An approach towards process ownership within the financial sector

Abstract

One of the main challenges when improving business processes, is the sustainability of the improvements. The purpose of this dissertation is to extract knowledge from existing research around process ownership (PO) as a hypothetical solution and re-structure it, using the enterprise engineering contextualization model (EECM). The intent is to develop a new approach for the deployment of PO, called Enablers Supporting effective Process Ownership (ESPO) that will enable both the design and management of PO as a new function at the enterprise. This study proposes a solution to the problem experienced at Co. INS, a short-term insurance company in South Africa where the main researcher is employed. People and/or information systems are frequently prioritized at the expense of processes. The hypothesis is that process ownership will address this misalignment between domains. The Primary Research Question is: “What enablers, supporting effective Process Ownership, will prioritize process management to ensure improved process performance and subsequently sustain a competitive advantage within the financial sector?”. The methodology followed is design science research (DSR) to develop and evaluate a first draft of the ESPO approach. A literature review was done initially, followed by thematic analysis. The synthesis which followed was done using EECM as reference model to construct the ESPO approach. The demonstration and evaluation of the artefact was done using small group discussions, questionnaires, and interviews. The literature confirmed the phenomena that a lack of contracted process ownership results in poor process performance with a negative effect on competitiveness. PO is dependent on governance, culture, and clear roles and responsibilities as key enablers. Existing literature, however, lacks a coherent approach to embed PO within a holistic business process management approach. EECM guides the development of the ESPO approach and elaborates on the why, what, and how the enterprise should evolve towards effective PO. During the demonstration and evaluation stages of ESPO at Co. INS, it was found that allocation of PO was done in some areas, but the effective deployment was lacking. As expected, the cultural assessments indicated various levels of readiness, correlated to the effectivity of PO. The importance of the process architecture and strategic alignment of processes were also highlighted as key components of the governance around PO. The demonstration and evaluation results indicate that ESPO effectively guides practitioners towards the achievement of sustainable process performance. Since PO has been confirmed as a critical capability for sustained process improvement, the ESPO approach is supporting the value of process as a strategic asset to create a sustained competitive advantage.