A very useful "outside-in" approach to changing processes is to focus on mitigating the risks associated with "Moments of Truth." I was introduced to this concept by
Steve Towers of
BPMG. Essentially, a Moment of Truth (MOT) occurs every time an organization interacts with a customer. The term was originally coined by Jan Carlzon in his 1987 book titled
Moments of Truth
. In his book, the former CEO of SAS explained that in 1986
...each of our 10 million customers came in contact with approximately five SAS employees, and this contact lasted an average of 15 seconds each time. thus, SAS is "created" 50 million times a year, 15 seconds at a time. These 50 million "moments of truth" are the moments that ultimately determine whether SAS will succeed or fail as a company. They are the moments when we must prove to our customers that SAS is their best alternative.
This concept has really helped me as I analyze processes at my organization. In all of my projects I now try to identify and optimize as many MOTs as I can find. By eliminating MOTs or at least minimizing their risks, processes become more focused on the value proposition for customers.
I found a great website called
This is Broken that is dedicated to sharing broken Moments of Truth. It is a forum for people to submit and discuss broken customer experiences. The website does not call these broken interactions "Moments of Truth," but they are essentially the same things. I found this website while I was watching this video of
Seth Godin that also illustrates broken interactions between organizations and their customers.
