28 Sep How important are business processes to an organization?

DOC650 Technology and Business Process Improvement

Module 1 Discussion

DQ1 How important are business processes to an organization?

Part A. If business processes are so important:

 

Why don’t organizations document them and make them part of their “way of doing business,” or do they? if so, what do they call them?

 

Can an organization exist without processes?

 

Does it make sense to automate every process in an organization? Which ones might you automate? Which ones might you not automate? Justify your answers with references.

 

DQ2 Business merger impacts.

 

Part B: What happens to business processes when two large companies integrate (via merger) into one? How should they determine what to do with respect to business processes and associated information technology? Who are the participants in this determination?

 

 

 

DOC650 Technology and Business Process Improvement

 

Module 2 Discussion

 

DQ1 Are the five components of a process really necessary?

 

Based on the your personal knowledge and what you have read, build a brief case to defend why a process requires or does not require any part of the 5 components (input, resources, constraints, activities, and output).

 

Can you think of any instance of an organizational process without one of the above?

 

DQ2 Most important process components

 

Based on what you have read and your experience, explain which component of a process you think is the most important and why.

 

 

 

DOC650 Technology and Business Process Improvement

 

Module 3 Discussion

 

Who is responsible for organizational development activities (ODA)?

 

Identify an organization that you are familiar with. Answer the following questions:

 

Who is responsible for ODA?

 

Of the various ODA methods discussed, which ones did they demonstrate supporting?

 

Was learning to use the IT systems to support critical organizational processes demonstrated?

 

Do you think they are aware of factors that inhibit learning of processes? If so, what are they doing to address it? If not, what would you recommend to address these shortfalls?

 

 

 

DOC650 Technology and Business Process Improvement

 

Module 4 Discussion

 

Who’s responsible?

 

Identify an organization you are familiar with. Answer the following questions:

 

Which of the generic business processes did they seem to execute?

 

What organizational element was the “lead” for each one?

 

Where there any challenges between the staff elements in supporting the lead?

 

Who was responsible (i.e., the lead) for the IT systems used in the above processes?

 

DOC650 Technology and Business Process Improvement

 

Module 5 Discussion

 

Who’s responsible for IT systems?

 

Identify an organization you are familiar with. Answer the following questions:

 

How many IT systems are used? Just guess and also name at least two specifically.

 

What organizational element is the technical lead for each one and who is the process or user representative for each one?

 

Using one of the IT theories in the case, describe whether the IT system “works” (i.e., is useful, successful, etc.).

 

 

 

DOC650 Technology and Business Process Improvement

 

Module 6 Discussion

 

Please assess your performance in this class.

 

How well do you believe you understand and can articulate:

 

Organizational structures and processes as well as their relationships. The roles of information technology within an organization.

 

Generic business processes operating at different levels of any organization regardless of how they are structured. Process complexity. Differences between the types of information technology systems operating at various levels of an organization.

 

How members of organizations learn about processes as well as environmental factors that inhibit learning. Whether organizations specifically train individuals on the IT systems to support the processes.

 

Generic processes within organizations and their associated IT systems and how they may interrelate.

 

How to assess whether an IT solution meets organizational process needs.

 

After responding to the Reflective Discussion above, please complete an anonymous Course Evaluation Survey. Instructors are not able to view course evaluation reports until after the grade submission period is over. Thank you for your feedback.