Communication flow orientation in business process modeling and its effect on redesign success: Results from a field study

Business process redesign has been intensely studied, particularly since the mid 1990s. One aspect that received little attention, however, is the relationship between business process modeling choices and redesign success. This research gap is addressed through a multi-methods study of 18 business process redesign projects conducted in 18 different organizations. A structural equation model is developed and tested based on data collected from those projects; the results are then triangulated with qualitative data. The structural equation model depicts relationships between the following broad perceptual constructs: communication flow orientation of a business process model, quality of a business process model, and business process redesign success. The communication flow orientation of a business process model is defined as the extent to which a model explicitly shows how communication interactions take place in a process. A model's perceived quality is defined as the degree to which the model presents the following perceptual sub-constructs: ease of generation, ease of understanding, completeness, and accuracy. The results of the study suggest that the degree of communication flow orientation of a business process model is significantly related to the model's perceived quality. Perceived model quality, in turn, is significantly related to perceived business process redesign success. Interestingly, a business process model's perceived completeness does not seem to be influenced by a model's communication flow orientation. The structural equation model accounted for 56% of the explained variance in the business process redesign success construct. The main implication of this study is that a focus on communication flows in business processes is an important ingredient in successful business process redesign projects.

[1]  Nereu F. Kock,et al.  Business process improvement using asynchronous e-collaboration: testing the compensatory adaptation model , 2003 .

[2]  Ivar Jacobson,et al.  The unified modeling language reference manual , 2010 .

[3]  Jyoti M. Bhat,et al.  Overcoming Requirements Engineering Challenges: Lessons from Offshore Outsourcing , 2006, IEEE Software.

[4]  Lars Mathiassen,et al.  Successful process implementation , 2004, IEEE Software.

[5]  Ned Kock,et al.  Redesigning Acquisition Processes: A New Methodology Based on the Flow of Knowledge and Information , 2001 .

[6]  Mark E. Nissen,et al.  Redesigning Reengineering Through Measurement-Driven Inference , 1998, MIS Q..

[7]  Donna B. Stoddard,et al.  Reengineering: Business Change of Mythic Proportions? , 1994, MIS Q..

[8]  Susan Gasson,et al.  Adaptations that Virtual Teams Make so that Complex Tasks Can Be Performed Using Simple E-Collaboration Technologies , 2006, Int. J. e Collab..

[9]  C. Fornell,et al.  Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. , 1981 .

[10]  J. Morse.  Critical Issues in Qualitative Research Methods , 1993 .

[11]  Ned Kock.  Business Process Improvement Through E-Collaboration: Knowledge Sharing Through the Use of Virtual Groups , 2005 .

[12]  T. Kuhn,et al.  The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. , 1964 .

[13]  Ralph L. Rosnow,et al.  Essentials of Behavioral Research: Methods and Data Analysis , 1984 .

[14]  Rex B. Kline,et al.  Principles and Practice of Structural Equation Modeling , 1998 .

[15]  Colin Robson,et al.  Real World Research: A Resource for Social Scientists and Practitioner-Researchers , 1993 .

[16]  Jen-Her Wu,et al.  A methodology for designing form-based decision support systems , 2004, Decis. Support Syst..

[17]  Richard T. Vidgen,et al.  Measuring Web site quality improvements: a case study of the forum on strategic management knowledge exchange , 2003, Ind. Manag. Data Syst..

[18]  Ned Kock,et al.  Systems Analysis & Design Fundamentals: A Business Process Redesign Approach , 2006 .

[19]  William R. King,et al.  Management : a systems approach , 1972 .

[20]  James H. Harrington,et al.  Business Process Improvement Workbook: Documentation, Analysis, Design, and Management of Business Process Improvement , 1997 .

[21]  M. Venkatraman.  It-enabled business transformation: from automation to business scope redefinition , 1994 .

[22]  Karl Cox,et al.  Validating strategic alignment of organizational IT requirements using goal modeling and problem diagrams , 2006, J. Syst. Softw..

[23]  Ned Kock,et al.  It-enabled process redesign: using communication flow optimization theory in an information intensive environment , 2005 .

[24]  M. Lynne Markus,et al.  PRECONDITIONS FOR BPR SUCCESS And How to Prevent Failures , 1994 .

[25]  Wynne W. Chin.  Issues and Opinion on Structural Equation Modeling by , 2009 .

