REPUBLIC OF KENYA
MINISTRY OF STATE FOR PUBLIC SERVICE
IMPLEMENTATION OF BUSINESS PROCESS
REENGINEERING (BPR) IN THE PUBLIC SERVICE
BPR IMPLEMENTATION MANUAL
November, 2011
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FOREWORD
For quite a long time now, the Public Service has been implementing various reforms in a bid
to improve performance and deliver better public services. All these initiatives have led to
remarkable improvements. In 2004, for instance, the Government adopted the concept of
Results Based Management to deliver demonstrable results to Kenyans. Consequently,
Performance Contracting and Rapid Results Initiatives are being implemented and have
greatly improved the performance of the Public Service. However, the need to attain the
Kenya Vision 2030, of becoming a globally competitive and prosperous nation with a high
quality of life; and meet the expectations of the Kenya Constitution 2010 have presented new
challenges for the Public Service.
Even with the current reform initiatives Kenya is poorly ranked at position 109 out of 138
countries in the World Bank Doing Business Index, May 2011. This uncompetitive ranking is
mainly due to the lengthy, duplicated and largely manual processes inherent in the delivery of
public services that discourage investors and lead to a lot of customer complaints. Although
there are a lot of on-going efforts to automate services, sometimes the wrong processes are
automated and this done in silos without integration with key stakeholders.
The Government has therefore decided to introduce Business Process Re-engineering by
setting up a National Steering Committee and a Government Business Process Re-engineering
Secretariat to coordinate and support re-engineering of processes with the appropriate use of
Information, Communication and Technology to re-design integrated and simplified processes
that will offer high quality services conveniently to all customers; and not only reduce the cost
of service provision but also the cost of accessing the services.
This BPR Manual therefore provides information on what BPR is; how it shall be implemented
in the Public Service; the Institutional Framework that shall govern implementation and the
relationship between BPR and other on-going reform initiatives. All Ministries, Departments
and Agencies are required to re-engineer their business processes to continuously improve
their service delivery based on global standards and modern technology.
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Amb. Francis K. Muthaura, EGH
Permanent Secretary, Secretary to the Cabinet and
Head of the Public Service, Office of the President
NAIROBI
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to members of the National Business
Process Re-engineering Steering Committee on Business Process Re-engineering for their
guidance of the process of implementing BPR in the Public Service.
Special thanks are due to the following individuals who willingly shared their knowledge on
BPR during the benchmarking exercise conducted by the Inter-ministerial BPR Technical Team:
Dr.Julius Kipng'etich – Director, Kenya Wildlife Service; Mr. Michael Waweru – Commissioner
General, Kenya Revenue Authority; and Mr. Alex Kabuga – Implementation Team Leader,
National Single Window Project.
Lastly, I congratulate the BPR Inter-ministerial Technical Team led by Ms. Jacqueline Otwori for
their diligence in preparing this Manual and other documents necessary for implementation of
Business Process Re-engineering in the Public Service.
Titus M. Ndambuki, CBS
Permanent Secretary
Ministry of State for Public Service
NAIROBI
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
FOREWORD.............................................................................................................................................. III
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................................................ V
1. INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................... 1
1.1 PURPOSE...................................................................................................................................... 1
1.2 DEFINITION OF BPR ....................................................................................................................... 1
1.3 BPR IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR ............................................................................................................. 1
1.4 RATIONALE FOR INTRODUCING BPR IN KENYA’S PUBLIC SERVICE ............................................................ 1
1.5 DOCUMENT ORGANIZATION AND READING SUGGESTION ........................................................................ 2
2. BUSINESS PROCESS REENGINEERING (BPR)....................................................................................... 3
2.1 THE CONCEPT OF BPR ..................................................................................................................... 3
2.2 HISTORY OF BPR ........................................................................................................................... 3
2.3 PRINCIPLES OF BPR ....................................................................................................................... 4
2.4 ROLE OF ICT IN BPR ...................................................................................................................... 4
2.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF LEADERSHIP .......................................................................................................... 5
2.6 CHANGE MANAGEMENT................................................................................................................... 5
2.7 RISK MANAGEMENT ....................................................................................................................... 6
2.8 CHARACTERISTICS OF REENGINEERED PROCESSES ................................................................................. 7
2.9 BPR SUCCESS FACTORS .................................................................................................................. 8
2.10 BENEFITS OF BPR .......................................................................................................................... 9
2.11 PROCESS MODELING ..................................................................................................................... 10
3. BPR IMPLEMENTATION METHODOLOGY .......................................................................................... 11
3.1 PREPARING FOR REENGINEERING ..................................................................................................... 12
3.1.1 Determine need for BPR ................................................................................................... 13
3.1.2 Build a cross functional team ............................................................................................ 13
3.2 MAPPING AND ANALYZING CURRENT (“AS IS”) PROCESSES ..................................................................13
3.2.1 Map “As Is” Business Processes ......................................................................................... 13
3.2.2 Analyze “As Is” Business Processes .................................................................................... 14
3.3 DESIGNING “TO BE” PROCESSES .................................................................................................... 14
3.3.1 Benchmarking ................................................................................................................. 15
3.3.2 Map “To Be” Business Processes........................................................................................ 15
service points, and also the actors involved. ................................................................................. 15
3.3.3 Select “To Be” Business Processes ....................................................................................... 16
3.4 IMPLEMENTING REENGINEERED PROCESSES ...................................................................................... 16
3.4.1 Generate list of change requirements ................................................................................. 16
3.4.2 Develop a project work plan ............................................................................................. 16
3.5 MONITORING AND EVALUATION .......................................................................................................17
4. MINISTRY/ AGENCY GBPR GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE ..................................................................... 19
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4.1 PROCESS STEERING COMMITTEE ..................................................................................................... 20
4.2 PROCESS OWNER ......................................................................................................................... 20
4.3 PROJECT MANAGER ....................................................................................................................... 21
4.4 CHANGE MANAGEMENT TEAM ......................................................................................................... 21
4.5 PROCESS TEAM ............................................................................................................................ 21
4.6 TECHNOLOGY TEAM ...................................................................................................................... 22
4.7 PROJECT CONSULTANT.................................................................................................................. 22
5. PROCEDURE FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF BPR .................................................................................. 23
6. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQS) ......................................................................................... 25
7. CONCLUSION ..................................................................................................................................... 29
8. APPENDICES ...................................................................................................................................... 30
APPENDIX 1: CASE STUDIES ......................................................................................................................... 30
APPENDIX 2: PUBLIC SERVICE BPR GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE .............................................................................. 42
APPENDIX 3: GLOSSARY ................................................................................................................................. 43
APPENDIX 4: BPR TARGETED PROCESSES APPROVAL FORM.................................................................................. 46
APPENDIX 5: BPR TRACKING SHEET ................................................................................................................. 47
APPENDIX 6: FURTHER READING SUGGESTIONS .................................................................................................. 48
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1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 Purpose
This document is a Business Process Reengineering (BPR) Implementation Guide intended for
use by Kenya’s public service officers to implement BPR in their departments.
1.2 Definition of BPR
Business Process Reengineering (BPR) is the fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of
business processes to achieve dramatic improvements in key performance indicators such as
cost, quality, cycle time, and customer satisfaction. BPR seeks to enable organisations to
achieve quantum leaps in performance by embracing innovative processes that result in
improved service delivery.
