Business Process Management System
Manage all your business processes and quickly improve overall productivity in lesser working hours.
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What is a Business Process Management System?
A business process management system (BPMS) helps organizations manage their processes such that errors are reduced and cost savings are increased. Business process management is a top-down management approach that focuses on optimizing business operations to increase process efficiencies and achieve business objectives. The main objective of a BPM system is continuous improvement. All business processes need to be continuously improved so that the business stays relevant amidst evolving market and competitor trends. BPM systems enable firms to flexibly and quickly respond to changes in the competitive landscape.
A business process management system requires clearly defined and documented processes for efficient management of process lifecycle. Before we get into BPM systems we should first understand what a business process is. A business process may be defined as a series of activities and tasks that produce a specific result. Operating business processes in the manual mode creates inefficiencies and bottlenecks. Moreover, employee responsibilities and procedures are not clearly defined in a manual system.
In simple terms, a business process encompases all those activities that employees perform on a daily basis to accomplish various business objectives. There is a predefined flow of tasks in a business process with a specific start and end. In a large organization, processes often cut across multiple departments. Business processes may be classified into core business processes and support business processes. Core business processes are essential processes that an organization undertakes to accomplish its main objectives. The value chain of an organization comprises the core business processes. Core processes come to a close with the creation of the key product or service delivered by the business.
Support business processes on the other hand are processes that support core processes. Examples of support processes include hiring process, payment process, and purchase process. Continuous process improvement requires monitoring of process performance for identifying and eliminating inefficiencies. A business process management system takes care of defining and managing relationships between people, processes, and IT systems.
Business process management systems is an organizational discipline where the company takes a step back and looks at all process issues in total and individually. Analysis of the current state of processes and identifying improvement areas helps create a more efficient and effective organization. The BPM strategy involves the design, execution, monitoring, and optimization of business processes to improve efficiency, agility, and effectiveness. An effective BPM strategy empowers businesses to stay ahead of competition and achieve long-term success. The steps that make up the BPM lifecycle include – Design, Model, Execute, Monitor, and Optimize. Process mapping helps in creating an effective and efficient BPM strategy for a business. Flowcharts or flow diagrams may be used for mapping the process workflow. Depending on the aim of BPM, it may be classified into Integration centric BPM, Human centric BPM, and Document Centric BPM.
What is the Difference Between Process Management System and Business Management?
Don’t business process management and process management mean the same thing? Not quite! Process management takes care of overseeing existing processes. The main focus is on who is responsible for which task, activities involved, and final outcome of the process. Business process management on the other hand focuses on optimizing and improving processes to reach a common end goal. BPM systems are set up to improve efficiency and productivity, and reduce the overhead and production costs.
Essentially, process management is part of business process management. Processes are the lifeline of any business. How efficiently processes are managed influences the outcome of the process. This is where process management comes into play. Process management ensures that tasks are assigned to the right resource and they are working as per agreed timelines. Process management focuses on planning and execution of processes to achieve the end result. Business process management aims at improving and optimizing the way processes are executed in an organization. Streamlining processes to eliminate redundant steps and automating repetitive tasks is the main focus of business process management.
Both BPM and process management are continuous processes that lead to improved business outcomes over a period of time. A BPM system eliminates ad hoc workflow management practices and optimizes business operations for delivering better products and services. BPM is more a practice performed by people, rather than a technology. When implemented, BPM and process management help businesses optimize their process operations and outcomes. BPM systems also produce reports and analytics, and manage process data efficiently. The main aim here is to manage
Both process management and BPM require accurate mapping of the business process in order to make improvements. Process diagrams, flow diagrams, and flow charts are some ways in which a business process workflow can be represented visually. Once the process is mapped, it becomes easy to identify the bottlenecks and repetitive tasks, which need to be improved. Repetitive tasks that do not require human intelligence to be executed can be effectively automated by workflow automation. Automating workflows takes care of the heavy lifting and saves time and effort for the team. Rather than working on such repetitive, mundane tasks, the team can focus on more productive activities.
Workflow automation is part of the business process management umbrella that focuses on outcomes of specific tasks in a process. Business process management manages multiple workflows. The continuous practice of improving and optimizing processes is a good practice that businesses must adopt. Both process management and business process management helps businesses achieve that.
