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Preprints & Reprints Transformations As far as I can tell there has not been a single recorded case of any company or organisation successfully transforming itself by just shuffling the pack of managers and people. Taking old mind-sets and skills, in the same organisational framework, and asking people to do something radically different just does not work. People just cling onto the past, fearing the new, right up to the last minute. Over the past decade the speed-up of the business world due to IT networks has been devastating for many old organisations. Banks, mining, steel, defence, finance houses, manufacturers, and consultants have found themselves struggling to invoke change fast enough. Many have found business transformation like trying to convert a Boeing 747 into an F16 Fighter at 35,000ft mid-Atlantic. They are short of time cold and exposed, with endless opportunities to get it wrong and crash. In most cases being cruel to be kind seems to be the best and only strategy. A rapid close down the old in total, or pulling people out altogether, and relocating, to start with a clean sheet, to create a new company or operation from ground zero is far kinder in the long run. But this often involves creating and establishing a new brand or flag to engender the right image and trust. Bluntly the opportunity for getting it wrong by this route is also pretty high. So what can companies do to survive? Looking at the.com and not.com marks it is clear that the old and new do not mix easily. So one strategy is to transform existing business under the old flag, and create a new flag for new ventures. For the old business this means getting streamlined to combat the competition - using IT to become more efficient by delayering, rightsizing, and automating as much as possible. For example; one of the newest Fortune 500 companies electronically manage the travel accounts for over 20,000 global staff with only two people. Most organisations would have well over 100 people doing this, and such policing far outweighs the cost of any likely crimes. In the recent transformation of another group found it difficult to sell the eBusiness concept because they were still processing millions of paper invoices. Practicising what they preached was an essential, and it saved them, and their customers many $Bns. Applying such thinking across organisations can see radical transformations and huge rewards. So, how can companies avoid sudden death and survive in an increasingly chaotic and uncertain marketplace? First, they need a technology and strategic radar - people who look in and out of their sector for potential predators - and war game what might happen. Second, it essential to focus on what the company does well and outsource as much as possible. For example; many aircraft and car producers do not manufacture, they assemble, they are system integrators. Their major value-add is in R&D, design and marketing. Do-it-all is an old philosophy born of an industrial revolution now long gone. Third, it is essential to challenge the old processes - if they can be done electronically they are most likely to be far more efficient. But merely placing paper processes on a screen is unlikely to see massive gains - IT generally engenders a process change that is advantageous. Fourth, routes to market and customer relationships can be expanded exponentially via the web. Finally, it is worth looking at the spin off option to create new wealth generators. If you try to do this inside the old company the established bureaucracy will most likely invoke failure. IT is about thinking and doing differently because the technology is the enabler. Word Count = 611 |