It’s said that even “the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.” Robert Burns could’ve been thinking about Process Reengineering as he pondered the mousy travesty of building a home, only to lose it!
I’ve written previously about the difference between process improvement and process reengineering and best practices to begin implementing your reengineering effort. However, no matter how much planning organizations undergo, implementing change on this level can be a mouse maze of obstacles.
In this blog, I’ll review why some barriers persist and act as your proverbial guide to the prize through the maze of radical change so your organization can capture the actual cheese – err, benefits -- of process reengineering.
Reengineering, put very simply, is about challenging established norms and reimagining the way your organization gets work done. This goal inevitably runs up against resistance, whether it’s the inertia of people’s habits or the “I-know-it’s-broken-but-this-is-how-I-know-how-to-do-it” mentality. These barriers can stall progress, dilute impact, or even cause your promising process reengineering bid to remain trapped in the maze forever.
Overcoming barriers starts with a clear-eyed view of the common walls that may be placed in your way, like:
To clear the path of barriers, your organization should consider:
*A note on winning over detractors, or those resistant or hesitant – I’m not suggesting anything underhanded or nefarious – you’re not playing favorites or bribing someone when you figure out that personal impact that changes their mind. Understanding the people you’re asking to go through this change with you, learning their needs and solving their biggest problems, is exactly the part of the process that makes this meaningful. Human. Murine.
I once had the opportunity to merge a front-line, consultative training team with a back-office technical writing and documentation group. Historically, these two teams had never collaborated and saw little reason to start. I believed their outputs could become reciprocal inputs, improving training delivery and documentation quality. But the challenge wasn’t technical; it was cultural. One team was extroverted and client-facing, the other introverted and detail-driven. Both believed their work was already “the right kind,” and neither saw much value in changing how they operated.
To overcome the resistance, I hosted some early-morning coffee-and-donut workshops. My goal was not to change their missions or dilute their expertise, but to validate their strengths and show how collaboration could amplify them. The tech writing team saw how the training group addressed a common user complaint: manuals that explained the “what” but not the “how.” Meanwhile, the Training team realized that early access to documentation could help them prepare proactively for client engagements. What started as a reluctant experiment evolved into a true partnership – resulting in manuals that reflected client realities and training that drove deeper engagement (and more repeat business!).
Overcoming barriers in process reengineering requires more than technical fixes. It demands cultural resilience, leadership commitment, and a willingness to challenge entrenched thinking – all while understanding the normal human fear of change and loud noises (no, wait, that’s mice). By preparing for common obstacles and being strategic in deploying your solutions, organizations can navigate the twists and turns, reach the prize of unlocking the full potential of radical changes, and map the way for sustainable success.
(I apologize for my overuse of the metaphor, or if I’ve distracted any cats from getting the most out of this article.)