making-sense-of-change-management

IT-based process change• enable choices to be made about how the company is structured whileretaining the necessary level of central control;• produce better information, with a greater level of detail than waspossible before, and make it available faster to allow better decisionsto be made;• enable 24-hour working to maximize the ability to serve the globe andmake best use of resources;• encourage greater staff involvement by making information availableto more people in the company;• increase the opportunity for flexible working on the road or at home;• reduce staff costs;• increase the value of skills and knowledge by sharing information well.Consider the growth in the use of SAP systems as an example of howcompanies are responding to the need to realize some of the potentialgains listed above. SAP is a company that provides enterprise-wide applicationsthat can satisfy most of a business’s activities. SAP global saleshave seen phenomenal growth from US$500 million in 1991 to US$2,400million in 1996. Companies are obviously impressed by the powerfulsystem, but there are many stories of the painful struggles that peoplehave to go through before they achieve optimum usage of the software.It is certainly not an easy ride to move from strategy to implementation.IMPLEMENTING IT WORLDWIDE –WHAT’S IN IT FOR THEM?It all started in the Head Office in the United States. We developed a strict planof action. We had a very clear timetable for the coming 18 months. A series ofconference calls with the financial directors in each region made it clear whatthe time frame was for rolling out the system, and what needed to be done inpreparation for this. However, when the moment came, they just were notready, despite continuous reassurances that it would be done in time.283