1.3 BPR in the Public Sector
Whereas BPR was mainly practised in the private sector, it is now being adopted in the public
sector to transform business processes and achieve dramatic improvements in service
delivery. Adoption of BPR facilitates reduced bureaucracy; affordable, faster and higher quality
services for the customer; better management of public resources and greater transparency.
Countries that have achieved dramatic economic and social development attribute their
success to the reform and modernization of their public services as a result of embracing BPR
principles.
1.4 Rationale for Introducing BPR in Kenya’s Public Service
Through the adoption of the Kenya Vision 2030 and the passing of the Kenya Constitution
2010, the people of Kenya have outlined their vision for a prosperous nation with a vibrant
economy and a high quality of life. Kenya is an expensive business destination currently ranked
at position 109 out of 138 in the World Bank Doing Business Index as at January 2012. This is
largely due to the lengthy procedures and processes in service delivery. In order to achieve the
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vision of becoming a globally competitive and prosperous nation and respond to the Kenya
Constitution that has empowered Kenyans with the right to quality services, there is an urgent
need to build strong and effective public institutions. BPR offers a means by which radical
transformation of the public service can be achieved, through rethinking and radical redesign
of business processes to enable innovation and maximum use of technology.
1.5 Document Organization and Reading suggestion
The subsequent sections of this document are organized as follows:
Chapter 2: This presents an in-depth definition of BPR for the benefit of readers not well
acquainted with the concept as well as those who wish to reacquaint themselves with the
concept.
Chapter 3: BPR Implementation Methodology is the recommended methodology for
implementing BPR in Kenya’s public service.
Chapter 4: Ministry/Agency BPR Governance Structure is the structure that shall be used to
implement BPR at the Ministry/Agency level.
Chapters 5: Procedure for Ministry/Agency BPR implementation defines the procedure that
shall be used to implement BPR at the Ministry/Agency level.
Chapters 6: This chapter presents Frequently Asked Questions
Chapter 7: This contains the Conclusion and Appendices to this document.
Readers who are conversant with the BPR concept and are only interested in understanding
the recommended BPR implementation methodology and procedure, as pertains to Kenya, are
advised to go straight to Chapters 3, 4, 5 and Appendix 1: Case studies.
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2. BUSINESS PROCESS REENGINEERING (BPR)
2.1 The concept of BPR
Business Process Reengineering (BPR) is the fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of
business processes to achieve dramatic improvements in critical, contemporary measures of
performance, such as cost, quality, service and speed (Hammer & Champy, 1993). The
highlighted key words in this definition of BPR mean the following:
i. Fundamental rethinking – When conducting BPR, it is important to ask the most basic
questions about how an organization operates. Answers should be provided for why
the organization does what it does and why it does things the way they are done. These
basic questions facilitate the examination of the assumptions that underlie the way
organizations operate.
ii. Radical redesign – BPR calls for getting to the root of issues and making far reaching
changes rather than superficial ones in order to effectively solve problems. The power
of modern information technology enables radical redesign of business processes.
iii. Dramatic Improvements – The purpose of conducting BPR is to achieve quantum leaps
in performance. BPR is not for organizations that need slight performance
improvements.
iv. Business Processes – BPR focuses on business processes and not tasks. Reengineered
processes should be value adding, transcending departmental boundaries.
2.2 History of BPR
The beginnings of BPR can be traced to an article published by Michael Hammer, a former
professor of Computer Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), in the
Harvard Business Review. In his Article, Hammer pointed out that most organizations were
using technology to automate non-value adding work. He recommended the reengineering of
business processes to weed out non-value adding work before applying the power of
technology to automate the processes. Hammer expounded his ideas on BPR in the book
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Reengineering the Corporation: A Manifesto for Business Revolution published in 1993. The
private sector in the United States of America was the early adopter of BPR. Since then, BPR
has gained acceptance as the main way by which organizations (both private and public)
become more efficient and modernize.
2.3 Principles of BPR
i. Focus on the customer and generation of greater value for customers.
ii. Employees should be involved and empowered to make decisions for improvement.
iii. Non-value adding processes must be removed.
iv. BPR should focus on networking people and integrating related processes.
v. Harness the power of ICT but avoid over-sophistication. Software tools should not
replace creative thinking.
vi. Critical analysis of current rules, regulations, practises and legislation
2.4 Role of ICT in BPR
Information Communication Technology is an essential enabler of BPR. An awareness of the
capabilities of modern Information Communication Technology is essential because the
reengineering effort is provided with options for radical redesign. Examples of technologies
that enable BPR include:
i. Shared databases – Availing information in many places simultaneously. Work can thus
be performed simultaneously rather than sequentially as it was before shared
databases.
ii. Telecommunication networks – These allow organizations to be centralized and
decentralized at the same time. Telecommunication networks enable branch offices to
access information and thus be more empowered and serve customers better while
still enabling organizations to maintain central control of operations.
iii. Decision support tools – These knowledge management tools allow decision-making to
be a part of everybody’s job.
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iv. Wireless data communication and portable computers – Allowing field personnel to
work office independent.
v. Automatic identification and tracking technology – Such technology enables remote
tracking of assets thus resolving the need to establish where the assets are located.
It is important to involve employees in re-designing new processes and adopting the
appropriate ICT solutions.
2.5 Significance of Leadership
Top management commitment and leadership is the most important factor for a successful
BPR project. Leadership has to be effective, strong, visible, and creative in thinking and
understanding in order to provide a clear vision of the future. This vision must be clearly
communicated to all employees who then become actively involved and motivated rather than
directly guided. Commitment to and support for the change must constantly be secured from
senior management throughout the BPR project.
Most BPR implementation failures stem from breakdowns in leadership. Strong, aggressive,
committed, and knowledgeable leadership is necessary for the following reasons:
i. Commitment of adequate resources for the BPR project.
ii. Overcoming resistance to change.
iii. Continuous motivation and guidance of the implementation team.
iv. Championing of cultural transformation to support reengineering efforts.
2.6 Change Management
BPR entails radical change and therefore need for managing change in BPR implementation
cannot be overemphasised. Change is often associated with uncertainty and is usually resisted
if not introduced in a planned and systematic fashion. Effective change management ranks
only second to management commitment in terms of criticality as a success factor for BPR. A
significant number of BPR programmes fail to meet their objectives as a result of failure to
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effectively prepare their organizations for change. Table 1 below presents strategies that the
BPR Implementation team may employ to effectively manage change.
Table 1: Change Management Process
Activity Description
Assess Organizational Readiness Weigh the impact of change, identify key points of risk
and plans to address them.
Develop Future State Vision
Articulate the change in a concise and compelling manner
that can be shared broadly.
Engage Leaders Develop a plan to gain the buy-in and support of those
individuals most critical to success.
Communicate Develop a communication strategy and roll-out plan to
create understanding and drive acceptance.
Transition Staff Develop plans for staff transition, redeployment,
Separation and talent management.
Facilitate Individual Change Build change adaptability skills and help individuals
internalize and cope with the change.
Create Organizational Alignment Evaluate relevant functions, structures and strategies to
identify points of incongruence and develop plans for
alignment.
