This paper analyzes current literature on Business Process Reengineering (BPR) and its growing application to channel management, distribution strategy, and supply chain integration. Beginning with BPR's origins as a cost-reduction and process-simplification framework, the paper examines how quality process mapping, value stream analysis, and BPR methodologies are being deployed across industries to redesign distribution channels, synchronize supplier relationships, and improve customer-facing operations. Drawing on studies from e-banking, Volvo's supply chain, the SCOR model, and multinational channel management, the review concludes that BPR enables organizations to simultaneously reduce costs and increase customer satisfaction.
Business Process Reengineering (BPR) concentrates on redesigning and reallocating valuable resources across an organization so that the most essential strategic plans, initiatives, and program objectives can be attained. BPR began initially as a strategy for reducing wasted time and steps in processes, redefining complex workflows to make them simpler and more cost-efficient (Akamavi, 2005). As a cost-reduction strategy, BPR has been pervasively used throughout corporations, often as a means to trim fixed and variable costs associated with strategic initiatives and programs.
BPR differs from other approaches to gaining cost, time, and production efficiencies within an organization because it concentrates on each aspect of a process, not just a single attribute of it. BPR initiatives are comparable to Six Sigma projects in that both strive to place the key concerns and values of the customer at the center of all improvement efforts (Akamavi, 2005). The progression of BPR as a technique for improving processes and increasing profitability is quickly moving into channel management, marketing, and sales (Hertz, Johansson, & de Jager, 2001).
The breadth of variation in channel management strategies across industries, the need for greater focus on quantifiable results, and the advent of real-time analytics are all making BPR's use in channel redesign a critical priority (Wehmeyer, Kipp, & Riemer, 2009). Accelerating the use of BPR for simplifying complex channels and their many customer touch points are the continual improvements being made in quality process mapping, specifically in financial services (Akamavi, 2005). The intent of this analysis is to evaluate how BPR is making significant contributions to redesigning channel strategies over the long term.
The most critical series of processes from a revenue standpoint that any organization relies on are its distribution channels. Varying significantly across industries, with many having two or more levels, distribution channel redesign through BPR is becoming increasingly common (Wehmeyer, Kipp, & Riemer, 2009). The reliance on value stream and quality process mapping as a means to guide BPR strategies continues to grow, as entire industries are being forced to respond faster and with greater accuracy to their customers than ever before while simultaneously mitigating the risk posed by global competitors (Hertz, Johansson, & de Jager, 2001). All of these factors together are making BPR the most popular framework for realigning channels and making them more centered on customer, channel partner, distributor, and dealer needs.
One of the most crucial links that distribution channels rely on are the suppliers that need timely updates on orders placed and forecasts for future order quantities. Supply chains are more tightly integrated than ever and represent the most important aspect of any company's selling strategy, as they enable companies to set and keep commitments over time. The use of BPR for ensuring tight information coordination and synchronization of orders, forecasts, and pricing assumptions is pervasively applied in electronics, custom production, and complex services industries to reduce errors (Wang, Chan, & Pauleen, 2010).
The greater the level of accountability and measurability of supplier performance to forecast, the higher the level of profitability companies typically attain. Using Business Process Management (BPM) and BPR methods to streamline accounting, reporting, and reconciliation of unit and dollar forecasts, manufacturers in the high-tech industry are able to launch products more effectively and on time (Wang, Chan, & Pauleen, 2010). The focus on BPR as a means to unify distribution channels and integrate supply chains within them can take years to complete, so companies typically begin at the quote-to-order and quote-to-cash process areas, where the greatest number of errors typically originate (Akamavi, 2005).
Once the areas of quoting and fulfillment have been streamlined through BPR techniques, customer service, support, and service lifecycle management (SLM) are next redefined to become more customer-centric. These areas are often the least understood in terms of their true support costs, and through BPR frameworks companies have been able to identify the true profitability of customer service, support, and SLM strategies. Using quality stream mapping, the often unnecessary tasks of maintaining a separate customer master record or separate Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems for each customer service strategy can be eliminated, increasing profits and reducing response times for customers who need assistance. This has been observed throughout e-banking, for example, where quality process mapping is frequently used to streamline customer service and support processes in order to reduce costs and encourage greater customer self-service (Akamavi, 2005).
"Cost reduction paired with rising customer satisfaction"
"Summaries of four key BPR studies reviewed"
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