Business process management: Difference between revisions
Reverted 1 edit by Robert-blatt; Rvv. Not encylopedic by Wikipedia standards, looks like an ad or copied from somewhere.... (using Twinkle) |
Robert-blatt (talk | contribs) This is not an advertisement, but the way the ECM industry views BPM - STOP CHANGING THIS WITHOUT CONTACTING THE STANDARD SETTING BODIES SUCH AS ANSI, AIIM, or ISO |
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(these edits prepared by the committee chair-person) THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION HAS BEEN EXTRACTED FROM FROM AIIM ARP 1 - Analysis, Selection and Implementation of Electronic Document Management Systems, which is a publically available document, and can be downloaded at no cost from http://www.aiim.org/standards. AIIM is the approved standard setting body for ECM technologies with participation and membership from all corners of the content management industry. |
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{{distinguish|Business process modeling}} |
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Business Process Management is the process undertaken by the organization to manage operations and business activities. This term is also used to reference Business Process Modeling and currently being used by some vendors and vendor specific organizations to redefine Workflow. |
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'''Business process management''' (BPM) is a field of [[management]] focused on aligning organizations with the wants and needs of clients. It is a [[Holism|holistic management]] approach{{Fact|date=December 2008}} that promotes business effectiveness and efficiency while striving for innovation, flexibility and integration with technology. Business process management attempts to continuously improve processes. It could therefore be described as a "process optimization process". |
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The use of this term is a good example of how vendors re-use terms commonly utilized by the industry for other purposes. Throughout this document and specifically in the document sections describing various implementation process and activities, the business is reviewing how processes function and how the organization manages these business processes. From that perspective the entire lifecycle of any EDMS project can be referred to as business process management. This is not to indicate that there can be only 1 definition for any term, but organizations should carefully consider what context the vendors/suppliers are using these redefined terms to ensure the desired/anticipated technology is implemented. |
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[[Image:BPM Workflow Service Pattern.gif|thumb|600px|Example of Business Process Management (BPM) Service Pattern : This pattern shows how business process management (BPM) tools can be used to implement business processes through the orchestration of activities between people and systems.<ref>NIH (2007). [http://enterprisearchitecture.nih.gov/ArchLib/AT/TA/WorkflowServicePattern.htm Business Process Management (BPM) Service Pattern]. Accessed 29 Nov 2008.</ref> </ref>]] |
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Many organizations still function almost entirely in a “paper-driven” environment or a combination of both electronic and hardcopy environments. This environment is a direct result of the need of the organization to maintain information on all aspects related to business activities resulting in such a significant increase in information that needs to be maintained that it has become difficult for some organizations to function as effectively as they did prior to the introduction of the internet and wide acceptance of electronic communications. A very important consideration for organization evaluating or considering EDMS technologies, is to first implement the necessary foundational components and then add other functionality as required by the business units, thereby enabling the organization to fully adopt the new technologies, modify the business processes as required without adversely impacting the day to day operations that still need to continue. |
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== Overview == |
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A [[business process]] is "a collection of related, structured activities that produce a service or product that meet the needs of a client."{{Fact|date=January 2009}} These processes are critical to any organization as they generate revenue and often represent a significant proportion of costs. BPM articles and pundits often discuss BPM from one of two viewpoints: people and technology. |
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To help frame the concepts within this industry best practice document common terms used to reference these technologies should be discussed. Electronic Document Management Systems (EDMS) have become an all-encompassing term, referring to the integration of various underlying technologies including: |
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Roughly speaking, the idea of (business) process is as traditional as concepts of [[tasks]], [[department]], [[production]], [[output]]s. The current management and improvement approach, with formal definitions and technical modeling, has been around since the early 1990s (see [[business process modeling]]). However there has been a common confusion in the [[IT]] community, as the term 'business process' is often used as synonymous of management of [[middleware]] processes; or integrating [[application software]] tasks. This viewpoint may be overly restrictive. This should be kept in mind when reading [[software engineering]] [[paper]]s which refer to 'business processes' or 'business process modeling.' |
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Document imaging (used to convert hardcopy documents into digital format) |
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Although the initial focus of BPM was on the automation of mechanistic business processes, it has since been extended to integrate human-driven processes in which human interaction takes place in series or parallel with the mechanistic processes. A common form is where individual steps in the business process which require human intuition or judgment to be performed are assigned to the appropriate members of an organization (as with [[workflow]] systems). |
