Business Process Mangement Up Close

The article by Arjun Jamnasdass, Chief Customer Officer of AgilePoint explains the concept of codeless, a new paradigm in software and enterprise application development.

They say Business Process Management (BPM) is " a discipline that sounds great on paper but is difficult to realize in practice ." Legacy BPM platforms are difficult to use, and projects take an eternity to finish. Other limitations also play a part in limiting their utility. If we dig deeper, traditional BPM approaches tend to be project-oriented, focus on optimizing individual processes, and often lead to a business-IT divide. However, agility and digital transformation are the name of the game. Therefore, tech leaders are turning to a new breed of Low-Code Business Process Management platforms that have a modern user experience and help address the challenges mentioned above with a new toolset that covers six broad areas: Intelligent process modeling to build a seamless business process Continuous Improvement (CI) based on Low-Code/No-Code capabilities of the BPM platform Analytics that provide deeper insights into processes and apps Event Processing that enables goal-driven business processes Citizen Development support Native support for mobile development Moreover, modern BPM systems are based on an open architecture allowing easy integration with other systems and applications. Just this ability to play well with other enterprise systems and homegrown solutions makes a considerable difference in maximizing the ROI of your BPM initiatives. Let's turn to the benefits of a modern BPM platform. The Benefits of a Modern BPM for Business Leaders Agility: A modern BPM system enhances agility by allowing organizations to modify real-time processes in response to changes in the business environment (e.g., a new regulation, trade restrictions, or a pandemic). For instance, a logistics company can use a BPM platform to quickly adjust its delivery processes to accommodate changes in customer demand or shipping routes. The platform's advanced analytics can also provide insights into emerging trends, enabling the company to remain responsive and gain a competitive edge. Customer Experience: A modern BPM platform enhances the customer experience by improving the user experience (UX) of the internal processes that drive customer-facing services. For instance, a utility company can use a BPM system to streamline its billing process, making it easier for customers to understand and pay their bills. The platform's process improvement tools continuously improve the billing process, leading to a better customer experience. Adaptation : Modern BPM platforms allow businesses to quickly adapt and innovate their processes by providing a flexible and user-friendly interface. For instance, a retail company uses a BPM platform to modify its supply chain process to include new suppliers, change delivery routes, or update inventory management. It enables the company to respond to changing market demands, innovate operations, and remain competitive. Collaboration: A modern BPM platform fosters business-IT collaboration through a shared process design, testing, and implementation platform. For example, a healthcare org can collaborate on a new patient intake process that integrates with its EHR system, leveraging domain knowledge from business users and technical expertise from the IT team. Macabbi Healthcare Adopts Process Modernization Technology Process Improvement: A modern BPM platform aids process improvement by providing tools for process analysis, monitoring, and optimization. For example, a manufacturing company can use a BPM system to analyze its production process, identify bottlenecks and inefficiencies, and optimize the process to improve quality and reduce costs. The platform also allows for continuous monitoring and refinement of the process, ensuring ongoing improvement. AgilePoint as a Solution for Modern BPM AgilePoint is a global software company headquartered in Mountain View, California. Its core product, AgilePoint NX, is a low-code platform transforming how organizations approach application development and process automation. With a scalable, cloud-ready architecture, AgilePoint NX enables large organizations to build and maintain applications easily, putting them at the forefront of digital transformation. AgilePoint's pre-built connectors and integrations with other systems , such as ERPs, RPA, and CRMs, and its REST API helps integrate new solutions with existing systems and automate complex workflows quickly. It enables organizations to streamline operations and improve efficiency, resulting in cost savings and better customer experiences. Another critical feature of AgilePoint is its integration with AI/ML services, allowing users to incorporate intelligent decision-making and automation capabilities into their apps. The AgilePoint platform integrates out of the box with the following: Azure Machine Learning Amazon Machine Learning Google Cognitive Services Microsoft Cognitive Services By leveraging AI/ML services within their AgilePoint apps and processes, teams can identify patterns and insights, and make data-driven decisions, all of which are essential for driving digital transformation. Implementing modern BPM with AgilePoint The case of Eneco is a clear example of how AgilePoint was used to adopt a modern BPM platform and drive digital transformation in the Dutch energy provider's Smart Home Toon Thermostat division . Eneco utilized AgilePoint's Business Process Automation (BPA) engine to streamline its work processes and improve the order fulfillment process. Eneco faced challenges with its customized solution, including a 'contact center' to 'billing process' under one extensive application. With AgilePoint, Eneco could orchestrate and automate the entire process, integrate data with Dynamics CRM, and simplify its work processes while ensuring enterprise-level governance and security controls. The team leveraged AgilePoint's visual process modeling tool to create process changes on a digital canvas instead of scrambling with code. Its business process management engine also enabled IT to ensure enterprise-level governance of the app through fine-grained permission control at both the application and process levels. If you are a digital transformation leader looking for a modern BPM solution, we encourage you to book a demo or try AgilePoint for free. See for yourself how AgilePoint can help you stay ahead of the competition. Don't let legacy technology hold you back from realizing your full potential. With AgilePoint, you can transform your business and thrive in the digital age.

