5. 5
Change, Primal Fear and the Loss of Identity
1
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/brainsnacks/201203/the-only-5-fears-we-all-share
Asksomeonewhytheyfearautomationandtheirfirstanswerislikelytobe‘becauseImightlosemyjob,or
myteam’.However,eveniftheirjobsaresecure,theconceptofautomationcanstilltriggerfearinemployees.
Thereasonforthisbecomesclearwhenweconsiderthefivebasicprimalhumanfears1
:
1 Extinction:
Fearofdeath–fearofheights,flyingetc.
2
Mutilation:
Fearoflosingpartofourbodyorfunction
(afearofspidersariseshere).
3
Loss of Autonomy:
Fearofbeingrestrictedorimmobilisedby
circumstancesbeyondourcontrol.
4 Separation:
Fearofrejectionandnotbeingvaluedbyothers.
5
Ego-death:
Fearofhumiliation,shameordiminishingof
one’sconstructedsenseofworthiness.
Unlessyouworkindemolitionorconstruction,fears1and
2(deathandmutilation)arenotanissueintheworkplace.
However,fears3,4and5are.Iffacedwithuncertainty
overjobfunctionandresponsibility,employees—even
seniorones—aregoingtobesuspiciousoftheunknown
andofmisunderstoodand/orimposedchange.
“Nice to meet you. What do you do?”
Thisisatypicalopeningquestionwhenwemeet
someonenew.We,inthewesternworld,liketodefine
peoplebytheiroccupation.Bearingthisinmind,isitany
wonderthatpeopletendtopushbackonchange?Ifthe
changeislikelytoresultintheirownuncertaintyabout
theirrole,itisachallengeoftheirveryidentity.Evenif
theydon’tliketheirwork,atleasttheyknowwhatitis.It
definesthem,andgivesthemasenseofwhotheyare.
6. 6
Acknowledging that
the fear of imposed change
is real is the first step towards
removing it. Fear is a barrier to
change; it needs to be acknowledged,
not avoided.
7. 7
The Biggest Obstacles to Change
In2013,theKatzenbachCentercarriedoutasurveyofover2,200executives,managersandemployees2
tounravelandunderstandproblemswithchangeintheworkplace.70percentofExecutiveshavestarted
DigitalSupplyChainTransformation3
.
Thetopthreebarrierstochange,accordingtotheirfindings,are:
‘Change fatigue’
Whenemployeesfeeltheyarebeingaskedto
maketoomanychangesatonce(orwhentheyare
undergoing‘initiativeoverload’–asdescribeby
Bain.com4
).
Lack of skill in
handling change
48%ofrespondentsclaimtheircompanies
lacktheskillneededforsuccessful,
sustainedchange.
Method of planning
and implementation
of change initiatives
Changecanstallifthere’stoomuchemphasisfrom
seniormanagementandnotenoughinputfrom
lowerintheranks.
2
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/brainsnacks/201203/the-only-5-fears-we-all-share
3
http://www.supplychaindigital.com/supplychainmanagement/4268/70-percent-of-Executives-have-started-Digital-Supply-Chain-Transformation
4
http://www.bain.com/publications/articles/managing-initiative-overload.aspx
Understandingtheseaspectsofchangeequipsyouwiththeknowledgetoimplementchangeintherightway:
awaythatwillminimiseemployeestressandgetyoutowhereyouwanttobemuchmorequickly.Inthenext
sectionwe’llseehowtotaketheseconceptsandputthemintoaction.
11. 11
Stage 3: Implementation
Makechangesincrementally,butdon’tleteach
actiondragon.Thiswillhelptoprevent‘change
fatigue’andincreasebuy-in,asyouremployees
willquicklylearnthatthenewrealityisactually
muchbetterthanwhattheyweredoing
previously.
“Will I lose my job?”
Automatingyourorder-to-cashprocess
doesn’tmeanthatpeopleareguaranteed
tolosetheirjobs.However,ifyourgoalis
toreducehead-count,thenitcansaveyour
businessmoney.
Inmanycasesautomationischosenbyagrowingcompany
sotheydon’thavetoincreaseheadcountanyfurther.Make
surepeopleunderstandtheimpactthechangewillhaveof
thempersonallyandreassurethemoftheirjobsecurity(ifyou
can).Youmayevenbringafew‘Challengers’onsideoncethey
realisetheyarenotonthewayout.Asaresultofautomating,
employeeswillbeabletospendmoretimeinteractingwith
customersandlesstimestrugglingwithdataentry.
http://v1.aberdeen.com/launch/report/perspective/8735-AI-order-management-automation.asp
28% of leading
companies are
currently evaluating
options with regards
to cloud-based
solutions for their
business processes
and 41% currently
have some or all of
their applications
in the cloud.
