. Clarity around business goals will lead to the identification of initiatives that are aligned to meet the business goals.

From Staffs Conducting Programs to Managers Solving Problems
John Womack, Lean Enterprise Institute, BPTrends Newsletter and Website, November 4, 2008.
James Womack describes a scenario that he frequently encounters when visiting organizations where Lean Programs have existed for several years. He is often asked by team members why their successful Lean initiatives don’t translate to bottom line improvement. This Article is a must read for any and all who have been involved in Lean programs.

Configurable Process Models: How to Adopt Standard Practices in Your Own Way?
Marcello LaRosa, Marlon Dumas, Queensland University of Technology, BPTrends Newsletter and Website, November 4, 2008.
Marcello La Rosa and Marlon Dumas ask, “How do you model business processes that are similar to one another in many ways, yet differ in some other ways from one organization, project, or industry to another?” In response to this question, in this Article they discuss the potential benefits of configurable process models and introduce a method and a toolset for process design based on configurable process models.

Re-inventing Business Process Improvement and Management
John Jeston,Johan Nelis, BPM Trends, BPTrends Website and Newsletter, October 7, 2008 
In their years of experience as consultants, John Jestin and Johan Nelis have found that most BPM professionals prefer to develop their own methodologies to carry out BPM initiatives. Stop!! The authors present a convincing argument for discarding this practice and instead recommend adopting proven methodologies to improve and manage processes. Read their Column to learn if your approach to business process amounts to re-inventing the wheel and what solutions are available to effect a more successful approach.

Inside the Process Box?
Fred Nickols, BPTrends Newsletter and Website, November 4, 2008.
Fred Nickols suggests you set aside your “outside the box” thinking and consider what’s “inside the box” in the process diagram. He believes that what lies inside can be useful in figuring out how to improve the performance of people and processes. Read his Article for a set of diagnostic questions and useful guidelines for anyone seeking to analyze and understand problems of non-performance.

When Implementing Lean, Live the Methods You Teach
Thomas Grewe, Siemens AG, iSixSigma Newsletter and Website, October 23, 2008.
Practitioners must think “lean” from the beginning when they are starting an initiative in a certain area. Part of their job is to transfer the Lean philosophy. To do this effectively, they must be role models who live Lean all day, all night, all the time – this will earn them credibility. If not, a practitioner’s inconsistencies will be discovered and they will fail to capture people’s hearts for Lean.
 

Business Process Outsourcing Articles

Offshore Outsourcing: What Role Will the Recession Play?
Arpit Kaushik, CIO Magazine and Website, October 3, 2008.
The ongoing credit crisis is a concern for everyone in nearly every industry—fear of lost jobs, foreclosed homes and bankrupt businesses. But those lost jobs are likely to further bolster the booming offshore outsourcing market—so the experts predicted. So what's most likely to happen?

BPO Firms Change Tack, See Better Revenues
BusinessLine, SIFY Finance Website, September 11,  2008.
Indian BPO firms are beginning to see revenues from new pricing models such as outcome-based and transaction-based models as they offer more of non-voice, platform-based services diversifying from the traditional voice-based offerings.

Newspaper Offshoring To Gain Traction
ValueNotes Newsletter and Website, September 17  2008.
The US Newspaper industry has been battling growing margin pressures in the last few years. ValueNotes estimates the offshore opportunity from newspaper publishers to be approximately $3.5 b, while the estimated Indian offshore revenues currently stand at $35 m thus highlighting the huge untapped potential.

What Makes Outsourcing Successful?
William Crowell, CIO Insight Newsletter and Website, October 23,  2008
Outsourcing has been a hot topic for many years and much has been written about its pros and cons.  But what makes it successful?

Ten Ways to Boost Up a 'Pretty Good' Six Sigma Program
Larry Holpp, iSixSigma Finance Newsletter and Website, October 29, 2008.
Many process improvement efforts are doing well enough, limping along with casual support from the management team, blissful ignorance from most first-line employees, some frustration from over-trained and underutilized Belts, and savings and improvement that are neither earth-shattering nor close to entitlement.  Here are a few relatively simple and straightforward actions to take to turn so-so programs like these into something great.