Train Develop a training strategy and implement training
programs to create proficiency for operating under the
new model.
Monitor and Remediate Measure degree of adoption, levels of performance, and
develop strategies to address gaps.
2.7 Risk Management
BPR initiatives face risks that must be managed effectively. The risks associated in
implementing BPR in the public sector include:
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i. Resistance to change
ii. Inadequate funding
iii. Lack of clear project ownership and responsibilities
iv. Lack of coordination (working in silos)
v. Organizational culture
vi. Lack of support and buy-in
2.8 Characteristics of Reengineered processes
i. Several jobs are combined into one – Combining several small jobs has the effect of
minimizing handoffs (moving of a transaction from one person to another) thereby
doing away with errors, delays and rework associated with handoffs.
ii. Employees are empowered to make decisions – This has the effect of reducing
bureaucracy and speeding up service delivery as the making of some decisions is
delegated to employees thus saving the time it would have taken them to obtain
approvals.
iii. Steps in business processes follow a natural order – Tasks within the process are not
necessarily accomplished in a linear fashion. Work should be arranged in a manner that
adds value to the customer including, where possible, having more than one task being
accomplished in parallel.
iv. Process may have multiple versions – Reengineering enables organizations to adopt
multiple channels of service delivery in order to meet the requirements of different
customer segments or situations.
v. Work is performed where it makes the most sense – Processes are concentrated where
they have the highest impact in meeting customer requirements.
vi. Controls, checks and other non-value-adding steps are minimized – Checks and controls
should only be used to the extent that they add economic value to the organization
and the customer.
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vii. Centralized data – Data may be centralized while the operations are decentralized. This
has the effect of speeding up processes while reducing chances of inconsistencies.
viii. A single point of contact is provided for the customer – This improves customer service
by offering a faster and more convenient service for customers.
2.9 BPR Success Factors
i. Management commitment - Commitment of the top management is the most
important success factor when implementing BPR. This is in order to provide necessary
buy-in, mobilise support and ensure the success of the project.
ii. Effective communication and stakeholder involvement - It is important to communicate
change, vision and strategies to create understanding and buy-in. Additionally, all
process stakeholders must be openly and actively involved and should be consulted at
all stages.
iii. Effective BPR teams - Cross-functional BPR teams are a critical component of successful
BPR as they facilitate the end-to-end (across functional boundaries) reengineering of
business processes. The team should be composed of members with experience in a
variety of skills and competencies; and should be made up of people from both inside
and outside the organization. It is also critical that the team be dedicated fully to the
BPR exercise to eliminate distractions and enhance success.
iv. Staff empowerment - Since BPR affects processes managed by employees, they need
to be involved in the process of reengineering. This establishes a culture in which staff
at all levels feel more responsible and accountable.
v. Capacity building – It is important to undertake training programs for employees to
gain understanding of the BPR process, accept the changes brought about by the re-
engineering effort and to be able to implement the new processes.
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vi. Effective planning and use of project management techniques - Proper planning for the
BPR project and application of proper project management techniques are key factors
in delivering a successful BPR project on time.
vii. Adequate resources - Adequate resources and a sufficient budget are important for a
successful BPR project.
viii. Benchmarking - Benchmarking is a critical element for successful BPR efforts as it is an
effective technique for learning.
ix. Effective use of consultants – Consultants bring to the organisation specialised skills,
experience, and know-how that the organisation needs that would otherwise be both
time-consuming and expensive to build internally.
2.10 Benefits of BPR
Successful implementation of BPR results in the achievement of dramatic improvements in
cost, quality, cycle time, and customer satisfaction. Below are some specific benefits of BPR:
i. Faster customer service - Reengineered processes have reduced inspections, checks
and controls leading to minimized bureaucracy hence faster service provision.
ii. Efficiency - BPR facilitates performance of work where it makes most sense as well as
performance of process steps in a more natural order leading to efficient utilization of
resources in service provision.
iii. Higher staff morale - By combining several jobs into one, BPR enriches jobs leading to
greater job satisfaction hence heightened staff morale.
iv. Reduced cost of doing business by the government – Creation of efficient processes
reduces the cost of service provision.
v. Reduced cost of accessing services by customers – Reengineering leads to reduced
processes that result in less costly services to the customers.
vi. Convenience – reengineered processes to bring services closer to the customer
vii. Enhanced global competitiveness
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2.11 Process Modeling
Process modelling aims at improving performance and optimizing efficiency by connecting
activities carried out in the provision of a specific service. Modelling techniques are used for
mapping processes in the delivery of a specific service.
Central to the concept of BPR is the “Process” which is a specific ordering of work activities
from the beginning up to the end, with clearly identified inputs and outputs. There are multiple
steps within a process. A “process step” is a discrete action (activity) taken by a specific actor
as part of the transformation of inputs into outputs. A “Business process” is a collection of
activities performed by different actors to produce a specific output for a particular
customer.No product or service can be delivered without a process. This is why processes are
significant.
Process maps illustrate how work flows, who is responsible, and how long the process takes.
They show processes in a simple and coherent manner thus facilitating analysis and
reengineering. Table 1 below shows the basic symbols used for process modelling.
Table 2: Basic Process Modelling Symbols
Process Diagram Symbol Meaning
An activity within a process
Process Start and End
Decision
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Process Diagram Symbol Meaning
Single document
Multiple documents
Direction of Process flow
Connector
N/B - used when connecting the Process Model from one
page to another.
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3.0 BPR IMPLEMENTATION METHODOLOGY
Implementation of BPR at the Ministry/Agency level shall entail five major stages as depicted in
figure 1 below.
Figure 1: The BPR Cycle
3.1 Preparing for Reengineering
Planning and preparation are vital for the successful implementation of a BPR project. The
following activities shall be carried out during the preparation phase:
1. Prepare for Reengineering
2. Map & Analyse “As Is”
Processes
5. Monitor & Evaluate Reengineered Processes
4. Implement Reengineered Processes
3. Design “To Be” Processes
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2.11.1 Determine need for BPR
Justification for reengineering business processes marks the initial step in preparing for BPR.
Top-level management needs to agree on the processes to be re-engineered and clearly define
the project vision.
2.11.2 Build a cross functional team
The next step is to build a committed cross-functional team with a clear mandate to carry out
the BPR exercise. This team should be guided by the project vision, which is informed by the
customer’s needs.
2.12 Mapping and Analyzing Current (“As Is”) Processes
2.12.1 Map “As Is” Business Processes
Mapping of the existing business processes facilitates understanding of the process before the
re-engineering team proceeds to analyze them. Definition of “As Is” processes involves
drawing of process models and stating how long the process takes as well as cost required by
the process in terms of resources.
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Example of mapping ‘As Is’ processes
Actors Steps/Activities
Patient
Registration Counter
Junior Doctor
Test StationsStaff
Cashier at Test Stations
1. Go to
hospital
2. Register
patient
4. Initial
consultation
(5 mins)
5. Prescribe
tests
3. Wait for
doctor
6. Go to test
stations
7. Perform
tests
(15 mins)
8. Wait for
results
9. Collect
results and
pay
10. Collect
paymentsTotal elapsed time: 2 hours (Average)
Next
sub
process
14
2.12.2 Analyze “As Is” Business Processes
Analysis of existing business processes is done to understand current processes and to identify
inefficiencies and bottlenecks. The analysis should include number of procedures per process,
length of process, service points, actors involved (including physical location), the cost of the
entire process, the cost of accessing the service by the customer (fees charged), rules,
regulations, practices, legislation governing the process, impact of current processes and
procedures on the country’s economy. This step helps to identify the processes to be
reengineered.
