By: Stacey Godbold
How (PPT) People, Process and Technology Creates a Smooth Digital Transformation
The Golden Triangle, otherwise called the PPT (People, Process, Technology) framework, was introduced in the 1960s by Harold Leavitt. Some say it is like a three-legged chair — if one leg is off-balance, the whole chair is off-balance. No matter how you choose to think about it, the main concept is you can’t have one without the others when creating a strong foundation for digital transformation. Here is how it applies to EHS.
People
Arguably the most important piece of the equation, but also often the component that receives the least attention. People are the ones who use the technology, enact, measure, and perform the processes.
Finding people with the right experience, qualifications, and the most important – attitude, is a necessary step in implementing any kind of change.
People add value more than either of the other parts of the triangle because even the most advanced technologies and processes would have no purpose without a person’s vision and strategy. We have seen this many times with our forward-thinking clients using Sospes in innovative ways to improve processes in ways we had never thought about.
Process
You can have great people, but without a clear direction, they are great people not tapping into their potential. A good process, derived from a well-articulated purpose, will serve to get employee buy-in and motivate people to actually follow the process
By definition, process is a series of actions or steps that need to happen in order to achieve a particular goal. People are ineffective without processes in place to guide their actions.
Some steps to take when you implement processes:
- Create a space for people to have input on the process.
- Make sure people know how they fit into the workflow.
- Identify the workflow steps.
- Create goals on how you will measure success.
- Decided on deadlines and how they will be tracked.
Having a process is important but what are you doing to increase consistency? Automation with technology is the answer.
Technology
This component is getting increasing attention right now as organizations must try to achieve more with fewer resources – technology can serve as a “force multiplier”, leveraging your workers skills and knowledge to make them far more productive.
Despite its abilities, technology alone does not solve all problems. Technology will not make existing problems go away without the people and processes around to support it. With that being said, clients with multi-department buy-in have the highest increase in organizational improvements.
How People, Process, Technology Relates to Sospes
Whether you are a safety professional charged with managing a system upgrade or an executive responsible for leading an organizational change, understanding how to create a working balance with the GoldenTriangle is essential to successfully implementing sustainable organizational improvements.
It is easy to make the mistake of focusing too much on one component. Without a passionate, visionary leader, your people will not be committed to the project. People without a process are not focused or efficient. Without the right technology, your people can be buried under administrative minutia – technology often allows workers to focus on the most important parts of their job responsibilities for better results.
Contact us to discover more about how our customers are achieving operational excellence using PPT.