As CIO, you know that process excellence is essential for success in the volatile business landscape of 2023. But choosing the proper process transformation platform is not just about selecting the shiniest tool in the box; it's like choosing a reliable car for a long road trip. You consider the vehicle's durability, flexibility, and ability to handle different terrains. Hence, you must refrain from making a short-sighted choice that compels you to change cars whenever there's a change in terrain. The same goes for a BPM platform; it should serve you well in various needs, whether process transformation, infrastructure modernization, or creating new apps and portals. A modern BPM platform can provide the tools to stay ahead of the competition. From data- and form-based apps and orchestration to cross-functional automation and mobile apps, the modern BPM platform should handle a lot that's on your transformation agenda. Hands-on and practical CIOs can be bold about choosing the right BPM platforms. Here are a few BPM trends to watch in 2023. Hyper Automation “Hyperautomation involves the orchestrated use of multiple technologies, tools or platforms, including artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, event-driven software architecture, robotic process automation (RPA), business process management (BPM) and intelligent business process management suites (i-BPMS), integration platform as a service (i-PaaS), low-code/no-code tools, packaged software, and other types of decision, process, and task automation tools,,” according to Gartner. As you may rightly infer from the above, hyper-automation doesn’t mean using a single bloated technology platform. Instead, it means using multiple technologies (sometimes best-in-breed technology) in unison. That’s where an adaptive and modern BPM platform becomes crucial in ensuring that all technologies and processes are in sync via this platform. It partly serves as an integration platform-as-a-service (i-PaaS) and partly as a low-code/no-code application development platform. CIOs can work with their teams to pick processes that are good candidates for automation and select the right technology to automate those processes. The first step is to determine where the organization stands today vis-à-vis technologies that enable hyper-automation and identify the gaps between what different functions are automating in silos and what could be automated across departments and business units using the BPM layer. For a deep-dive into BPM vs. iPaaS, read “ BPM Vs Orchestration Platform – The Big Picture ” Intelligent Process Automation (IPA) Intelligent process automation (IPA) combines traditional automation technologies with artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to create more intelligent and adaptive processes. IPA incorporates automation beyond tasks, allowing you to add machine learning and decision-making capability. It enables organizations to take a more proactive approach to manage their business processes by continually improving them based on ML, data insights, and user feedback. CIOs can task their teams to identify processes that need automation of activities/tasks with human input and may benefit from ML and adopt the appropriate BPM tech stack to achieve IPA. Two quick tips may help achieve the above: Take a holistic approach: analyze the entire process landscape to identify areas for automation. Ensure interoperability: prioritize BPM platforms that can seamlessly integrate with other technologies for a unified automation ecosystem (ERPs, CRMs, CLMs, RPA). Digital Process Automation (DPA) Forrester divides Digital process automation (DPA) into two categories, i.e., DPA Wide and DPA Deep. DPA-wide platforms help technology leaders to build and implement the broadest possible range of process automation use cases across the enterprise. “AgilePoint continues to compete and, often, win in the most challenging environments. Multiple reference customers indicated that AgilePoint is being used enterprise-wide for mission-critical applications”, notes Forrester in its Wave™ Report Digital Process Automation Software (Q4 2021). If you manage IT strategy and ops for a large enterprise, using a platform that helps automate processes across departments, business units, and subsidiaries provides optimal ROI. A mature BPM platform can conveniently handle long-running processes rather than point-solution. Hence, CIOs can use the DPA-Wide platform to create more intelligent and flexible, flexible processes to address various automation needs (i.e., new app development, legacy modernization, process orchestration, and integration of enterprise systems). It also allows leaders to combine multiple technologies, such as RPA, AI, ML, and ERPs. CIOs can work with their teams to examine processes with the most significant potential f or improvement through digitalization and then put the tools and technologies needed to improve those processes in place. Sustainable Automation Sustainability has become an essential consideration for organizations, and BPM can play a role in creating more sustainable processes. Organizations can create more sustainable and socially responsible processes by minimizing waste, improving energy efficiency, and reducing