During several meetings, I have been consulted on how to make the most of BPM within the companies that invite us to participate in the debate. I have heard different ways to face this challenge from colleagues and clients who have embarked on this great feat: Optimise processes through technologies and methodologies like BPM.
Let’s start by clarifying that buying a tool type BPMS does not mean that the company is at the level of maturity required to be able to think about implementing BPM as a management system, or that paying several thousand dollars for the platform will solve their problems overnight. Not to mention the fact that using a modeler in BPMN notation sometimes confuses collaborators with their competence in designing and automating processes, so we find extended duration BPM projects that fall In the end because the implementation time consumes more resources than the predicted savings, not counting the wear of the equipment or the chaos that is generated in case of going into production without having correctly designed a process for a BPMS type platform.
When an organisation acquires a platform of this type, it must evaluate in addition to its benefits (life-taking flows, systems integration, real-time measurement, among others), factors such as support, accompaniment, organisational culture. Most importantly to UNDERSTAND WHAT BPM (BUSINESS PROCESS MANAGEMENT) IS BEFORE YOU START.
BPM is a philosophy, a management discipline that will begin to permeate areas and eventually govern the organisation. The most important question is,
How can I make the most of BPM within my company?
- First, it is important to understand what BPM is and how it works: Like anything in life, it can only be properly applied when it is properly understood. So, take the time to ask, read and observe what it is, how it works and why BPM exists, before starting any project.
- Recognise the capabilities and maturity level of your company processes: BPM is a discipline, so it requires maturing and acquiring skills and competencies before you see your full potential in action, so it is important that you review the capabilities that your organisation faces.
- Structure an interior team formed with BPM: the processes of an organisation respond to the culture of the same, therefore, if you want BPM to come true, you must form teams inside the organisation who understand the discipline and start proactive work towards maximising productivity and efficiency of the organisations processes.
- Start from what generates value and do not be over critical: It is common to find that we use BPM to address mission-critical processes simply because ROI is much faster to achieve; Not to say that it is wrong to do so, but do ask yourself: What if the process does not work as we wish? What if the design is wrong? If the organisation takes longer than expected to adopt the new solutions? These are all possibilities that can happen and you must be sure that these will not stop the company running.
- Generate measurement and control habits: BPM is not only to design the process and to systematise / automate using the platform, it is also necessary to generate habits of revision indicators, understanding them, control over task trays, auditing, and evaluation of process behaviour. All of this will allow processes to evolve much faster.
- Understand what to expect from BPM and how to get it: A BPMS, although it is a robust platform, is not a magic lamp or a crystal ball, so it is important to be able to recognise what technology to apply in a process. It is preferable to integrate more appropriate technology that meets the needs. BPMS is an orchestration layer that allows you to integrate and control information, people and technology through workflows, do not be tempted to use it as a custom software development factory.
- Never Stop: Processes never stop, they keep changing and evolve according to the market and internal conditions of the organisation; BPMS is a platform that will allow them to be more agile in the assurance and systematisation of these new processes, therefore, your organisation once committed to BPM as a management philosophy, will never stop to review, propose, automate, measure and improve the Both new and existing processes.
In conclusion, BPM is a discipline that will allow your company to be more competitive based on the productivity and efficiency of its processes and the commitment of its employees to be better every day. Not just to seek to correct errors, but to proposing better solutions.
If you find this article useful, I would be grateful if you would leave your comments at the end, in case you do not agree or if your point of view is different, we will be happy to hear your opinion.