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Document/Library services (used to manage digitally born documents) (Note: Most EDMS systems allows users to use this technology to also manage scanned documents if desired) |
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Business Process Management (BPM) / Workflow (used to automate work processes including the creation, routing, track, and management of information being processed) |
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Enterprise Report Management (ERM) (used to store electronic formatted reports) |
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Forms Processing (used to incorporate interactive forms and manage related forms data) |
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Optical Character Recognition (OCR)/Intelligent Character Recognition (ICR) Technologies |
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Various applications (also considered add-ons) such as records management applications, legacy system integration tools, etc. |
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These electronic document management systems provide users with greater access to electronically stored information from common user interface typically utilizing industry standard Internet browser technology. One of the primary reasons users prefer this level of technology is the distributed functionality and ability to maintain standard desktop configurations for other office and business related applications. |
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More advanced forms such as [[human interaction management]] are in the complex interaction between human workers in performing a workgroup task. In this case many people and systems interact in structured, ad-hoc, and sometimes completely dynamic ways to complete one to many transactions. |
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A partial list of ISO (www.iso.org) industry standards discussing this topic include: |
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BPM can be used to understand organizations through expanded views that would not otherwise be available to organize and present. These views include the relationships of processes to each other which, when included in the process model, provide for advanced reporting and analysis that would not otherwise be available. BPM is regarded by some as the backbone of [[enterprise content management]]. |
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ISO/CD 12028-1, Electronic imaging – Identification and indexing of documents, pages and page components for automated processing in an EIM environment – Part 1: Indexing |
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== BPM life-cycle == |
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The activities which constitute business process management can be grouped into five categories: design, modeling, execution, monitoring, and optimization. |
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ISO/CD 12028-2, Electronic imaging – Identification and indexing of documents, pages and page components for automated processing in an EIM environment – Part 2: Zoning |
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[[Image:Business Process Management Life-Cycle.svg|right|150px]] |
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ISO/DIS 12032, Document imaging – Statistical sampling for document images |
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===Design=== |
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Process Design encompasses both the identification of existing processes and the design of "to-be" processes. Areas of focus include: representation of the process flow, the actors within it, alerts & notifications, escalations, Standard Operating Procedures, Service Level Agreements, and task hand-over mechanisms. |
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ISO/TS 12033, Electronic imaging – Guidance of document image compression methods |
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Good design reduces the number of problems over the lifetime of the process. Whether or not existing processes are considered, the aim of this step is to ensure that a correct and efficient theoretical design is prepared. |
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ISO/TR 12037:1998, Electronic imaging – Recommendations for the expungement of information recorded on write-once optical media |
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The proposed improvement could be in human to human, human to system, and system to system workflows, and might target regulatory, market, or competitive challenges faced by the businesses. |
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ISO 12651:1999, Electronic imaging – Vocabulary |
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===Modeling=== |
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Modeling takes the theoretical design and introduces combinations of variables, for instance, changes in the cost of materials or increased rent, that determine how the process might operate under different circumstances. |
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ISO/DTR 12652, Technical report on preparation of existing documents for image capture systems |
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It also involves running "what-if analysis" on the processes: ''"What if I have 75% of resources to do the same task?"'' ''"What if I want to do the same job for 80% of the current cost?"'' |
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ISO 12653-1:2000, Electronic imaging – Test target for the black-and-white scanning of office documents – Part 1: Characteristics |
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===Execution=== |
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One of the ways to automate processes is to develop or purchase an [[application software|application]] that executes the required steps of the process; however, in practice, these applications rarely execute all the steps of the process accurately or completely. Another approach is to use a combination of software and human intervention; however this approach is more complex, making the documentation process difficult. |
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ISO 12653-2:2000, Electronic imaging – Test target for the black-and-white scanning of office documents – Part 2: Method of use |
