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Business process re‐engineering and strategic change
Author(s) -
CoulsonThomas Colin J.
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
strategic change
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.527
H-Index - 16
eISSN - 1099-1697
pISSN - 1086-1718
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1099-1697(199605)5:3<165::aid-jsc205>3.0.co;2-m
Subject(s) - business process reengineering , restructuring , process management , process (computing) , variety (cybernetics) , element (criminal law) , business , work (physics) , business process , european commission , work in process , computer science , marketing , engineering , european union , political science , mechanical engineering , finance , lean manufacturing , artificial intelligence , law , economic policy , operating system
This article draws upon a programme of work commissioned and funded by the Commission of the European Communities. It was undertaken as an element of the COBRA (constraints and opportunities in business restructuring—an analysis) project which has involved a pan‐European study of business process re‐engineering (BPR) experience and practice. It presents some summary findings relating to the extent to which BPR is being used as a vehicle of strategic change. Most of the BPR exercises examined by members of the COBRA team were of a process ‘simplification’ rather than ‘re‐engineering’ variety and were being undertaken to achieve medium‐term cost and time savings rather than longer term and strategic benefits. The approaches to BPR adopted by many organizations will not necessarily lead to BPR methodologies being applied to areas and activities of strategic significance. Many of the methodologies appear designed to secure incremental improvements in existing processes rather than achieve fundamental change.