To ensure the effective operation of an enterprise, it is necessary to timely restructure and improve the existing system of operation of this organization.

To do this, managers use management.

Basic concepts and principles

Business process management is a system of methods aimed at increasing the efficiency of activities companies. With its help, the essence of the stages of the production cycle is determined, their implementation is organized, and the quality of work results is improved.

The main task is to align the subject of management with the company's strategy. All processes, collectively and individually, must be organized so that their results ensure the achievement of business goals.

Managing these processes solves a number of problems:

• reducing the time it takes for employees of the enterprise to perform work, this is achieved by automation and the compilation of algorithms for all procedures;
• improving the quality of the results of the stages of the cycle, for this purpose control systems are being introduced, transparency of all actions within the process is ensured;
• managing the enterprise based on its real situation, taking into account the cost of manufacturing products, the size of purchases of raw materials and other points;
• maximizing the elasticity of business processes - achieved by involving cycle participants in the modernization and implementation of new systems.

Management is carried out in several stages:

1. Drawing up a list of processes. For some time, all events in the company are registered in the information system, and passing documents are recorded. Within 1-2 weeks you can find repeating cycles and set their frequency. Based on this analysis, the company's work is optimized.
2. Description of processes. At this stage, a database is formed that contains information about the production steps. The results are used to build a more efficient process system.
3. Cycle organization. Each process has its own manager, who is responsible for the implementation of tasks.
4. Activity control. Description of production should be carried out using special information systems. The database is used by managers to check the completeness of execution of orders.
5. Personnel load control. For each operation, a certain time limit must be set for execution. Based on the analysis of real data on the speed of work, decisions are made on bonuses to employees, increase in staff, and imposition of fines.
6. Fixing costs. Accounting for financial expenses to ensure the functioning of the process, including production and payments for services, is maintained in the information system. Based on this information, the budget of each department of the enterprise is determined, the cost of processing a specific document and the process as a whole is established. Management should be aimed at reducing costs as much as possible.
7. Investigation of the causes of failures. Errors may occur during the production cycle. One of the objectives of the procedure is to identify shortcomings in the organization’s work, search for sources of their formation, and promptly correct them.

After carrying out the listed activities, managers monitor the results. If the actions do not bring a sufficient increase in the company's performance, further optimization is carried out.

You can find out detailed information about the methods used in practice from the following video:

Modern techniques

Management is carried out using various approaches. There are 4 main methods that are used directly to regulate business processes.

Continuous Improvement

This approach is long-term. It is distinguished by a gradual change in business processes, carried out first at lower levels and systematically moving into the adjustment of the most important stages of the company’s cycle. The technology of continuous improvement is based on the use of proposals from production participants.

• A positive aspect of use is the ability to control in the current mode. At the same time, innovations will not cause dissatisfaction among employees.
• The negative qualities of the approach include the lack of efficiency in decision making.

Engineering

This method is characterized by the construction of a system of business processes that are aimed at meeting customer needs, while mass production is excluded. The approach is most effective in conditions of strong differentiation of supply and demand in the market.

• The advantages of using it include the ability to design different processes depending on the characteristics of client groups.
• The downside is the labor-intensive approach. However, the created model may not always be effective.

Reengineering

The method is based on a complete redesign of existing processes with the abandonment of established rules and templates. Reengineering involves a radical modernization of the enterprise system.

• The strengths of the method include a sharp jump in efficiency and productivity.
• The weakness is the risk of failure when creating new processes and the high cost of the project.

Redesign

It is distinguished by the concentrated nature of process improvement. It is used if the company’s performance is generally satisfactory, but there is an opportunity to improve existing performance.

At the same time, processes are analyzed, unnecessary and duplicative functions are eliminated, new cycle stages are introduced, actions are automated and brought to certain standards.

• The positive aspect is the improvement of an existing process.
• The downside is building new functions on the basis of an old system, which may not be effective enough.

Work programs

To manage these processes, special information systems are used. They are programs for describing and modeling the stages of a company's cycle.

There are several most popular software tools:

• ARIS Express It is considered the simplest and most accessible for use by both specialists and students.
• Bizagi Process Modeler used to describe business processes and documentation. Distributed freely.
• Business Studio. The use of this product will allow the enterprise to accelerate the formation of a new system by solving basic management problems. Free version available.
• AllFusion Process Modeler allows you to perform all the actions necessary to create the most efficient production cycle.
• ELMA- software from Russian developers.

The use of such information systems is mandatory for analyzing existing processes and forming new systems.

