Published on 01 June 2007

Promises include greater control, lower costs, better customer retention, improved service levels and higher margins. So how can these be achieved?

To harness the combined power of BPM and workflow, things must be carried out in the right way. Those that we see having most success are the businesses that adopt a process-centric ethos throughout the organisation, with support and sponsorship from the highest levels. Efficient processes are unlikely to show a great respect for traditional departmental boundaries. Methodologies such as Lean Sigma and Six Sigma provide a useful framework and toolset for adopting good process disciplines.

A basic tenet of successful BPM is that if it cannot be measured, it cannot be improved. All business activities should be linked to a process that has measurable business performance indicators. Modern asset finance systems allow business processes to be configured within the application, ensuring that all user activity, communication and customer interaction is tracked.

This data is used to generate performance indicators such as process cycle efficiency (how much time is actually value adding?), process variation (how much do my critical processes vary?), lead time (how long do my customers have to wait?) and work in progress (how much work is waiting to be actioned?). By actively monitoring these indicators over time, and setting goals for improvement, real and measurable long-term benefits are available.

At a day-to-day level, how does BPM work? Consider how efficiency and excellence of execution has a critical effect on the profitability of a deal. It takes relatively few errors, manual workarounds or inefficient customer interactions to erode margin and customer satisfaction. Workflow and scripting of interactions is an efficient means of providing high quality, standardised services, while also recognising how and when human contact is used best in particular customer and supplier contexts.

BPM should be considered as a catalyst for continuous business improvement. The benefits of a one-off exercise will erode over time as business priorities and customer demands continue to evolve.

To deliver BPM successfully, you need to be clear about what you want to achieve and who is accountable for its delivery. Define measurable success criteria and include the customer’s view of quality and value as a key factor in your assessment. Establish tools that monitor quantitative and qualitative successes continuously. If you complete these steps, BPM and workflow will deliver on their promise.