What Is a Business Process?

At its core, a business process is a repeatable collection of steps a company uses to accomplish a goal. Good processes are crucial to making progress toward your goals and improving your business’s operations.

The purpose of a business process is to help your company reach a specific target. If you want to accomplish things as a business, processes allow you to take repeatable, consistent steps forward. 

A good process meets three essential criteria:

• Repeatability: All processes must be designed to be repeated. A process that you don’t intend to repeat is an action plan instead of a true process. It’s the difference between routine purchases and buying a new facility.
• Transparency: Processes also need to be trackable, allowing you to monitor them for success. A good process has built-in data-tracking steps, allowing you to compare performance and efficacy over time.
• Agility: Processes that are set in stone don’t hold up in the real world. A process should be adaptable to multiple situations so small changes to the work environment don’t cause delays. Furthermore, a good process should be easy to update in case of more significant or permanent adjustments. 

When your processes meet all three of these criteria, they are more likely to support your business’s goals. 

Business Process vs. Business Function

Business processes are often confused with business functions. These concepts are similar but should not be confused with each other. 

A business function is a collection of related activities performed by a particular department in your business. The activities that make up a business function are interconnected and difficult to separate. For instance, a critical business function is human resources, the management and organization of your staff, and hiring policies. 

Meanwhile, a business process is a collection of activities designed to achieve a specific outcome. Unlike a function, the activities aren’t necessarily directly connected to one another. Instead, they come together to support a single end result. For instance, your company may have a staff retention process that includes work done by HR, maintenance, and management with the intention of reducing turnover.

At its core, a business function consists of tightly related activities with a general goal, and a business process is a collection of loosely related tasks with a specific target. A well-run company involves both business processes and functions. In fact, many functions will be involved in multiple processes. The HR function will be involved in hiring processes, retention processes, and disciplinary processes, as well as many others.

The Importance of Business Processes

Business processes help keep your company on task, prevent errors, and increase the speed with which your staff can accomplish their work. Without defined processes, there’s no way to guarantee that anyone does a task the same way twice. Your products or services may not have consistent quality, data may not be collected consistently, and legal documentation may fail to meet regulatory standards. 

On the other hand, implementing processes provides consistency, which then allows you to offer higher-quality products, services, and customer service. Well-designed business processes also make your company more efficient. When your staff members understand how they’re supposed to perform tasks, they accomplish them faster and make fewer mistakes. 

Efficiency and quality are only two of the benefits of building better business processes. Other advantages of implementing business processes include:

• Locating opportunities for improvement: When developing methods and procedures, you must examine your current tactics. In the process, you will both identify existing problems and have the opportunity to fix them. For instance, if your current processes rely on out-of-date technology, you can revise them to include modern alternatives.
• Reducing costs: By developing faster and more efficient processes, you can also reduce your company’s expenses. You will both save on direct material costs if you discover ways to minimize waste and indirectly save on payroll as your employees waste less time on inefficient methods.
• Working toward long-term goals: A critical step in rewriting your current methods is identifying the tasks your staff must accomplish during their daily routine. You can develop new processes that include actions that progress toward your company’s long-term goals. Taking daily steps toward your targets increases the likelihood that you will achieve those goals in a timely fashion.

Examples of Business Processes

Once you understand what a business process is, you can break it down into different “types.” There are four types of business processes that every company needs to develop. Below, the four types are broken down with examples of what they can look like in practice. 

Operational Processes

Operational processes are the most fundamental parts of a business because they’re directly responsible for creating and delivering products and services. 

Product Development

The product development process involves creating and improving your offerings over time. This process looks different at every business, but the basic structure is the same:

• A market opportunity is identified that the company can address.
• The development team brainstorms solutions to the problem.
• A few promising solutions are chosen for development.
• The demos are tested to see how they work.
• One version is chosen for release.
• The released version’s success is monitored.

This process repeats whenever the company wants to improve or update its current products or release something entirely new.

Manufacturing

Once your offerings have been developed, it’s time to produce them. The manufacturing process is usually one of the most obvious and well-designed business processes. It typically involves steps such as:

• Sourcing materials
• Transporting materials to the manufacturing location
• Following a predetermined order of steps to transform the materials into a product 
• Packing the product for delivery
• Bringing the packed product to the pickup location

If you have any experience with Lean methodology (a management mentality focusing on low waste and high efficiency), you’ve seen how a specific focus on manufacturing processes can improve a company’s operations. 

Delivery

The delivery process may or may not be simple, depending on your business’s structure. It may be nothing more than bringing products to an on-site showroom, or it may require navigating international shipping laws. This process will look different for product-based and service-based companies. 

For instance, a product may be shipped to a wholesaler, to a retail store or directly to the consumer, and a service may be performed on your premises or at the customer’s location. Developing a well-thought-out delivery process can reduce wasted time, money, and effort regardless of your specific business model.

Sales Processes

Businesses need to sell their products, or they won’t succeed; the sales processes are the procedures businesses use to make sure they bring in revenue. 

