process vs. project tony raymond, cbpp chicago chapter february 21, 2014
TRANSCRIPT
Process vs. Project
Tony Raymond, CBPPChicago Chapter
February 21, 2014
www.ABPMPChicago.org
About Tony Raymond, CBPP• Career started in 1996• 15 years in PM-related work• Taught classes in, SDLC, MS
Office, MS Project and PMP Prep• 4 years with Accenture (SAP
background)• Lifelong learner and teacher
– PMP in 2002– MBA in 2008– CBPP in 2010– CQM/OE in 2014 (hopefully)
• Focus areas include project/program management, change management, and business process improvement
• Clients have included…– Allstate– AT&T Broadband– BMO Harris– Kraft Foods– MillerCoors– Mondelez– Sentry– Travelers
Why are we talking about this?
• PMs are living in an increasingly process-driven world that involve large strategic changes
• BPM Professionals are being asked to manage projects and expectations from multiple stakeholder groups
• CM Professionals are expected to integrate their change plans with PM and BPM frameworks
Business Process Management
(BPM)
Change Management
(CM)
Project Management
(PM)
“BPM is the harbinger of change. Change is a significant part of BPM and a serious subject to anyone who hopes to limit acceptance-risk in a project. BPM affects people’s professional lives by directly changing what they do and how they do it. BPM solutions are almost always based on the introduction of new practices, new rules, new tools, and new roles and responsibilities.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 276.
“In a well-planned and managed BPM change program, the business managers and staff who will be affected (within the project scope) will be engaged in the project and its change management activities at a very early stage in the project’s lifecycle.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 278.
“…it is recommended that practitioners familiarize themselves with the basic principles of change management and incorporate them into the overall process program. In addition to change management, an overall structure for project and program management should also be incorporated.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 354.
What do you call it?
Hints1. The combination of activities 1, 2, and 3 deliver a product.2. Activity 1 is triggered by an external activity not shown here.3. All activities are recurring activities.4. Activity 2 could be done off-site
Activity 1 Activity 2 Activity 3
So, is this a process or a project?
DefinitionsProcess
“A combination of all the activities and support needed to produce and deliver an objective, outcome, product or service regardless of where the activity is performed.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p.160.
Project
“A temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product or service.” – PMBOK, 3rd Ed.
Projects…• Have a definite beginning and end• Create a product, service or result that is
different from similar products/services.• Are progressively elaborated -
distinguishing characteristics of each unique project will be progressively detailed as the project is better understood.
Start End Unique Product or
Service
Objective, Outcome, Product or
Service
“Processes are a set of functions in a certain sequence that delivers value to a customer. They are started by clearly defined external events. They are formed from a combination of all the activities and support that are needed to produce and deliver an objective, outcome, product or service — regardless of where the activity is performed. These activities are usually a cross-functional, cross organization aggregation of activities that work together to create an end product or service. Activities are shown in the context of their relationship with one another to provide a picture of sequence and flow.” – BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 265
Seems pretty clear, right?
Business Process Management at a glance
• BPM involves the deliberate, collaborative and increasingly technology-aided definition, improvement, innovation, and management of end-to-end business processes that drive business results, create value, and enable an organization to meet its business objectives with more agility. • BPM enables an enterprise to align its business
processes to its business strategy, leading to effective overall company performance through improvements of specific work activities either within a specific department, across the enterprise, or between organizations.
BPM CBOK v3.01. Guide to the CBOK2. Business Process Management3. Process Modeling4. Process Analysis5. Process Design6. Process Performance Management7. Process Transformation8. Process Organization9. Enterprise Process Management10. BPM Technologies
"Business Process Management (BPM) is a disciplined approach to identify, design, execute, document, measure, monitor, and control both automated and non-automated business processes to achieve consistent, targeted results aligned with an organization’s strategic goals.”
