A Comparative Study of Business Process Reengineering in China

Abstract

This research investigates the current status of business process reengineering (BPR) in China by answering the following two questions: How do Chinese business executives view benefits, critical success factors, and major obstacles of BPR implementation? What are the managerial implications of BPR in China? Data were collected by means of survey questionnaires to senior managers in Beijing and Shanghai. Of the 195 survey questionnaires out, 110 usable returns were received, a 56.4 return rate. As far as the 110 usable returns are concerned, 62.4% of them were answered by presidents, vice presidents, chief financial officers (CFG) or chief information officers (CIO), with the remaining 37.3% by middle level managers or their equivalent. Statistic analysis results indicate that while BPR has played an important role in making the enterprises in China more effective and efficient, its implementation has been uneven among various types of business sectors and ownerships. We find that management support, cross-functional communications, cross-unit project team, and measurable BPR objectives are the top of the list for critical success factors, whereas a culture that resists changes & new ideas, lack of innovation incentives to state-owned enterprises, seniority, not performance, based promotion, and unemployment pressure ofprocess restructuring are the top four obstacles in China. Key