Sales

The sales process is the collection of steps a company takes to discover a lead and convert them into a loyal customer. The overall sales process includes several subprocesses, such as:

• Lead generation
• Lead qualification
• Contacting leads
• Negotiation
• Closing the deal
• Nurturing current customers

Each of these subprocesses should be structured to support your business model. Together, they help you build toward generating more sales overall.

Marketing

Marketing may be considered part of the lead generation sales subprocess, but it’s significant enough to warrant its own department in many businesses. In the marketing business process, your goal is to build trust in your brand and brand loyalty. Marketing may also involve subprocesses focusing on different types of advertising, such as social media, search engines, and physical ads.

Customer Service

The customer service process is part of the nurturing sales subprocess. Providing your current customers with excellent service encourages them to buy from you again in the future. The customer service process may involve learning what problems customers often face, trying the most common solutions, developing new solutions for unusual situations, and following up to make sure everything works. 

Supporting Processes

Supporting processes include the business procedures and departments that are critical to the operation of a business but aren’t directly connected to sales or product delivery. 

Accounting

Managing your organization’s current assets and debts is fundamental to remaining solvent. Furthermore, accounting is essential for maintaining compliance with the Internal Revenue Service and other government regulations. The accounting process looks similar for many businesses, requiring in-depth record keeping, careful monitoring of bank accounts, loans, debts and assets, and staying up to date on legal requirements. 

Maintenance

Your maintenance and janitorial teams are critical to your business despite not directly contributing to sales. Instead, they perform essential upkeep that prevents future expenses. The vital tasks they perform keep your equipment and office from breaking down. Maintenance includes:

• Routine cleaning for your office
• Regular upkeep on manufacturing equipment

Management Processes

Management processes are the actions necessary to keep everything else running smoothly. 

Management

There may be dozens of individual teams and departments in larger businesses. These teams can lose their connection with one another and the company’s ultimate goals if they aren’t being managed carefully. The management process is intended to keep larger groups of people on track. An example of the management process may involve:

• Scheduling regular meetings with individual teams.
• Scheduling regular meetings with department heads.
• Monitoring results from different employees.
• Assigning projects and work to appropriate teams.
• Rewarding strong performers and working with weak employees to improve their results.

The specific order and frequency of these steps can vary depending on your company’s management style. However, building a consistent management process helps your staff know what to expect and enables you to develop a coherent company culture.

Finance

The process of financing is different from that of accounting. Whereas accounting is responsible for tracking the assets and debts a company has, financing is the process of negotiating and managing additional funds and assets. The finance process involves applying for funding, negotiating terms and conditions, and following up with those terms to remain in good standing. This keeps the organization’s finances in check and ensures every department has the funding necessary to do its work.

Onboarding

Onboarding new staff is essential if you want your employees to perform at their best from the start. The onboarding process includes steps such as:

• Training employees on new technology.
• Educating them on safety and security procedures.
• Getting them onto your payroll and into other company systems.

Onboarding can be overlooked in smaller companies and departments, but it’s critical for getting new staff integrated into your business. Building a better onboarding process saves time and money by reducing mistakes and keeping your entire team on the same page. 

Business Process Management

There are dozens of business processes that you may already use in your company. Business process management (BPM) allows you to stay on top of these processes and reinvent them from the ground up. BPM is a collection of tools and techniques that help you focus on your operations and build new ones that aren’t simply minor improvements on past methods. By implementing BPM, your company can determine the most effective way to perform routine tasks and become more adaptable to real-world circumstances. 

Starting Your Business Process Management Journey with Villanova University

Business processes are a critical part of modern management. Understanding how these processes work and how to manage them can help you update your company’s approach to its most essential tasks. 

You can make BPM a part of your management style by earning a Certificate in Business Process Management online through Villanova. This three-course certificate program will teach you everything you need to know about BPM, from the basics of what a business process is to how to implement BPM in your organization. Enroll today or request more information to learn how a Certificate in Business Process Management can help you understand your business processes and identify how to improve them.

Ed Hayes, CPBI, CLSSBB, MBA, has spent 38 years working for a law firm. He considers himself “very fortunate” to have been offered chances along the way to develop professionally and become an expert in continuous process improvement.

In a wide-ranging interview, Hayes talked about how he came to become an adjunct professor at Villanova University, teaching students in Business Intelligence, Business Process Management and Lean Six Sigma courses.

From Student to Teacher

Hayes started as a Business Process Management student in Villanova University’s College of Professional Studies in 2012. He said the online courses provided him “with tremendous insights, opportunities to learn, grow professionally and to share his knowledge with friends, family and colleagues.”

Later when he became a Villanova instructor, he learned that like himself, “many students had not previously been exposed to content bodies of knowledge but were very intrigued, receptive and interested in learning more.”

“Others I encountered were natural process thinkers and focused on improvement and just needed the tools, concepts and frameworks offered by Lean Six Sigma and other disciplines.”

