Address the barriers. Achieving change is often easier said than done. Why? Because of unwritten rules, the hidden guidelines governing how people behave (see exhibit 3, below, for examples). Unwritten rules are important for BPM champions to understand because they lead to employee behaviors that are often in direct conflict with those desired by management. In many organizations, such behaviors are referred to as organizational politics -- and they can be found in virtually every enterprise, especially in the budgeting process. Some might view these behaviors as standard practice, but they can be quite destructive. In fact, the politics influencing budgeting are often the same as the cultural currents that undermine an organization's ability to execute strategy by impeding change. In this sense, the effectiveness of budgeting processes is often a good barometer of strategic alignment.

To address unwritten rules, BPM champions need to understand the beliefs that lead to the undesired behaviors. Why, for example, are people unwilling to accept stretch targets? Do they think they will be penalized for failure if they fall short of ambitious goals? Do they play games with budgeting because they feel that if they submit their "real budget" the first time, revenue expectations will be raised from there or spending will be arbitrarily reduced? Figuring out what management behaviors and other cultural factors cause these beliefs is central to identifying the necessary change levers (e.g., better governance, new reward and recognition programs) that will shape the behaviors that drive BPM value.