2.13 Designing “To Be” Processes
The objective of this phase is to propose one or more alternatives to the “As Is” business
process, which satisfy the strategic business goals of the organisation.
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2.13.1 Benchmarking
Benchmarking involves comparing the way an organisation’s processes are conducted as well
as performance of those processes with those of peer organizations in order to obtain ideas
for improvement. The peer organizations need not be competitors or even from the same
industry as innovative ideas may be obtained from diverse sources.
2.13.2 Map “To Be” Business Processes
After potential improvements to the existing processes are identified, envisaged (“To Be”)
business process models are mapped. Definition of the “To Be” business processes will also
entail detailing the number of procedures, the cost required by the process in terms of
resources, length of the process, service points, and also the actors involved.
Re-drawn ‘To Be’ processes
Actors Steps/Activities
Patient
Registration Counter
Junior Doctor
Test StationsStaff
Cashier at Test Stations
2a. Self registration
3. Go to test stations
4. Perform tests
Total elapsed time: 45 minutes (Average)
1. Go to hospital
SMS reminder
2b. Register at counter
Next sub process
Queue No.
e-Test results
17
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3.3.3 Select “To Be” Business Processes
This shall only be done for those cases where several “To Be” Business Processes have been
proposed to resolve specific challenges. Upon mapping of the “To Be” Business Process
Model(s), the best possible “To Be” business process is selected.
N/B – At the end of this step, the team should have a list of Reengineered Business Processes
to be implemented.
2.14 Implementing Reengineered Processes
Reengineering efforts are likely to meet most resistance during this phase and therefore
implementation must be accompanied by effective leadership and appropriate change
management programmes to ensure smooth implementation of Reengineered processes. It is
prudent to initiate and run a change management programme concurrently with the
reengineering effort from the beginning of the exercise in order to adequately prepare the
organization for change and to build a culture where people accept change.
2.14.1 Generate list of change requirements
After the “To Be” Business Processes to be implemented have been selected, a list of change
requirements is generated. This is a list of initiatives (Projects) that need to be undertaken in
order to implement the reengineered business processes. These may include training,
reorganization of functions, reviewing rules, regulations and legislation, and other HR
functions.
2.14.2 Develop a project work plan
Once the list of change requirements is ready, a project work plan is developed detailing the
activities, timelines, responsibilities, cost and expected outcomes.
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2.15 Monitoring and Evaluation
Upon implementation of the Reengineered Business Processes, monitoring and evaluation
must be carried out to assess the progress and effectiveness of the reengineered Business
Processes in achieving the project vision. This should be done on a continuous basis. Where
appropriate corrective action should be taken to ensure that the reengineered processes are
achieving the project vision and the organization’s objectives.
Figure 2 below is a summary of the BPR implementation methodology described in the
sections above.
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Figure 2: BPR Implementation Process
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3. MINISTRY/ AGENCY GBPR GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE
At the Ministry/ Agency level, the institutional structure for BPR implementation shall be as
illustrated in Figure 3: Ministry/ Agency BPR Governance Structure, below. The structure for
Implementing BPR across the entire Public Service is included as Appendix 2: Public Service BPR
Governance Structure.
Figure 3: Ministry/Agency BPR Implementation structure
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3.1 Process Steering Committee
This shall be formed at the appropriate level (Sector, Ministry, Agency or County) and be
chaired by a Permanent Secretary (or any other appropriate person for the Sector or process
under consideration). It will consist of the senior management of the Ministry (or sector)
including Heads of Departments and CEOs of relevant agencies, as well as key players from the
private sector depending on the process being reengineered. The major roles of this
committee shall be to:
i. Plan the organisation’s overall reengineering strategy.
ii. Handle overarching issues that are beyond the scope of individual processes and
projects.
iii. Prioritize and decide on processes to be reengineered.
iv. Allocate resources for reengineering projects.
v. Appoint a Process Owner who will champion the BPR implementation programme.
vi. Develop appropriate change management programs.
vii. Monitor and evaluate the progress and impact of BPR projects.
3.2 Process Owner
This shall be a Senior Manager in charge of a specific process and the reengineering effort
focused on it. The functions of the Process Owner shall be:
i. Formation of the BPR project team.
ii. Obtaining the resources required by the BPR project team.
iii. Supervising the BPR Project Manager.
iv. Inspiring, motivating, and advising the BPR Project team.
v. Protecting the project team from any negative consequences of the reengineering
effort.
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3.3 Project Manager
The Project Manager shall be responsible for the day-to-day management of the reengineering
exercise. Functions of the project manager shall be as follows:
i. To supervise the process, technology, and change management teams.
ii. Planning for the re-engineering effort.
iii. Project risk management.
iv. Project financial management.
v. To prepare periodic progress reports for management.
vi. Escalation of issues beyond his/ her mandate to the Process owner for resolution.
vii. Inspire and motivate the project team members.
viii. Supervision of project consultant(s).
3.4 Change Management Team
The change management team shall be headed by a team leader reporting to the project
manager. This team’s role shall be to:
i. Ensure that the organization is adequately prepared for the changes that are expected.
ii. The team shall ensure that change is introduced in a planned and systematic fashion in
order to reduce the risk of resistance to change.
iii. Carry out sensitisation and training programmes for staff.
iv. Develop necessary BPR-related documents, e.g. Communication and Training Strategy.
3.5 Process Team
This team shall mainly comprise officers from the process being reengineered as well as
representation from other (related) processes in the organisation. Other members of the team
may be drawn from Human Resources, Finance, Procurement and Legal departments. Their
specific role shall be to:
i. Map, analyse, and develop alternatives for improvement of the current processes.
ii. Implement the reengineered processes.
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3.6 Technology Team
This team shall be made up of ICT officers. The team’s role shall be to:
i. Advise the project manager, process team, and the change management team on IT
solutions for the process being undertaken.
ii. Develop and implement appropriate IT systems for the process being reengineered.
iii. Manage, maintain and support the IT systems running the reengineered process.
3.7 Project Consultant
Where required, a project consultant shall be procured to play an advisory role on BPR. The
consultant shall report directly to the project manager.
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4. PROCEDURE FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF BPR
This chapter presents the procedure that shall be used to implement BPR at the Ministry/
Agency level. It explains how the methodology presented in Chapter 3 shall be applied; how
the various roles described in chapter 4 shall relate to each other; and how the various BPR
tools in the appendices shall be used.
Table 3 below summarises the procedures by outlining roles, responsibilities, and expected
documentation.
