15-12-2012, 05:21 PM
Report on Business Process Re‐engineering for e‐Governance Projects
Report on Business Process.pdf (Size: 370.01 KB / Downloads: 147)
Introduction
e‐Governance is in essence, the application of Information and Communications Technology to
government functioning in order to create ‘Simple, Moral, Accountable, Responsive and
Transparent’ (SMART) governance. This new paradigm focuses on the use of information
technology to bring public services to the doorsteps of our citizens and businesses.‐Governance
comprises decisional processes and the use of information and communications technology for
wider participation of citizens in public affairs.
e‐Governance has to be comprehensive; mere introduction of the IT component is not an end
in itself. Comprehensive e‐Governance reforms cover the process; preparedness and the
technology; and the people. Introduction of e‐Governance needs process engineering as the
first step. Unless the processes and procedures and even structures of government are reengineered,
e‐Governance projects cannot succeed. Technology comes second, only after the
processes have been re‐engineered. And ultimately, in order to make the reforms sustainable
the people in the concerned departments/ agencies have to internalize the change. This is also
one of the reasons why e‐Governance projects succeed at the pilot level but ‘when up‐scaled’
they become unsustainable.
The types of services possible through e‐Governance can be broadly classified into three
categories ‐ providing information, improving processing efficiency and facilitating transactions.
Amongst these, providing information is the simplest and the degree of complexities increase
as we move from information to transactions. But it is the second and the third category of
services that provide maximum convenience to the citizens. The challenge is to cover such
services.
Business Process Re‐engineering – Definition
Business Process Re‐engineering has been defined as: “fundamental rethinking and radical
redesign of business processes to bring about dramatic improvements in performance”.
Business process re‐engineering is not ‐ downsizing, restructuring, reorganization, automation,
new technology, etc. It is the examination and change of five components of the business ‐
Strategy, Processes, Technology, Organization and Culture.
Re‐engineering became very popular in the early 1990s, however, the methodology and
approach was not fully understood or appreciated. Many times, improvement projects labeled
with the title ‘Business Process Re‐engineering’ were poorly planned and executed. Employees
and organizations cringed at the thought of another ‘Business Process Re‐engineering’
experience. The term itself is being used less, or is being altered so that these types of
initiatives are not associated with the "Business Process Re‐engineering" of the past.
Government Process Re‐engineering
There is an increased emphasis of usage of information and communications technology in the
delivery of public services. Information and communications technology is starting to redefine
the landscape of government by changing the relationships (power and responsibility) between
players — between service providers and industry, amongst the public, private and third party
sectors, and between government and citizen.
Government Process Re‐engineering is a necessary condition for the realization of the benefits
of e‐Governance. The importance of process redesign to facilitate and ensure best practices in
the realm of e‐Governance needs to be emphasized. While deployment of IT solutions increases
the efficiency of operations, it will not necessarily deliver the best results unless the processes
are reconfigured. There is always a threat that replacement of manual processes by machinebased
processes will only lead to ‘automated’ waste. Process re‐engineering ensures that the
processes are redesigned to make them most effective and deliver the maximum value to the
government, its employees and the citizens.
Recommendations of the Second Administrative Reforms Commission
National e‐Governance Plan, Department of Administrative Reforms & Public Grievances is
responsible for generic process re‐engineering and Change Management, which are desired to
be realised across all Government departments.
The Standing Committee on Information Technology (2005‐06, Fourteenth Lok Sabha) in its
22nd Report entitled ‘Implementation of e‐Governance Projects’ (December 2005)
recommended the following:
“The Committee observe that the age‐old statutes and regulations governing the manual
process will not be suitable for governing the electronic processes which require altogether a
different set of legal framework and guidelines to make the e‐Governance successful. The
Committee, therefore, recommend that a comprehensive review of all relevant statutes and
regulations should urgently be done to bring about suitable changes therein so as to make
them compatible with the cyber age technology enabling the citizens to obtain maximum
advantage of e‐Governance projects. They further recommend that possibility of bringing a new
legislative mechanism may also be explored to ensure that the implementation of e‐
Governance projects delivers the citizen‐centric services in an effective and successful manner.”