Business Transformation and Your Target Operating Model

Are you investing enough to keep your people motivated and your customers happy? 

Employees are attracted to business transformation because it shows that the company is investing in its future and is committed to growth and success. It also presents an opportunity for career development and advancement. Employees gain exposure to new technologies, processes, and best practices by participating in a transformation, which can enhance their skills and experience. Additionally, a transformation can lead to a more engaged and motivated workforce, as employees feel they are contributing to a meaningful change in the organisation. 

The team and support during a business transformation are critical to employee satisfaction and success. It is essential to demonstrate that the company values its employees by offering contemporary workforce management and automation tools that ensure that employees are cared for and supported. Good communication is also crucial to keep the team aligned to the common goal, and workforce optimization tools can improve communication and provide real-time prompts for employee support. Integrating AI-powered technology into the contact centre can help agents react to everything going on around them in real-time while putting their well-being first through assistance. 

The importance of training in employee satisfaction and retention 

Training is also a crucial factor in employee satisfaction and retention. A detailed induction plan and ongoing training and support can help employees feel invested in and motivated to provide the best possible customer service. With workforce automation, idle time can be redirected to development, training, or one-on-one coaching to enhance the skills required to navigate customer conversations. Investing in employee training and development improves employee engagement and satisfaction and can lead to higher customer satisfaction and retention rates. 

Employee satisfaction is a crucial factor in delivering a high-quality customer experience. Motivated employees are more likely to go the extra mile for customers, providing exceptional service that can build customer loyalty and drive business success.

Business transformation efforts can play a critical role in improving employee satisfaction and motivation. By investing in modern workforce management and automation tools, businesses can ensure that employees are supported and empowered to provide exceptional service. 

For example, by using AI-powered technology, businesses can automatically identify opportunities to offer training and development to employees during idle time, which can improve employee satisfaction and motivation. Additionally, automation can help to reduce mundane tasks, freeing up time for employees to focus on higher-value tasks and deliver exceptional service. 

Moreover, businesses can improve employee satisfaction and motivation by adopting a customer-centric approach to their contact centre strategy. By understanding customer needs and preferences and optimising the contact centre operations, businesses can create a more engaging and rewarding work environment for employees. This can lead to higher employee satisfaction, lower turnover rates, and better overall performance. 

In summary, business transformation efforts that prioritise the customer experience and employee satisfaction can lead to long-term growth and success. By investing in the necessary resources and technology, businesses can create a customer-centric contact centre strategy that empowers employees to deliver exceptional service and build lasting customer relationships. 

Common barriers to tackling business transformation 

There are several reasons why companies may fail to tackle real transformation, but some of the most common ones are: 

• Lack of leadership commitment: Transformation requires a strong commitment from the leadership team. If the leaders are not fully committed to the change, it will be difficult to get buy-in from the rest of the organisation. 
• Resistance to change: People are naturally resistant to change, and this can be a major barrier to transformation. Employees may be comfortable with the status quo and may be hesitant to adopt new processes or technologies. 
• Insufficient resources: Transformation can be a time-consuming and resource-intensive process. If a company does not have the necessary resources, such as funding or staff, it may be difficult to implement real change.
• Siloed mindset: Many companies are organised into silos, with each department or team working independently. This can create a culture of “not my problem,” making tackling real transformation across the entire organisation difficult. 
• Lack of a clear vision: To successfully transform, companies need a clear vision of what they want to achieve and how they plan to get there. Without a clear vision, aligning teams and progressing towards the desired outcome can be difficult. 
• Failure to prioritise: Companies often have many competing priorities, and it can be difficult to determine which initiatives should take priority. Transformation initiatives can be sidelined or delayed without a clear understanding of what is most important. 

You won’t get there if you don’t know where you are going. If you don’t aim, you will obviously miss! 

Developing a clear and comprehensive Target Operating Model (TOM) is essential in overcoming the challenge of a lack of a clear vision in business transformation. A TOM serves as a blueprint for the organisation’s future state, outlining the desired outcomes, necessary capabilities, and strategic initiatives required to achieve those outcomes. 

The TOM provides a framework for aligning all stakeholders and teams towards a common goal, ensuring that everyone is working towards the same vision. It helps break down silos between teams and functions, promoting collaboration and cross-functional working to achieve the desired outcome. 

The development of the TOM involves a comprehensive analysis of the organisation’s current state, including its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. This analysis helps identify the key capabilities required to achieve the desired outcome and any gaps that need to be addressed. 

Once the current state analysis is complete, the TOM development process focuses on defining the organisation’s future state. This includes determining the target operating model, which outlines the processes, technology, organisation structure, and capabilities required to achieve the desired outcomes. 

Through the TOM development process, organisations can address the need for a clear vision and establish a comprehensive plan for achieving their transformation goals. With a clearly defined vision and roadmap, organisations can align their teams, resources, and initiatives towards achieving the desired outcome, making progress towards transformation with confidence and purpose.

Evaluating your current operating model and processes 

Working out the “TO BE” of a target operating model (TOM) can be difficult if you don’t have a clear understanding of the “AS IS” state of your organisation or the available options from service providers. Here are some specific challenges that you might face: 

• Lack of clarity: It can be difficult to develop a comprehensive “TO BE” model that addresses your organisation’s specific needs without a clear understanding of your current operating model and the associated pain points. 
• Incomplete information: If you are unaware of the full range of services and solutions offered by service providers, you may not be able to design a TOM that takes full advantage of their capabilities. 
• Limited options: Without a thorough understanding of your current state and the range of available solutions, you may find that your options for creating a TOM are limited. This could result in a suboptimal model that does not fully address your organisation’s needs. 
• Implementation challenges: Even with a well-designed TOM, implementation can be difficult if you do not have the necessary resources and expertise in-house or if you are working with service providers who do not have the necessary capabilities. 

To overcome these challenges, conducting a thorough assessment of your current state and researching the range of available service providers and solutions is important. This can help you develop a comprehensive “TO BE” model that is tailored to your organisation’s specific needs, taking full advantage of the capabilities of service providers. 

Burford Solutions can help you with an Operational Health check as a starting point AS IS definition and then help you with a practitioner view as to the art of the possible: https://burfordsolutions.com/services/