Source: http://www.abmpmp.org
“The organization of the [CBOK] promotes not only a general reading, but also its use as a reference that helps the reader address different aspects of BPM projects. Because it is a compendium of knowledge and experience on BPM and business change, it should be consulted as needed for focusing on different areas at different phases in a project.” - Tony Benedict, ABPMP President’s Note in BPM CBOK v3.0, p. v.
Deming’s PDCA Process Lifecycle
Project Management at a glanceProject Management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to project activities in order to meet project requirements. It is divided into 9 knowledge areas.
9 Knowledge Areas (PMBOK 3rd Ed.)1. Project Integration Management2. Project Scope Management3. Project Time Management4. Project Cost Management5. Project Quality Management6. Project Human Resource Management7. Project Communication Management8. Project Risk Management9. Project Procurement Management
5 Process Groups (PMBOK 3rd Ed.)1. Initiating Process Group2. Planning Process Group3. Executing Process Group4. Monitoring & Controlling Process Group5. Closing Process Group
Initiate Plan Execute Control ClosePMI’s Project Lifecycle
There are 44 documented processes in these 5
process groups!
“As with all projects, formal project management is critical to success. This vital part of delivering a successful change is itself a specialized skill…formal, focused project planning and management is important for the successful execution of a process redesign or initial design, and we urge that management controls be used to help promote success. For project management hints and assistance, readers are advised to contact the Project Management Institute.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 160.
So, the worlds of BPM and PM are interwoven somehow…
“Likewise, there seem to be two major approaches: those that are more project-oriented versus those that view BPM as a continuous process improvement and transformation effort. These different models generate roles and responsibilities with widely varying titles and alignments of responsibilities, yet all are process-management focused.” -Brett Champlin, Preface in BPM CBOK v3.0, p. xiv.
“BPM can also mean a holistic system as the outcome of initiatives or projects. This result, called Enterprise Process Management (EPM), includes the strategy, values and culture, structures and roles, and a whole set of end-to-end processes with their associated goals and indicators, IT, and people.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 36.
“Managing business processes in aggregate through the “Do” Phase of the PDCA Lifecycle usually involves the development of capabilities to support Detailed Process Design, Build, and Deployment. For example, (a) Portfolio Management to sequence, initiate, and manage the execution of large portfolios of business-centric and technology-centric initiatives driven from Transformation Planning, (b) Project Management to manage individual business-centric and technology-centric initiatives underneath project portfolios….” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 62.
BPM and Projects
Do you see any potential conflict that may arise when PM and BPM
practitioners start working together and come from these two different
approaches? How can we bridge this divide? What have you seen work?
BPM and EPM can result from initiatives or projects. Have you seen this happen at an organization? What went well and
what didn’t?
Portfolio Management and Project Management are seen as capabilities
under the “Do” Phase of the PDCA Lifecycle. What are the benefits or
challenges with this model?
Process Modelling and Projects
“When approaching a modeling challenge, the team may choose to model from top-down, bottom-up, or from the middle, depending on preference and project requirements. Information capture techniques can vary widely among projects…” – BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 124.
Have you been involved in a process modelling project where the requirements weren’t clear? If so, which approach did
you start with (e.g. top-down)? What were some capture techniques that you have
used to develop process models?
“Modeling tools vary in the number and types of components (and information) they can capture, which affects the type and level of process performance analysis you can perform. Process modeling projects frequently grow in scope and complexity. Because of this, selecting a more powerful tool than required at the beginning of a modeling project often makes the most sense.” – BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 90.
“Some enterprise process modeling projects start by using one or more process model frameworks to create a “straw enterprise model.” The “straw enterprise process model” provides a springboard for vetting or changing by executive management. Conversely, some enterprise process modeling projects begin with the executive and functional management’s point of view and then benchmark the enterprise process model against the process model frameworks.” – BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 114.
What are the challenges with a growing scope and complexity from a project
management perspective? Shouldn’t we want to gather as much detail as wanted
or needed to improve the process?
Have you seen process model frameworks used well in BPM projects?