environmental impact. BPM also gives organizations a better understanding of where their resources are being used, allowing them to make more informed decisions about sustainability efforts. A sustainable BPM platform allows you to create solutions/automation that is not fragile and allow exception handling and adaptation according to emerging automation needs. Better Collaborative Processes Collaboration is critical to the success of BPM initiatives, and in 2023 we are likely to see more emphasis on teamwork. It may include integrating existing BPM platforms, adding connectors to popular project management platforms and apps, or platforms adding collaboration features natively. BPM platforms have evolved to become more collaborative by incorporating features such as social collaboration, real-time messaging, and shared workspaces. It allows team members to connect, collaborate, and communicate in real-time. Other features that help collaborate within BPM platforms include task assignment and delegation, automated notifications and alerts, version control, and document management, and the ability to track and monitor progress and performance. For example, AgilePoint has native features and connectors for collaboration in your BPM projects. The native Collaboration Center is a component that gives access to the communication and collaboration features like: AgilePoint Messenger Announcements System Notifications Your Yammer news feed AgilePoint also integrates with remote collaboration tools like Zoom, Chatter, Slack, Teams, Trello, Twilio, and other popular collaboration and chat tools. Democratization of BPM Traditionally, BPM has been the domain of specialists and experts. However, in 2023 we are likely to see a trend toward democratizing BPM, where more people within organizations have access to BPM tools and technologies. It will show up as Low-Code/No-Code capabilities and support for Citizen Development-centric features. This new trend in business process management platforms allows companies to optimize their internal processes with less dependence on outside expertise. Look for BPM platforms that cater to this trend. Typical characteristics of BPM platforms that democratize the development, implementation, and maintenance of your BPM initiatives include: Elegantly address both data-centric and process-centric development patterns. Provide tools suitable across a range of dev personas (BAs, Professional and Citizen Developers) Meet specific infrastructure, architecture, and dev process requirements Technology's growing user-friendliness and cost-effectiveness means it won't cost you millions in licensing costs as it used to with legacy BPM platforms. With the democratization of BPM, CIOs can leverage low-code BPM platforms to empower business users to create and modify their processes without needing specialized IT skills. Leveraging AgilePoint for BPM AgilePoint is a low-code platform for business process management (BPM) and digital process automation (DPA) that can support CIOs in implementing BPM and driving digital transformation. This platform offers a range of features and benefits that can help organizations automate and optimize their processes while empowering business users to create and modify their own processes without needing specialized IT skills. Some of these features include: Visual Development Environment: AgilePoint enables users to create and modify processes using a drag-and-drop interface. Business users need not rely on IT departments to create and modify workflow processes because they can easily do so themselves. Pre-built Connectors and Integration: AgilePoint offers integrations with a range of third-party systems, including ERP, CRM, and HR systems, for end-to-end processes that span multiple systems without requiring manual data entry. Artificial Intelligence (AI): AgilePoint's AI-powered features enable organizations to create more intelligent and adaptive processes while incorporating machine learning and natural language processing. Hundreds of mature organizations use AgilePoint to implement BPM and DPA projects. Elbit Systems Ltd. (ESLT) , a global innovator and developer of defense and homeland security systems, deployed AgilePoint to modernize application development and accelerate its growth through an international acquisition strategy. Using AgilePoint's low-code platform, Elbit could create and deploy reusable no-code components seamlessly integrated with its legacy systems. Business analysts then made adaptive process-enabled applications to serve as shared services and orchestrate among subsidiaries and the parent company while complying with regulatory requirements. AgilePoint provided the development framework that enabled Elbit to create a 550-activity purchase order application that could be consumed as a service by all subsidiaries. With AgilePoint, business users are empowered to create and modify their processes, making it possible for more people in the organization to become proficient at process management. AgilePoint offers a demo and a free trial, so you can see firsthand how it can improve your business processes and drive innovation. Get started today and take the first step towards transforming your organization with AgilePoint!

