literature review about communication in the workplace i'm studying Department of Health and Human Services
PROCESS RE-ENGINEERING 1
Literature Review
This chapter reviews empirical studies on Process Reengineering (PR) and organizational
performance. It identifies in prior studies the performance dimensions that were employed in
assessing PR’s impact on organizational performance. The review is conducted based on three
distinct types of literatures on Business Process Reengineering including mainstream business
literature, public sector literature, and literature on Third World Countries.
The chapter is organized in three major sections . The first section presents the theory of
scientific management. The second section presents the literature review as to how PR’s effect
on performance is measured or operationalized. It also highlights the main perceptions in regards
to how PR and organizational performance are related. The third section discusses Process
Reengineering literature in public organizations in Third World Countries. Finally, a brief
summary of the implications of the studies is provided.
Scientific Management
Scientific the ory of management puts emphasis on the concept of workflows to achieve
standardization, simplification, specialization and efficiency (Shafritz, Ott, & Jang, 2011,
pp. 64). The theory’s scientific view of organizational functions also emphasizes that the w ork
should be based on procedures not merely on the idea of rule of thumb. He believed that old
methods of doing something should be changed to precise procedures through studying
individuals and functions at work. The scientific management has the followi ng four basic
objectives:
1. Work methods should no longer be based on rule of thumb; they should be replaced by
scientific methods and procedures after careful study and analysis of the tasks; PROCESS RE-ENGINEERING 2
2. Employees or workers should be scientifically selected and train ed on the job rather than
just letting them to train themselves. Employee development is also needed to be paid
attention to;
3. Bridge the gap between employee and the science of doing things. Development of a
healthy cooperation between the management and workers is necessary to ensure the
work is carried out properly and according to the scientific procedures; and
4. Equal or nearly equal division of work between management and workers. This method
eliminates the traditional boss concept and everyone will wo rk in harmony (Shafritz, Ott,
& Jang, 2011, pp. 64- 66).
Even though scientific management brought a revolution in the efficiency of production, it
totally ignored the fact that each employee or worker is different and the method might not work
for all.
Pr ocess Reengineering and Organizational Performance
In the Process Reengineering literature performance is defined based on three criteria: PR
outcome, PR output, and PR impact. PR outcome, measured in terms of achieving the intended
goals, refers to the e ffectiveness (or success and failure) of the PR implementation project to
bring positive changes to the organizational processes (Huizing, Koster & Bouman 1997). The
ultimate goal of PR in organizations is to bring process level improvement. PR output refe rs to
such improvements as the reduction in cycle time, improvement in service quality, reduction in
cost, and improvement in process flexibility due to the changes made to organizational processes
(Ahadi 2004; Grover et al. 1998). Finally, PR impact refer s to how international and external
stakeholders view the overall performance of the organization, which could be through financial
measures or non -financial measures such as satisfaction rate (Guimaraes & Bond, 1996; Skrinjar, PROCESS RE-ENGINEERING 3
Bosilj- Vuksic, & Indihar -Ste mberger, 2008). The tools used to measure organizational
performance included objective measures such as return on equity, return on assets, overall costs,
and profitability (Devaraj & Kohli 2000; Ozcelik 2010); and subjective measures such as
reduction in work steps, cycle time, and processing costs (Ahadi, 2004; Grover et al., 1998).
The effect of process reengineering on performance, according to Kohli and Hoadley
(2006), should be evaluated based on the intermediate tangible outcomes it has produced at
multiple levels including the process level where it made substantial changes to the processes
and the organizational level including management functions. Intermediate results of process
reengineering include processes that have been made simple, transfo rmed, or automated as a
result of PR implementation. These changes result in less processing time, less operational costs,
and increased service quality and flexibility, which lead to noticeable overall organizational
performance. Empirical literature show s that organizational performance is influenced by three
factors – resource and implementation problems.
The resource factor attributes the effect of process reengineering on performance to the
level of financial, technological, and human (Albadvi, Keram ati and Razmi 2007; Devaraj &
Kohli 2000; Willcocks 2002) resources applied toward the PR implementation. In addition to
these resources, top management support is also important for the success of PR implementation.