What are the pros and cons of these frameworks? How can they help a
project team in communicating with key stakeholders?
Projects and Process Analysis
“Business Process Management (BPM) is a committed part of an overall business strategy, rather than a single activity that is completed in the context of a single project.” –BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 132.
“As in any project, process improvement projects often fail because of a lack of time and priority placed on the project. On the other hand, taking too long for the analysis phase of a complex project is one of the more common pit falls. Balancing the inventory of processes and sub-processes involved and ensuring the process team will get the proper time commitment from the business units is the responsibility of the project team leader.” –BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 133-4.
“Often, resources assigned to improvement projects have other mission-critical responsibilities within the organization. Although it is wise to get the most knowledgeable individuals on the process analysis team, these individuals may not be able to dedicate themselves sufficiently to keep the project moving forward.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 152.
Have you ever been on a BPM project that was treated as an isolated activity
rather than a part of an overall business strategy? What was the result?
Have you been on a process improvement project that didn’t allow
enough time and priority to be successful? What were the reasons
behind the rush? How about the other extreme – analysis paralysis? Have you
seen it done right where just enough time was dedicated to the project?
Can you relate to this one? What can you do when the SME has limited availability and other priorities are pulling at their
time. Have you seen any other alternatives that worked around the
resource constraints?
Projects and Process Design
“For this reason, it is strongly recommended that any BPM project begin with the identification of standards that must be used and the creation of project-specific standards that are needed to provide consistency among the products produced by different team members.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 168.
“Further, to avoid overhead, the method followed should be customizable to each project and reflect the complexity, scope, importance, and benefit of the project. This method will then be used to guide project planning and be merged with the company’s approach to project management, in order to provide a focused project plan.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 170.
Have you ever started a BPM project without the proper standards in place? What were the challenges? How did the
project team overcome these challenges?
Do you agree that the method used to design process should be suitable to the
complexity, scope, importance, and benefit of the project? Ever been on a project where the methods didn’t fit?
What happened?
“This presumes that (at least) at the project level, the project manager will begin the project by defining the deliverables and then setting internal standards for data collection, interviews, models, etc. Of course, if company standards exist to address this issue of consistency, they will need to be followed. –BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 174.
Have you ever been on a project where the deliverables weren’t defined? What are the risks of moving forward without standards for data collection, interviews,
and models?
Projects and Process Design (cont)
“It is recommended that the project team also view this current information from a strategic perspective. The reason is that information collection is generally project-focused; it is often not meant to have a life beyond the project, or it simply cannot be maintained and becomes out of date. Project-level content should be used to support the eventual creation of the Enterprise Business Model. Doing so removes the overhead of creating this whole model as a project in itself.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 176.
“Formally defining the relationships between change projects allows executive management to look at project funding differently and facilitates a type of program management that coordinates the activity between projects and between initiatives to ensure that the goals of any strategy are met.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 178.
“A great many good projects fail because the teams do not pay enough attention to managing the change and its acceptability to the business user…Some companies have responded to this need to win staff acceptance of change by forming formal change management groups and standards for dealing with change in both business and IT projects.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 194.
Have you ever seen a project collect information regarding a process only to
have it shelved after the process is closed? Why was this done? What can be done to ensure that it is included in
the Enterprise Business Model?
Do you have any examples of projects where business and IT stakeholders
were involved in the design, but weren’t on-board with the changes? Did the
team know? How did they handle the news? What could the project team have done to increase acceptance?
Why is determining dependencies between change projects important? Have you ever seen a program/project manager fail to define the relationships between change projects? What was
the result?
Projects and Process Performance Management
“Project Metrics: Describe project characteristics and execution. Examples include resources allocation, cost, time, and productivity.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 236.
“An application encompassing the definitions of measurement, metric, and indicator is when project schedule estimation is assessed for accuracy. Two important measures to determine the accuracy of project schedule estimation are Actual Project Duration and Estimated Project Duration.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 237.