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As a response to these problems, software has been developed that enables the full business process (as developed in the process design activity) to be defined in a [[computer language]] which can be directly executed by the computer. The system will either use services in connected applications to perform business operations ''(e.g.'' calculating a repayment plan for a loan) or, when a step is too complex to automate, will ask for human input. Compared to either of the previous approaches, directly executing a process definition can be more straightforward and therefore easier to improve. However, automating a process definition requires flexible and comprehensive infrastructure, which typically rules out implementing these systems in a legacy IT environment. |
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ISO/TR 12654:1997, Electronic imaging – Recommendations for the management of electronic recording systems for recording of documents that may be required as evidence, on WORM optical disk |
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[[Business rules]] have been used by systems to provide definitions for governing behavior, and a business rule engine can be used to drive process execution and resolution. |
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ISO/TR 14105:2001, Electronic imaging – Human and organizational issues for successful electronic image management (EIM) implementation |
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===Monitoring=== |
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Monitoring encompasses the tracking of individual processes, so that information on their state can be easily seen, and statistics on the performance of one or more processes can be provided. An example of the tracking is being able to determine the state of a customer order ''(e.g.'' ordered arrived, awaiting delivery, invoice paid) so that problems in its operation can be identified and corrected. |
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ISO/DTR 15801, Electronic imaging – Information stored electronically – legal admissibility and evidential weight |
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In addition, this information can be used to work with customers and suppliers to improve their connected processes. Examples of the statistics are the generation of measures on how quickly a customer order is processed or how many orders were processed in the last month. These measures tend to fit into three categories: cycle time, defect rate and productivity. |
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ISO 15489-1 Information and Documentation-Records Management-Part 1: General |
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The degree of monitoring depends on what information the business wants to evaluate and analyze and how business wants it to be monitored, in real-time or ad-hoc. Here, [[business activity monitoring]] (BAM) extends and expands the monitoring tools in generally provided by BPMS. |
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ISO/TR 15489-2 Information and Documentation-Records Management-Part 2: Guidelines |
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[[Process mining]] is a collection of methods and tools related to process monitoring. The aim of process mining is to analyze event logs extracted through process monitoring and to compare them with an 'a priori' process model. Process mining allows process analysts to detect discrepancies between the actual process execution and the a priori model as well as to analyze bottlenecks. |
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ISO 17799 Information technology -- Security techniques -- Code of practice for information security management |
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===Optimization=== |
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Process optimization includes: retrieving process performance information from modeling or monitoring phase; identifying the potential or actual bottlenecks and the potential opportunities for cost savings or other improvements; and then, applying those enhancements in the design of the process. Overall, this creates greater business value. |
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Along with many AIIM standards (www.aiim.org/standards) , technical reports, and guidelines such as |
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== Practice== |
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Whilst the steps can be viewed as a cycle, economic or time constraints are likely to limit the process to one or more iterations. |
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AIIM ARP 1 - Analysis, selection and implementation guidelines associated with Electronic Document Management Systems |
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In addition, organizations often start a BPM project or program with the objective to optimize an area which has been identified as an area for improvement. |
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ANSI/AIIM TR2-1998 — Glossary of Document Technologies |
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In financial sector, BPM is critical to make sure the system delivers a quality service while maintaining regulatory compliance.<ref>Oracle.com [http://www.oracle.com/industries/financial_services/BPM_WP_final.pdf Business Process Management in the Finance Sector]. Accessed 16 July 2008.</ref> |
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ANSI/AIIM TR15 — Planning Considerations, Addressing Preparation of Documents for Image Capture |
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ANSI/AIIM TR21 — Recommendations for the Identifying Information to be Placed on Write Once-Read-Many (WORM) and |
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Currently, the international standards for the task have only limited to the application for IT sectors and [[ISO/IEC 15944]] covers the operational aspects of the business. However, some corporations with the culture of [[best practices]] do use [[standard operating procedures]] to regulate their operational process <ref name=ippc>NTAID (2008). [http://www.niaid.nih.gov/ncn/sop/contracts/invoice.htm Invoice Processing Procedures for Contracts] Accessed 17 Sept 2008.</ref> |