Literature shows that there is a positive relationship between sufficient resource deployment for
PR implementation and organizational performance. Process Reengineering requires substantial
financial resources investment in relevant technology, training, and structure development
(Ahadi, 2004; Ahmad, Francis, and Zairi, 2007). Insufficient investment in this area can lead to
PR failure (Willcocks, 2002). Human capital, in addition to financial resources, is another
essential element of success for PR implementation. Customer service performance depends on PROCESS RE-ENGINEERING 4
human capital with cross functional knowledge and expertise on the processes, project
management, and IT skills; which will lead to overall organizational performance (do Carmo
Caccia- Bava, Guimaraes & Guimaraes 2005; Sung & Gibson 1998).
Alt hough process reengineering comes with optimistic results, there are a myriad of
issues and problems exist that can hinder its implementation. There exists a negative
relationship between problems in implementa tion and PR success. Conversely, Guimaraes an d
Bond (1996) show that the implementation problems include: the nature of PR that it changes
everything at once; communication barriers at different levels; lack of management support
toward both PR implementation and resource allocation; restructuring of the organization; and
downtime.
Process Reengineering in Third World Countries
Third World Countries just like developed ones have adopted process reengineering as an
essential tool to bring reform in their organizations and to transform old- fashioned, hierarchical,
manual, and bureaucratic processes into process -based and customer -oriented models (Debela &
Hagos 2011; Mengesha & Common 2007; Tarokh, Sharifi & Nazemi 2008). Though there were
and are doubts about PR’s applicability in public sector in Thir d World Countries, it is rather
accepted as a fundamental tool for rethinking organizational process redesign and developing
process -oriented strategy that would lead to improved public sector organizations (Debela &
Hagos 2011). In most Third World Countr ies, the increasing pressure for efficiency and effective
public service delivery, higher performance, good governance and transparency, and
accountability have been behind the adoption and implementation of process reengineering
(Hood 1991). PROCESS RE-ENGINEERING 5
Previous studies focused on three areas including PR implementation problems in Third
World Countries, PR’s effect on organizational performance, and concept development.
According to Martin & Montagna (2006), due to tough regulations and laws that influence
organizati onal activities, in terms of implementation problems, private sector PR cannot be
directly applied in public sector organizations in Third World Countries. In addition to laws and
strict regulations, budgetary constraints can also hinder PR implementation because of already
approved financial resources. Also, lack of leadership support or authority for practicing
performance -based management and the incapability of the organization to set clear goals and
objectives for the implementation of process reengine ering also contribute to implementation
problems (Martin & Montagna, 2006).
Process reengineering implementation in the United Arab Emirates also faced its own
challenges. According to Hesson (2007), a study of public sector in the UAE showed that the
challenges were caused due to strict regulations that were above the authority of managers,
duplication of effort, and the close to impossible procedures to retire unnecessary employees.
Some authorities’ reluctance toward approving broad implementation of PR also created
hindrance for the success of the PR implementation. In Third World Countries, as Saxena
(1996) claimed, increased bureaucracy, unclear goal and strategy, and absence of customer
orientation cause unique challenges to PR implementation and success.
Process reengineering success, in addition to all the other factors described above, also
depends on the complexity of information technology and system applied. In a study of PR
implementation in Ethiopia, Debela (2010) noted that not involving IT professionals in the
reengineering process can have negative implications. Involving those with knowledge of
information technology with ability to design the process can contribute toward success of the PROCESS RE-ENGINEERING 6
project and its infrastructure sustainability. An other study of four public administration
organizations in Ethiopia by Debela & Hagos (2011), indicated that implementing PR resulted in
employee empowerment, efficiency in public service delivery processes, and increased
effectiveness of overall organizat ion. The findings, however, also showed that many of the
organizations failed to successfully and effectively manage changes; and the level of leadership
support for investment in IT infrastructure was weak.
Since the concept of Process Reengineering is ve ry uncommon in developing countries
and especially in Afghanistan, a need was felt for in -depth case studies of PR implementation in
other third world countries. It was necessary to study the conceptual framework and to gain
understanding of PR in the publ ic sector organizations form the perspectives of both private
sector and public sector, particularly in developing nations. Therefore, the approach taken in this
process is qualitative in nature to gain more insight of the experiences of PR implementation in
third world countries. The next section discusses the methods used in the process and details of
the analysis of the data conducted.
