The Franken-System: Beware the Monster Stalking Your Business
We all have them: the systems, tools, and data that make up the ‘messy middle’ of our planning and analytics tools.
There’s a monster on the loose, and he could be stalking your IT systems and wreaking havoc on your productivity and ability to innovate. We call him the “Franken-System”: a disconnected and dysfunctional monster system held together by (virtual) threads.
The term is, of course, borrowed from the famous gothic novel, Frankenstein, which recounts the story of a prototype mad scientist who builds a creature from parts of dead bodies.
In the business performance context, a Franken-system is less dramatic, but just as messy.
What is a Franken-System?
Your typical Franken-System is the middle layer of your organisational planning systems. It sits on top of the base layer, which consists of the function-specific transaction systems that manage data, such as your ERP, CRM, PLM systems and so on.
It’s known as a Franken-System because the various systems are cobbled together in a way that seems to defy the laws of nature. Perhaps you have an arm from over here (an MS Excel spreadsheet from Finance) and a leg from over there (a PowerPoint reporting template from Sales). You might even have a toe from the senior management team (an email directing changes to a procurement procedure, for example).
Each of the parts of the Franken-System usually comes from a tool that is incredibly useful in the appropriate context, but simply doesn’t work when it comes to sharing information across silos for integrated enterprise planning purposes.
Hey, we love MS Excel for personal data crunching activities too, but would never use it to run an integrated business planning process.
Why is the Franken-System so Dangerous?
Whether you realise it or not, your Franken-System is probably already causing you damage. It’s only going to get worse as the months and years pass. Here’s why.
There’s a Direct Impact on Innovation.
If your people are too busy managing the monster (preparing and managing the data), they’re not focusing on planning, continuous improvement initiatives and other longer-term value adds.
A Franken-System has usually evolved after years of solving immediate problems at the expense of long-term productivity. Someone needed a report, so a spreadsheet was created. This approach results in technical debt, and like any other type of debt, it gets more costly as time passes.
Impact on Agility.
When you’re dealing with a mishmash of systems that weren’t designed to speak to each other in real time, then your data will be out-of-date, most of the time. This has a significant impact on organisational decision-making as there is no single version of the truth that you can rely on.
The People Factor is Significant.
More often than not, your Franken-System is stitched together with the institutional knowledge of a small group of employees, who have created the monster out of necessity over a period of years or even decades. It’s only when that employee leaves the organisation that the horrible truth becomes clear: no one else has the knowledge to manage the Franken-System.
There’s an Outsized Impact on Supply Chains.
With global supply chains under significant stress, you can’t afford to have a Franken-System running things. After all, your supply chain has three critical elements for success: customer service, working capital and cost management. Your Franken-System is hurting each of these elements. Read more about the impact of chronic underinvestment in your supply chain.
Thankfully, there are solutions to help you deal with your Franken-System. That means working with the right partner, who understands the right tempo of change for your business, as well as the broader context to make the change successful.
Are You Ready to Slay Your Franken-System?
While some cinematic versions of Frankenstein have a happy ending, the ending from the book is bleak: Frankenstein’s creator dies wishing that he could destroy the monster he created.
If you want to translate the Victorian melodrama into 2023 corporate terms, we’re sure there will be less death, but just as much regret. Ultimately, the last thing you want to become is the owner of a Franken-System that wreaks havoc on your organisation, with no way to slay it.
We are enablers of change and transformation in Supply Chain, Information Management, Financial Planning & Analytics, Management Consulting, Project Management, and Managed Application Services. Contact us to find out more about how we work with your teams or call 1300 841 048.