Law Firm Experience

Before becoming an adjunct faculty member in 2017, Hayes worked for 38 years (and counting) for the Hunton Andrews Kurth law firm in Richmond, Virginia. Over the years, he acquired the knowledge and understanding of support management for the law firm, including client accounting, new business intake and data management.

He currently works as the firm’s Business Intelligence Data Manager.

Over the years, Hayes had opportunities to learn about process improvement. He took advantage. “In so doing, I acquired an eclectic and holistic view of law firm operations thereby fostering interests in continuous improvement, efficiency and systems thinking,” Hayes said.

“Along the way, I did a lot of informal training via reading and listening to books on leadership, organizational effectiveness, team building and how to add value to our organizations.”

When the recession hit in 2008, Hayes decided to seek more formal training and professional certifications. He went on to study Business Process Management, Lean Six Sigma, Project Management, Change Management, Business Intelligence and Agile Scrum.

He now is a Certified Lean Six Sigma Black Belt, Certified Professional in Business Intelligence, and a Certified Change Management Practitioner.

“I have been committed to lifelong learning. Likewise, I enjoy seeing others learn, grow and develop,” Hayes said. “I saw teaching at Villanova as an opportunity to be part of the professional growth of others committed to lifelong learning. To me, that is so rewarding. I enjoy keeping in touch with students to hear about their ongoing professional development and success.”

In the interview, Hayes discussed his approach to teaching and the value students can receive from online courses offered through Villanova University.

How do you incorporate your professional experience into your teaching?

I share experiences with my students that corroborate and reinforce the value and effectiveness of the knowledge they are learning. I stress that not everyone in their current organizations has the knowledge and insights that they are learning. Accordingly, our students need to be patient, sensitive to this and look for opportunities to share this knowledge in a respectful manner.

Also, I share with my students the painful lessons of working on projects and attempting to solve business problems without the benefit of the tools, concepts and bodies of knowledge I have acquired in recent years. I convey to my students how valuable this knowledge is and how it, in retrospect, could have enabled me to have made better decisions and be more effective as a manager in my firm.

Lastly, I convey to students that this journey of learning is a marathon and not a sprint. Invest the time and enjoy the ride – it will be well worth it!

How do you keep students engaged in a 100% online classroom and what do you enjoy most about teaching online?

When applicable, I find that encouraging students to share their experiences and insights with others enables them to network, foster empathy and reinforce the importance of the knowledge they are acquiring through these online courses. 

Many students are reluctant to speak in a virtual setting, so I use classroom polls to enable students to provide “risk free” answers and participate anonymously. 

I find it incredible that I have taught many students who are active military personnel serving overseas and continuing their education. In a recent Lean Six Sigma course, several of my students were serving in Afghanistan. To help our servicemembers, who are making great personal sacrifices and often serving under difficult circumstances, is so very rewarding to me.

Live class sessions are a staple of Villanova’s online certificate program offerings. Walk us through one and explain how they can benefit students. 

I use PowerPoint slides, many of which contain visuals to add clarity, beyond bullet points, to direct my live class sessions. In those slides, I hit several high points from the weekly learning modules and then bring in resources, anecdotes and academic materials to reinforce topics covered in the weekly module.

I also set aside Q&A segments at the beginning, middle and end of each live session. If the student participation leads the discussion into another direction, I go with it and depart from prepared lecture content. It’s the students’ time and I want to be agile and flexible to meet their interests and needs. 

The live class sessions provide students with a voice and resource to which they can target their questions and concerns. Also, I present insights and material, from my readings in books and journals, that is designed to stimulate thinking and generate interests beyond what is covered in the weekly modules. For example, as a Prosci-certified Change Management Practitioner, I introduce practical high-level concepts of change management along with the academic work of Dr. John Kotter to convey to students its importance in introducing change, launching new processes and systems. 

In addition to its Lean Six Sigma, Business Intelligence and Business Process Management certificate programs, Villanova is a certifying body for Lean Six Sigma, Business Intelligence and Business Process Management certification. Describe the benefits of earning a Villanova certification as a complement to the certificate program.

To me, the certification exam, versus just passing the course exams, is the true measure of mastering and understanding a body of knowledge. Having prepared for and taken two certification exams through Villanova, I found that the preparation enabled me to address my knowledge gaps, “put it all together” and crystalize my understanding of the knowledge. For instance, in preparing for Villanova’s Business Intelligence certification exam, I developed a better and holistic understanding of business intelligence as taught at Villanova, by re-reviewing the materials from the Essentials, Mastering and Advanced Business Intelligence courses. A few weeks later, I had a web meeting with a business intelligence vendor and understood the terminology used and concepts they were demonstrating. That experience was so reaffirming. 

I often tell my students that passing a professional certification exam tells their current and future employers that they made the necessary sacrifices, and devoted the time, resources and energy to master a body of knowledge sufficiently to pass a rigorous certification exam. This effort demonstrates focused energy, personal sacrifice and time commitment beyond our day jobs.

