Top 16 lessons from Real world BPM Projects

DO

• Start with an low hanging fruits – easy to implement, least politicized
• Document the process in detail
• Establish a simple ROI metric for initiative that is meaning for business
• Do engineering not over engineering
• Insist on multiple iterations
• Use business process needs to compare offerings
• Hire help
• Plan for enterprise convergence
• Change is inevitable
• Work in cooperation with process improvement (Six Sigma, Reengineering, Lean etc) initiatives.


DON’T

• Revolution in process engineering
• Go overboard with process performance metrics
• Wait for complete consensus on the new process before getting something up and running
• Allow Scope creep
• Focus on technology instead of Business functionality of BPMS
• Try implement complex process in first go

Enterprise Process Assets

Enterprise Process Assets are artifacts which facilitate execution, maintenance, retirement and improvement of a process. Enterprise Process assets can be categories into:

· Processes and Procedures
· Corporate Knowledge Base

Processes and procedures are part of any Enterprise Assets because a process or procedure facilitates lifecycle of another process. For example retirement process manages retirement of a process.

Corporate Knowledge Base forms large chunk of Enterprise Process Assets. It get accumulated a various projects get executed. Few of the examples of Enterprise Process Assets which are of Corporate Knowledge Base are:

· Formal and informal plans
· Policies
· Lesson learned
· Risk data
· Historical information
· Earned Value data
· Process measurement data
· Project files from previous projects
· Issue and defect management data

Enterprise Process Assets management is of very important to manage processes and projects in efficient manner.

Use case Template

I have developed a use case template. This template is in continuation of the process template which one can use in SOA and/or EPM/BPM projects.

This template is slightly different from other templates which you will find at various sites. This template have provision to specify navigation details. I understand that purist will certainly be against this approach but in practical world most of the us find visualizing a software which has some kind of user interface easier.

Let me know any comments from your side.

Document is at scribd.com

Process Catalogue Template

Few posts back I have published a process template. In continuation here is now Template for process catalogue. Use it as you wish. Also let me know any changes you require.

Get this doc from:

Process Design

In most of the cases BPM deals with existing process where process designer picks up the existing process, optimize it as per the given mandate and finish off his/her work. Does this expose him/her to best practices of process design?

So the steps of process design are:

1. Concept: The Idea  what do you want to do?
2. Form: The Process  The process and the result of process(product)
3. Content: The Meaning  Does form satisfies the concept?

In a well designed process cater to following class of changes:

1. Change in State: Transition to one state to another during the course of execution of process. For example in Quote to Cash process change in state of Quote to Order.
2. Internal Changes: Changes in other processes which are within the realm of enterprise/s to whom process is catering. For example change in price of an item while a Quote to Cash process is in middle of execution. Price change is another process.
3. Environmental Changes: These changes are most of time beyond control of participating enterprises. For example change in tax structure while a Quote to Cash process is in middle of execution.

In any process Class 1 changes are accounted for because they form the normal exertion path of a process. Class 2 changes are also accounted in most of well designed process either as Class 1 changes or exceptions or via versioning path. Class 3 changes are not taken care in most of the process design due to resultant complexity and thin chances of occurrence of these changes. Class 3 changes can be accounted either as Exception, using versioning or catastrophe. If Class 3 changes are not accounted in process design this may result in chaos.

To design a process following models can be used by various players of game.

1. Value Stream Mapping: This mapping technique is widely used by Six Sigma and Lean professionals.
2. Event Modeling: This technique is widely used by Process Reengineering professionals.
3. Object Modeling: This technique is widely used by software professionals to model software as real life objects. For details you can refer to OOPS and OOAD literature.
4. Data Modeling: This is one more technique which is widely used by software professionals to design data intensive software.
5. Process Interaction Model: This is the models which caters to intra and inter process interaction. This model is borrowing concepts from Control engineering and ARIS methodology. This model is under development and soon I will release more details about it.

Business and System Analysts use Value Stream Mapping, Event and Process Interaction Models to define, refine and model a process. Technical Architects and Designers use Object Model, Data and Process Interaction Models to come out with technical specifications and actual design.

Process Design Good Practices

1. Design for present but do not loose sight from future.
2. Take account of Class 1 events and Class 2 events.
3. Manage Class 3 events keeping complexity in full view.
4. Balance between automation and manual tasks to keep process simple.
5. Strive for perfection but watch out for complexity, so balance.

