University of York

1. University of York Planning for Process Review

2. Using our Vision, Strategy and Medium Term Planning to inform our business and process change agenda..

3. Warning! • Some changes can / will be tactical but most should be strategic • If we make tactical decisions without the guidance of strategic oversight we will lose direction

4. Any change initiative should …. • Fit to the organisational strategy • Support one or more of the following: • Improved customer experience • Improved institutional value • Improved employee experience

5. Why review processes? • Increase effectiveness • Reduce waste (rather than cost) • Enable scalability • Increase capacity • Enter new markets • Increase revenues

6. Planning for Process Review Prioritising issues for review

7. Prioritising issues for review.... • Focus on: • Customers • Innovation • Creativity • Processes • People • Developing teams of interdisciplinary change agents • Rather than: • Rules • Regulations • Policies • Procedures • Tasks • Individuals

8. What ‘Business’ factors can we use to drive decision making (1)? • Focus on initiatives which will deliver change linked to strategic plans. • Focus on where change is most needed? • Focus on business critical activities? • Focus on areas of perceived ‘high wastage’ with potential for high levels of gain? • Focus on where user satisfaction is lowest? • Focus on statutory compliance?

9. What ‘Business’ factors can we use to drive decision making (2)? • Focus on initiatives which will deliver benefits to one or more of the: • Customers of the institution • Employees of the institution • The Institution itself (in a corporate environment this would be represented by the shareholders) • For each initiative assess whether it: • is easy to deliver • will provide high levels of gain / added value • will require significant investment to implement • carries a high risk e.g. is it complex and the downsides of failure significant?

10. Candidate high priority areas for process review include... • Teaching focussed: • Timetabling • Student complaints, special cases, plagiarism management • Exams processing • Research focussed: • Research support / Funding bids etc. • Support Services focussed: • Estates maintenance and zone management procedures • HR Recruitment procedures • For further candidate ideas consult with: • Heads of Department via MTP process • Administrators’ Forum

11. Co-ordinate process review agenda... • Top-down via: • MTP • SMG direction • Operations Group steer • Co-ordinated process review agenda and plan • Bottom-up via: • Development of teams of interdisciplinary change agents • Continuous development of candidate change ideas via Administrators’ Forum and other initiatives e.g. ‘Being the Best’

12. For process change to be culturally enabled... • Train the team • Empower the team • Trust the team • Monitor the team

13. Showcase current work on process review.. • Postgraduate admissions • Student registration – U/G & P/G • Student accommodation bookings, allocation & take-up

14. Overview of the process of change... Effective change cycle

15. Getting started on a process change initiative...

16. Improving processes...

17. Include in stages 1 & 2 of the work an examination of Strategic factors including...

18. Project Profile… • Is the reputation of the Organisation, Department, Management, Project Manager, Team at stake? • Who will get to hear about this project? • Will a failure be public, or is this a “back room” project? • Will the project be accompanied by publicity, either external or internal? • Will there be a high-level management interest in the project? • Will something have to be finished early in order to show success?

19. Time constraints… • Is there a fixed target date? • How fixed is it? (Legislative or business opportunity?) • Who fixed it? • Are there any intermediate dates that must be met? • Is there a particular start date? • Are the time deadlines as important as, say, cost? • Can the implementation be phased?

20. Costs and Benefits… • Has a cost / benefit analysis been carried out? If so, by whom, when and on what basis? • Have costs been established? If so, how and what assumptions have been made? • Does the project have a pay-back? If so, on what basis and how are the benefits to be measured? • What are the relative importance of development costs against long term operational costs?

21. Business Risk… • How badly will the Organisation suffer if this project fails or if the end product fails to live up to expectations? Will the University go bust? • What would we lose if the project fails? Staff, students, partners? • Do we need to keep any aspect of this project secret or confidential from competitors, staff etc.? What would happen if they were to find out? • Do we need to involve Legal, Personnel, Finance, Auditors, Outside Regulatory bodies etc.?

22. Other strategic project factors include… • Scope • Requirements • Involvement • Technology • Project Team • Project Management

23. You can use the outcomes of the Strategic Factors exercise to… • Set the strategy for the change initiative • Define the business drivers and objectives • Break a project into identifiable and manageable phases • Plan and order the phases • Inform the detailed planning