What intrigues you about the concepts and tools of Lean Six Sigma? Talk about its real-world application across multiple industries.

The combination of Lean and Six Sigma provides you with the tools and concepts to lead process improvement in an organization and make a difference. In this competitive world, differentiation from the competition is vitally important. 

I love the framework and disciplined approaches of Lean Six Sigma. The tools help keep problem-solvers on course and asking the right questions. 

What key takeaways should students expect to gain from the Lean Six Sigma program?

In addition to a myriad of practical tools and concepts, a student can gain self-confidence in feeling better equipped to address business problems and work toward their resolution. 

A colleague of mine from another law firm embraced Lean Six Sigma in his firm and provided incentives for staff to pursue Lean Six Sigma training and certification. He noticed the “swagger” that his staff brought to business problems.

Talk about how Six Sigma and Lean marry well with other process improvement approaches.

I often present a slide in my courses in which displays the disciplines of Lean, Six Sigma, Business Process Management, Project Management and Change Management. I cite how all these disciplines share one thing in common: improvement.

All these disciplines integrate nicely with each other and address respective gaps among them. For example, Six Sigma, with its statistical tools, is strong in measuring yet does not address, in my opinion, the people side of change. That’s where change management comes in. 

I am beginning to learn the fundamentals of Agile Scrum and see how it, too, can be valuable in continuous organizational improvement. 

What advice would you give students who are on the fence about enrolling in Villanova’s Certificate in Lean Six Sigma program?

My advice would be to decide early how far you want to proceed into the program: Lean Sensei, Six Sigma Green Belt or Lean Six Sigma Black Belt. I recommend taking the associated certification exam and going beyond a certificate of completion – there is a major difference.

In my experience, preparing for the certification exam will stretch you to learn and master the knowledge. I recall how my Black Belt instructor recommended 200 hours of study, after completing the 16-week course, to prepare for the certification exam. I ended up devoting approximately 250 hours over an eight-month period to prepare for and pass the Black Belt certification exam. The Black Belt certification has opened up opportunities here at Villanova and in my current organization that I otherwise would not have had. The certification jump-started my commitment to learning and got me off a professional development plateau. I wish that I had made the commitment to learning Lean Six Sigma years earlier. 

As to career value and to address student inquiries based upon anecdotal data, I subscribe to job alerts from Indeed.com and notice the demand for Lean Six Sigma Black Belts in many industries, both domestically and internationally. Most of these positions are looking for experienced Black Belts with a track record of success in applying Lean Six Sigma.

One last note: Don’t stop with Lean Six Sigma. Time and resources permitting, consider BPM, Business Intelligence, Applied Project Management and Agile.  You’ll be amazed with how differently you will view problem-solving at work. It is a great feeling to know that you have a tool, concept or framework in your skill set to address a business problem that comes across your desk. 

While many business processes lie somewhere in between, nearly every business could benefit from strategic business process management. Business process management (BPM) is much more than a record of the process employees are to follow. According to Villanova University’s Essentials of Business Process Management course, BPM is a strategic, cross-functional methodology with six phases that equips BPM practitioners to plan and execute their projects.

Why Does Business Process Management Matter?

An intentional approach to managing business processes ensures they yield efficient and effective processes for businesses. Effective business process management practices can result in improved business agility, process visibility, organizational efficiency, customer service and product and service innovation.

Whether a business is transforming raw materials into a product sold to a customer or properly recording financial transactions, implementing an efficient and effective process is paramount to maximizing efficiency and reducing errors.

For example, if the process for submitting a sales order for production is clear and efficient, it’s much more likely the order will be processed and delivered correctly the first time and the customer will be satisfied.

Business operations overall are comprised of multiple business processes, which means if an organization is committed to running efficiently, a commitment to actively managing and streamlining every business process at the organization is essential.

The Six Phases of BPM

BPM is more holistic than methodologies like Lean and Six Sigma, which focus solely on process improvement. BPM’s goal is to manage – not just improve the process. (However, the two processes can be used in tandem to help eliminate issues in specific processes). The six phases of business process management, as identified in Villanova’s Essentials of BPM course, are Assess, Design, Model, Implement, Monitor and Modify.

• Assess: BPM practitioners should begin by understanding where the process is currently. This should include establishing and documenting what occurs with the process, who is responsible for each task, the length of time the process requires and how often the process is running.

According to the Essentials of BPM course, the goal of the assessment phase is to sketch the process flow in its current state and enable stakeholders to review the data. This should also include any errors and potential consequences to show business impact.

• Design: The design phase should be high iterative, as BPM practitioners use the collected data from the assessment phase to design solutions to process issues. A valuable design reduces problems in the process lifecycle and offers accuracy and efficiency. Presenting multiple designs to stakeholders to test them with data and weigh in on the best option is generally the most effective option.
  The Essentials of BPM course suggests using process maps to form ideas and designing solutions that reduce the number of problems over the lifecycle of the process.