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ANSI/AIIM TR25 — The Use of Optical Disks for Public Records |
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===BPM Technology=== |
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BPM System (BPMS) is sometimes seen as "the whole of BPM." Some see that information moves between enterprise software packages and immediately think of [[Service-oriented architecture|Service Oriented Architecture (SOA)]]. Others believe that "modeling is the only way to create the ‘perfect’ process," so they think of [[Business model|modeling]] as BPM. |
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ANSI/AIIM TR27 — Electronic Imaging Request for Proposal (RFP) Guidelines |
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Both of these concepts go into the definition of Business Process Management. For instance, the size and complexity of daily tasks often requires the use of technology to model efficiently. Some people view BPM as "the bridge between Information Technology (IT) and Business." |
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ANSI/AIIM TR28— The Expungement of Information Recorded on Optical Write Once Read Many (WORM) Systems |
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BPMS can be industry-specific, and might be driven by a specific software package such as [[Agilent]] OpenLAB BPM. Other products may focus on [[Enterprise Resource Planning]] and [[Manufacturing resource planning|warehouse management]]. |
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ANSI/AIIM TR31-Performance Guidelines for Admissibility of Records Produced by Information Technology Systems |
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Validation of BPMS is another technical issue which vendors and users need to be aware of, if regulatory compliance is mandatory.<ref>FDA [http://www.fda.gov/Cder/guidance/5667fnl.htm Guidance for Industry : Part 11, Electronic Records; Electronic Signatures - Scope and Application]. Accessed 16 March 2008.</ref> The validation task could be performed either by an authenticated third party or by the users themselves. Either way, validation documentation will need to be generated. The validation document usually can either be published officially or retained by users<ref>[[Mettler Toledo]][http://us.mt.com/mt_ext_files/Editorial/Generic/6/Datasheet_LabX_Validation_0x000248d2000263da00091312_files/LabX_validation_datasheet_e.pdf Efficient system validation]. Accessed 17 march 2008.</ref> |
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ANSI/AIIM TR32— Paper Forms Design Optimization for Electronic Image Management (EIM) |
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ANSI/AIIM TR33— Selecting an Appropriate Image Compression Method to Match User Requirements |
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== Use of software == |
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Some say that "not all activities can be effectively modeled with BPMS, and so, some processes are best left alone."{{Who|date=January 2009}} Taking this viewpoint, the value in BPMS is not in automating "very simple" or "very complex" tasks: it is to be found in modeling processes where there is the most ''opportunity.'' |
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ANSI/AIIM TR34 — Sampling Procedures for Inspection by Attributes of Images in Electronic Image Management (EIM) and Micrographics Systems |
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The alternate view is that a complete process modeling language, supported by a BPMS, is needed. The purpose of this is not purely "automation to replace manual tasks," but rather "to enhance manual tasks with computer assisted automation." In this sense, the argument over whether BPM is about "replacing human activity with automation," or simply, "analyzing for greater understanding of process," is a sterile debate. All processes that are modeled using BPMS must be executable in order to "bring to life" the software application that the human users interact with at run time. |
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ANSI/AIIM TR35 — Human and Organizational Issues for Successful EIM System Implementation |
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== See also== |
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{{Multicol}} |
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* [[Business-driven development]] |
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* [[Business Process Execution Language]] |
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* [[Business Process]] |
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* [[Business Process Automation]] |
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* [[Business Process Definition Metamodel]] |
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* [[Business Process Modeling]] |
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* [[Business Process Modeling Notation]] |
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* [[Business process interoperability]] |
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* [[Business rules approach]] |
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{{multicol-break}} |
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* [[Business intelligence]] |
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* [[Document management system]] |
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* [[Enterprise resource planning]] |
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* [[Event-driven Process Chains]] |
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* [[Financial regulation]] |
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* [[Information security policies]] |
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* [[JBPM]] |
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* [[nexusBPM]] |
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{{multicol-break}} |
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* [[Performance management]] |
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* [[Process-driven application]] |
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* [[Six Sigma]] |
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* [[SUPER]] |
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* [[Total Quality Management]] |
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* [[XPDL]] |