How can Business Process Management System Help Organizations Streamline their Work?
A process management system enables businesses to utilize resources effectively for better business outcomes. Improving the performance of processes and systems can be done with the help of a BPM system. A workflow management system like Cflow helps businesses streamline their process flows. Workflow management system uses tools like software programs, hardware, and automation strategies to maximize customer satisfaction.
A business process management system often uses workflow automation software that connects different departments within the organization. Automating the workflow eliminates the communication gap between departments, which improves productivity and employee morale. What does a process workflow system do to the business process?
- Enables creating complex business processes spanning multiple departments
- Manages and monitors processes to ensure optimal efficiency
- Streamlines existing processes by enabling changes to the process as the organization grows
Business processes are made up of several tasks, some of which are repetitive in nature. Employees spend a substantial amount of their work time working on such tasks. Working on mundane, low-value tasks brings down the morale of employees. Moreover, productivity of the workflow is affected by these repetitive tasks. The error margins in a manual process ridden with labor-intensive repetitive tasks are high. Automating repetitive tasks in labor-intensive processes saves substantial amounts of time and effort for the team. Workflow automation eliminates repetitive tasks in business processes to streamline the workflow. How does a business process management system streamline operations?
Eliminates redundancies – a BPM solution automates repetitive tasks so that process redundancies are eliminated. Process redundancies extend the time taken to complete the process, which in turn increases the costs. Automating these repetitive tasks in a process reduces the execution time of the process and associated costs.
Improves visibility – visibility into the status of the tasks in the process is important for the stakeholders. Especially in approval based tasks where the approver and the requestor needs visibility into the status of the request. Automated processes issue alerts and notifications to approvers about pending requests, and to requestors to let them know if their request has been approved or rejected.
Improves accountability – automated processes are rule-driven processes, where roles of each team member are clearly laid out. Every resource is clear about their role and the tasks they have to perform. Automated processes ensure that all tasks are well accounted for, and the resources are well aware of their role in the process.
Improves transparency – transparency of business operations is paramount. It brings clarity into operations and ensures that each task is executed as per preset rules. There is no overlap or confusion while executing the tasks in the process, thanks to the transparency that automation brings in.
Standardizes operations – automated process workflows follow a standardized operational procedure as per rules established while mapping the process. When standards are followed in the process, the outcomes become reliable and predictable.
Bridges communication gaps – automation eliminates process silos and seals the communication gas between processes. Automated processes communicate seamlessly with each other and work in sync.
Scales as per process changes – automation software is flexible and scalable. It adapts to the changes in the process and expands its scope as and when the process operations are expanded. Also the rules that run the automated process must be flexible. It is easy to modify existing rules or set new ones so that the process can adapt easily to the changes in the scope of the business.
Features to Look for in Business Process Management System
Agile process creation
Easy UI form builder should allow you to quickly create new processes and deploy them
Rule Capabilities
Ability to set new rules and regulations so as to easily automate any process when required is essential in BPM software
Scalable Solution
The solution provided should be completely scalable and versatile to expand it, add new features as an enterprise grows
Powerful Features
A PMS should have powerful features to create any kind of workflow, deploy them and should be ready to match every business need
Advantages of Business Process Management System
The obvious advantages that a BPMS brings to process operations are improved efficiencies and productivity, which translates into cost and time savings. There is much more to the benefits of a business process management system, let us explore all the advantages of using a BPM system in this section.
Planning and organizing work – planning and organizing a business process has never been this easy. A BPM system clearly lays out the tasks and the sequence in which they are to be executed. BPM systems bring about organization and standardization into a process by adopting rule-based task execution. A well-laid out process map is the basis for the BPM system, which helps in planning and organizing the process and assigning appropriate roles to the stakeholders.
Predictable outcomes – when tasks in a process are executed in a planned manner, the outcomes of the process are consistent and predictable. Predictable outcomes from business processes bring about consistency across the organization. Consistent process outcomes in turn improve reliability of the business and customer satisfaction.