• Model: In this phase, designs are tested with predictive data. One important note the Essentials of BPM course conveys: practitioners should ensure the accuracy of the data in order to obtain valid results. The goal of the modeling phase is to manipulate variables (such as time, cost and resources) to understand the outcomes. For example, what the impact of the process would be if the process reduced the employees involved from three to two. Or, what would need to occur for the timeline to move up by one week?

In this phase, stakeholders need to make a decision: based on the potential outcome models, should a process change be introduced?

• Implement: A significant amount of work goes into implementing changes that are designed and modeled. BPM practitioners must develop a detailed change management plan that outlines what specifically is changing. Keep in mind, this may include job descriptions and roles, informing customers or suppliers, or updating systems.

Prepare a contingency plan as well, Villanova’s Essentials of BPM course teaches, as even the best ideas can falter during implementation.

• Monitor: BPM is intended to be an ongoing process, which means practitioners must continuously assess the process using data modeling and simulation to consider possible outcomes. They should also benchmark performance against several data points, including any key performance indicators (KPIs), employee feedback or overall objectives. For example, if a new process’ objective was to deliver a product to the customer two days earlier, but employee feedback indicates achieving the goal requires substantial overtime, the process may need to be revisited.

• Modify: In the modify phase, the process should be continually adjusted based on data to improve outcomes. If changes are required, the business case should be revisited and the six-step phase cycle should begin again, starting with the assessment phase.

Benefits of Business Process Management

BPM enables organizations to improve processes and drive better results, which can lead to lower costs, higher revenue and increased customer satisfaction. When a process is streamlined, it can more closely align with customer needs. In addition, the organization can better manage costs when BPM is running efficiently, supported with useful data and tracking toward clearly defined goals.

Implementing a BPM strategy can enable:

• Teams to prioritize core business processes that will have the greatest impact on the business
• Increased revenue through higher customer satisfaction
• Lowered costs with the elimination of waste
• Better accountability with a clear owner and stakeholder defined
• Improved productivity and better use of research
• Greater accuracy from data
• Better compliance
• Increased security

Hone Your BPM Skills

Professionals in any industry can employ BPM best practices to reduce costs, prioritize important business processes and increase an organization’s response time in order to fulfill customer demand. To help refine your business management acumen, Villanova offers a three-course Certificate in Business Process Management program designed to equip working professionals with the business and technology skills needed to align business objectives with processes and emerge as process leaders in their organization and industry. By successfully completing the three-course program track, project and optional certification exam, you can demonstrate your business process management expertise by earning Villanova’s Certified Professional in Business Process Management (CPBPM) credential. Earning this Villanova credential validates your understanding of the core concepts of the BPM program and can help distinguish you as a business process management expert.

BPM Organizational Roles

Managing business processes often requires multiple roles (or groups) within a single organization, according to Villanova University’s Essentials of Business Process Management course. The BPM teams discussed in the Essentials of BPM course include a Capability and Organization Leader (C&O), BPM Center of Excellence Organization (CoE) and a Chief Information Organization (CIO).

The C&O team generally focuses on operation knowledge spanning from operations and warehousing to logistics and planning. Typically, professionals in a C&O team have hands-on experience with transactional systems like purchasing, planning, capital management or production systems. In order to oversee these operations, individuals must hold a deep understanding of internal customers, functional organizations they support, their strategies and key stakeholders.

The CoE organization adopts a more technical perspective, emphasizing business analysis to power production, planning, finance and purchasing decisions. Professionals in a CoE team are process knowledge-oriented and have the ability to translate between technical, business and external consultant communities.

A CIO organization team typically has a passion for process improvement, emphasizes effective communication, deliverable-focused job descriptions and continuous improvement and focuses on the capability of technology to solve the business’s true needs.

According to the Essentials of BPM course, C&O, CoE and CIO organizations may be within different hierarchies and can evolve over time. However, each team possesses skills that are critical to making them effective.

• Business process knowledge
• Business acumen
• Management skills
• Hands-on application knowledge at the transactional level
• Interpersonal skills coupled with technical savvy to bridge business and technical communities

BPM Project Roles

Additionally, there are several key roles within BPM projects, including:

• Business process manager – This professional is dedicated to improving business processes by evaluating existing processes, developing and refining new processes, and monitoring and adapting process implementations.

• A BPM Sponsor or Champion – This individual is typically a member of the executive team and helps drive focus for the initiative in the senior management agenda.

• Process Owner – This organizational leader drives the overall process. Building relationships with process owners and ensuring they understand the business value of the BPM initiative is critical to its success. Process owners control access and can leverage and determine buy-in when a new process needs to be created.

• Early Adopters or Advocates – While these individuals aren’t process owners, they are typically leaders within the organization who are willing to move forward with the process improvements and champion innovation. Early adopters are valuable allies to BPM teams as they are often more willing to work through trial and error and can help advocate for the process within the organization.

