Business Process Re-engineering As A Tool For Management Of Strategic Change At Kenya Electricity Generating (Kengen) Company Ltd

Abstract

Since the late eighties business process reengineering (BPR) has established itself as one of the most attractive change management options for coping and adapting in to the new competitive environment. This study sought to investigate the use of business process reengineering as a tool for management of strategic change at Ken Gen. The objectives of the study were to establish the link between applications of BPR as a tool for mamgernent of strategic change and corporate strategic objectives of KenGen, to examine the nature of the BPR project management process, characteristics of significant changes made after the implementation of BPR in KenGen and to identify the challenges faced in the application of BPR as a tool for management of strategic change in Ken Gen. An interview method was used to collect data. Seven members of executive body at KenGen were interviewed. Moreover a focused group discussion involving ten management staff was carried out to explore additional information. The major driver for change at KenGen was the growing demand for electricity. Other drivers included change in the regulatory environment, competition from independent power producers, regional interconnectivity and the return required on investment. The four strategic objectives at KenGen to oversee the change process were: capital execution and planning, regulatory management, operational excellence and overall organizational effectiveness. When choosing BPR as a tool for management of strategic change the company looked at three things: business strategy, business process and organizational structures. BPR was seen as a vehicle for achieving corporate strategic objectives. There were various preparations that were done before the process could be started. First the company sought the help of consultants to guide it through the change process. A joint team comprised of KeGen and the consultant established training of the team has been undertaken. The resources required for the process were allocated by the CEO to support the process. The CEO then ensured that all employees were informed of the change taking place. BPR project was designed and mechanism of step by step execution was put in place. The first step was identifying the need for strategic change, the second step was identifying the direction you want to go, the third step was identifying the processes and finally develop the structure that is responsive to those processes Identification of thirteen major processes that can support the new strategy conducted. Every body in the company was involved in the project management process. However the commitment of top management especially the CEO was very high. Significant improvements in some areas of the pilot projects for implementation of BPR were gained .. The major challenge faced was resistance from employees who taught the whole thing would render them unemployed. Through training and effective communication the company was in a position to address this challenge. However, additional effort from those involved in managing the strategic change would be recommended to minimize the negative effect of resistance during the implementation of BPR. KenGen has not yet commenced implementation of BPR in full scale except in some of the areas of pilot projects launched. As a result, this study was not able to establish some of the factors affecting implementation of BPR in Ken Gen. Therefore there is a need for further study to be conducted on success and failure factors of implementing BPR in KenGen or other similar organizations.