Success Factors for Process Rollouts
How to Put Processes into Practice: Key Success Factors for Process Rollouts
Introduction
Many companies meticulously define their processes, yet only a few are effectively rolled out and adopted. Often, they remain on paper, ignored by employees or perceived as impractical. But why does this happen? The root cause lies in fundamental mistakes made during process introduction or improvement.
Implementing proven strategies can help businesses successfully establish processes that are actively used.
1. Involving All Relevant Stakeholders
One major mistake is that processes are often designed by a small group without including key stakeholders. Common examples include:
- Processes developed by the quality department, primarily aligned with standards (such as ASPICE) rather than actual company workflows.
- Processes written by domain experts who have deep theoretical knowledge but little understanding of practical implementation.
Result:
Users feel excluded and either
cannot or do not want to adopt the processes. In the worst
case, they ignore or even boycott them, as the new guidelines
complicate rather than improve their work.
Solution:
Processes should be defined by
cross-functional teams that include all relevant stakeholders,
such as quality management, IT, management, developers,
architects, and end users. This ensures that processes are both
compliant with standards and practically
applicable.
2. Aligning Processes with Business Goals
Another common mistake is designing processes within individual departments without aligning them with the company's overall goals. This makes it difficult to gain management’s approval and support, as the value of these processes cannot be clearly demonstrated.
Result:
Management perceives processes as
unnecessary bureaucracy and does not actively support them.
Without leadership backing, process non-compliance cannot be
escalated or enforced.
Solution:
Processes must be defined in a
way that clearly connects them to business objectives. For
example:
- If a company struggles with quality issues, processes should be highly detailed to minimize errors.
- In fast-growing companies, processes should be easy to understand so that new employees can quickly adapt, regardless of their location and cultural background.
The clearer this connection is, the easier it becomes to gain management buy-in – ideally, process announcements should come directly from company leadership.
3. Providing Training and Support
An often underestimated factor is the training of employees in both the processes themselves and the tools used to implement them.
Result:
Even if well-defined, processes
remain ineffective if users do not understand how to apply them
in their daily work.
Solution:
- Allocate time for training sessions that explain processes and process management tools.
- Conduct hands-on training, allowing employees to experience the process in practice.
- Provide a central contact person for questions and support.
4. Actively Promoting Processes
Many process owners assume that simply publishing a process is enough. However, this is far from the truth!
Result:
New processes are overlooked due
to insufficient communication. Employees are unsure whether to
follow them or are unaware of their existence.
Solution:
Internal marketing efforts are
essential:
- Announcements from management
- Short explanatory videos or training sessions introducing the process
- Internal fairs, information booths, and newsletters
- Gamification elements such as quizzes or incentives for the most review comments
5. Enabling Feedback and Continuous Improvement
No process is perfect from the start. A major mistake is that users have no simple way to provide feedback.
Result:
Employees feel disconnected,
viewing themselves as passive consumers of the process rather
than contributors. This discourages engagement and improvement
efforts.
Solution:
-
Establish
clear and
easy-to-use mechanisms for
reporting errors, giving praise, and suggesting
improvements.
- Ensure transparency so users can see how their feedback is handled.
- Regularly update processes to reflect necessary changes and improvements.
6. Tailoring Processes to Projects and Programs
Many companies develop generic 200% processes, incorporating all potential requirements. However, if users are only provided with the full, unfiltered version, they become overwhelmed and disengaged.
Result:
Employees struggle to determine
which process components are relevant to their specific
project, leading to process neglect.
Solution:
- Processes should be customized for specific projects or programs.
- From a standard process, specific instances should be derived for each project.
- Example: A software project does not require functional safety considerations. Thus, respective process elements should be excluded from the process to make it leaner and more user-friendly.
Conclusion: Successful Process Rollout Requires Strategy and Communication
- Processes must be developed with input from all relevant stakeholders.
- They should be aligned with business objectives to gain management support.
- Training and communication are essential for successful process adoption.
- Internal marketing efforts increase engagement and compliance.
- Processes should be tailored to projects and programs to ensure usability.
By following these principles, companies significantly improve their chances of ensuring that their processes are not just published but actively followed and integrated into daily operations.