Boeing Operations Management
BPTrends
November 2005
How Boeing A&T Manages Business Processes
How Boeing A&T Manages Business Processes
Pamela Garretson and Paul Harmon
Business Process Management is a hot topic in business circles today. Most companies report that they are investing in business process management. Some are focused on modeling their operations, while others focus on measuring process performance. Some are committed to Six Sigma improvement efforts, while others describe how Information Technology (IT) is being used to automate a key business process. Only a few companies, however, report that they actually use process measures in the day-to-day management of their organization. Everyone agrees that, ultimately, business process management is about management, but only a few companies have actually put all the pieces together and have implemented an effective process governance system. This paper describes how Boeing Airlift and Tanker Programs (A&T) changed itself from an organization in trouble to a world-class performer that has become one of the outstanding examples of the power of a comprehensive commitment to business process management through the organization of its day-to-day management system around business processes. Boeing A&T is a group within Boeing’s Air Force Systems business segment, which, in turn, is a part of Boeing’s Integrated Defense Systems (IDS) organization. (See Figure 1.) One of the primary products produced by Boeing A&T is the C-17 Globemaster III Cargo Plane – a huge airplane capable of carrying a payload in excess of 32 tons. The primary customer of Boeing A&T is the U.S. Air Force. The program employs over 7,000 people distributed between facilities located at Long Beach, California; Macon, Georgia; Seattle, Washington; and St. Louis, Missouri.
The Boeing Company
Integrated Defense Systems
Commercial Airplanes
Connexion by Boeing
Boeing Capital Corporation
Boeing Technology
Air Force Systems
Shared Services
November 2005
How Boeing A&T Manages Business Processes
How Boeing A&T Manages Business Processes
Pamela Garretson and Paul Harmon
Business Process Management is a hot topic in business circles today. Most companies report that they are investing in business process management. Some are focused on modeling their operations, while others focus on measuring process performance. Some are committed to Six Sigma improvement efforts, while others describe how Information Technology (IT) is being used to automate a key business process. Only a few companies, however, report that they actually use process measures in the day-to-day management of their organization. Everyone agrees that, ultimately, business process management is about management, but only a few companies have actually put all the pieces together and have implemented an effective process governance system. This paper describes how Boeing Airlift and Tanker Programs (A&T) changed itself from an organization in trouble to a world-class performer that has become one of the outstanding examples of the power of a comprehensive commitment to business process management through the organization of its day-to-day management system around business processes. Boeing A&T is a group within Boeing’s Air Force Systems business segment, which, in turn, is a part of Boeing’s Integrated Defense Systems (IDS) organization. (See Figure 1.) One of the primary products produced by Boeing A&T is the C-17 Globemaster III Cargo Plane – a huge airplane capable of carrying a payload in excess of 32 tons. The primary customer of Boeing A&T is the U.S. Air Force. The program employs over 7,000 people distributed between facilities located at Long Beach, California; Macon, Georgia; Seattle, Washington; and St. Louis, Missouri.
The Boeing Company
Integrated Defense Systems
Commercial Airplanes
Connexion by Boeing
Boeing Capital Corporation
Boeing Technology
Air Force Systems
Shared Services