• Resisters – Resisters often attempt to jeopardize BPM agendas by employing small tactics and ensuring key initiatives are not fully implemented. According to the Essentials of BPM course, roughly 20% of individuals fall under the resister category. BPM champions can play a key role in overcoming resistance by requiring participation and informing the team about the value the BPM initiative brings to the organization. Executive-level champions can also help ensure committed resources are a priority within the organization.

BPM Skills

Regardless of industry, professionals driving BPM at an organization must possess a core set of skills in order to effectively optimize processes using the six-step BPM phases methodology. Skills for BPM leaders include:

• Project management – Overhauling a process isn’t as simple as rearranging an order. BPM requires full project management, whether that is improving an existing process, creating a new process to meet a new need, or establishing a new framework. These projects need a skilled project manager at the helm to direct the overall process.

• Communication – Processes are often cross-functional, which mean BPM professionals must be able to communicate with stakeholders across departments, explain processes, share documentation and translate technical details.

• Data Modeling – A key aspect of testing new processes is applying predictive analytics to data models to refine proposed approaches.

• Change management – Professionals must be adept and encourage buy-in from stakeholders and continue to champion the process change throughout the organization. 

• Systems thinking – BPM champions must be able to step back and examine whole systems as well as adjust individual details.

• Technical skills – To analyze current processes, BPM practitioners must be able to gather information, design a new user experience and optimize future outcomes.

• Understanding of software – Today, the right software can play a key role in savvy BPM, with many vendors offering integrated solutions. To choose the most effective solution, BPM champions need to understand what the software should do, and how it can best integrate all the organizational systems.

Looking Ahead

Villanova’s three-course Certificate in Business Process Management program can help professionals cultivate effective business process management efforts within their organizations. In an increasingly complex business environment, this program provides students with the skills and strategic understanding of BPM as a methodology to leverage technology and design solutions to drive effective business improvement projects.  

What is DMAIC and DMEMO?

BPM’s methodology follows a lifecycle of phases, and each phase has its own set of tasks that need to be executed. The most common BPM methodology utilizes five stages: Design, Model, Execute, Monitor and Optimize (DMEMO). Each phase of DMEMO asks specific questions and has certain purposes.

1. Design – How is it done and what steps can be taken to complete the process?  
2. Model – Why is it done that way? What improvements can we make? What can we eliminate to consolidate and automate the procedure?
3. Execute – Make adjustments in an attempt to improve the process.
4. Monitor – Track the process and see if the modifications are yielding improvements.
5. Optimize – What more can we do? If improvements can be made, it’s time to repeat the DMEMO process.

The DMEMO process is similar to another approach called the DMAIC process. It stands for Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control. DMAIC is one of the methodologies typically used in Six Sigma. Each phase of DMAIC has a particular purpose, and uses a step-by-step model to enhance the desired process.  

1. Define – Define the problem in terms of the customer.
2. Measure – Evaluate aspects of the current process and collect data.
3. Analyze – Interpret data to identify cause and effect.
4. Improve – Use the analysis to determine how to change and optimize the process.
5. Control – Eliminate deviations from the target goal in order to correct future mistakes.

Explaining the DMEMO Methodology

Organizations should start by defining a vision and an overall goal for BPM processes. Then, once a strategy has been formulated, businesses can continue by using the DMEMO methodology of objectives, tools and activities in each stage.

• Design – In this stage, businesses determine the current process and metrics and establish future state process modeling. Tools and activities in this stage typically include a document template to gather the data, process modeling and mapping tools, creation of a process library to centralize process documentation and collaboration sessions.
• Measure – This stage consists of analyzing the current process to determine areas for improvement. Businesses can use spreadsheets and software tools to conduct process analysis and simulation during the measurement stage. 
• Execute – This step entails the actual testing of the improved process.
• Monitor – Monitoring takes place by comparing the process to defined measurements and metrics. Activities and tools in this stage include reporting, workflow monitoring and audit tools, business activity monitoring, business event processing, and dashboards and reporting.
• Optimize – Optimization involves reevaluating and looking for additional areas in need of improvement. Tools used in the optimize stage can include reporting, analytic and business intelligence, change management and propagation tools.

