Process management, traveling towards success

Before going into depth what is meant by Process Management, we must be clear that processes are the center of any organization and the point on which its management revolves. Only those companies with correctly defined and implemented processes manage to succeed in the long term and achieve the objectives set by management. Process control systems are the basis for continuously optimizing processes and directing companies to automation and digitalization.

What is Process Management (BPM)?

Business Process Management, also called BPM (Business Process Model) represents a methodology to design, execute, analyze, and constantly improve each business process within an organization to achieve the objectives established. In addition, correct management helps improve the performance of the company, generates competitiveness, and adds value to the company. To graphically represent the company's processes clearly, graphic notations such as the Event Driven Process Chain (EPC) or the Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN) can be used, which form the basis for professional management of any business process.

Advantages of business process management

As we have been able to verify thanks to our experience in the consulting sector, the management of digital business processes and the idea of continuous improvement provide multiple benefits to organizations.

Increased productivity

• The implementation of the BPM system facilitates the automation of workflows and eliminates bottlenecks. The sum of these two factors allows to significantly increase the productivity of the teams.

Reduction of errors

• Constant monitoring and analysis allow to identify dysfunctions in the processes and take the appropriate measures. Human error is also reduced in a large percentage of situations.

Automation and optimization of business processes

• The fluidity acquired thanks to the automation and optimization of business processes provides a considerable increase in the quality of operations. In addition, the implementation of BPM translates into a very valuable time saving for companies.

Accelerating digital transformation

• By implementing a BPM process system, it is possible to use technology within the same integrated platform, thus producing an acceleration of digital transformation within the organization and greater efficient use of available tools.

Streamline the organization

• The design of flexible processes provides the necessary agility to the organization to adapt quickly and constantly to the demands and needs of the market.

Improved control and supervision

• By monitoring the processes from start to finish, it is possible to measure more rigorously the performance of each stage, thus facilitating the integral understanding of the business. In addition, the implementation of these tools helps to define the key objectives of the processes and measure them correctly.

Increased stakeholder satisfaction

• By correctly defining objectives, processes and responsibilities, there is an increase in satisfaction on the part of the parties involved. In addition, an improvement of the work environment is promoted, since both managers and the team itself see their activities reduced with little or no added value and see how duplications and errors are reduced.

Facilitates knowledge transfer

• Having a well-documented process modeling system for each of the workflows allows knowledge to be shared more effectively among those involved in the organization's activities.

The BPM Lifecycle

The BPM life cycle represents the stages that must be followed to implement new processes or redefine existing ones according to the needs detected. We must bear in mind that the life cycle is dynamic, so it is constantly changing and in continuous improvement.

Next, let's see what are the 5 phases that make up the BPM life cycle:

1. Design: in this first stage, the processes already existing in the company are identified and it is verified if they are aligned with the achievement of the strategic objectives and its value chain. In this way you can determine which are the most critical processes to optimize. In addition, this phase helps us to define the project objectives that we want to achieve with process management.

2. Modeling: the modeling stage is divided into 3 phases that allow analyzing and redesigning the selected processes.

• Mapping “AS IS”

• • The first phase shows us the current situation and the reality of the chosen processes with their current state. It serves as a starting point to detect improvements and inefficient situations. In this first phase of modeling, the flow of the current process and possible alternative scenarios are studied, as well as the users involved and how their interactions are developing within the process.

• Mapping “TO BE” 

• • In the second phase of the modeling stage, the process is redesigned, always trying to reevaluate business activities, and trying to find a proposal for a vision of the future, that is, where you want to get with the new process. The "To Be" mapping serves us above all to define the steps to follow through the flow of activities and the rules that will govern the new processes. In addition, this phase also defines the tasks and responsibilities of each role in each of the processes.

• “TO DO”

• • This third phase comprises technical modeling, that is, it identifies how technology can help in the automation and management of processes, whether in the use of process mapping tools, in the integration of tools to automate human functions, in the acquisition of products and others.

3. Implementation: once the modeled business processes have been documented and registered, the new process model is put into operation. In addition, it is published to the computer system and starts running.

4. Monitoring: the monitoring stage serves to supervise and control the implementation of the new processes continuously and put them in relation to the KPIs defined to verify the success of the new results.

5. Optimization: this stage focuses on adjusting to improve and optimize possible errors in the processes based on the knowledge acquired during the process. As already indicated at the beginning, the BPM life cycle is cyclical, so the process will be continuously restarted in search of continuous improvement.

Robotic Process Automation (RPA)

Robotic Process Automation, or RPA, is a form of automation, reduction, and elimination of repetitive tasks through transactional processes based on specific rules through their programming. And, in the current framework of business evolution and application of new digital tools, it has become the main engine to drive the revolution in process management.

With the appearance of RPA, a new scenario opens up in which the limitations regarding the scope of the tasks to be automated change radically. RPAs provide a significant increase in this scope and with a fundamental component of total process automation. In addition, the combination of robotic process automation together with Artificial Intelligence or Big Data are a differential factor when solving the challenges that arise in the life cycle of organizations.

As you can see, the implementation of process management methodologies is key when it comes to increasing productivity and improving the effectiveness of teams in search of business success. That is why at DOT Consulting, as experts in business management, and therefore also of your processes, we will be happy to guide you throughout the process in order to achieve your goals.

Shall we talk?