In modern conditions, business actively applies a process approach to organizing work. But there is still a problem of understanding what business process management is and how to use BPM correctly.

The EABPM (European BPM Association) definition of this term is as follows:

Business process management (BPM) is a systems approach for capturing, designing, executing, documenting, measuring, monitoring and controlling both automated and manual processes to achieve company goals and business strategies. BPM embraces the conscious, comprehensive and increasingly technological definition, improvement, innovation and maintenance of end-to-end processes. Thanks to this systematic and conscious process management, companies achieve better results faster and more flexibly.

I believe that this definition creates more confusion than a true understanding of BPM, especially for people who have not studied the topic in depth.

In my work, I constantly use graphical notations for business process management and BPMN. I find this tool very convenient; it helps me not only in developing business solutions, but also in justifying them. After all, as I have said many times, a picture is worth a thousand words. A person thinks in images, and it is much easier for him to imagine some type of activity using a picture (diagram).

Let me also remind you that this is not the first time I have raised this topic. I talked a lot about business processes in articles such as “What is a business process and a description of a business process” or “A brief description of BPMN with an example.”

But questions remain; they are often asked to me by both readers of articles and my clients. In addition, marketing articles and terms associated with this field of activity bring a lot of confusion into understanding the essence. Both software system developers and business consultants who constantly use these tools in their work have managed to introduce a lot of exclusively marketing concepts into the field of business process management. On the one hand, this process is inevitable in any commercial field. On the other hand, BPM is already not the easiest methodology for a non-specialist. And marketing adds further confusion.

Therefore, I decided to give my detailed definition of what business process management is. And I hope that I can help you understand the main issues related to the use of BPM.

How did BPM come about?

Any new business can be compared to a child. Every company created from scratch goes through a period of formation and learning. It is necessary to organize interaction between employees and departments, create knowledge transfer mechanisms, etc. And it doesn’t matter how big this company is - in a small business all these issues are just as important as in a large organization with a large number of branches.

At the same time, humanity does not stand still. And both in the field of educating children and in organizing business, new tools are appearing that are more flexible, convenient, and intuitive, which is especially important for people taking their first steps in any field.

If we turn to old records and try to study the peculiarities of labor organization both in Soviet enterprises and in Western companies, for example, Ford, we will see mostly dry, difficult-to-read text instructions related primarily to the functional approach:

1. Description of the workplace
2. Employee job description
3. Safety requirements, etc.

All this, as many remember, is extremely difficult to perceive, and a significant part of such instructions gathered dust on the shelves, often unread by anyone except the creator. And experience and requirements were transferred from an experienced employee to a newcomer.

But what if there is a need to quickly change the work of an entire organization? What if automation is also introduced? The emergence of BPM was a response to these requests.

I have already written about what a business process is (“What is a business process and a description of a business process”), and therefore I will not repeat the main provisions and definition of the business process itself. Let's take a closer look at the concept of business process management.

About business process management in simple words

Business process management means that you regulate, describe and change business processes. You change it, not improve it, because you can either improve or worsen the business process. Unlike a machine tool or a car, it is impossible to directly control it using directives or pressing a button by a team. But we can set a sequence of actions that the team will perform when solving a particular problem. This is what is called BPM.

Definition from me:

Business process management (BPM) is the management of activities (automated and non-automated) in a team through business processes.

To manage any business processes you need to:

1. Describe the business processes themselves.
2. Implement the described business process into the work of the team
3. Appoint people responsible for business processes, so-called stack holders or business process owners.

It is important to understand that a business process can be performed either by a person or be partially automated. Similarly, both a person and a program can be a stack holder (automatic execution of operations and automated control).

At the same time, it is necessary to manage an extremely heterogeneous environment. Different business processes require different approaches and actions of employees, and different automation tools. And all this needs to be able to be described separately, and then combined into a common system.

It is necessary to proceed from the understanding: the process approach is managing the whole through managing the parts.

And to avoid any confusion in terminology, let me explain:

• BPM is a methodology. those. a set of basic principles and approaches to the construction of notations and the organization of work itself using business processes.
• BPMN is a notation (language) in which notations are built, including executable ones
• BPMS – IT execution system, built according to certain rules specified in the methodology

If we draw an analogy with science, then BPM is, first of all, an approach, a kind of worldview. BPMN is methods and algorithms for solving specific problems. For example, proofs for theorems or a set of methods for creating a project for providing electricity to an object (industry, apartment building). And, in turn, BPMS are ready-made application solutions that can be “turned on” and they will already work. For mathematics, these are ready-made solutions to problems of practical importance. For physics - the direct implementation of that same electrical wiring and connection of objects. For the IT sector - ready-made program code.