[26]  J. Hair.  Multivariate data analysis , 1972 .

[27]  Peter Gyngell,et al.  Process Innovation: Reengineering Work through Information Technology , 1994 .

[28]  Shouhong Wang,et al.  The Implementation of Business Process Reengineering , 1995, J. Manag. Inf. Syst..

[29]  Detmar W. Straub,et al.  Structural Equation Modeling and Regression: Guidelines for Research Practice , 2000, Commun. Assoc. Inf. Syst..

[30]  Jim Sinur.  Magic Quadrant for Business Process Management Suites , 2009 .

[31]  F. Javier Lerch,et al.  Beneath the surface of organizational processes: a social representation framework for business process redesign , 2000, TOIS.

[32]  Daniela E. Damian,et al.  An Empirical Study of the Complex Relationships between Requirements Engineering Processes and Other Processes that Lead to Payoffs in Productivity, Quality, and Risk Management , 2006, IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering.

[33]  Dianne M. Finkelstein,et al.  A Beginner's Guide to Structural Equation Modeling , 2005, Technometrics.

[34]  Andrew Ehrenberg,et al.  Factor analysis : limitations and alternatives , 1976 .

[35]  Ivar Jacobson,et al.  The Unified Modeling Language User Guide , 1998, J. Database Manag..

[36]  Julie E. Kendall,et al.  Metaphors and Methodologies: Living Beyond the Systems Machine , 1993, MIS Q..

[37]  Wynne W. Chin,et al.  A Partial Least Squares Latent Variable Modeling Approach for Measuring Interaction Effects: Results from a Monte Carlo Simulation Study and Voice Mail Emotion/Adoption Study , 1996, ICIS.

[38]  Keng Siau,et al.  User-Database Interface: The Effect of Abstraction Levels on Query Performance , 1993, MIS Q..

[39]  Sirkka L. Jarvenpaa,et al.  Business Process Redesign: Tactics for Managing Radical Change , 1995, J. Manag. Inf. Syst..

[40]  K. Siau,et al.  Cognitive mapping techniques for user-database interaction , 2006, IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication.

[41]  Chiara Francalanci,et al.  Time-Related Factors of Data Quality in Multichannel Information Systems , 2003, J. Manag. Inf. Syst..

[42]  Wynne W. Chin,et al.  A Partial Least Squares Latent Variable Modeling Approach for Measuring Interaction Effects: Results from a Monte Carlo Simulation Study and an Electronic - Mail Emotion/Adoption Study , 2003, Inf. Syst. Res..

[43]  Alexander Hars,et al.  Web Based Knowledge Infrastructures for the Sciences: An Adaptive Document , 2000, Commun. Assoc. Inf. Syst..

[44]  Varun Grover,et al.  Profiling successful reengineering projects , 1998, CACM.

[45]  Linda Reichwein Zientek,et al.  Book Review: Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analysis: Understanding Concepts and Applications , 2007 .

[46]  Thomas H. Davenport,et al.  The New Industrial Engineering: Information Technology and Business Process Redesign , 2011 .

[47]  Eric K. Clemons,et al.  Identifying Sources of Reengineering Failures: A Study of the Behavioral Factors Contributing to Reengineering Risks , 1995, J. Manag. Inf. Syst..

[48]  Chorng-Shyong Ong,et al.  Knowledge-based organization evaluation , 2008, Decis. Support Syst..

[49]  David E. Booth,et al.  Multivariate statistical inference and applications , 1997 .

[50]  児玉 文雄.  Harvard Business Review : 抄録雑誌の概要 , 1987 .

[51]  Richard Archer,et al.  BPR consulting: an evaluation of the methods employed , 1995 .

[52]  V. Daniel Hunt,et al.  Process Mapping: How to Reengineer Your Business Processes , 1996 .

[53]  Avraham Shtub,et al.  Business Process Improvement , 2020, Service Science.

[54]  Keng Siau,et al.  Are use case and class diagrams complementary in requirements analysis? An experimental study on use case and class diagrams in UML , 2004, Requirements Engineering.

[55]  Jeanne Harris,et al.  Enterprise systems and ongoing process change , 2004, Bus. Process. Manag. J..

[56]  H. S. Wilson,et al.  Research in Nursing , 1985 .

[57]  Varun Grover,et al.  Special Section: Toward a Theory of Business Process Change Management , 1995, J. Manag. Inf. Syst..