1. Unclear Start and Finish – It’s estimated that 60-70% of business optimization projects fail. One of the possible reasons behind this high failure rate is due to unclear starts and finishes. To avoid this pitfall, companies need to fully understand their status quo before beginning optimization projects. Here are some questions businesses should ask themselves when beginning a project:
   • Who is involved in the process?
   • What input and output parameters are being used?
   • What is the average timetocompletion for a single instance of this process?
   • How often are exceptions raised, how are these handled and by whom?
2. Wrong KPIs – Key performance indicators (KPIs) are metrics used to evaluate business success. They are the markers that help keep business performance in the right direction. For this reason, companies have to be careful when defining KPIs. Some common problematic KPIs can include those that are impacted by extraneous factors, those that are ill-defined or multi-interpretable and those that are not linked to business goals.
3. Ownership and Support – Successful process optimization typically requires some top-down control. The process owner is usually the one who oversees the process to make sure everything runs smoothly. Without a process owner, projects often don’t have motivating force to bring about a successful outcome. A lack of support can also result in negative outcomes for BPM projects.
4. Not Embedding Process Changes – Businesses should expect change when implementing BPM. Alterations can only be made once businesses are ready and willing to make changes. Problems arise when changes are not correctly embedded into the business. In order to avoid this problem, companies should focus on clear communication about organization goals and document any changes. In short, people need to be ready for upcoming changes, and businesses need to internalize changes that are being made.
5. Lack of Execution – Sometimes, businesses collect large amounts of complicated statistics in order to help with business optimization. However, seeking to gain as many statistics as possible is not always beneficial. Instead, businesses should focus on how to take appropriate actions based upon the data analysis.
6. Unprepared to Demonstrate Value – Even if a BPM team achieves success, failing to document achievements can be detrimental. BPM projects should be carefully documented and recorded so that each success can be pinpointed. It’s also important for the team to decide how they will measure success before starting new projects. If positive outcomes are not recorded, organizations may not value BPM projects.
7. Misunderstanding of BPM as a Discipline – Employing BPM generally requires a willingness to change and growth mindset. Otherwise, BPM projects could be become stagnant and only rely on what those in charge have to say. BPM should be about change and improvements, as it is a discipline rather than just technology or subject matter.
8. Launching BPM Efforts Without Validation – Instead of delving into a BPM project based upon perceived problems, businesses should make time to recognize and isolate problems. BPM projects should allot time at the beginning of the project to gather and analyze data about problems and areas that need improvement before attempting any modifications.
9. Developing Capabilities Without Delivering Value – Oftentimes, BPM teams must prove their worth to their organizations. BPM teams also need to remind organizations that they need time to develop their capabilities. While benefits may be small at first, they will grow in time. It is important for BPM teams to communicate well with their businesses and help organizations see the value of BPM.
10. Over-Focusing on Mapping Instead of Improving – Another struggle for BPM teams is getting lost in the process of tracking activity and performing BPM tasks. The work that BPM teams do should be applied to real business problems in order to bring about change. If not used for business improvements, the work of BPM teams may be wasted. Accordingly, BPM teams should use process maps as a way to make improvements and communicate the value of processes back to their businesses.

That’s not always an easy thing to do, however. People, technology and organizational structure can unintentionally create obstacles for companies making process improvements. Fortunately, when properly addressed, they can serve as stepping stones to better business.

The following are 10 capabilities a successful BPM initiative possesses:

1. Coworker Trust and Confidence – A successful BPM initiative involves employees who trust each other to complete tasks and communicate. Coworkers with confidence in each other can make a difference between a process’ success and failure.
2. Open Communication between Employees and Managers – Good leadership can maximize effort and help improve the execution of business processes. This requires open communication between employees and managers, as well as between coworkers.
3. Clear, Understandable Vision – If an employee feels connected to the company’s vision, they are generally going to work hard to make that vision a reality. However, to feel connected, that vision has to be shared with the people in the organization. Employees should always understand the direction of their organization to ensure they’re collectively working toward the same goals.
4. Response to Market Changes – Business is always evolving, and consumers are changing as well. Customers can bring unique wants and needs to a business relationship, and the ability to adapt processes and deliver on client expectations can separate successful companies from the rest of the pack.
5. Confidence in Middle Management – Senior management should trust both middle managers and employees to maintain a creative and adaptive environment.
6. Efficient Communication Channels – It’s easy to get lost in the web of available communication devices and methods. The rise of social media, cell phones, instant messaging systems and more can threaten the clarity and reliability of messages sent or received. Successful businesses oftentimes limit interoffice communication to a single intranet or instant messaging system.
7. Ownership of the Process – If a process is going to run smoothly, it needs ownership. Organizations should appoint process owners to oversee, analyze and improve the way a process functions. Having a point of human contact also allows others to offer suggestions or direction in an easy and streamlined fashion.
8. Use of Information Systems – Old or inadequate information systems can hinder a successful BPM implantation. Information systems and technology should be aligned with BPM initiatives so that new strategies have the technological backing to succeed.
9. Consistency through Change – Change can be intimidating. Many times, individuals who are implementing a new process may be unsure of exactly how it will affect them moving forward. Employees are typically more likely to contribute to a process improvement if they believe the change is beneficial to them.
10. Support for the Change – Managers in charge of changing processes need to be engaged with their people. Change and optimization can be tough on employees, but if they know that management is listening and thinking about the staff’s best interest, employees will put more effort and enthusiasm into implementation.

Each of the factors listed above contributes positively to BPM initiatives. Changing processes can be long and demanding work, and businesses interested in optimization can use these capabilities to make change a positive experience for everyone involved. 