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* [[YAWL]] |
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* [[Workflow]] |
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* [[Workflow engine]] |
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{{multicol-end}} |
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ANSI/AIIM TR40 — Suggested Index Fields for Documents in Electronic Image (EIM) Environments |
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== References == |
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{{Reflist}} |
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ANSI/AIIM TR41 – Optical Disk Storage Technology, Management, and Standards |
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== Further reading == |
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* James F. Chang (2006). ''Business Process Management Systems''. ISBN 0-8493-2310-X |
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* Roger Burlton (2001). ''Business Process Management: Profiting From Process''. ISBN 0-672-32063-0 |
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* Jean-Noël Gillot (2008). ''The complete guide to Business Process Management''. ISBN 978-2-9528-2662-4 |
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* Keith Harrison-Broninski (2005). ''Human Interactions: The Heart and Soul of Business Process Management'' ISBN 0-929652-44-4 |
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* John Jeston and Johan Nelis (2006) ''Business Process Management: Practical Guidelines to Successful Implementations'' ISBN 0-7506-6921-7 |
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* Martyn Ould (2005). ''Business Process Management: A Rigorous Approach''. ISBN 1-902505-60-3 |
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* Howard Smith, Peter Fingar (2003). ''Business Process Management: The Third Wave''. |
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* Andrew Spanyi (2003). ''Business Process Management Is a Team Sport: Play It to Win!'' ISBN 0-929652-02-3 |
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== External links == |
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{{Commonscat|Business process management}} |
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* [http://dssg.cs.umb.edu/wiki/index.php/Early_Aspects_for_Business_Process_Modeling Early Aspects for Business Process Modeling (An Aspect Oriented Language for BPMN)] |
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* [http://www.bedredinov.com Practice of innovative usage of BPMS in corporations] |
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[[Category:Business process]] |
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[[Category:Information technology management]] |
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[[Category:Process management]] |
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[[af:Besigheidsprosesbestuur]] |
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[[da:Forretningsproces]] |
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[[de:Prozessmanagement]] |
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[[es:Business Process Management]] |
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[[fa:روال]] |
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[[fr:Procédure d'entreprise]] |
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[[id:BPM]] |
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[[it:Business Process Management]] |
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[[ja:ビジネスプロセス管理]] |
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[[pt:Business Process Management]] |
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[[ru:Бизнес-процесс]] |
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[[sr:Процедура]] |
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[[zh:商业过程管理]] |
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Revision as of 13:06, 14 February 2009
(these edits prepared by the committee chair-person) THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION HAS BEEN EXTRACTED FROM FROM AIIM ARP 1 - Analysis, Selection and Implementation of Electronic Document Management Systems, which is a publically available document, and can be downloaded at no cost from http://www.aiim.org/standards. AIIM is the approved standard setting body for ECM technologies with participation and membership from all corners of the content management industry.
Business Process Management is the process undertaken by the organization to manage operations and business activities. This term is also used to reference Business Process Modeling and currently being used by some vendors and vendor specific organizations to redefine Workflow.
The use of this term is a good example of how vendors re-use terms commonly utilized by the industry for other purposes. Throughout this document and specifically in the document sections describing various implementation process and activities, the business is reviewing how processes function and how the organization manages these business processes. From that perspective the entire lifecycle of any EDMS project can be referred to as business process management. This is not to indicate that there can be only 1 definition for any term, but organizations should carefully consider what context the vendors/suppliers are using these redefined terms to ensure the desired/anticipated technology is implemented.
Many organizations still function almost entirely in a “paper-driven” environment or a combination of both electronic and hardcopy environments. This environment is a direct result of the need of the organization to maintain information on all aspects related to business activities resulting in such a significant increase in information that needs to be maintained that it has become difficult for some organizations to function as effectively as they did prior to the introduction of the internet and wide acceptance of electronic communications. A very important consideration for organization evaluating or considering EDMS technologies, is to first implement the necessary foundational components and then add other functionality as required by the business units, thereby enabling the organization to fully adopt the new technologies, modify the business processes as required without adversely impacting the day to day operations that still need to continue.