Table 3: BPR Implementation Procedure Summary Table
Role Responsibility
Documentation
1. Determine need for Reengineering
Ministry/ Agency BPR Steering Committee
Steering Committee Minutes
2. Appoint Process Owner Ministry/ Agency BPR Steering Committee
Steering Committee Minutes
3. Nominate the Project team Process owner List of nominated Project Manager and Project team members
4. Approve names of project team members
Ministry/ Agency BPR Steering Committee
Steering Committee Minutes
5. Coordinate issuance of appointment letters to Project team Members
Process Owner BPR Project team appointment letters
6. Develop BPR Project charter BPR Project Team Project Charter
7. Endorse Project Charter Process Owner Endorsed Project Charter
8. Approve Project Charter Ministry/ Agency BPR Steering Committee
Approved Project Charter
9. Map “As Is” Business Processes
BPR Project Team Mapped “As Is” Business Processes
10. Approve “As Is” Business Processes
Process Owner Approved “As Is” Business Processes
11. Analyse “As Is” Business Processes
BPR Project Team “As Is” Business Processes Analysis Report
12. Select target “As Is” Business Processes to Reengineer
BPR Project Team Filled BPR Targeted Processes Approval Form
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Role Responsibility
Documentation
13. Approve targeted “As Is” Business Processes
Process Owner Approved BPR Targeted Processes Approval Form
14. Obtain ideas for Reengineering
BPR Project Team Various reports for example Benchmarking reports.
15. Map “To Be” Business Processes
BPR Project Team Mapped “As Is” Business Processes
16. Select the most suitable “To Be” Business Processes (For cases where multiple “To Be” processes have been proposed)
BPR Project Team “To Be” Business Processes document
17. Generate list of change requirements
BPR Project Team List of change requirements
18. Develop a proposed transition plan
BPR Project Team Proposed Transition Plan
19. Compile the BPR document (Composed of the “As Is” and “To Be” Business Processes as well as the lit of change requirements and the proposed transition plan)
BPR Project Team BPR document
20. Endorse the BPR document Process Owner Endorsed BPR document
21. Approve the BPR document Ministry/ Agency BPR Steering Committee
Approved BPR document
22. Oversee implementation of BPR change requirements
BPR Project Team Periodic Reports (as defined in the project charter)
23. Oversee implementation of “To Be” Business Processes
BPR Project Team Monitoring and evaluation reports to Process Owner
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5. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQs)
i. How is BPR different from ISO?
ISO Certification provides a standardized framework which requires organizations to
document existing processes and procedures and as much as possible adhere to them, but
make continual improvements in response to customer complaints. BPR, on the other
hand requires that organizations:
a. map the current processes;
b. analyze them in terms of
• how many procedures there are,
• how long the process takes,
• the cost of the process to the organization,
• the cost of accessing the service by the customer,
• the efficacy of rules, regulations, practices and legislation governing the
process and
• whether the processes are the most efficient and effective in meeting
customer expectations based on the environment;
c. Re-design and map new re-engineered processes; and
d. Implement the re-engineered processes.
ii. What is the relationship between BPR and Rapid Results Initiatives?
Rapid Results Initiatives are short term projects (usually 100 days) that are designed to deliver
results using the Rapid Results Approach based on the principles of Results Based
Management. Usually after the 100 days, there are profound results because the team is
controlled by the dates specified, there is a new temporary governance structure, and they
have handled things differently. However, after celebrating the good results, they go back to
business as usual and the good performance is difficult to sustain. This is because the
systems/processes in the organization were not changed; only the employees’ behavior and
attitude had changed.
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BPR on the other hand focuses on re-designing the processes for sustainable results. BPR
therefore greatly complements RRI and all other reform initiatives.
iii. Can BPR be applied in the public sector
Yes. In the past, the public sector was characterized by stability and risk aversion. Today,
the public sector requires a radical improvement approach that critically re-thinks and
redesigns mission delivery processes to achieve performance gains from customer and
stakeholder perspective.
iv. What is the relationship between BPR and IT?
BPR takes a fresh look at everything an organization does, and works to stimulate
significant change in how a business operates. Processes can today be incorporated into
today’s global data access technology, and for this reason reengineering is typically
accompanied by the development of new internal technology systems. Thus, general
knowledge of the state of technology market can be very helpful when undertaking BPR.
Automation of existing processes is not actually a solution to problem solutions.
v. Why do some BPR implementations fail?
BPR fails due to lack of top level commitment, inefficient methodology, inability to align
BPR with an organization’s goals, failure to put customer at the center of the
reengineering efforts, attempt to outsource key decision making.
vi. Does an organization need to be large to reengineer?
No. BPR is a change mechanism employed by organizations to bring radical change, fast,
to business processes. Any organization that is too large to get everyone around the
same table is large enough for reengineering, because such an organization will develop
the problems addressed by reengineering.
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vii. Do I start with one process? Two processes? Everything at once?
No organization can take up the unenviable task of reengineering all the processes
simultaneously. Choices are made based on: i) which processes are functioning the worst?;
ii) which are the most critical and influential in terms of customer satisfaction; iii) which
are the processes that are most likely to be successfully reengineered.
viii. After reengineering, what next?
In the aftermath of reengineering, the newly reengineered processes have to be managed
to achieve the performance levels they are capable of. Reengineering creates an
organizational environment in which hierarchy is diminished, workers are more skilled and
empowered, structures are more flexible and there is emphasis on work and not on
administration. Learning how to work and to manage in such an organization is a critical
requirement for harvesting the benefits of reengineering.
ix. How does Business Process Reengineering (BPR) differ from Total Quality Management
(TQM)?
BPR and TQM share a cross-functional orientation. TQM concentrate on incremental
change and gradual improvement of processes, while BPR seeks radical re-design and
radical improvement of process.
x. Isn’t reengineering just a management fad that attracts a lot of short-term attention
with little impact over the long-term?
No. Reengineering advocates strenuous hard work and instigates the people involved to
not only change what they do but targets at altering their way of thinking. Reengineering
does not also offer a single, narrow technique to solve all problems; rather, it is a massive
undertaking that entails rethinking every aspect of the business.
xi. Does BPR dehumanize the workplace and justify downsizing?
BPR realizes the two cornerstones of any organization: the people and the processes. The
BPR process is not all about downsizing. While downsizing focuses on the reduction of
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people so as to achieve short-term cost reductions, BPR focuses on rethinking the work
from ground up, eliminating work that is not necessary and finding better more effective
and efficient ways of doing work that is.
xii. Do I need a technical background to benefit from BPR Training?
A technical background is not assumed for this course. However, an awareness of
technical issues is helpful especially when discussing technology innovation and the effect
of these on reengineering. Knowledge of business operations and business practice is also
helpful.
xiii. How do I deal with resistance to BPR?
Resistance is caring about how things work and what is going to happen. It is easier
dealing with resistance than with apathy. Resistance is energy, and energy can usually be
made to work for you once you are able to identify concerns that cause the resistance and
address them. One thing to consider is that new ideas are no more sacred than the old
ones.
xiv. How does one choose the right consultant?
Ultimately, BPR is about examining values and beliefs of an organization. The right
consultant is one who is able to help your organization find the values and beliefs that are
right for you, and then help you move forward.