Executable and non-executable business processes

I have already written in previous articles that business process notations can be executable or non-executable. The first ones are intended for automation, the second ones are for studying the work of the company and increasing the efficiency of interaction within the team.

Those. we use BPM principles and techniques to create notations. In this case, we use the rules of writing BPMS. In order to create non-executable notation, in principle, you can even use a piece of Whatman paper and a pencil. The main thing is to strictly follow all the rules.

The executable notation requires a specific IT environment - BPMS. At the same time, I recommend even non-executable ones to be performed in BPMN, since here the environment itself helps to identify possible errors and contradictions, which increases the literacy and accuracy of the description of the business process.

Differences between process and functional approaches

Another important fact that will help you understand what “business process management” really is. We have already found out that management is the creation of a certain sequence of employee actions. Those. as a result, each automated system operates in a specific way. And a person is obliged, according to instructions, to also carry out the actions specified according to the instructions.

You also need to know:

For strategic planning and assessment of the company’s performance “as a whole,” it is better to use functional modeling and notations (for example, IDF0). I wrote about this in detail in the article “Introduction to the IDEF0 notation and an example of use.” Here you can start from the desired result and build a sequence of black box functions necessary to achieve it.

To manage the sequence of actions and optimize it. what happens within each stage of work, as well as improving the interaction between different “black boxes”, a BPM process approach is needed. Here you study the actions themselves, track the speed and labor intensity of achieving results, optimize and standardize them.

If you make any changes to a business process, then you always start not from the whole, but from a part. Those. you change the algorithm of the program and/or adjust the job description for an employee performing certain functions. As a result, one of the elements of the business process changes, and, as a result, the business process as a whole.

You need to understand:

Creating a description of a business process begins “as a whole,” after which each process is divided into subprocesses and detailed to a certain extent.

Changing a business process, on the contrary, starts from the “lower” levels – maximum detail. And from the particulars to the whole, all necessary corrections are made.

If in a functional approach, the objects at the input and output are very important. In the black box function itself, certain processing of objects occurs to obtain the desired result. And here the main focus is on “what exactly we want to get,” i.e. approach to business management is rather strategic.

With a process approach, we get an answer to the question “how best to do this,” i.e. We concentrate on tactical and operational management. Therefore, here, when individual elements change between “input and “output,” the entire process changes.

It is also important when detailing to determine the optimal level: not too “in general,” but also not detailing a large process down to the actions of each employee. I once saw a description of business processes posted on a two-meter Whatman paper. But the more complex and detailed the process is, the more difficult it will be perceived “as a whole” and, as a result, it will be more difficult to understand and improve.

For these reasons, when working with business processes, multi-level decomposition is used, i.e. the detailing of each “black box” is separated into a separate process. And for the same reason, the process approach is not used for strategic planning; for this, I repeat, functional modeling is used.

Description of working with BPM

To better understand what BPM (business process management) is, I will give an example of the sequence of actions of a business analyst within this methodology:

Survey of people (company employees). Understanding how work is done in each specific case.

Documentation of the business process based on the received data. At this stage, the analyst receives an “as is” description of the business process.

Studying the resulting business process from the point of view of weaknesses and optimization possibilities:

Based on the ready-made optimized (as necessary) scheme, documents are created: job descriptions, user manuals, and, if necessary, automated solutions are implemented.

After implementation, based on the notation, the business process is monitored, possible inconsistencies are identified, and their causes are studied.

If necessary, changes are made to the scheme based on identified shortcomings or changes in the company’s work related to external factors.

Process life cycle in BPM

As can be seen from the sequence described above, each business process goes through a certain cycle from creation to implementation. Then for some period of time it works “as is”. After which practice shows certain shortcomings and shortcomings, the analyst studies the reporting and, for his part, finds some “weak points”. The process is being modernized.

This cycle can be repeated an infinite number of times. Any business, any organization is not a frozen monolith, but a developing organism in a constantly changing environment. The specifics of legislation change, competitors come and go from the market, new automation tools appear, etc.

The main rule of a business analyst: when optimizing a process, you need to be able to stop in time. And here it is necessary to clearly analyze the complexity (cost) of changes and the increased efficiency (benefits) as a result.