To help frame the concepts within this industry best practice document common terms used to reference these technologies should be discussed. Electronic Document Management Systems (EDMS) have become an all-encompassing term, referring to the integration of various underlying technologies including:
Document imaging (used to convert hardcopy documents into digital format) Document/Library services (used to manage digitally born documents) (Note: Most EDMS systems allows users to use this technology to also manage scanned documents if desired) Business Process Management (BPM) / Workflow (used to automate work processes including the creation, routing, track, and management of information being processed) Enterprise Report Management (ERM) (used to store electronic formatted reports) Forms Processing (used to incorporate interactive forms and manage related forms data) Optical Character Recognition (OCR)/Intelligent Character Recognition (ICR) Technologies Various applications (also considered add-ons) such as records management applications, legacy system integration tools, etc.
These electronic document management systems provide users with greater access to electronically stored information from common user interface typically utilizing industry standard Internet browser technology. One of the primary reasons users prefer this level of technology is the distributed functionality and ability to maintain standard desktop configurations for other office and business related applications.
A partial list of ISO (www.iso.org) industry standards discussing this topic include:
ISO/CD 12028-1, Electronic imaging – Identification and indexing of documents, pages and page components for automated processing in an EIM environment – Part 1: Indexing
ISO/CD 12028-2, Electronic imaging – Identification and indexing of documents, pages and page components for automated processing in an EIM environment – Part 2: Zoning
ISO/DIS 12032, Document imaging – Statistical sampling for document images
ISO/TS 12033, Electronic imaging – Guidance of document image compression methods
ISO/TR 12037:1998, Electronic imaging – Recommendations for the expungement of information recorded on write-once optical media
ISO 12651:1999, Electronic imaging – Vocabulary
ISO/DTR 12652, Technical report on preparation of existing documents for image capture systems
ISO 12653-1:2000, Electronic imaging – Test target for the black-and-white scanning of office documents – Part 1: Characteristics
ISO 12653-2:2000, Electronic imaging – Test target for the black-and-white scanning of office documents – Part 2: Method of use
ISO/TR 12654:1997, Electronic imaging – Recommendations for the management of electronic recording systems for recording of documents that may be required as evidence, on WORM optical disk
ISO/TR 14105:2001, Electronic imaging – Human and organizational issues for successful electronic image management (EIM) implementation
ISO/DTR 15801, Electronic imaging – Information stored electronically – legal admissibility and evidential weight
ISO 15489-1 Information and Documentation-Records Management-Part 1: General
ISO/TR 15489-2 Information and Documentation-Records Management-Part 2: Guidelines
ISO 17799 Information technology -- Security techniques -- Code of practice for information security management
Along with many AIIM standards (www.aiim.org/standards) , technical reports, and guidelines such as
AIIM ARP 1 - Analysis, selection and implementation guidelines associated with Electronic Document Management Systems
ANSI/AIIM TR2-1998 — Glossary of Document Technologies
ANSI/AIIM TR15 — Planning Considerations, Addressing Preparation of Documents for Image Capture
ANSI/AIIM TR21 — Recommendations for the Identifying Information to be Placed on Write Once-Read-Many (WORM) and
ANSI/AIIM TR25 — The Use of Optical Disks for Public Records
ANSI/AIIM TR27 — Electronic Imaging Request for Proposal (RFP) Guidelines
ANSI/AIIM TR28— The Expungement of Information Recorded on Optical Write Once Read Many (WORM) Systems
ANSI/AIIM TR31-Performance Guidelines for Admissibility of Records Produced by Information Technology Systems ANSI/AIIM TR32— Paper Forms Design Optimization for Electronic Image Management (EIM)
ANSI/AIIM TR33— Selecting an Appropriate Image Compression Method to Match User Requirements
ANSI/AIIM TR34 — Sampling Procedures for Inspection by Attributes of Images in Electronic Image Management (EIM) and Micrographics Systems
ANSI/AIIM TR35 — Human and Organizational Issues for Successful EIM System Implementation
ANSI/AIIM TR40 — Suggested Index Fields for Documents in Electronic Image (EIM) Environments
ANSI/AIIM TR41 – Optical Disk Storage Technology, Management, and Standards