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6. CONCLUSION
One of the major foundations of Kenya’s vision 2030 is an efficient, citizen-focused and results
oriented public service. It is only through an efficient public service that the ambitious goals of
Vision 2030 can be attained. A radical transformation of the public service is necessary to
facilitate maximum exploitation of science, technology and innovation. BPR offers the best
means through which radical transformation of the public service and the resulting dramatic
economic and social progress for Kenya can be attained. Newly industrialized countries around
the world attribute their dramatic economic and social successes to radical public sector
reforms. For the envisaged radical transformation of the public service to be actualized, top
leadership in ministries and departments must render full support to the BPR initiative. Public
servants at all other levels should also share in the vision of an efficient public service and
support this reengineering initiative.
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7. APPENDICES
Appendix 1: CASE STUDIES
Case Study 1: Singapore’s Online Business Licensing System (OBLS)
The island nation of Singapore has an international reputation for being one of the most
business-friendly countries in the world. Indeed, Singapore has been ranked first in the world,
for five years in a row now, by The World Bank in the Ease of Doing Business Index. The ease
with which business people obtain trade licences is a major contributor to Singapore’s
admirable rankings.
Before reengineering of the licensing processes in Singapore, traders faced numerous
challenges in their quest for requisite licences. The process was unnecessarily lengthy and
complex, involved interaction with multiple government agencies each with its own way of
doing things, and was costly. In order to address these challenges, the Pro-Enterprise Panel, a
high-level joint public-private sector panel chaired by the Singaporean Head of Civil Service,
conceived the idea of setting up a One-Stop Portal for all Business Licensing Needs.
Upon reengineering of the licensing processes, Singapore implemented the Online Business
Licensing System (OBLS) in Aug 2005. This is a one-stop portal for traders to apply for all the
required Singapore government trade licences and permits via a single online transaction. The
system routes applications to various government agencies for processing thus eliminating the
need for traders to interact with multiple government agencies. OBLS is available at
http://business.gov.sg/licences.
BPR Process
The first step in the BPR process was an analysis of the licensing business Processes in use
then. The following fundamental questions were asked for each process:
i. Why is License A required?
ii. How is License A fulfilling its purpose?
iii. How is License A impacting business?
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iv. Are the supporting documents asked for necessary?
Answers to these fundamental questions determined whether a licence was maintained or
eliminated.
Upon completion of analysis and after obtaining ideas for reengineering, the BPR team
reengineered the licensing processes. This entailed simplification of the process by:
i. Clustering of related licenses in order to enable issuance of fewer licences by replacing
several licences with one.
ii. Eliminating non-value adding (unnecessary) process steps.
iii. Re-sequencing process steps.
After approval of the reengineered business processes, legislative and policy changes were
effected. Design & Implementation of OBLS was then carried out. Features of the portal
include:
i. A single, integrated Application Form.
ii. User-friendly features such as Help, Advisory Services and capability of Attaching
Documents to applications.
iii. Hyperlinks to Agency Websites.
iv. Automated verification of applications.
E-Services available via OBLS include:
i. Application for new licenses.
ii. Renewal of licenses.
iii. Updating of license particulars.
iv. Terminating of unwanted license.
v. Electronic payment for multiple licences via one consolidated transaction.
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The major challenge faced by the BPR team was resistance to change by the various license
issuing agencies. Examples of excuses given by the agencies to avoid reengineering included:
i. “Things have been working fine”
ii. “We cannot remove the license - it is in the Act”
iii. “Will you bare responsibility if things go wrong?”
High-level government commitment as well as an efficient change management programme
helped to overcome this resistance to change. The other challenge was the complexity of the
project owing to involvement of 30 government agencies.
BPR Changes
The table below outlines the changes brought about by implementation of OBLS:
Before OBLS With OBLS
i. Process was agency-centric tailored to
suit the needs of government
agencies
Process is Customer-Centric tailored to suit
the needs of the trading community
ii. Different Application Forms that
require same information
One integrated form
iii. Multiple payments for licences single payment for many licenses
iv. Different and often complex
processes for license application
A simple uniform process for licence
application
v. Different ways to check application
status
A uniform way to check application status
vi. Average time taken to issue a licence
was 21 days
Average time taken to issue a licence is 4 days
vii. Many supporting documents required Few supporting documents required with
most license applications not requiring
supporting documents at all.
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a) Benefits of BPR to Government
i. OBLS has enabled the Singaporean government to create a pro-business environment
thus attracting investors leading to economic growth.
ii. The government has been able to cut operation costs as a result of implementing a
consolidated license application system to replace multiple agency application systems.
It is approximated that the government has saved 40 million US Dollars since OBLS was
implemented.
iii. Delighting Citizens. Implementation of OBLS eliminated the numerous customer
complaints that had been there previously.
iv. National pride. The Singaporean government has won the following awards as a result
of implementing OBLS:
a) The 2005 United Nations Public Service Award.
b) ZDNet Asia Smart50 Award 2006
c) 2007 Computerworld Honors Program
d) MIS Asia IT Excellence Award 2007
b) Benefits to Customers/ Businesses
1. Faster issuance of licenses – OBLS has dramatically reduced waiting time for licenses.
2. A convenient licensing process – Citizens no longer need to physically transact with
multiple agencies. There is no need for travelling, queuing, and completing multiple
forms.
3. A simple license application process – OBLS’s user-friendly features and applicants’
ability to make a single payment for many licenses facilitate the application process.
4. Cost savings.
Lessons Learned
i. Significance of high-level government Support – success of the OBLS initiative is attributed
to the strong support offered by the Singaporean Government. This support enabled the
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project to obtain requisite resources, legislative changes to be effected and empowered
the project to overcome resistance to change.
ii. An effective project governance structure – The OBLS Implementation team was
composed of four cadres of officials. At the apex of the Project organization structure was
a Committee of Permanent Secretaries. Below the PSs committee was the OBLS Steering
Committee that guided the Technical team. The Technical team in turn coordinated the
work of Agency Task forces. This structure ensured adequate involvement of all
stakeholders.
iii. Importance of change management – This was a key factor in breaking resistance to
change. The project team ensured that public servants acquired a “service mindset”. This
mindset entails putting the interests of the Customer ahead of any other interests. This
“Service Mindset” was enforced through the adoption of Service Level Agreements,
Seminars and training sessions.
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Case Study 2: Kenya Revenue Authority – Customs Services Department
Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) is a government agency established on 1st July 1995 through
an Act of Parliament, Chapter 469 of the laws of Kenya, to collect revenue on behalf of the
Government of Kenya. KRA’s mission is to promote compliance with Kenya’s tax, trade and
border legislation and regulation. The Authority administers the Customs and Excise Act, East
Africa Customs Management Act, Value Added Tax (VAT) Act, Income Tax Act and the Traffic
Act.
Customs Services Department (CSD) is one of KRA’s Revenue departments.
Primarily, the department administers the Customs and Excise Act (CAP 472) of the Laws of
Kenya) and the East Africa Custom Management Act. The core business of CSD broadly
involves enforcement of prohibitions and restrictions to protect public safety, collection and
accounting of revenue, trade facilitation, and compilation of trade statistics for economic
planning. The department collects Import and export duties as well as fees on agency basis (on behalf
of other organisations).