“The ABC method makes indirect expenses direct. It provides activity frequency and cost information for comparing activities before and after process improvement. It reveals what will happen if a project is not carried out (the do-nothing scenario) and which processes provide value (are needed to attract and retain clients or will result in operational savings).” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 237.
What does a successful BPM project look like? On-time, within-budget, productivity increased, or project resources not over-allocated? Would your project sponsors
answer differently?
Why do you think the accuracy of project schedule estimation is so
important? What aspects of schedule estimation may skew the results? Have you used a similar set of metrics? How
did it go?
Have you ever used the ABC method to determine the cost of activities that
were lower value? Were the results used to build a business case for a
BPM project? Was the process measured after changes were made? Were the anticipated savings realized?
Is it improvement or a transformation?“Business Process Improvement (BPI) is a singular initiative or project to improve the alignment and performance of a particular process with the organizational strategy and customer expectations. BPI includes the selection, analysis, design, and implementation of the (improved) process.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 36.
“…although companies use various approaches to tackle process improvement projects, they often end up with departmental processes that do the same thing as before—just better or faster. As a result, there is a need to shift from isolated BPM improvement-focused projects to sustainable business transformation programs.” –Craig Le Clair, Foreword to Chapter 3 of BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 84.
“As noted, transformation involves a much greater change than improvement. As such, improvement becomes part of transformation and is applied to every aspect of the transformation project.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 268.
Have you ever been on a process “improvement” project, but it really was a
transformation initiative? How about a process “transformation” project that was
really an improvement project? Why wasn’t it labelled correctly? What happened?
Have you seen this happen? Do the improvements stick? Why are
transformations more sustainable than isolated BPM improvement projects?
What are the limitations of BPIs? Have you ever worked on a BPI project that involved all
the stages listed? Did the scope of the BPI change significantly from selection to
implementation?
Projects and Process Transformation“This linking of process transformation to business capability and strategy is often given too little attention in transformation project planning and execution…This sets the foundation for the transformation. At this point the project manager will be able to identify high-level goals and how the business needs to change to meet them. He or she will not, however, know what changes will be made or the details.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 270.
“Transformation will also change the culture of the business or the part of the business that is transformed. This level of change must be backed by management at all levels—including the executive level, which will need to define the new culture and determine how to create it. If this involvement or other types of backing fail, the project will not be more than partially successful.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 272.
Why is it so important for a process transformation to be connected to a
business capability and strategy? What are the risks if this is not done?
Why is executive-level support of transformational change important? Can culture be created or changed? Have you
seen a partially successful transformation? Fully successful one?
“Unlike improvement, which can happen in a focused way to solve a problem, a broader based use of BPM to ‐support transformation requires the guidance of a person who is experienced in business transformation‐level projects. This skill is not industry specific and not‐ ‐company specific. It is, rather, transformation experience specific. This is important in delivering ‐flexibility and improving control over the business operation without serious missteps. - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 272.
Why is it important to have someone who has experience specific to transformations
and not specific to an industry or a company? Have you seen how this
experience helps in the transformation delivery and avoiding serious missteps?
Projects and Process Transformation (cont)
Why is risk and issue management so important on a process transformation?
What can happen if the escalation procedure isn’t followed properly? Have you ever been
on a project when issues have been escalated and the sponsor didn’t take timely and/or appropriate remediation steps. Are
schedule delays the only thing at risk?
Have you ever witnessed mid-level managers doing this? Have you seen the
executive sponsor take timely and appropriate action to stop the sabotage?
Have you seen project teams document and track change adoption among key
stakeholders? How was discretion and understanding used to remove obstacles?
What was the outcome?
“The transformation team should expect the executive committee to remove obstacles to their success. As issues are raised, it is important for continuity and momentum that they be addressed and resolved in a timely manner. The tough issues will be brought to the project’s executive sponsor and, if necessary, to the executive committee. The expectation is that the obstacle will be removed — the issue resolved. When this doesn’t happen, the estimates and project schedule will become inaccurate and eventually meaningless.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 273.