Reference
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Value_Stream_Mapping
2. http://www.isixsigma.com/dictionary/Value_Stream_Mapping-413.htm
3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Object-oriented_analysis_and_design
4. http://www.ooad.org/
5. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Data_flow_diagram
6. http://www.agilemodeling.com/artifacts/dataFlowDiagram.htm
7. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dataflow
8. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Event_model
9. http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms533023(VS.85).aspx
10. http://www.actiontech.com/BPM/BIM.cfm
11. http://process-interaction-models.info/

Process Template

Recently I have developed a document which will be helpful in documenting enterprise process. This document is in MS WORD format. The document is structured in technology independent way. I will certainly welcome any suggestion and changes with respect to technology and platform.

I hope this document will be helpful tool to lot of us to sail through EPM/BPM universe.

The document can be downloaded from Scribd.com.

Enterprise Process Management

Enterprise Process Management should be considered as superset of Business Process Management. In current scenario whenever we talk about BPM we always think of business organization. But in real world every organization is not business organization. There are various organizations which have interests beyond business e.g. government organizations, non-government organizations (NGO), philanthropic organizations, etc. So the term BPM is not sufficient to cater their needs. I propose Enterprise Process Management (EPM) because Enterprise covers not only business organization but also lot of other non-business organizations.

Keeping EPM into sight, what is process?

“A process is a coordinated thread of sequential and parallel activities needed to deliver value to stakeholders.”

So what is EPM?

“Enterprise Process Management is assuming controlling position on processes from inception/idea to its delivery, from very first activity to last, and analysis of each and every activity for continuous and step improvement.”

From definition it is very clear that EPM can be visualized from three view points:

1. Inventive viewpoint
2. Execution viewpoint
3. Improvement viewpoint

1. Inventive viewpoint: This viewpoint is affected by strategic and tactical decisions of any enterprise. Strategic and tactical success of any enterprise demands effective and efficient processes with continuous improvement build in. As environment is dynamic and most of the time beyond the control of enterprise, processes must be adaptive in nature and if possible self-aware.



2. Execution viewpoint: This viewpoint focuses on execution part of processes’ lifecycle. Once process is released in any enterprise for execution purposes this viewpoint takes over. In any successful process this viewpoint has longest duration with numerous small changes but insignificant number of step changes.



3. Improvement viewpoint: In this viewpoint focus is on improvement related aspects of process. This viewpoint gets feed from execution and gives to inventive viewpoint. The improvements may be minor chunks (part of continuous improvement) or quantum leap.

Classification of Enterprises Processes

On the basis of complexity, enterprise processes can be divided into three categories:

1. Material Processes
2. Information Processes
3. Human Interaction Processes

1. Material Processes: MPs are primarily concerned to “THINGS”. The purpose of these processes is transforming the material and consume resources. These processes rely heavily on Industrial engineering concepts. These processes are found in primarily in manufacturing, assembly, process industrial environment. Generally speaking these processes are so matured over time period across the industries that they more or less resemble procedure or long running procedures. This means the input and output of these processes can be defined objectively.

2. Information Processes: IPs are primarily concerned to “DATA”. These processes transform data into information or information into more abstract information. These processes rely on Computer science, Software engineering and Information science concepts. These processes are prevalent in service and non-service industrial environment. Again due to tremendous progress in computer science, information science and software engineering these processes resemble to procedures.

3. Human Interaction Processes: HIPs are primarily focus on human cognitive aspects. HIPs are articulation of subjective issues and getting agreement among various stakeholders. HIPs are based on structure of human communication and coordination, which are prevalent in natural languages and cultures. HIPs are highly affected by cognitive abilities of participating actors and surrounding environment. Most of the time HIPs are highly subjective so their automation is a big challenge.

In real life settings, most of the enterprise processes are combination of MP, IP and HIP.

For simplicity let us consider a simple process: Opening a checking bank account by a new customer.

So to open checking bank account, customer has to submit a form to branch where he wishes to have account. The account opening form also need some supporting document like identity card of the prospect along with letter from an existing account holder. Upon submission of completed form and supporting document, a clerk at branch verifies the documents at preliminary level and sends to regional office for detailed verification. If verification result is OK, account is opened, base branch & customer are informed and checkbook, ATM card are dispatched to customer. If verification result is NOT OK, base branch & customer are informed.

In the first glance the process seems to be well structured and simple enough for automation. This process seems to fall in Material and Information Process category. So automation looks easy and within reach. Now let Human aspect enter into the process.

Mr. Clerk who accepts documents from prospective account holders has friendship with Mr. Tony. One fine day Mr. Tony reaches to branch where Mr. Clerk is stationed and submit Account opening form. Mr. Tony does not was not carrying supporting documents, so he talks to Mr. Clerk and makes promise to submit supporting documents on next Monday and asks Mr. Clerk to hold his docs till then. So human relations start tearing a well-structured process.

Since human interactions and communication is unstructured and asymmetric, so automation of such aspects is very difficult.