Business process management [BPM] is a discipline; it is something that you do. BPM is a discipline involving documenting, improving and optimizing business activity flows to support company goals involving employees, customers and partners.
Why purchase BPM software?
Control…
Assume that you have analyzed your processes and found ways to improve them. You can do this without software by managing them on paper. You will need people to move the process forward and maybe even move information from one person to the next.
BPM software provides the element of control. A process will move forward based on a person completing an activity; it will not move forward if the activity is not complete. You will not need to have a person moving the process, the software will do that.
Visibility…
Without software, you will need a person to document on paper the movement of tasks within a process. They will need to provide status reports – typically on a daily basis.
BPM software provides a quick look into your processes. You can see who did what and when. You can see where it is at any moment in time. The software keeps an audit trail. You will have proof of compliance; audits will take hours vs. weeks.
Automation…
Process improvement includes removing non value add activities and determining if there is an activity that can be accomplished programmatically.
BPM software has the ability to launch a program that can complete an activity. You can write logic that can do many things like determining routings and activities to be performed.
My thoughts…
BPM software will do what you want it to do, but first you need to figure out what you want it to do. You need to be able to make your improved process work on paper and then configure the software. Don’t forget to measure for success…
Follow
