Model Business Processes
Describe business and IT architecture
Business processes within an organization rarely exists exist with a well-structured documentation of business architecture, workflows and operational business. The business models and underlying business processes typically evolve from existing workflows and operational practices. BPM-X provides tools and methods to help organizations: document processes and operations, identify best practice, build to-be process models and conduct gap analysis to describe the business to IT transformation.
How BPM evolves
Business documentation evolves historically from semi-structured documents, presentations or ad-hoc diagrams, usually within Microsoft Word, Visio or PowerPoint created by business users.
Popular BPM products rarely take this natural evolution into account. In most cases they offer tools exclusively directed toward architects and skilled experts. Then there are the conceptual questions of whether to establish a more centrally driven BPM organization or to “spread the word” of BPM directly into business lines in order to gain faster traction. Either way you go it requires the close collaboration of business analysts with business users and stakeholders to build objective and suitable documentations. Gaps in communication and understanding between business and IT often lead to failures in projects that should be business process driven.
Approach to BPM
BPM-X products offer a completely different, revolutionary approach to BPM implementation and execution. In contrast to the existing solutions, BPM-X establishes a neutral format with regards to any given tool vendor. It does not offer or enforce any specific BPM style or format. Rather, it acts as 'glue' connecting and reinforcing the existing standards, both established and emerging within an organization.
This neutral transparency eliminates the most difficult and expensive step within a normal BPM deployment. Instead of reworking the complete process architecture within an organization, BPM-X reuses existing process notations. As a result, end users and all levels of business users and stakeholders do not need to learn new process rules or tools to use at their workplaces.
BPM-X handles and simplifies all of the hidden and sometimes complex work of transferring semi-structured process diagrams from the routine work derived from business users and stakeholders into well-structured process model of the organization. Business users will not have to spend valuable time to learn the complexities of process migration. IT experts will not have to analyze from the ground up all the workflows and basic operations. Each group of BPM users will be able to operate within the environment that is familiar and convenient for that group. BPM-X will work in the background to ensure the transparent exchange of content between these groups.
Microsoft based toolset
The BPM-X toolset is standard software based on Microsoft Visio®. Visio® connected via web services allows the storage of model objects and diagram in a neutral, open and central repository.
Web based reporting and publishing brings all information directly to the business and IT users without any need of additional installations on their desktops. SharePoint® can be used for publishing and storing of documents. By using BPM-X Universal Translation technology the Visio® modeling tool can be connected to existing tools in the landscape. This allows sharing of information and capturing of process knowledge in a convenient and accepted way with business lines.