Friends Provident: New Business Process Redesign

Customer services within Friends Provident, the 6th largest life insurance company in the U.K., was traditionally organised along function lines with deep mistrust between the back office and the front office (branches). However, since 1989, under the leadership of Roger Hallet, Friends Provident has made significant innovations in its structures and processes for servicing customers.

Business process reengineering (BPR) has been the most influential management movement of the 1990s. It has put management attention squarely on process specification, but has had little to say about process design evaluation. BPR design principles are often phrased as universal without qualifying when they are applicable and when not.

Corporate entrepreneurs accelerate new business growth by going outside the parent company. Through alliances and acquisitions, new businesses access resources not available within the parent. Spinning off a new business can speed up its development. Yet, all three acceleration vehicles increase the complexity of new business building. This note details traps to avoid when using these vehicles.