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5
Each of the steps in the business process mapping process is crucial to fully implementing a busi-
ness process. Of all these steps, it is perhaps the institutionalization of the process that is most
important in successfully translating a process into a core process within an organization. The
research from the case studies suggests that implementing a process change and integrating vari-
ous processes often occur at the operations level, but institutionalizing the process typically requires
the participation and support of higher levels of the organization. Proven processes can benefit the
organization and the participants for a few years, but institutionalization of a process is important
to guarantee that the process will sustain and evolve beyond the current players and champions.
Enablers that led to the successful integration and institutionalization of business processes were
identified in many of the case studies. Among these enablers were the following:
· Clear identification of performance measures and targets to provide senior-level managers with
an incentive for process change;
· Implementation of effective evaluation and reporting abilities to clearly demonstrate the success
of a process and communicate the benefits to the public; and
· Development of formal agreements to demonstrate buy-in of each participating agency and
ensure consistency as personnel change over time.
Institutionalization is the final stage for implementing a process change. It should include
clear documentation of the process, the roles and responsibilities of the players, and the perfor-
mance metrics used to evaluate effectiveness. The level of documentation will be unique to each
organization but should reflect the complexity of the business process and the level of commit-
ment from senior management.
Recommendations
As noted earlier, process integration can be divided into two distinct aspects: at the operations level
and at the institutional level. Through the case study development process, unique benefits were
identified that result from process integration at both the operations level and the programmatic
and institutional levels. Benefits can include increased efficiency, more savings in financial and staff
resources, greater scalability and flexibility of systems, and more integrated institutional processes.
It is recommended that process integration be considered at the operational level to improve an
agency's ability to effectively use its resources. Process integration can provide financial savings as
a result of improved cooperation, reduced capital expenditures, and efficient use of staff. Process
integration can allow agencies to plan for an integrated system that can be implemented in a scal-
able format that can grow commensurately with needs. By integrating agencies and processes early
in the planning process, agencies are less likely to miss opportunities for integration and are more
likely to build systems that can expand to meet future needs. Finally, the formal documentation
of a process and of changes to the process will allow agencies to identify any correlation that
might exist between changes to the process and performance metrics. As changes are made to a
process, it is important to determine if those changes resulted in any measurable difference in
performance. By documenting a process and any resulting change, agencies can keep a record of
the processes they follow and compare changes in the process with changes in the performance
metrics.
It is recommended that process integration be considered at the institutional level to allow agen-
cies to define clear agency responsibilities that can improve cooperation and trust, because each
agency and department understands its role and its partner agency's role in effectively carrying out
a process. Documentation of these roles and responsibilities can provide additional benefit, inas-
much as it records the roles and responsibilities that should not change even if personnel change.
Buy-in from higher-level management at agencies is a key to establishing a process that is effective
and remains in place. Processes that have support from the upper levels of management are more
likely to remain in place and be viewed as a high priority by all levels of staff within an agency.
