Business Process Reinvention Through AI: Building On A 30-Year Legacy
Forbes – January 23, 2025
By Barry Libert, Contributor
In 1990, Michael Hammer, a former professor of computer science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), published a game-changing article "Reengineering Work: Don't Automate, Obliterate" in the Harvard Business Review. His thesis was both radical and prescient: companies should eliminate work and processes that do not create value, rather than simply automating inefficiencies with technology.
Said differently, Hammer wanted leaders to stop focusing on doing the wrong thing better - even with the use of technology - and start focusing on the right thing – accelerating the creation of value for customers. Technology, rather than entrenching bad habits, should be deployed selectively and strategically to aid in the creation of value.
