I suspect that many people reading this article will have been involved with the definition of business processes. Business processes, when well-defined can help to ensure a standard approach is adopted, as well as ensuring that work and customer queries are dealt with in a consistent manner.  They can also help remove the cognitive burden of those conducting the work. A good process will ensure that all of the predictable, high frequency, repeatable decisions are made in advance so that less ad-hoc decision-making is needed “on the fly”.  Of course, there are some contexts where this is less appropriate, and there must always be room for variation, but there are many contexts where at least some standardisation is desirable.

Yet, there is an old saying that “no process model survives contact with the real world”. I’m sure we’ve all seen situations where there is a beautifully created, detailed set of process models… but everyone involved knows that the work isn’t really conducted that way.  This is one of the many reasons that techniques such as observation are so key alongside interviews and workshops. Observation helps us begin to see what really goes on (or at least gets us closer to it).

One of the practical challenges can be that there is a disconnect between those that define processes, and those that actually do the work.  I remember once arriving at a client-site, hearing some of the warehouse staff outside describing decisions that had been made by “the office people”; the implication being those decisions had been made by somebody who had no idea how the work actually works…

Process Disconnects

I saw an interesting example of this type of pattern recently. As many rail-users in the UK will know, there is a free newspaper called “The Metro” which is ubiquitous at railway stations in parts of the UK. Take a look at the picture below.

One thing you probably don’t know about me is that I was a backing dancer in the video for the  2001 hit ‘Survivor’ by Destiny’s Child.  One of the reasons that you probably aren’t aware of this is that it isn’t something that I talk about much as 2001 seems a lifetime ago and I’ve made a major career shift since then. However the second (and most important reason) that you probably don’t know this about me is that it absolutely isn’t true.  Literally none of it.

That’s right, I’m sorry to disappoint you, but I didn’t make the career change from backing dancer to business analyst (if only).  Yet, there was probably part of you that read that opening line and thought ‘wow, backing dancer, I wasn’t expecting that, how interesting!’. After all, it is a bizarrely specific claim isn’t it? And you’d be forgiven for thinking “what possible motive would Adrian have to try to convince me that he was in a music video if this isn’t true?”.

This is actually one of my go-to ‘bluffs’ for those unimaginitive ice-breakers where you have to list two truths and one lie. I’ve even created an entire backstory for it (and again, I cannot stress this enough: this is not true and it is a complete bluff):

A term that seems to have taken increased prominence over the last decade or so is digital transformation.  It has become such a frequently used part of the organisational lexicon that it is rarely questioned.  It’s a term that is accepted, it sounds like something that is self-explanatory and somehow obvious.  I mean who doesn’t want a digital transformation?  In the next breath there will be the inevitable cliches of Blockbuster, Netflix, Uber and others (cliches, by the way, that I am just as guilty as anyone as using…).

Within the business analysis community I hear a lot of discussions about how to work within a digital transformation programme, whether the tools and techniques are different to “other” types of initiative. I occasionally hear debates about whether there should be a “Digital BA” role. These are sensible questions for us to ask ourselves—but shouldn’t we start by asking what does digital transformation actually mean anyway?

Far be it from me to reinvent the wheel.  A bit of research will uncover scores of books and papers about this topic, here are two definitions that I find particularly interesting.  

Digital transformation:

This post is written by Kathy Berkidge of Mind at Work Consulting. I first met Kathy at a conference and I was absolutely blown away by her presentation, and I’m so pleased she agreed to write an article. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did! — Adrian

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Effective stakeholder engagement can mean the difference between successful project delivery and project failure. We BAs work closely with stakeholders to understand their needs and ensure they are translated into solution requirements. If we don’t engage with our stakeholders successfully, requirements may be missed or misinterpreted leading to products and services that fail to deliver the outcomes expected.

There are many barriers that may affect a stakeholder’s engagement, including:

• Lack of vision or not understanding the project context
• Resistance to share information
• Failure to understand what’s in it for them
• Misinterpretation of their needs
• Lack of available time
• Poor communication
• Lack of trust
• Previous history or negative perceptions from past experiences and projects
• Fear of change

Also, stakeholders often have very different expectations on what is, or is not, going to change. Something that seems like an improvement to one group of stakeholders may be perceived as a retrograde step for others. For example, an energy company that wants householders to download an app to submit meter readings and receive bills – the householders just want to keep things the same as they are now – it’s much easier!