“Some [mid-level managers], in fact, may feign interest and work behind the scenes to kill the project (unfortunately, this is fairly common). This is where the executive project sponsor comes in. Any form of passive-aggressive behavior or sabotage cannot be tolerated and must be stopped.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 273.
“The project team must keep in mind the key stakeholders’ motivations and concerns: what is in the change for them?…The project managers must use discretion and understanding when addressing these real obstacles, but they must be addressed and removed.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 281.
Projects and Process Transformation (cont)
Why do you think that involving key stakeholders early and often runs counter to
more traditional project management approaches? What does “small increments”
mean? Why might these smaller “bites” contribute to better change adoption?
Have you had to work in a company culture where broad involvement was not
encouraged? How did the transformation team build remediation steps into the plan?
How did you anticipate, monitor, and manage these tasks?
Are these the typical key stakeholders in a BPM project, based on what you have seen?
Which ones would you include?
“Involving a great many of the staff for short periods and asking for their opinions is considered by some of the more traditional project managers to be unnecessary. We disagree…Only by involving many of the people can these concerns be overcome. Involving the key stakeholders early and communicating often in small increments is a key success factor in any significant change initiative.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 281-2.
“If this broad involvement approach is not acceptable in a given company culture, the project team will need to build remediation steps into the project plan….The best way to address these factors is to anticipate, monitor, and manage them as specific tasks in the project plan.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 282.
“The project sponsor is the main stakeholder, but not the only one in a BPM transformation or improvement project. Clearly all business and IT managers who will be part of the projects are key stakeholders; so are finance (SOX, Dodd Frank) and legal, so are the employees (HR/union contracts) etc.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 282.
Projects and Process Transformation (cont)Have you had to design mitigation steps with the project sponsor? What were they? Did they address the road blocks? Have you had
to adjust project scope or the deliverable due to resistance? What were the
indications of poor support (time, priority, access to staff or data, signoff, or something
else)?
How might the productivity of a project team be impacted by key stakeholders?
What can happen when the key stakeholders aren’t sufficiently involved?
What do you think it means when it says that the “change requirement will be iterative and change as the project is performed”?
What are the risks of having a moving target? How does a PM prioritize key
stakeholders?
“…for those who truly act as road blocks to success, mitigation steps must be designed with the project sponsor and, if necessary, discussed with executive management. If this cannot be turned around, the project may need to be adjusted and a new scope or deliverable defined. In this way, even if there are some who will not really back the project (with time, priority, access to staff or data, signoff, etc.), the project will continue.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 283.
“To make sure you make the most of the project-team’s time, the BPM transformation project manager needs to focus onInvolving those ‘key’ stakeholders that have the highest potential to make or break the change.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 284.
“The approach to managing the project’s change requirement will be iterative and will change as the project is performed, based on continued interaction and the project manager’s assessment. By analyzing the result of the assessment, the project manager can prioritize the key stakeholders and develop a change plan that will take them to the desired level of acceptance.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 284.
Projects and Process Transformation (cont)
How do you think “enhanced staff involvement” will impact the emphasis on change management? Why is training and mentoring important as the transformation
project comes to a close?
Have you ever been involved in a transformation project that was not fully aligned with vision, mission or goals? Did the project leadership communicate the
transformation vision well? What was the outcome?
How does a project team create a sense of urgency? How might this be misinterpreted by the business managers and staff? What are some ways that a project sponsor can highlight the benefits of a transformation?
“…change management will take on a different emphasis through enhanced business staff involvement in the project and in moving to continuous improvement. This change in transformation-project approach will require a commitment to training, and obtaining experienced transformation experts to act as mentors.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 285.
“Any transformation should be aligned with company vision, mission, and goals. Going further, management should also have a clear separate vision for the transformation project—what the new business operation will look like and how it will perform.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 286.
