Because business process management provides a strong capability for business change, organizational and people issues are huge challenges. Adopting new technology places extensive demands on employees and their managers.
Bischoff is an international expert on optimizing and automating business processes across silos and the extended enterprise. She also is recognized for her work in Web services, brand strategies, strategic planning, integration, and IT/organization alignment.
According to Bischoff, most organizations are in the “tactical” mode when it comes to BPM. In other words, they are still in the discovery phase when it comes to Business Process Management. Moving from the tactical model to strategic mode is the key to enterprise success and necessary when implementing BPM.
In the article titled Understanding Enterprise Business Architecture, the basic concepts and purpose of the Enterprise Business Architecture (EBA) were discussed. This second article continues the discussion and provides an overview of how to use the EBA. Just remember, the EBA is a model built with rigor and discipline, the same that is applied in the fields of engineering and construction. It is a formal model representing the business as a manifestation the strategy.
It’s easy to get caught up in the frenzy of doing something just to do it. We’ve all seen it happen. Companies who implement full blown quality programs, like Six Sigma, often find themselves lost in a myriad of unfocused green belt projects, unnecessary processes and mountains of paperwork. They did not comprehend the trickle-down impact such an implementation would have on the organization. Does that mean the program is bad? Absolutely not. But its implementation was not tailored to the needs and objectives of the company.
Business rules are not new. They exist in businesses whether some or all of the business is automated. Not all business rules may be automated. The generally accepted definition of a business rule comes from The Business Rules Group in 2000 as “a statement that defines or constrains some aspect of business intended to assert business structure or to control or influence the behavior of business.” The approach, the Business Rules Approach, is new in its formalism of managing rules and its emphasis on the business as a priority over the systems implementation.
Larry Ward is a Quality Assurance Project Manager in the OPERS Information Systems Division for the State of Oregon. He has more than 30 years experience in systems analysis & design, Industrial Engineering, Project Management, and QA. He has more than ten years of experience with the business rules approach. Ward was instrumental in designing the OPERS business rules process.
The first step in the analysis of a process is to create a process map or flow chart of the current state. This “as is” map represents what happens, not what should happen, or could happen. A useful technique when creating the “as is” is to recall an actual event. In remembering the event, what actually happened? This way you map reality.
The process map is the base from which the analysis begins. Process mapping can be done at three different levels of detail. The least detailed level (5000 foot) is called the Macro. At this level, your process map contains only 2 to 7 steps.
Traditionally enterprises grew their systems and IT infrastructure out of necessity as the business grew and connected the various IT applications with minimum planning. Stove pipe applications were pretty much the norm. These applications were connected in a point to point manner with no clear indication of process flow. But as the pace of business change accelerated connecting systems became a major roadblock. Then in the late 1990’s EAI (Enterprise Application Integration) emerged as a planned way to integrate the array of IT applications.
Failure is the Only Option
I can outright tell you that your BPM implementation is going to fail, and I will be right 9 out of 10 times. Is this scary?
Research has shown that even amongst IT projects only 20% of them finish on time. On BPM projects, the failure rate is even higher due to the immaturity of the technology and scope of the implementation. If you are implementing a BPM project with the current tools and using the current standards that are still in flux, you are on the bleeding edge of technology. So your failure rate is even higher.
Today’s BPM Suites are delivering on customers’ capability wish lists, but vendors are having a hard time getting buyers to put their money where their mouth is. Caught in limbo between IT infrastructure and an enterprise application, BPMS doesn’t fit traditional payback models of either IT or line of business investment, so it faces a heightened “prove-it” mentality from corporate buyers. But your CFO won’t go for the upfront six-figure outlay you need to demonstrate the payback is real. It’s a classic Catch-22.
OK, suppose the BPMS software were free. Free, as in costs nothing. Zero. Nada.
Everyone starts here.
You're looking for a way to improve your process improvement skills, but you're not sure where to start.
Earning your Business Process Management Specialist (BPMS) Certificate will give you the competitive advantage you need in today's world. Our courses help you deliver faster and makes projects easier.
Your skills will include building hierarchical process models, using tools to analyze and assess process performance, defining critical process metrics, using best practice principles to redesign processes, developing process improvement project plans, building a center of excellence, and establishing process governance.
The BPMS Certificate is the perfect way to show employers that you are serious about business process management. With in-depth knowledge of process improvement and management, you'll be able to take your business career to the next level.
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