Several months ago, I began work on a documentary telling the story of business reengineering, a management concept that fueled a $5 billion annual consulting market in the 1990s. Magazine articles and books have covered the rise of reengineering, including the person who championed it—Dr. Michael Hammer—and the consulting firm that first sold it as a service, CSC Index. But no one has told the full story in documentary form, according to Bob Buday, 39-year veteran in the thought leadership industry and former director of marketing at Index.
We decided to change that. Inside the Game-Changers: The Making of Business Reengineering will explore the origins of the concept popularized by Michael Hammer and his research partner, CSC Index. The story will leave no stone unturned: the huge need reengineering filled (and still fills), the partnerships and revenue it led to, the research team that paved the way for consulting services around it, the cult of personality that was Michael Hammer, and how reengineering propelled CSC Index to great heights before it fell like a stone.
It took a sizable amount of pre-production work for just two people to produce a documentary like this. The first order of business was establishing the purpose of the documentary and the series it would be a part of. We decided on the following focus: telling the stories of business concepts that dramatically changed how companies operate around the world.
Next, we coordinated on questions for the interviewees: five former employees of CSC Index. Michael Hammer passed away in 2008, so we also crafted an archival materials release form for his family, requesting permission to use photos, screenshots and videos relating to the reengineering inventor. I spearheaded that process and kept the lines of communication open with the family.
Outside of visuals owned by the Hammer estate, I methodically combed the Internet for public photographs of CSC Index members, Index’s numerous publications and press coverage, and research studies and references to PRISM—the research program co-owned by Michael Hammer and Index. ChatGPT saved a significant amount of time, helping me find decades-old articles on reengineering that otherwise might have stayed buried in archives with limited search functionality.
My father, meanwhile, provided myriad magazine covers, articles, studies, books and other physical media to use as visuals.
As we amassed archival materials, the two of us also went back and forth on the script, tightening it across multiple drafts. We knew we wanted to visit the birthplace of business reengineering: Kendall Square in Cambridge, MA, so we planned our shoot day while recording every other part of the narration.
Weaving the narration, live footage, interviews, and archival materials together has made for an exciting challenge. While my father knew most of the reengineering story, structuring it in a compelling and logical way took time, research, and trial and error. Even with hundreds of archival materials, finding the right place for them required a lot of coordination between my father and I. At times, we lacked the specific visual we needed and had to think outside the box on a replacement that communicated a similar idea. Finding the right music also took time; we opted for a sophisticated and analytical tone, and it has led to classical music having a big presence.
We are currently at work on the third draft of the episode, and we have stayed on schedule for our July release. You can watch the trailer now!
The story of business reengineering has never been reengineered for this medium. My father and I are excited to share it with you. Stay tuned for more!
John Buday: Digital Storytelling 