A Target Operating Model (TOM) is a description of an organization’s desired state expressed by operational plans. It tells them where they should be, where to go next and what to do to get there.
The generation of a useful TOM, implementing it and maintaining it as business Change occurs is imperative, but it must accommodate the Vision and strategic objectives, business capabilities and operating capacities, strengths and weaknesses, organizational and functional structure, technology, information resources etc. etc. Due diligence and traceability become complex to manage in great enough detail.
This project suggestion is to make TOM generation an integral part of the operational plan creation process. This could be done as follows:
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Express the Success Factors of a TOM that will enable it to predict and resolve conflicts. These can be context-specific but should include:
- Assets, Activities, Locations: what is done where, where does the knowledge reside?
- User Experience: how do your products and services provide delight?
- Sourcing: what is done in-house, through partnership, or as part of the Group?
- Process: how do business functions interact? How does work get done?
- Culture: what drives the organization and its individuals to act, and how?
- Organization: what is the model for managing change? Which activities are internal/external?
- Performance: what are the Key Performance Indicators of the business that show the TOM is effective?
- Skills: what are the training needs, headcounts etc. for any business Change?
- Technology: the required support for infrastructure, applications and services.
(example reference: How To Design A Target Operating Model (TOM) That Delivers | THE STRATEGY JOURNEY )
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Choose the Methods and Artefacts that will be most appropriate for each Success Factor, based on a repository improved upon and scaled as TOMs are generated. For example:
- Empathy Maps to articulate User values, behaviours and attitudes
- RACI (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed) matrix to document, discuss, agree and communicate roles and responsibilities
- Process Swimlane models that provide clarity and accountability of process steps for a particular employee, work group or department.
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Over time, AI Agent hierarchies could be used to “champion” each aspect of the TOM, to weigh and argue the relative benefit of any Change, and to resolve any conflicts of interest or operational shortcomings in a simulated environment. As the operational plan develops, dependencies between Activities can be monitored for risks to cost, quality and time to implementation.
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Each business capability comes to accept and understand their experience of the Change, and be able to express their key Scenarios in context of the TOM. For example, if the business Change involves new regulatory compliances in new markets, and early (external) Auditor involvement becomes necessary, then how do I “…send a document out for multiple review according to a predetermined list, with appropriate response & progress tracking, and have a mechanism for capturing comments which can be exposed for Audit trail purposes”?