I visited a client the other day and they were looking sheepish when I asked them how their new process was working.
They'd changed the process.
They thought I would have been disappointed.
The new process was even better; why would I have been disappointed?
If a process stays still then it probably isn't being given any attention. Processes should evolve over time if they can be improved upon (and most can).
So, as I told my client, if you aren't changing your processes over time then it means that you probably aren't looking at them (objectively) on a regular basis.
I should finish this post off by stating that changing and innovating your processes needs to be done in a controlled manner. Changing parts of a process without a thought out approach can lead to disaster, but not looking at them at all - that's nearly as bad!
Giles Johnston
Author of 'Business Process Re-Engineering', a practical plan to improve business performance.