Digital Transformation represents a change in people and organizations with new ideas through technology . It is the most critical business trend, with digitization and interconnected devices driving organizations to evolve into digital entities. However, this transformation comes with its own set of challenges and opportunities. Though Business Process Management (BPM) has been around for two decades, it has evolved in novel ways. For instance, companies now use modern BPM tools to bridge the divide between business and IT . Nonetheless, a BPM tool helps an organization achieve its goals by reducing costs and improving productivity through better processes and technology integration. In this article, we will explain what BPM is all about, how it can be used for your organization's digital transformation journey, and how you can implement it successfully within your organization. Digitalization and the Importance of Digital Transformation Digitalization is a global phenomenon that touches every industry, sector, and business. The implications of digitalization are clear: everything will change through digital transformation. It is changing how we do business, affecting all industries, and transforming the way we work and live. New technologies and innovative ideas pressure businesses to change how they operate. As organizations become more digitally mature, they face new opportunities to improve their processes and technologies to stay competitive in today's marketplace. To remain competitive, companies must embrace digital transformation to survive this fast-changing world. But digital transformation is not just about technology; it's about how we use technology to create better experiences for our customers, employees, and partners. Why Should you Start Digital Transformation Now? Digital transformation is changing a business or organization from a traditional way of doing business to a digital one. If your organization is still clinging to the old ways, it's time to get on board. Why? Because digital transformation is the key to keeping your organization on top of its game as it tries to compete in today's market. Role of Business Process Management (BPM) in Digital Transformation Business process management is the key to unlocking digital transformation in an organization. It provides a way for companies to manage their internal processes and improve things in areas like: Streamlining operations: Businesses can reduce costs by streamlining their processes through automation, leading to increased productivity and decreased errors. Improving customer experience: The quality of service offered by organizations affects their brand perception among customers; hence modern BPM technologies that enhance customer experience while reducing costs. Propelling business growth: Technology can be used to improve the efficiency of existing processes, allowing organizations to focus on other areas essential for growth, such as product development and marketing. Increasing revenue: By adopting process innovation, businesses can leverage their investments to unlock new revenue streams. Conclusion To summarize, it is essential to know that digital transformation is not a goal in and of itself. It's a means to an end—and the purpose is greater shareholder value, employee experience, higher productivity, and happier customers. If you don't have systems supporting these goals, digital transformation will be a frustrating waste of time and resources. AgilePoint provides an end-to-end business automation platform. It enables enterprises to succeed in their journey toward digital transformation. Request your FREE trial today and discover how AgilePoint helps you build applications and workflows that optimize resources, improve business performance, and maximize efficiency.

Business process management (BPM) is a discipline in operations management in which organizations use various methods to discover, model, analyze, measure, improve, optimize, and automate business processes. Any combination of methods used to manage a company's business processes is BPM. For businesses of all sizes, business process management software is crucial to streamlining operations and requires significant resources. You'll have many questions if you're a project manager tasked with implementing a BPMS. But wait! Don't worry. We have everything you'll need to learn about business process management software. What is Business Process Management Software? Business process management (BPM) software is a suite of tools that help businesses automate their processes and achieve business transformation. BPMS ensures that the organization's operations are carried out efficiently by automating repetitive tasks and aligning them with strategic business goals. The main goal of BPM software is to allow organizations to design, implement, execute, monitor, control and optimize their operations using improved processes based on business process modeling and continuous process improvement. What is Intelligent Business Process Management Software (iBPMS)? Intelligent Business Process Management Software (iBPMS) is an integrated group of technologies that uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to automate business processes. It enables companies to create workflow solutions that transform everyday business processes like automating repetitive and manual tasks. Gartner first published its report on BPM Suites in 2006 and later recognized the emergence of intelligent business process management suites (iBPMS) that combined business process analytics, decision management, and event-driven systems. iBPMS systems offer better capabilities than their predecessor (BPMS) by allowing for more complex event processing, interactive analytics, and mobile platform support. What are the Capabilities of iBPMS? Today, organizations face several challenges that are driving them to adapt. Using iBPMS platforms can help organizations build a new business model designed to be agile and responsive to changes in the market. iBPMS platforms offer a unique combination of capabilities, including the following: Business Process Automation: iBPMS platforms automate business processes—including design, implementation, monitoring, and improvement, to achieve greater efficiency. This can be especially important for companies that need to scale rapidly or have many customers with unique requirements. Business Rules and Decision Management: iBPMS platforms can define and implement business rules and decision-making capabilities to automate decision-making. These systems enable organizations to model complex interactions among multiple factors while considering changing customer requirements. Human Task Management and Collaboration: iBPMS platforms provide a way to manage human