Gaining Customer Insight
Fei Luo, DM Direct Newsletter and Website, October 24, 2008.
There is no need to emphasize the increasing criticality of customers. The trend has moved from customer focused to customer obsessed. In today’s economy, staying competitive and profitable and providing the best customer service are the top goals for many organizations, and knowing your customers and prospects through the right information is critical to the attainment of all these goals. With customer insight, the organization can get a leg up on winning over the customer by attracting new customers, expanding business with existing customers, establishing relationships with good customers and providing top-notch customer service.

Notable News

Top Technologies for Business Process Improvement
CIO Insight Newsletter and Website, October 22, 2008.
Improving business processes is no easy task, but certain technologies help more than others. We asked 176 IT leaders about the tools they’re using for business process improvement. Here’s what they said.

Pursuit of the Perfect Order: Telecommunications Industry Perspectives
Aman Gupta, Wipro Consulting Services, BPTrends Newsletter and Website, November 4, 2008.
The telecommunications industry is characterized by new technologies, new services, and huge capital investments to make content accessible by any device anywhere. Market players are frequently coming up with new products, services, and tariffs to increase their market share in this fiercely competitive industry. With these exciting developments comes the realization that market players have to make their systems more effective, flexible, and scalable to efficiently manage an increasingly complex product portfolio. This is a multi-dimensional problem that requires optimized processes, accurate operational data, and integrated solutions.

Windows 7 a Big Improvement over Vista
Jason Brooks, eWeek Newsletter and Website, September 28, 2008.
Microsoft shows off Windows 7, a less ambitious offering than Vista but one with more realistic goals. With its new features and improved performance, Windows 7 seems like a better version of Vista rather than a major step forward.

The Hiring Manager Interviews: The Art of Grilling Candidates
Meredith Levinson, John Mann, CIO Insight Newsletter and Website, September 3,  2008.
Jonathan Heiliger, VP of Technology Operations at Facebook, really grills people with technical, math and problem-solving questions, so his potential hires had better be prepared to think on their feet. Here's why he favors that approach, and what he's learned so far from Facebook's rapid hiring spree.

Making an Easier Migration From Film/Paper to a PACS
Jachalyn Luchsinger, Carolyn Pexton, GE Healthcare, iSixSigma Healthcare Newsletter and Website, October 22, 2008.
To reduce costs, improve patient care, maximize resources and thrive in a competitive environment, healthcare providers are moving toward digitization - creating an environment that at some point in the future could become completely filmless, paperless and wireless. One aspect of going digital involves the use of a picture archiving and communications system (PACS) for diagnostic imaging services, as opposed to traditional film. The PACS electronically captures, transmits, displays and saves images in digital archives that are accessible at any time.

Can Business Continuity Standards Help Your Business?
Ericka Chickowski, Insurance and Technology, September 25,  2008.
This case study on Repligen, a pharmaceutical company, takes a close look at the benefits and costs of applying business continuity and disaster recovery standards through a certified program. One expert in the field argues that companies should go slow with this process and examine all costs associated with it before deciding on a competing standard. Cerifications are a business, but real cost benefits can come in the form of customer loyalty and more efficient auditing, as well as streamlining business continuity processes.

A Decade of Change in Insurance IT
Anthony O'Donnell, Insurance and Technology, September 02,  2008.
Insurance & Technology’s Elite 8 advisory panel participants weigh in on the evolution of the insurance CIO job and the tools of the trade over the past decade and into the future.

Industry Insiders Assess the Challenges Facing Today’s Banking CIOs
Maria-Bruno Britz, Bank Systems & Technology, September 22, 2008.
A bank CIO's job has never been easy, and the current economic crisis will only increase the pressure on technology leaders. According to Catherine Allen, founder and CEO of Santa Fe, N.M.-based The Santa Fe Group and founder and former CEO of BITS (Washington, D.C.), the bank CIO has a much more pivotal role now than when BITS was founded in 1996. "The CIO now has enormous power," she says.

Notable Events
 

The 2008 Lean Six Sigma Summit for Service and Transactional Environments
December 11 - December 12, 2008. Washington, D.C. ASMI

10th Annual Lean, Six Sigma, and Process Improvement Summit
January 18 - January22, 2009, Orlando, FL. IQPC

6th Procure-To-Pay Summit
February 23 - February 29, 2009, Miami, FL. IQPC

10th Annual Process Excellence Summit London
April 20 - April 23, 2009, London, UK. IQPC