AccordingtotheAberdeenGroup5
5
http://v1.aberdeen.com/launch/report/perspective/8735-AI-order-management-automation.asp
12. 12
Did you know that “63% of
organisations still rely on manual
processes for converting quotes
to orders?
There is still plenty of room for
improvement!
AccordingtotheAberdeenGroup6
6
http://v1.aberdeen.com/launch/report/perspective/8735-AI-order-management-automation.asp
13. 13
Pain-free Order-to-Cash Automation
Here’s a 6-step breakdown of a pain-free order-to-cash automation
implementation, the OmPrompt way:
Start with your biggest
(typically, your most
important) customers
Rememberthe80/20rule?Typically,80%of
revenuecomesfrom20%ofcustomers.It’sworth
startingwiththesecustomers.
Thenfocusjustononeaspect,thelogical
beginning:processingcustomerorders.We
cangetyourbiggestcustomersfullyautomated
within5days.Yourcustomerswon’tseeanything
different,andwedon’tneedtotieupyourIT
resourceseither.
Keep Automating
Butcontinueautomatingcustomerorders.
Bynow(lessthantwoweeksafterbeginning
theproject)yourcustomerservicestaffwillbe
spendingalotlesstimeonmundaneorderentry.
They’llalsonoticethey’redealingwithfarfewer
ordererrorsanddeliverydiscrepancies.Wordwill
getroundthatthisisagoodthing.
Allow the dust
to settle
Yourcustomerservicestaffwillneedtimeuntil
thenewwayofworkingbecomesthenew
‘normal’.Duringthistime,focusonhelping
themgobackto‘grassrootscustomerservice’;
cultivatingrelationshipswithyourcustomers;
andhelpingcross-sellorup-sellotherproductsor
services.
1 2 3
14. 14
OmPrompt’s comprehensive
service meant the whole project
was up and running without
placing any significant burden
on our IT function.
OmPromptcustomer,globalFMCGbrand
15. 15
Build on the success
Younowhaveacustomerservicedepartment
focusedoncustomerserviceratherthanfire-
fighting.Youalsohavedata.
Accumulateddataonorderhistoryandbuying
behaviourcannowbeusedforthenextstageof
theimplementation–demandplanning
andforecasting.
You’llbeabletoproduceaccurateforecasts
basedonactualdata.
Analyse key metrics
Youshouldseefewerordererrorsanddelivery
discrepancies.Youron-timein-full(OTIF)metric
shouldhaveimproved.
Addupthecashsavedintransportcostsand
goodwillpayments.It’sgoodpracticetoshare
thesenumberswitheveryoneinthecompany,
andaddstothegoodfeelingaboutautomation.
Don’t Give Into Your Fears!
Add new elements when
it makes sense
Onceorder-to-cashautomationhas
demonstratedthatitdoesbringbenefitstoyour
company–onbothafinancialandpersonal
level–youcanintroducenewelementssuch
asautomatingPODs,GRNs,returns,claimsand
remittanceadvicedocumentswhenit’srightfor
you.
4 5 6
Beforeyou’veactuallyexperiencedorder-to-cashautomation,thevery
ideaofitcanseemdaunting.
Byintroducingtheconceptintherightway,you’llminimiseanxiety
amongyouremployeesandbeinapositiontogetthebenefitsof
automationalotsooner.Asyourfaithfulpartnerinautomation,
OmPromptcanhelpyouachievethis.
Steps 3 - 6 of a pain-free order-to-cash automation implementation the
OmPrompt way:
16. 16
It has definitely reduced
the workload of query
resolution. I think it just helps
the team re-focus their attention. Now
we spend a lot of time looking at the
orders, not just inputting them. Our
order input is a lot better and faster
than it used to be.
OmPromptcustomer,world-renownedalcoholicbeverageproducer
19. 19
I have come to the
conclusion that whatever the
integration problem, the
answer is...
OmPrompt.
OmPromptcustomer, internationally-recognisedFMCGbrand
20. 20
Ready to Embrace Automation?
(the Easy Way) – Get in Touch Now:
Tel: +44 (0)1235 436000
Email: info@omprompt.com
www.omprompt.com
OmPromptLtd
67InnovationDrive
MiltonPark,Abingdon
Oxfordshire,OX144RQ
UnitedKingdom
+44(0)1235436000
www.omprompt.com
info@omprompt.com
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