Since the evolution of processes is a product of the pressures at the time, they may no longer be the optimal process for the current environment. Consequently, business process re-engineering sometimes involves scrapping and/or drastically altering existing systems and processes in order to create the best processes to fit current business needs.

Business process re-engineering for enterprise purposes, for example, often involves retiring old databases in favor of an enterprise data warehouse. The database can then be coupled with enterprise class applications such as enterprise resource planning, customer relationship management, and so on, effectively replacing all the previous systems.