“The project team, following sound change-management practices, will need to establish a sense of urgency in the business managers and the staff. It is also recommended that the project sponsor clearly set the stage for those affected to gain something, instead of lose something.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 286.
Projects and Process Transformation (cont)Why is communication planning such an
important part of a transformation project? How does a PM assess the effectiveness of change management techniques? Do you have any good examples of how a PM and
business-unit managers may work together to resolve change management issues?
What are the characteristics of a clearly defined target? Have you seen scorecards
that show baseline, current and target metrics in a way that motivates team
members.
“Communication planning should be considered during the project startup and updated at major points (milestones, phase gates, deliverable points, etc.) in the transformation project. Each update should be based on the project manager’s assessment (working with the business-unit managers) of which change management techniques are working and how change management issues maybe resolved.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 289.
“In the transformation project, performance goals should be clearly defined targets. The simulation modeling of the “As-Is” business will provide a baseline of the current performance. Business managers and staff will be able to use the baseline to measure the delivery of the project’s goals as improvements against the current operation.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 294.
“A well managed change should (a) ensure effective communications are integrated with solid project management practices, especially around risks and issues, and (b) offer appropriate support during and following the project.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 295.
Have you been involved with a process transformation that did not adequately
assess and address risks and issues? What was the outcome? Why is appropriate
support during and following the project important?
Projects and Process Transformation (cont)
Do you agree that transformation never really ends? How might sponsors view an open-ended transformation? How do you close the initial transformation project and
transition activities into ongoing operations?
Why should transformation projects be evaluated based on hard benefit estimates
rather than strategic need? How does a transformation project differ from other strategic projects? How have business
transformation projects been funded in your experience?
“This will require a change in the way projects and business evolution are viewed. Today, open-ended projects are seldom tolerated—even ones that offer a series of delivery dates and benefits come to an end. But if a company wants to move to continuous improvement, transformation never really ends. Once the initial transformation is implemented, the operation moves to an unending cycle of performance measurement, review, analysis, and change.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 299-300.
What are the challenges of allowing a BPMS project to continue until the desired
performance is reached? What happens if the change is not adopted and/or the performance goals are not achieved?
“Following traditional project management approaches, the project is often formally closed as soon as the deliverables are completed and accepted by the sponsor. In BPMS projects we carry this one step further and track the adoption of the change until desired performance is reached.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 290.
“Transformation, being more strategic, should be viewed differently and should be funded differently. However, in today’s ROI-focused environment, the transformation will likely need to be justified the same way an improvement project is justified—that is, based on hard benefit estimate, not on strategic need. But this will vary by company and the project manager will need to work with the project sponsor to determine the funding view that makes sense in your company.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 300.
Projects and Process Transformation (cont)
How might monitoring and controlling process operations help control project scope creep? Have you ever encountered a situation where
the way that the BPM project manager monitored and controlled process operations
differed from how the process manager did it? What was the outcome?
Have you seen an organization coordinate its process and project portfolios well? How
can a process enterprise provide meaningful inputs into the EPMO? What feedback loops between these governing structures should
exist?
“As a starting point in any transformation design, put yourself in the customer’s position, not in your company’s position, and eliminate all the things you and the project team hate when dealing with a company. That is a good starting point. Then work inward to eliminate what you hate and correct the deficiencies that stop interaction the way you would like to do it.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 307.
“Throughout the project delivery process, project managers may monitor and control process operations to ensure that the scope of the project conforms to the project objectives. Projects, however, are temporary endeavors with discrete, finite outcomes and deliverables.” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 325.
What are the challenges of the project team putting themselves in the position of the
customer? Have you started a transformation by asking the team what they
hate when dealing with a company? What are some common deficiencies that stop
good customer interaction?
Enterprise Process Management: “The cornerstone of governing enterprise processes is coordinating the enterprise portfolio of initiatives. To provide effective governance in accordance with overall process design, it is imperative that the process enterprise provides input or is directly aligned to the enterprise Project Management Office. ” - BPM CBOK v3.0, p. 358.
