Process approach in business management

The process approach to business management involves gathering all the activities performed in an organization into sets called processes, which are constantly modified and improved to achieve the most optimal results for the moment.

This strategy is particularly relevant in the context of manufacturing companies that implement lean methodologies (lean manufacturing and lean management).

Controlling the processes allows not only for efficient execution, but also for ongoing analysis for weight loss. Thus, it can be said that an organization cannot be lean without maximally lean processes.

The most important factors in the process approach

Process-oriented companies measure the three factors, both in the context of all their processes individually and their collection as a whole of the organization’s activities:

Vision – describes the goal the organization wants to achieve in the bigger picture. Based on the vision, an enterprise strategy is created. It is a motivation to push forward and conquer more peaks.
Mission – describes the most important reasons for the organization and processes. The mission should be fixed and not change too abruptly over time, as it is the foundation for decision-making and the creation of a long-term strategy.
Values – based on a list of values, managers decide whether an action is appropriate or not for the good of the company. Well-written values form the basis for creating and revising a company’s long-term strategy.

The biggest advantages of the process approach to managing a manufacturing company

The implementation of process management of a manufacturing enterprise brings with it a number of advantages and benefits. These include:

A process improvement cycle that involves continuously measuring the factors (KPIs) that describe processes, analyzing the change in their value over time, learning from the mistakes made, and modifying processes to improve their performance. Almost every process management methodology describes the process life cycle as an endless loop aimed at continuous improvement.
Understand the relationships between different business processes that may not affect each other at first glance. This translates into making more accurate and confident decisions.
The systematization of all activities carried out in the organization, in a way that does not leave room for free interpretation, clearly establishes the scope of duties and responsibilities, and increases information security.
Companies with mature business processes save money on IT implementations because they can clearly define the objectives to be met by the new software.
The process approach to management allows rapid adaptation to changing market conditions by modifying processes, expanding them to include new facilities and functions, and creating new ones.

What is a BPMS (Business Process Management System)?

Find out what benefits a BPMS can bring to your business.

BPMS stands for “Business Process Management Software” or “Business Process Management System.” BPMS is a tool for implementing a management methodology to improve an organization’s business processes by identifying, modeling, automating, analyzing and measuring performance.

A key advantage of BPMS is that its users have the opportunity to take an active role in improving business processes through simple and intuitive tools. All of this is made possible by three components: means for process construction, process execution (platform) and monitoring (process library).

The concept of business process modeling

With business process modeling, workflows or business procedures can be easily represented graphically. The use of data flow diagrams and flow charts helps identify potential improvements.

Using business process (BP) modeling, two different states can be mapped, such as the current state of a process (known as the AS-IS state) and its future state after improvements or changes are made (known as the TO-BE state). However, it should be emphasized that process modeling is best done in the context of the IT solutions that support it. This will help avoid later, costly castomization of IT solutions.

The main benefits of process modeling include: improving the efficiency of process execution through standardization and use of best practices, enabling process management with identification of those responsible for effective process execution, facilitating the adaptation of new employees to the organization, or enabling monitoring of process execution.

It is also worth ensuring that BPMS software supports recognized process modeling standards. Leading standards (so-called notations) include, for example. BPMN 2.0 (more on this below).

Stages of the process approach

1. Process Definition and Analysis

A process is a sequence of activities that are performed to achieve a specific result. Before workflows can be automated, processes require documentation. Documentation of the process requires collaboration and planning among stakeholders to determine the most effective and appropriate actions for accomplishing the task. Business process flows can then be replicated within the business process management system and reviewed by the relevant staff team to ensure effective process representation.

2 Process Design

A design environment is required to model business processes in the system. The tools used by the designer to model business processes are presented in the form of flowcharts and diagrams. The set of rules and elements that are used for process modeling makes it flexible. The undoubted advantage of modeling a company’s business processes in BPM systems is that the processes are not only documented, but are also tested. This allows the user to make changes to correct imperfections even before the system goes live.

3. automation

Automation is a way to get a process done with minimal intervention. Automating workflows helps companies better manage and optimize processes. Building automation involves combining activities and putting in place the mechanisms needed to simulate the behavior and outcome of a process. The tasks that are most likely to be automated are those that are repeated frequently, are typical routine work in the daily functioning of employees, and can be completed more quickly through an automated process.

4. analytics

Business process management applications offer multiple levels of reporting or the ability to integrate with reporting tools to provide analysis on process performance. Reports are linked to key performance indicators and provide data on the effectiveness of processes, team members, teams, etc. Data analytics can help identify operational inefficiencies for continuous improvement of operations and processes.

KEY FEATURES OF THE BUSINESS PROCESS MANAGEMENT SYSTEM ON THE EXAMPLE OF CREATIO’S SOLUTION

Configuration

Creatio helps solve a variety of business issues – from managing employee profiles and consolidating all customer data in one environment to streamlining multi-channel communication with customers. In addition, managing daily tasks and activities is easier with integration with Google Calendar and MS Exchange.

Process monitoring

BPM solutions are more than just modeling and automating the execution of business processes. An equally important function of this class of systems is the monitoring and in-depth analytics of all business processes in the company. In addition, monitoring processes, identifying and eliminating process bottlenecks, optimizing them based on these indicators is the most complex task. System tools allow for relevant information and more accurate process measurement. In the Creatio system, such a tool is the process log (log). With the availability of a process log, any performance metric can be tracked and this data can be visualized using cockpits.

Process design and execution

Creatio enables automation to streamline any business process to achieve desired results faster. An intuitive process builder allows users without IT knowledge to easily create business processes. All of Creatio’s processes are stored in a process log, allowing them to be effectively analyzed using any metrics.

Dynamic Case Management

Dynamic Case Management (DCM) is a software-based approach to managing, streamlining and automating operational processes. DCM provides users with the ability to manage unstructured processes. Users are able to easily change, delete or add necessary steps and stages. With the help of a case engine, the system suggests the next steps needed to achieve the best results from the process.

Ready-to-use process library

Creatio comes with an off-the-shelf process library – a convenient platform where a company can store an accurate diagram of the organization’s workflow and processes. Workflows are available for teams from different departments and provide detailed instructions on how to carry out a particular procedure from start to finish. Processes can also be modified as needed to fit the changing needs of the company.

BPMN support

BPMN (Business Process Modeling Notation) is a visual modeling language for representing business processes. BPMN is derived from a synthesis of many business modeling notations. It was originally published by the Business Process Management Initiative (BPMI) in 2004. The latest version is BPMN 2.0. – published in January 2014.

The flexibility and ease of use of BPMN 2.0 make it ideal for most business process modeling tools. Its simplicity is achieved through transparency – the conventions used to display business processes are described in the form of diagrams and flowcharts. Flexibility is achieved through a set of elements and rules with which not only IT professionals, but also ordinary users can build business processes. The notation language is understandable at the user level, and all process models are executable, not just documented.

Process approach in business management