Process harmonization is a complex initiative carried out by large companies seeking to standardize the process variants being executed by different business units across several countries or regions. Motivations for this exercise include cost pressures, mergers and acquisitions, customer satisfaction, need for agile and flexible processes, risk reduction in outsourcing processes etc. The complexity of this exercise is inherent as it involves multiple regions with special needs and characteristics, existing process and IT systems evolved over time, organizational dynamics around different business groups, etc. While a literature survey reveals quite a few cases of process harmonization, there are not many descriptions or research on the best approaches or methodologies to be used. In this chapter, we first define and examine the drivers of process harmonization. Subsequently, the challenges and constraints associated with such initiatives are identified, followed by some example cases. Further, we analyze a case study in detail to understand the practices followed. Based on these analyses, we propose a methodology to execute process harmonization initiatives.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.