tasks, including the ability to track progress on tasks and record the state of each task at any point in time. It is helpful for organizations with many human-intensive activities or the need to manage complex processes with many different steps. Context and Behavior History: iBPMS platforms allow organizations to record context and behavior history, which can be used for auditing purposes and to understand why a particular decision was made. This information can help identify potential risks or opportunities for improvement in the system. Low Code Application Development: iBPMS platforms allow organizations to build applications without writing code. It is beneficial because it will enable users with little technical knowledge to create custom applications quickly without learning how to program. It also reduces the time and resources required for coding. Integration: iBPMS platforms can connect to existing applications and databases and integrate with 10s of cloud services without the need to code. It increases the flexibility of IBPMS software and allows users to create various custom applications without worrying about additional development costs or complicated processes. Analytics: iBPMS software can analyze data and performance metrics for the entire system. It allows users to view critical information about their organizations easily. Process Discovery: iBPMS platforms can help users discover the processes that their organization needs to follow. This makes it easier to create new applications, evaluate existing ones, and improve areas that need attention. How Do Businesses Use BPM Software? BPM software can help companies reduce costs and improve efficiency by streamlining their processes and workflows. A streamlined business process is critical because it means you have a reliable and not wasteful system, enhancing efficiency and effectiveness. It also means that if there is an interruption in one area of the process, you can quickly identify the cause and fix it to ensure your business operations can adapt in runtime. With the assistance of BPM software, organizations often reap other benefits, including preventing issues before they happen, eliminating duplicate tasks, and automating executive reporting to improve communication between departments. Market Guide of BPM platforms There are numerous vendors in the BPM market, making it difficult for businesses to determine which platforms best suit their needs. To choose appropriate BPMS platforms, enterprises must understand the critical differences between BPMS and iBPMS. The next step would be to define the role of these systems and provide a general overview of how these tools can be helpful in the organization. You can then examine essential features that distinguish iBPMS platforms from their less advanced counterparts and assess if they meet your organization's needs. From a strategic standpoint, evaluate the current licensing model, type of applications (data-based, form-based, and process-based), and users supported by the BPM platform to ensure that your company meets its goals through the chosen platform. Conclusion At its core, a business process management (BPM) platform is a tool that helps companies automate and connect their various business processes. A modern iBPMS system can help you streamline your organization and track what's happening in each department. This is why many organizations are turning to BPMS platforms to make their jobs tasks efficient and productive . Successful Business Transformation with AgilePoint AgilePoint can help you transform your business into a flexible, iterative, and adaptive one. Our enterprise-scale ecosystem of services and capabilities allows organizations to automate at scale through 15+ process patterns, 50 domain-specific data entity types, and over 1000 process activities for a secure and swift experience of rapid app development and process automation. Try AgilePoint for free and experience how our solutions can work to transform your business.

What is Business Process Management (BPM)? Gartner defines Business Process Management (BPM) as " a discipline that uses various methods to discover, model, analyze, measure, improve and optimize business processes ." These processes can be structured and repeatable or unstructured and variable. International Organization for Standardization (ISO) defines BPM as the management of " a set of interrelated or interacting activities that use inputs to deliver an intended result. Consistent and predictable results are achieved more effectively and efficiently when activities are understood and managed as interrelated processes that function as a coherent system ." Thus, a business process is a set of activities consisting of crucial components like events, tasks, decisions, inputs, and outputs; and tasks are the smallest unit into which we can break down activities. The application of modern BPM initiatives relies on modeling and automation technologies, whereby model-driven development has been around for two decades. The advent of automation capabilities and no-code features has resulted in BPM tools being rebranded as Low-Code/No-Code development platforms. Regardless of naming a BPM tool as Low-Code, No-Code, or Pro-Code, what matters most to business leaders is whether or not it can help implement modern use cases of process automation, custom application development, and digital transformation within a single platform. A Modern Approach to Business Process Management Medium and large organizations are still structured as departments managed by a department head. With the proliferation of 100s of BPM tools (also rebranded as Low-Code/No-Code), each department head may choose a tool catering to one department's unique needs. A downside is they only enable tactical use cases and could lead to technical debt which makes it difficult and costly to enhance or upgrade solutions. On the contrary, the challenge for organizational leaders is horizontal management, controlling processes that flow across departmental boundaries. As work is distributed across departments, leaders view the whole picture of cross-departmental processes, from process initiation to completion. As a result, there is a rise in demand for BPA (Business Process Automation) technologies that provide visibility, automation, and optimization of long-running processes that flow across departmental boundaries. Anecdotal evidence suggests that modern teams are moving away from 'Digital Optimization' (where processes are managed and automated from a narrow scope of one department like HR, Sales, or IT) towards 'Digital Transformation' (where the emphasis is on cross-functional automation and orchestration of processes). Fig 1 - Narrow Task/Department-based Automation vs. Cross-Functional Automation