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How to Streamline Business Processes Without Overwhelming Your Team
August 23, 2018
Introducing a new system to your business can be an intimidating prospect. You know you will benefit by streamlining your business processes, but fear that your team will resist.
How can you ensure a smooth transition to the new processes without too much upheaval?
New systems often seem overwhelming because they require people to change their existing ways of working. Nobody likes to be changed by others, even if they will appreciate the change in the end. This can create tension between you and your team.
But with the right approach, you can make simple, collaborative, and streamlined changes that benefit everyone…
Why streamline your business processes at all?
Innovation is an integral part of running a business. By being agile and adaptable, you can give your global business the edge that it needs to succeed in all your international markets.
A challenge is that change can be daunting. A new system often affects many people in your business. At Rubric, we often help our clients navigate the complex dynamics between various stakeholders as they add new localization systems to their workflow.
When everyone sees the benefits of the new system, it can really help the transition to the new process.
Some benefits associated with introducing a new business process can include:
- Improved customer experience — You are presumably adding the new processes to your business to help make your product or service better for your customers. When everyone recognizes this, they are more likely to support the change.
- More empowered team members — Streamlining your processes should also make people's jobs easier and more satisfying. This can help them feel more empowered.
- Easier scalability worldwide — Most of the changes that we help companies make are aimed at streamlining their localization processes. With the right processes in place, it becomes much easier to scale your operations into multiple international markets.
- A more competitive company — When you are operating on the global stage, process improvements can contribute to your company's competitive edge.
The importance of research and planning when adding new systems
Before you put the wheels into motion to change your business, it's important to do your research. With the right information, you can plan for any roadblocks you might encounter along the way.
Strategy is equally important for the successful introduction of a new system. Whether you use a formal business process analysis method or a more informal approach, the key is to get all the affected stakeholders involved from the beginning.
Prepare people for the changes ahead. Encourage them to contribute as needed. By encouraging different teams and departments to be involved in the design and rollout of new processes, you will help cultivate a sense of ownership of the change. This can help mitigate potential problems better than almost any other method.
Collaboration: The key to successful system adoption
How can you encourage everyone to accept your new technology? Prioritize collaboration.
We believe that calculated teamwork — both within your team and with external stakeholders — is a determining factor in successful system integration.
Companies often think of change starting "from the top down." While it is sometimes true that management drives the use of new systems, the change can start from anywhere. With localization, for example, it might be your content marketing team that has the most need for a new system.
Effective collaboration relies on clear communication, trust, problem-solving skills, adaptability, and accountability. Together with appropriate technology, these ensure all your stakeholders are motivated, empowered, and focused on making the new system works for everyone.
The 5 important steps for streamlining business processes
How can you streamline your business processes and get the most out of your new systems?
Here are 5 key steps to get you started:
1. Identify goals and outcomes
The first step is to identify what you want to achieve by adding a new system or changing an existing one.
Set goals but also be flexible with them. When you involve your stakeholders, they will doubtless also have goals they want to achieve.
2. Analyze your existing processes
Before making changes, it's important to clearly understand your existing processes.
With a localization process, you may have steps that have grown over time but never been formalized. Sometimes, you can improve the process simply by formalizing these.
3. Plan for change with your stakeholders
With the input of your various stakeholders, plan what changes you will make and how you will make them.
During this step, identify new tools or technologies that can help you reach your goals. Approach this step with an open mind, even if you started with an idea of a new system in your mind – such as a new multilingual product information management (PIM) system or a new eLearning authoring tool.
4. Deploy and assess the new system
Now comes the time to implement your changes across the organization. This might involve adding new technology or just improving your existing processes.
During the deployment, carefully monitor the impact of your changes to see if you need to change them.
5. Monitor and adjust with regular communication
At Rubric, we are believers in continuous improvement. The biggest benefits of a new system come when you keep refining it.
Monitor how the new system is performing and measure this against your original goals. If needed, make iterative adjustments to further optimize your processes.
Ensure a smooth deployment with the right localization partner
Of course, there are a lot of subtleties in the above process. To help navigate these, it can be extremely useful to work with a localization partner with experience helping companies adopt new systems.
When you are releasing content to multiple international markets, the localization processes can seem complex. But, with the right guidance and expertise, you can make localization more efficient and more effective.
With careful planning and implementation, you can streamline your business's processes for a smooth transition into the future.
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