Hi there,

Thanks so much for being a subscriber/reader of my blog, I really appreciate it. 🙂  I hope that you’re finding the content useful and interesting.  In a break from my regular ‘blog style’, I just wanted to let you know about some other resources that might be of interest to you.

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BA Digest: A regular round-up of BA related articles

I’ve been creating the BA Digest newsletter for a few years now.  I send this out every 4-8 weeks, and it is a round-up of a whole range of articles/videos/interesting content from around the web.  I recently realised that not everyone who reads my blog might be aware of this 🙂

You can check out the May/June Edition Here

If you’d like to receive a copy direct to your inbox, just sign up (for free) at www.badigest.co.uk

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I am a real fan of journey maps.  They are a great way of cultivating a conversation about the value that a stakeholder is seeking and the types of experiences that will satisfy them.  A few recent experiences have moved my thinking on journey mapping, and this blog post is my attempt to capture these thoughts.

‘Customer’ or ‘User’?

You may have noticed that some practitioners talk about ‘customer journey mapping’, others talk about ‘user journey mapping’.  Sometimes these terms are used interchangeably, but in terms of journey mapping I have found them rather problematic.  For example:

As many of you will know, I am an avid user of social media.  I’ve found social media a great way to connect and exchange ideas with people that I never would have met otherwise, and one platform I’ve found particularly useful is LinkedIN.   As you’re probably aware, LinkedIN has always marketed itself as a professional networking community.  It’s a place to meet others in and beyond your own industry, and maybe even schmooze with clients, suppliers, or maybe even your next boss! As such, the posts tend to be more professional in tone than other networks.  Well, most of the time, anyway.

If you’re a LinkedIN user you may have noticed a trend recently of some folks posting ‘motivational quotes’ or pictures of their holiday snaps.  Next time you see something like this, scroll down and read the comments—sooner or later, someone will have angrily written “This is LinkedIN, not Facebook, this is no place for a post like this!”.  I’ve seen a few comments like this, and it opens up interesting questions of purpose and perspective.   Or put another way: What is LinkedIN for?

One Platform Multiple Purposes

The answer to this question is almost certainly ‘it depends who you ask’.  There are some people who use LinkedIN purely to search for jobs.  Other use it to advertise jobs.  Some use it to make sales or search for leads. Others use it to learn, network and engage.   Which of those is the ‘right’ purpose? 

An often overlooked technique, that can be very useful in situations like this is the ‘PQR’ formula for giving shape to a root definition (this forms part of Checkland’s Soft Systems Methodology (SSM), which I’d highly recommend reading up on, although it should be noted I’m using it outside of the context of SSM).    The PQR formula answers the key questions of what, how and why.  Elaborated it is:

JDI and it’s slightly more risqué cousin ‘JFDI’ are management maxims that we have probably all come across from time to time.  The acronym ‘JDI’ stands for ‘Just Do It’, and its implications are that we should stop thinking about anything except the immediate task at hand, and plough on—often without questioning the validity of the task or considering whether the results of the task will actually be desirable. 

It has to be said that there are some contexts where JDI really is the best approach—where urgent action without deliberation or hesitation is necessary.  If you are in a meeting and the fire alarm goes off, there is some very clear action that needs to be taken (evacuate via the nearest and safest escape route). This is likely to be fairly uncontroversial, and even if people had different views on how the situation could be handled, the urgency of getting out of the danger is sufficient enough that we need to quickly decide, commit to action, and then ‘Just Do It’.  Of course, once you are out, there will be time to reflect and it is highly likely that someone will want to assess the root causes of the problem (in this case the fire). 

Organisational Problems are Rarely Clear Cut

Time really does fly! I can’t quite believe it’s just over two weeks until the start of the Business Analysis Conference Europe 2017 (#BA2017) in London. As I plan the final practice runs of my presentation which is entitled “Systems Thinking: A Crucial BA Skill in an Uncertain World , I can’t help but get a little excited…