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Business Process Improvement| In the late 80's business was revolutionized by inventing better, faster, and more profitable business processes, which required less resources, yielded less errors, reduced redundancy, increased profitability, speed to market, and quality of the end product or service. We saw the value of the Tower of Babel principle, where we increased our productivity by each person building upon the efforts of others, instead of each re-inventing the wheel. Data didn't have to be printed out, put in a folder and handed to someone, who then re-entered it, and passed it to the next person, as in a relay race. Data could be transferred in electronic instead of paper form. This allowed us to get more done in less time, leading to greater profits. Business Process Re-Engineering (BPR) was able to revolutionize the corporatioin through Local Area Networks (LAN) and Wide Area Networks (WAN), encapsulating and re-engineering business processes throughout a corporation or small business. As these business processes were encapsulated into workflows and various software and database applications, the savings were able to be passed on to many, or allowed those who implemented these improved processes to gain market advantage and position. Now, in the new millennium, the internet brings new ways to think outside of the box, to bring revolutionary new improvements. We have the opportunity to adjust the way we do things that will once again bring increased productivity. For instance, in the early nineties, the leadership of MEC helped develop a business process in the mortgage industry that reduced the time it took to approve loans from 3 weeks to 15 minutes. That is a radical difference, and it became standard throughout the industry within a couple years. Now, we have the ability to use a (1) common browser interface, (2) each person in the process can work in real-time, (3) enter their information into a common database, (4) from anywhere in the world. Whether that is an appraiser using a palm pilot, or a loan officer in a client's home using a wireless laptop, or an underwriter working from his home. We are currently working on a process that would allow loans to be closed on the same day. In the increasing competitive business world, if you don't improve the way you do things for the better, you're competitors will. There are lots of ways to change the way you work and live for the better. MEC can work with you to identify the current processes you use, whether they are already on paper, in a dynamic model, or in the head of those doing the work, then model them, and re-engineer with you ways to increase productivity and profitability. Take the genius and knowledge of your personnel and encapsulate the business logic into a system that can improve, as you do. After the introduction of the PC in the early eighties, it took 7 to 10 years before people figured out how to use this technology to change the way we work through process re-engineering. But, once it was incorporated, partly due to the economic downturn, it had a major boom effect on our economy, combined with the peace dividend, tax law changes, and the eventual rise of the internet. Even though its been over 12 years since the internet has become available, the primary use of the internet has been as a marketing tool, but now those who are forward-thinking are looking to web technologies to improve things again, and actually do things that affect ROI, not just be brochureware. Also see Optimization |
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