CIOs: Tired, but inspired?

by Jim Champy

May 29, 2001 —

I spend part of my time addressing managers about corporate change and renewal. Sometimes the managers are from a single company, and sometimes they're from different companies in different industries. But I have started to notice one common thread among them: They are tired.

There is no single source of their weariness. The past several years of economic exuberance have had everyone working and playing hard. In addition to performance pressures, IT has accelerated all work processes, and the reach of wireless phones leaves no uninterrupted time for rest and contemplation.

And we're about to be struck by the next wave of corporate change, caused in part by IT. Such waves are like the laws of physics: They can't be denied or avoided. Companies that don't adapt are in peril.

The work companies have been doing to re-engineer their supply chains and institute customer relationship management applications are just precursors to the amount of cross-company process change that will soon occur. There's just too much inefficiency in the way companies work together and in the way companies relate to their customers to avoid the opportunity to change. And the Internet now provides an important and ubiquitous piece of the technology infrastructure to make radical improvements possible.

I call this next wave of change "e-engineering." Recently, I was talking about my ideas with a group of managers, most of whom run large hospitals. I was surprised by the response from one gentleman. When I began talking about re-engineering, and then e-engineering, he pushed back with great force. "We did re-engineering several years ago. We improved our operations significantly," he said. Then he added, "I'll never do that again. It's just too hard."

I understood how he felt. Re-engineering is tough work that places many demands on people. Jobs change. Some people can do the new work, and others can't. You have to make hard decisions about people. If you get them wrong, you can end up with fewer people doing the same amount of work. And with the current wave of layoffs, we should be worrying about redesigning work so the people who are left can succeed.

There are many ways to do re-engineering, and now e-engineering, right. But the hard work won't be avoided. So, how can managers' weariness be lifted, or at least moderated? Let me suggest two ways.

First, give your change program, whatever it's called, a higher sense of purpose. Yes, companies must constantly reduce costs in order to compete. But if you focus only on costs, all you're likely to do is reduce head count. Focus also on the top line: How will you grow your business? What will you offer customers to make their experience with you more valuable? How will you use the Internet to make yourself more efficient and more innovative? If you can focus on these kinds of challenges, your work will be more enjoyable and feel less burdensome.

Then, focus on how IT can improve the human potential and your potential as a manager. Somewhere in the recent past, we lost that Utopian sense of what technology can do for mankind. Go back and read some of Adam Smith's writings and about his belief in how technology can raise all boats. There has never been a time when information has been more available, when "connected" allowed us to relate in new ways to our associates and customers. Work can be inspiring if we're developing and growing personally.

In the end, you can go home tired and depressed. Or you can go home tired and inspired. It's your choice.

Computerworld