A common misperception is that employee training programmes are often boring and too theoretical to be relevant to everyday work.
As part of her company’s transformation efforts, Mel Leong, a manager at Singapore Pools Pte Ltd Transformation Programme Office, arranged for more than 20 management staff to attend a three-day NICF–Business Process Reengineering (BPR) course at NUS-ISS.
Post-training feedback is positive. Most found the course to be a lot more engaging than what they have expected considering the nature of the topic. The topics covered were also practical and applicable to their work.
Technology often takes the limelight as companies embark on digital transformation projects. But at the core of this digital focus, are processes that evolve as rapidly as the business changes.
But it is not just about automation. “BPR goes beyond getting technology to do the work we perform today,” said Mel. “It requires radical rethinking and questioning of fundamentals and that is one of our key considerations when sourcing for a BPR training programme.”
Practical takeaways and real-life case studies
Coined by former professor of computer science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Michael Hammer, BPR is the fundamental re-thinking and radical redesign of business processes. The aim is to reduce costs and improve productivity through newer, more efficient processes.
NUS-ISS’ BPR goes beyond just theoretical concepts.
“Participants learned about the importance of BPR, when to and when not to use it, as well as how to execute it effectively and successfully. They also benefit from the sharing of real-life scenarios and case studies by our experienced lecturers,” said Yu Chen Kuang, Principal Lecturer & Consultant, IT Strategy & Management Practice at NUS-ISS. He is also the course manager of the BPR programme.
The course is taught by instructors, who are former consultants from leading consulting firms, and they have more than 10 years of experience in running BPR projects. “Students will also benefit from the sharing of real-life scenarios, tips and techniques on how to avoid the many pitfalls of BPR, as well as how to overcome the many challenges when implementing it,” Yu added.
For Mel, whose job is to manage the BPR initiative, the course has several practical takeaways.
“After learning about the BPR methodology, common pitfalls and how to navigate around them, staff will be able to better relate to our process transformation framework which we adapted from traditional BPR methodology. The training will also equip them with the necessary know-how to reengineer their own processes when they return to their own departments.”
Employee training as an important investment in digital transformation
Singapore Pools has a strong learning organisation culture and believes that employee development and training is one of the best investments an organisation can undertake. Besides helping to build the career capital for their staff as individuals, the company will also benefit from a skilled workforce as they tackle the challenges of the digital economy.
Mel added, “Many of our processes have been around for a long time, and it is high time we review and remove outdated policies, practices and processes. This was the main reason why we sent our staff for BPR course – we believed it will provide them with the necessary capabilities to transform our operations.”
NUS-ISS caters to evolving industry needs for employee training
The course duration was a consideration for Singapore Pools.
“Even though the BPR course at NUS-ISS lasted longer than others – I also had quotations for 1- and 2-day BPR classes – we still chose NUS-ISS in the end,” Mel said.
“Having been through the course several years back, I believe it was worth letting our staff spend three days away from office for this.”
Cost was another consideration. Singaporeans above 40 years old qualify for training grant that can be used on the BPR course. “Taking the grant into consideration, the cost of the NUS-ISS course turns out to be the most competitive of the three quotes,” Mel explained.