BPM Lifecycle: DMEMO

BPM phases were created to be iterative in order to develop alongside of business processes and to facilitate continuous change in businesses, based on the understanding that organizations are constantly adapting.

Design – The design phase is about understanding the process in place, which requires an organization to analyze its processes clearly and honestly before developing improvements. Design can include anything from fundamental usability, to advanced rule systems and clean user interfaces, but it only works if the analysis is clear and the suggested improvements are well-founded.

Model – Designs, by nature, can be difficult to examine. They’re conceptual elements, and using your mind’s eye to troubleshoot and improve different scenarios can get overwhelming very quickly. That’s why modeling is so important. This phase is about testing the design in various scenarios and what-if situations to measure the effects of certain factors and changes.

Execute – This phase is the culmination of all the design and modeling work the business has completed. Here, the diligence demonstrated in analyzing and problem solving the processes gets put to the test. Executing means deploying the solutions to a live production environment.

Monitor – In this phase, an organization measures key process flows like time, effort and cost, and it analyzes how close the initial design has come to creating an optimized process.

Optimize – Using the data collected during the monitor phase, a business can pinpoint whatever inefficiencies remain in the process. Removing errors and wastes can help an organization improve the overall process and make it as efficient as possible.

Six Sigma’s DMAIC

At first glance, the Six Sigma methodology appears linear, but like the BPM Lifecycle, it’s actually iteratively executed. The phases are designed to optimize businesses by promoting stabilization in their processes and consistency in their outputs.

Define – Progress is difficult if all parties involved don’t have a singular goal. In the define phase, everyone on the process improvement team agrees on the problem, its impact to the business and the areas of improvement in the current process.

Measure – Once the problem has been defined, the next task is to identify the source of the issue. The problem can usually be pinpointed by understanding the abilities and limitations of whatever processes are currently in place.

Analyze – Identifying, testing and verifying root causes of problems uncovered in the first two phases need to be done prior to discussing possible solutions.

Improve – Proposed solutions need to be tested and validated. If a solution doesn’t resolve the issue, reduce costs and improve the process, then further strategy is required. However, if the solution does prove effective, it should be piloted and implemented.

Control – The control phase is about optimizing the solution and making sure no problems arise or reoccur based on its implementation.

Integrating the Approaches

Some organizations have designed new processes that combine elements of the BPM and Six Sigma methodologies. Both BPM and Six Sigma can be successfully married, as long as an organization allows each of them to operate naturally. For example, a business can use Six Sigma to improve a process upfront, after which it can implement BPM to automate and manage the new process down the line.

Six Sigma is designed to make improvements to business processes, while BPM focuses on maintaining those improvements into the future.

BPM is a way businesses can analyze a set of tasks and control the overall processes that are involved in completing an organizational goal. One of the primary objectives of BPM is to enhance business performance and agility through the use of tools, techniques and best practices.

Businesses can deal with numerous inefficiencies which can lead to problems such as unnecessary costs, poor quality and low customer satisfaction. By utilizing BPM and carefully analyzing processes, businesses can discover which areas need improvement. Applying BPM can help increase quality, production and efficiency by cutting out unnecessary procedures and improving vital processes.

Components of Business Process Management

In its most basic description, BPM means understanding business processes to ensure they run efficiently and are continuously improved. There are three main components of BPM: management approach, methodology and technology.

In order to meet market demands and produce valuable goods and services, a company’s management team typically defines processes, classifies measurements, tracks performance and goals and works to improve processes.

BPM is also a methodology that involves the steady cycle of improving business processes. It helps businesses advance business practices by means of phases, activities and techniques.

BPM technology often includes software that can map and record business processes to enhance analytics and communication. This technology helps automate activities and track business projects and performance. In essence, BPM technology helps businesses have a clear understanding of various processes within the company in order to boost performance, quality and efficiency.

Dynamic Business Process Management

BPM technologies traditionally follow a specific set of guidelines. In order to complete a process, a particular set of steps have to be followed. For example, the set of steps a company may use for paying an employee could look like the following:

(1)  An employee completes an expense claim form.

(2)  A manager approves the form.

(3)  A senior manager approves the form.

(4)  The form is sent for payment.

(5)  A check is cut for the amount claimed.

(6)  The check is sent to the employee.

Dynamic BPM systems are ways in which managers or users can make adjustments to the usual set of steps and make decisions based upon a given situation. If a step needs to be added or removed, dynamic BPM allows for changes to the process.

Agile Business Process Management

Agile BPM generally utilizes the Agile software development lifecycle management methodology (SDLC). Instead of testing after many steps, Agile SDLC allows developers to complete tasks in small phases and test processes before moving on to the next step. Agile BPM relies on prototyping and strong communication, which is meant to keep processes organized and efficient.

Social Business Process Management

Some businesses are starting to use social media platforms as a method for employee communication. Companies can implement the social aspect of BPM by utilizing popular social media sites, like Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. Other companies are building their own communication abilities within their BPM systems in order for collaboration among their businesses.