Informed decision making – a business process management system documents the tasks accurately and provides centralized access of process data to all the stakeholders. This enables managers to have real-time updates on the progress. Armed with accurate performance reports and analytics, key process decisions can be made quickly and effectively.
Effective resource utilization – for getting optimal results out of a process, optimal resource utilization is a must. Resources are optimally utilized only when they are assigned tasks appropriate to their skills and capabilities. A process map where the requirements and dependencies of each task is clearly documented helps build BPM systems. This information helps in allocating the right resource for every task.
Achieve larger business goals – when employees are engaged effectively, their performance and work satisfaction improves significantly. A BPM system automates low-value tasks that do not require human intervention, freeing up employees from performing these tasks. As a result, employees are engaged in high-value, strategic tasks that make them feel more valued in the organization. Effectively utilized employees are highly motivated to achieve larger and more significant business goals.
Enable digital transformation – embracing digital transformation has become imperative for businesses of all types and sizes. A business process management system accelerates digital transformation in the organization. Workflow automation and digitization empowers businesses to stay relevant and achieve sustained business growth amidst evolving market trends and customer expectations.
Undivided focus on continuous improvement – a business process management system aims at improving business outcomes. This is not a one-time initiative, rather a continuous improvement approach that monitors, reviews, and improves process performance. Once a BPM system is implemented, the process/es will be continuously monitored, reviewed, and modified, whenever there is a change in scope of the process/business.
Create, map, and analyze processes – clear analysis of a process is a must for improving it. Automation of business processes requires clear mapping and analysis. A BPM system enables end-to-end creation, mapping, and analysis of the processes, so that improvement areas can be identified easily.
Better compliance to policies and procedures – a BPM-process is made up of standardized steps that are executed in an organized manner according to preset rules. Standardization of a process ensures 100% compliance with policies and regulations.
Data accuracy and security – unlike manual processes that are subject to human error and bias, BPM-based processes score high on data accuracy. Data intensive steps in a process can be automated by a BPM solution. Eliminating the human element in data-intensive processes ensures high levels of data accuracy and security. BPM solutions provide data encryption and other security features that ensure that business data is safe and secure. Role-based access to sensitive business data prevents tampering and misuse of business data.
Reduced micromanagement – micromanagement in the long-run disrupts business operations and brings down the employee morale. BPM solutions eliminate the need for micromanagement by automating tasks according to standard operating procedures laid down by the leadership. All the tasks are executed like clockwork without any hand-holding or instructions.
Seamless integration with other processes– a BPM system enables seamless integration within core business processes and systems. Department -specific software can be built for unique use cases so that process silos are integrated. A BPM platform brings about organization-wide integration so that all the processes talk to each other.
Setup an Agile organization – a properly implemented BPM system breathes flexibility and agility into process operations. Teams have a solid understanding of the process and are clear about the roles they play in the process. BPM provides a clear road map for processes, which makes it easy to make changes in the future or correct the course of the process. Agility and flexibility in a process helps the team navigate easily through internal and external issues. Scalability and collaboration are the byproducts of implementing an agile BPM process.
Business Process Management System and Automation
The relationship between a business process management system and automation is that of a tool that unlocks the potential of BPM. Business process automation is the key to implementing processes that have been optimized via a business process management system. Business process management may be considered as a practice that includes software designed to support the expected output.
Business process management systems are mainly of 3 types – Integration-centric, Human-centric, and Document-centric management solutions. Most of the business process management systems usually incorporate elements of each type, but usually have one speciality. Business process automation (BPA) is the use of software to automate repeatable, multistep business transactions. In simple words, automation is the key to implementing processes that have been optimized through BPM.
BPM helps redesign a business process for which automation technologies are applied to achieve optimal outcomes. Automation does not require BPM to impact process performance, but BPM requires automation to bring transformed processes to life. BPM is focused on the desired results rather than the process itself. BPM solutions reengineer and redesign processes for efficiency and optimization.
Cflow is a BPM-based workflow automation solution that brings insane levels of optimization into business processes. Core business processes like Finance, Procurement, HR, Sales and marketing, and Accounting, can be effectively automated with Cflow. Streamlining core business processes is simplified with Cflow.
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