Reengineering the organization: an approach for discontinuous change

Improvement will be constrained by the function-based organizational model found in most health care organizations. Most components of the typical organization are driven by the concept of division of labor. The organization needs to challenge the underlying assumptions and reengineer from top to bottom. Reengineering, a disciplined approach to breakthrough change, is complementary to continuous improvement but has several major differences. This article explores the need for reengineering, the essential components of reengineering, how it relates to other approaches to change, ideas on when reengineering is necessary, and the challenges related to reengineering an organization.