Customs administrations play a key role in strengthening national economies by facilitating
trade. Modern Customs administrations have recognized that streamlining and simplifying
cargo clearance procedures is beneficial to customers (importers and exporters) and national
economies. This is because traders are facilitated to efficiently meet the challenges of better
product quality, lower costs and faster delivery of products. Prior to implementation of BPR
(achieved under the Customs Reform and Modernisation Programme), Kenyan traders as well
as the Kenyan economy suffered from the following adverse effects:
i. Port congestion that effected turn-around time for vessels.
ii. Complicated Customs procedures.
iii. Complex and non-transparent administrative requirements, often pertaining to
documentation.
iv. Unnecessarily lengthy and inconvenient (involving queuing) procedures for importers
and exporters.
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v. High costs for processing trade information.
BPR was undertaken to address these pain areas and to enhance the capability of Customs to
perform its core functions. An issue of critical concern during the BPR exercise was the time
taken to clear cargo at the various Customs stations. Figures 4 and 5 below describe the
importation process before and after BPR.
Importation Process BPR Changes
i. The role of Pre-shipment verification companies (inspection of cargo before
importation) was eliminated as it was deemed to be non-value adding and an
unnecessary burden (in terms of time and cost) on importers.
ii. The 16 manual declaration forms (there was a form for each type of customs
transaction) were replaced by a single online form.
iii. The declaration process was fully automated (via an online system) thus enabling
clearing agents to make declarations, on behalf of importers and exporters, at any time
(24hrs a day, 7 days a week).
iv. A Data Processing Centre (DPC) was set up to work around the clock (on a 24 hr basis)
to process declarations.
v. The calculation of taxes payable was automated making it faster and more accurate.
Officers previously involved in carrying out this function were redeployed to perform
more meaningful duties.
vi. Importers and exporters were allowed to make payments after making declarations
without having to wait for authorisation to make payments.
vii. Declaration processing was automated leading to a faster and more transparent
process. Only one officer is now involved in processing of a declaration.
N/B – Upon conducting BPR, KRA implemented the Simba 2005 system In July 2005.
The system enabled electronic submission of pre-clearance documentation online lodgement
of declarations, online declaration processing, and capture of payment details by banks.
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Benefits of BPR in KRA
BPR has enabled KRA to achieve the twin customs administration objective of facilitating trade
and improving revenue collection. Specifically, these objectives have been achieved as a result
of the following benefits:
i. Efficient and effective provision of services to customers and the general public
through online services.
ii. Reduced taxpayer/ staff interaction leading to a drastic reduction of incidences of
corruption.
iii. Seamless sharing of information with other revenue departments in KRA (Domestic
Taxes Department and Road Transport Department) as well as other government
agencies such as Kenya Ports Authority leading to faster clearance of cargo.
iv. Reduced cost of collection of taxes for KRA and reduced cost of compliance with
customs regulations for importers and exporters.
v. Improved staff performance measurement.
vi. Enhanced transparency and accountability.
Lessons Learned
i. Top management support is key in implementing BPR. In KRA, the success of the
reengineering initiative in Customs was largely due to support from senior
management and the Board of Directors. This support enabled the department to
overcome resistance to change.
ii. Stakeholder engagement is important in preparing people (both staff and customers)
for the changes brought about by BPR.
iii. Effective Project Management is necessary for successful reengineering.
iv. Innovation rather than automation is the key to successful reengineering. Ideas for
reengineering were obtained mainly through benchmarking.
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Figure 4: Importation Process before BPR (The bottom two rows constitute the Customs Process)
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Figure 5: Importation Process after BPR (The bottom two rows constitute the Customs Process)
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Case Study 3: Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS)
The Kenya Wildlife Service was established in 1989 with the mandate to conserve and manage
wildlife in Kenya, and to enforce related laws and regulations.
In 2004, before Business Process Reengineering, staff morale was low, there was poor
customer service, high levels of corruption, a negative corporate image, and poor stakeholder
relationships. KWS had continued to lose its talent, especially the critical scientists, who
helped manage bio-diversity. Thus there was an urgent need to re-engineer the organization.
The main objective of process reengineering was to develop better work processes in order to
support the organization’s mission and reduce costs.
In order to start the process of change, a number of areas were targeted. These areas
included people and culture; processes; products and services; structure; technology; and
markets.
Benefits of BPR to KWS
Process reengineering at KWS brought about many benefits to the organization. Some of
these benefits include the following:
i. Low operational costs - This was brought about mainly by the leveraging of IT in the
operations. This led to improved salaries for the staff and hence increased motivation
amongst the staff. Other employee benefits like housing, transport, training, and
promotion were put in place.
ii. Speedy delivery of service - E-tickets ensured that the customers could access the
service faster. Office automation also improved the internal processes which had
brought about inefficiencies in service delivery.
iii. Elimination of corruptive practices - Process reengineering brought about a lot of
transparency. The HRMIS software increased transparency in managing human
resources. The E-tickets also helped tame the runaway corruption experienced in the
parks before the reforms.
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iv. Enhanced corporate image - The reforms strengthened the partnerships of KWS with
its stakeholders and the public as well since the organization was able to respond to
the needs of the stakeholders with due speed and diligence.
v. Enhanced financial base - KWS has increased its income tremendously. Apart from
reducing corruption, the branding of parks as well as overall improvement of service
delivery has increased the number of tourists in the country.
vi. New organization structure - The project envisioned dramatic improvements in service
delivery. The use of the Balanced Scorecard in strategic planning brought about a
different organization structure which would be more supportive of the reengineered
organization.
Lessons Learned
a) To begin with, employees resisted change. This is a challenge that every organization
implementing BPR is likely to contend with. To surmount this challenge, BPR
implementers at KWS had to take time to gain support of the employees through change
management programmes.
b) Another challenge was unavailability of resources. This meant that the organization had
to prioritize areas to reengineer, depending on availability of resources and criticality of
processes among other factors.
c) Successful implementation of BPR at KWS was principally due to top level leadership
commitment. This commitment was a strong pointer to the rest of the employees that
there was determination to ensure successful implementation.
d) The BPR implementers at KWS ensured that there was effective communication. This
facilitated awareness of the new changes by staff and helped to secure their much needed
support.
e) The reengineering effort at KWS took cognizance of the important role of ICT. The
capabilities of ICT presented an opportunity to eliminate the manual processes that usually
impede service delivery. This had the effect of reducing handoffs which had created
inefficiency and avenues of corruption.
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Appendix 2: Public Service BPR Governance Structure
1.3 The BPR Implementation Governance Structure
Cabinet
Project Team
Process Owner
Project Team
Project Team Project Team
Sector- level
Process Steering
Committee
BPR Secretariat
National Steering Committee
Ministry – level Process Steering
Committee
Agency –level
Process Steering Committee
County Level Process Steering
Committee
Process Owner Process owner Process Owner
Inter-Ministerial
Technical Team
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Appendix 3: Glossary
Action plan: A simple way to set forth the specific steps that will be taken to carry out a
strategy or a task after a decision has been on what course to follow. It is also a way to record
and communicate intended actions, responsibilities, time frames, and needed resources.
Activities: The major components of the work done in a process. Each activity consists of (1)
input, (2) process, and (3) output. See “Input,” “Output,” and “Process.”
“As Is” Process Model: A model that portrays how a business process is currently structured.
In process improvement efforts, it is used to establish a baseline for measuring subsequent
business improvement actions and progress.
