Improving Return on Tech Investments

Featured article by Ivan Seselj, CEO of Promapp Solutions

In today’s business environment, technology is increasingly regarded as the critical factor to support a company’s growth and innovation. Get it right and the business is positioned for future success. Get it wrong and … well, you know.

Unfortunately, you don’t need to look far to find numerous examples of failed technology implementations and tech investments that have generated little in terms of real business value or return on investment. The factor many of those failed implementations have in common is ineffective change management.

Take, for example, a recent implementation in which an organization was attempting to consolidate two business units. They were deploying an ERP system to integrate both units’ core business processes, yet neither business unit had completely documented its current business processes prior to the implementation.

Because neither the ERP vendor nor the systems integrator understood the organization’s business processes, problems began almost immediately, slowing implementation and resulting in numerous issues with segregation of duties (SoD) in the processes. These problems not only impacted the effectiveness of the new system, they also undermined staff confidence in using it.

For businesses to maximize the return on their technology investments, it is essential for all of the employees who will be impacted by the new technology to understand exactly what will change as a result of the tech implementation, how it will change, when it will change, and perhaps most important, why it will change. But how do you know in advance which business teams and systems will be affected? And what’s the best way to guarantee that impacted employees will not only be aware of, but actually prepared for, impending changes?

By understanding current processes, what they are designed to accomplish, and why they were established in the first place, organizations will be in a significantly better position to successfully manage change and optimize the return on technology investments.

Here’s another, better technology implementation example. In this case, before considering possible technology options, the organization documented all of its current business processes, including process variations and future state processes. The company also created a series of detailed use cases in order to clarify system requirements and speed the design phases in the solution design.

By taking these initial steps, this organization was in a better position to structure its testing in order to get the coverage desired and to validate its choices by getting input from both its employees and outside users. This approach created staff buy-in and helped to identify and overcome issues presented by business unit silos and the process variations they had previously adopted.

To successfully manage change and maximize the return on technology investment, organizations should focus on four key factors:

1. First, a business should begin by documenting and understanding all of its current processes including any process variations. Businesses sometimes don’t appreciate the complexity of their processes until they see them mapped. It is particularly important to investigate and understand the reasons behind any nuances or variations that exist within the processes.

2. It is also critical for an organization to take ownership of its own processes. Although you might require some external assistance, this should not be delegated entirely to an outside vendor who will not know your business as well as you do.

3. Next, a business should involve all areas of its operation which are likely to be impacted in both current and future state workshops. In change management, it’s important to get everyone affected by technology changes on the same page. Doing so can help to overcome any resistance to change, while preempting some of the staff complaints that inevitably follow. More importantly, creating buy-in helps to inform the processes and gives employees a better understanding of not only what changes are being made, but why they are being made.

4. Finally, planning and analysis upfront will make decision-making easier and pay off in the long run, provided it’s done right. Taking the time to get a clear understanding about what the outcome of the organization’s processes should be will make it easier to make the right decisions about what the solutions should be, easier to design those solutions, easier to test those solutions, and easier to train – and, if necessary, change – those solutions.

Technology investments are a business necessity but are rarely inexpensive. To drive successful change and maximize the return on your organization’s next technology investment, start with your business processes. You’ll see the impact on both your teams and your bottom line.

Ivan Seselj is CEO of Promapp Solutions, an industry leading provider of cloud-based process management (BPM) software for creating and managing business processes online. You can contact him at ivan.seselj@promapp.com or follow him at @Ivanseselj. You can visit Promapp at www.promapp.com.