"Reinventing Business Processes through Strategic Implementation"

If you receive errors when attempting to view this white paper, please install the latest version of Adobe Reader.

"Bwired is a leading website technology company. Our strategic approach provides return on investment for your business. Over years of experience in the online environment and hundreds of successful launches we have developed and fine-tuned our RISE model, an implementation methodology."
Source : Bwired

Resources Related to Reinventing Business Processes through Strategic Implementation:

• Business process (Wikipedia)

Reinventing Business Processes through Strategic Implementation

“Adopting a strategic approach to web-based marketing allows organisations to reach their full potential online”
– Sam Saltis

Introduction

The aim of this paper is to educate users about strategic implementation, and the impact it can have on success in the online environment.

1. The Importance of Strategic Implementation

IT is transforming business processes; increasing operational efficiency, reducing costs and reshaping the way organisations function in the online environment. Our technology, coreDNA is evidence of this fact. While the right software plays a huge part in success online, it is largely dependent strategic implementation.

Implementation is a critical part of the website building process. It can mean the difference between a successful or unsuccessful launch, and can greatly affect the end result in terms of usability, functionality and impact on the bottom line. Most importantly, strategic implementation has the potential to reinvent business processes, enabling the organization to run more efficiently and effectively, maximizing return on investment.

2. What Is Involved

Strategic implementation involves identifying key stakeholders and target segments, gaining a clear understanding of business goals and objectives determining the processes through which these can best be achieved and ensuring the training and support is in place to maximise results.

3. The Link between Strategic Implementation and Business Process Redesign

Business Process Redesign (BPR) aims to achieve incremental or dramatic improvements in performance areas important to customers and other stakeholders, typically through information technology. Examples of BPR outcomes include cost reduction, time reduction, higher output quality, and improved quality of working life/learning/empowerment. Online, these outcomes are achieved through strategic implementation of the appropriate IT solutions, providing organisations with the capabilities which enable them to reach new heights.

Usability and functionality of a website can be greatly affected by implementation methodology. Even with the best software, if key stakeholders and target segments are not clearly identified, the result may be a website that is aesthetically pleasing but lacks intuit and does not fulfill its purpose or assist the organisation in achieving business goals and objectives.

As mentioned, implementation can also have an impact on the bottom line. Nigel and Slack (2003, p.164) suggest that if managed well, strategic implementation can be a source of enormous gain, arguing that “the firm that is better than its competitors at implementation receives new technology at what amounts to a discount price”. Conversely, poor implementation can result in dramatically higher costs, including rework, training and support, as well as the opportunity cost involved as a result of wasted time spent failing to achieve the desired business goals and objectives.

Petrovic, Kittl and Teksen (2001) suggest that a practical methodology for implementation that supports the evolution of the business, when successfully implemented in such a way that it improves business processes, will lead to the development of new, strategic business models, influencing business performance and the ongoing strategic direction of the firm.

4. RISE

Over years of experience in the online environment and hundreds of successful launches we have developed and fine-tuned our RISE model, an implementation methodology which maximises return on investment and ensures success in the online environment by building websites, microsites, intranets and extranets which achieve measurable results in the areas of Research, Image, Sales, and (operational) Efficiency.

In collaboration with our clients, our strategy consultants comprehensively analyse and interpret business goals and objectives. They then use RISE to identify key stakeholders and target segments and map these goals and objectives against the four elements of the model. Using a robust, tested, experience-fed model, and business language rather than web jargon, ensures clear strategic direction and common understanding. This collaborative process also bridges the knowledge gap between business and consultant, paving the way for success.

Our solid understanding of the processes through which these goals can then be achieved, and our technology, developed around RISE, facilitates these processes, allowing us to roadmap for success by providing the tools which will execute business outcomes.

4.1. Research

The Research element of the model represents organizational learning, which is critical to organizational growth. This element ensures mechanisms are placed for valuable data collection.

Our Research modules provide businesses with tools which generate information about their visitors, customers and users through the use of specific research questions and polls, or by monitoring each screen choice, formulating detailed data on visitor usage which can then be used to formulate strategy.

To demonstrate, our comprehensive analytical module, Usage Statistics captures information about customers and prospects, providing detailed information regarding how they find, interact with and eventually a website, helping to determine whether or not goals and objectives are being reached.

The simplicity by which this information can be obtained and analysed plays a pivotal role in the evolution of the way organisations conduct research, and how the resulting information can be used.

4.2. Image

The Image element of the model represents accurate reflection of branding and positioning, essential for success both online and offline. This element ensures the tools are in place to efficiently and effectively communicate with all key stakeholders.

Our Image modules provide businesses with marketing tools to ensure communications accurately reflect the branding and positioning of the organization, optimizing the flexibility for managing image and marketing opportunities via the website.

To demonstrate, our Personalisation module enables the delivery of targeted functionality, information, and design to a range of customer segments. This allows for efficient, effective communication with various target audiences.

The ability to efficiently and effectively communicate branding and positioning can dramatically improve internal and external communications, creating synergy and providing key stakeholders, customers and prospects with a clearer understanding of brand identity.

4.3 Sales

The Sales element of the model incorporates revenue requirements, a fundamental concern for any organisations in any industry.

Our Sales modules provide the opportunity to increase sales via your website. Fully integrated modules enable sales to be maximized and data to be seamlessly integrated, enhancing communications and building the brand relationship.

To demonstrate, our Commerce Portal module allows for products to be sold online in a secure environment. Integrated with our Product Catalogue module, it allows transactions to be placed with speed and efficiency, provides conversion tracking, enables stock control via email trigger, allows informed repositioning of products based on generated sales data and automatically creates customer invoices in PDF format upon completion processing.

The ability to increase sales, while at the same time reducing resource requirements through integration, boosts profits and allows the organisation to run more efficiently.

4.4 (Operational) Efficiency

The (Operational) Efficiency element of the model focuses on continuous improvement and optimisation of resources.

Our (Operational) Efficiency modules allow for centralisation of documentation and integration with back office systems, contributing towards the creation of paperless organisations, breaking down barriers between and within stakeholders and creating a seamless workflow, and improving operational efficiency, thereby reducing costs.

To demonstrate, our File Manager module allows you to provide a highly scalable, secure, centralized data storage area for individual groups such as staff, clients and suppliers to easily store and retrieve key documents and files. The module maintains file versioning to preserve document integrity, can be set for viewing by authorized individuals or groups to keep confidential information secure, has an advanced search function, and allows for document permission to be assigned to authorized users to edit.

The ability to optimise use of resources, reduce costs, increase output quality and improve quality of working by simplifying processes and empowering users by putting them in control can significantly improve operational efficiency, as well as overall organisational effectiveness and efficiency.

4.5 Training and Support

Effective strategic implementation requires the provision of training and support resources. Historically, organisational change has always involved turbulence at some stage. RISE provides this guidance from the very beginning.

5. Conclusion

Our RISE methodology exemplifies the strategic implementation process, and the impact it can have on success in the online environment. It can mean the difference between a successful or unsuccessful launch, and can greatly affect the end result in terms of usability, functionality and impact on the bottom line. Incorporating all of the essential elements required for businesses to reach their potential online, our methodology and its unique application to individual business needs is the means through we transform business processes, maximise return on investment and enable organisations to run more efficiently and effectively.

6. References

1. Lewis, M. and Slack, N., (2003) Operations Management: Critical Perspectives on Business and Management, McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York, pp. 93-164
2. Petrovic, O., Kittl, C., Teksten R.D, (2001) International Conference on Electronic Commerce, iconocast.com