Benchmarking: A continuous search involving comparison of key processes with leading
achievers, to facilitate acquisition and application of significantly better practices that result in
superior competitive performance.
Best Practices: The processes, practices and systems identified in public and private
organizations that perform exceptionally well and hence recognized as improving an
organization’s performance and efficiency in specific areas.
Brainstorming: A group technique to generate ideas, options, or issues used to produce new
ideas that can support or refine objectives, while also providing the basis for future consensus.
Business Case: A structured proposal for business improvement to aid organizational decision
makers.
Business Process: A group of related activities by which an organization uses its resources to
provide defined results in support of its mission, goals and objectives.
Change Management: Activities involved in defining and instilling new values, attitudes,
norms, and behaviours within an organization that support new ways of doing work and
overcome resistance to change.
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Continuous Process Improvement: An on-going effort to achieve incremental improvements
in the way that products and services are provided and internal operations are conducted.
Customer: A person or group that has a business relationship with an organization, that
receives and uses or is directly affected by the products and services of that organization.
Cycle Time: The time that elapses from the beginning to the end of a process.
Handoff: The act or an instance of transferring responsibility for a transaction from one person
to another.
Information Technology (IT): Any equipment or interconnected system or subsystem of
equipment, that is used in the automatic acquisition, storage, manipulation, management,
movement, control, display, switching, interchange, transmission, or reception of data or
information by the executive agency.
Input: The financial or non-financial resources that an organization has obtained or received to
produce its outputs. See “Activities,” “Process,” and “Output.”
Model: A representation of a set of components of a process, system, or subject area. A model
is generally developed for understanding, analysis, improvement, or replacement of a process.
Modelling or Flowcharting: A graphic representation of the activities and sub processes within
a process and their interrelationships.
Output: The defined results from the application of the work done in a process with the use
and consumption of available resources.
Performance Measurement: The process of developing measurable indicators that can be
systematically tracked to assess progress made in achieving predetermined goals and using
such indicators to assess progress in achieving those goals.
Process: A set of related activities that together create value through products or services for
internal or external customers.
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Process Improvement: A disciplined approach to the simplification and streamlining of
business processes, using measurements and controls to aid continuous improvement.
Process Owner: An individual person held accountable and responsible for the workings and
improvement of one of an organization’s defined processes and its related sub processes.
Process Reengineering: A disciplined approach to the fundamental rethinking and radical
redesign of business processes to bring about dramatic improvements in performance. This
approach involves the critical examination, rethinking, and redesign of mission-delivery
processes in order to achieve dramatic improvements in performance in areas important to
customers and stakeholders.
Project: A one-time effort to accomplish an explicit objective by a specific time.
Project Management: Leadership of a project, which includes setting objectives in terms of
time, cost, quality, and quantity; defining project tasks, methods, and schedules; and carrying
out those project tasks.
Risk Analysis: A technique to identify and assess factors that may jeopardize the success of a
project or achievement of a goal.
Stakeholder: Anyone who has a vested interest in a process and in the outcome of improving
or reengineering the process or any individual or group with an interest in the success of an
organization in delivering its intended results and in maintaining the viability of the
organization’s products and services.
Strategic Plan: A set of statements describing the mission, goals and objectives of an
organization, along with strategies for achieving them.
“To Be” Process Model: The process model result of a business process redesign or
reengineering effort. The “to be” model shows how the business process will function after
the improvement action is implemented.
Republic of Kenya
Implementation of BPR in the Public Service – BPR Implementation Manual Page 46
Appendix 4: BPR Targeted Processes Approval form
BUSINESS PROCESS REENGINEERING
TARGETED PROCESSES APPROVAL FORM
Proposed Target
Process
Approved
Target Process
Comments (Explaining why approval
was not granted)
Functional Area A
Process A1 Process A1
Process A2 Process A2
Process A3 Process A3
Functional Area B
Process B1 Explanation why Process B1 was not approved
Process B2 Process B2
Process B3 Process B3
Process B4 Process B4
Project Manager (Name & Signature) Process Owner (Name & Signature)
Date Date
Republic of Kenya
Implementation of BPR in the Public Service – BPR Implementation Manual Page 47
Appendix 5: BPR Tracking Sheet
BUSINESS PROCESS REENGINEERING
PROCESSES TRACKING SHEET
‘As Is’ Business Process
ID & Name
BPR Changes Associated ‘To Be’ Business
Processes
Comment(s)
1. Write the ID and the name
of the “As Is” process
Write here all the changes that have
been introduced to the “As Is” process.
These changes may include doing away
with some process steps or the entire
process.
Write the ID and the name of
the “To Be” process
resulting from the
Reengineering exercise.
There may be none.
Include here any comments
including the reasons for the
BPR changes
2.
3.
4.
5.
Republic of Kenya
Implementation of BPR in the Public Service – BPR Implementation Manual Page 48
Appendix 6: Further Reading Suggestions
Archer R. & Bowker P., 1995, BPR Consulting: An Evaluation of the Methods Employed: Business Process Re-engineering & Management, V.1, No.2
Champy J., 1995, Re-engineering management: the mandate for new leadership, London, Harper-Collins.
Bennis, Warren, and Michael Mische. The 21st Century Organization: Reinventing through Reengineering.
San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1995.
Boardman, Anthony, David Greenberg, Aidan Vining, and David Weimer. Cost-Benefit Analysis: Concepts and Practice. 2d ed. Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 2001.
Chang, Richard. Process Reengineering in Action: A Practical Guide to Achieving Breakthrough Results. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Pfeiffer, 1995.
Coulson-Thomas C., 1998, “Managing innovation in public services: European and international experience”, in: Total Quality Management, Carfax Publishing Company, vol.9
Cressey P., Williams R. (1990). Participation in Change; New Technology and The Role Of Employee Involvement. European Foundation for the Improvement of the Living and Working Conditions. Dublin.
Davenport, T. H. (1998). Putting the Enterprise Into The Enterprise System. Harvard Business Review
Drucker P.F. (1991). The New Productivity Challenge, Harvard Business Review, 69:6, 69-79.
Edosomwan, Johnson. Organizational Transformation and Process Reengineering.
Delray Beach, Fla.: St. Lucie Press, 1996.
Hammer M. &Champy J., 1993, Re-Engineering the Corporation, A Manifesto for Business Revolution, New York, Harper Collins
Lockamy, A., & McCormack, K. (2004). The Development of a Supply Chain Management Process Maturity Model Using the Concepts of Business Process Orientation. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 9, 272-278.
McCormack, K., & Johnson, W. (2001). Business Process Orientation: Gaining the e-business competitive advantage. Delray Beach, FL: St Lucie Press.
Obolensky N., 1994, Practical Business Re-engeneering: tools and techniques for achieving effective change, London, Kogan Page.
Osborne D., &Gaebler T., 1992, Reinventing government: how the entrepreneurial spirit is transforming in the public sector, Reading, MA Madison-Wesley.
Schumacher, Wolf, “Managing Barriers to Business Reengineering Success,” BPR
OnLine Learning Center, 1997, http://www.prosci.com/w_0.htm.
Sethi, Vikram, and William R. King (eds.). Organizational Transformation Through Business Process Reengineering: Applying the Lessons Learned. Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 1998.