Pros and cons of BPM

The benefits of using BPM include:

• The ability to detail as much as possible the actions of people and systems necessary to obtain results.
• Graphic notations are visual, which allows you to understand the features of processes in the company and see their weak points.
• Notations are perfect as instructions to the performer, who will receive a clear and unambiguous sequence of actions. At the same time, it will be designed graphically - in the most convenient way for human perception.
• When using a process approach, the result of the process will be standardized and consistent with what is expected. This will reduce the influence of the human factor on the level of service or the performance of any other types of work.
• The BPM methodology is well developed and standardized thanks to BPMN. At the same time, the tools (BPMN notations) are intuitive even for people who have not studied business process management at all. On the other hand, the presence of standards and rules allows you to avoid errors during development and create executable notations (ready-made elements of business automation) in the BPMS system.

The disadvantages of BPM, as often happens, are in the same place as the advantages:

• A high degree of detail in processes interferes with the perception of business performance for strategic planning.
• The people who develop the process model have a very big responsibility. Any mistake can lead to disastrous results. For example, when developing a functional model, there is data at the input, a result at the output, tools that the company provides to the performer, and the performer himself. While the performer produces the expected result at the output, within the function he can act at his own discretion, choosing the optimal method of achieving the goal. With a process approach, the performer is deprived of “freedom of maneuver.” He has a clearly defined sequence of actions, taking into account all possible conditions. And he has no right to act differently, even if the result turns out to be different from what was expected.
• The business process is static and practically not subject to adjustments from the inside. The performer receives a clear sequence of actions and can no longer take the initiative. As a result, performers will repeat any mistake over and over again until it is corrected in the business process itself.

Which companies are BPM suitable for?

The process approach is ideal for state-owned companies. Here it is important to improve the level of service and quality of work, while standardization of service is also important. In a state-owned company, clients do not expect any bonuses or special initiatives. But the service must be performed inside and out at the appropriate level.

In commercial companies, the process approach is good for standardizing work; it will allow you to “pull up” the level of service to certain standards. On the one hand, this is a big plus. On the other hand, it is also a minus, since proactive and talented employees, no matter how much they want, will not be able to prove themselves and bring more benefit and profit. The process approach is precisely stability and a certain static nature. Therefore, when using it, you need to clearly understand where this type of work suits you, and where it is better to give people more freedom.

In order for the business process to be beneficial and not harmful, it is recommended to collect comments and errors from participants in the business process. There is no need to assume that BPM is the ultimate truth.

I have already talked in more detail about exactly how to manage a business using business processes in previous articles, and I will talk more than once. Here I tried to explain as simply as possible the differences between the terms BPM, BPMS, BPMN and describe the very concept of “business process management”. Without this basic knowledge, it is impossible to understand the process approach.

Questions and answers

What is the difference between functional modeling and process modeling?

With a functional approach, we view the actions of people and automated systems as a “black box”. And we approach modeling from the point of view of the stages of achieving the goal, as well as the resources necessary for this. In process modeling, we study the sequence of actions of employees and systems at each stage to optimize them and increase efficiency.

What concepts are included in BPMN?

First of all, this is the BPMN system itself, as well as a description of BPMS notations. I wrote about them in this article, and in detail in previous articles (see recommended links at the end of the publication). In addition, new concepts appeared not so long ago - DMN and CMMN. I will not dwell on them in detail now. I will try to describe new concepts and their features in future publications.

Why do we need so many complexities and different approaches in constructing notations?

Business process management and the BPM methodology itself are necessary, among other things, for the directive management of large teams. This is why notations, descriptions of business processes and a wide range of tools are needed.

Where to start working with BPM?

Learn the BPMN notation language and try using it in your work. The main thing is, don't be afraid to start. You will understand that simple notations are much easier to construct in practice than they seem. And you can learn the methodology step by step, relying on simple and understandable graphical BPM tools.

Can BPM be used for manual systems?

Can. This approach is intended, first of all, not for automation (the IT sector has its own tools), but for organizing the work of a company or any team. Work areas using automated systems may be taken into account here. Or we can only consider processes in a team, any of them - from construction crews or production to creative teams in a theater or philharmonic society. The main thing is to clearly describe how the process you are interested in occurs, as well as how you want to change it.

Myths of business process management haunt me. Almost every day, they tell me them in different combinations and interpretations. Sometimes, I try to explain their erroneous nature. Sometimes I just smile silently. But more often than not, I have to deal with the consequences, because belief in myths gives rise to reality.

I have collected the most common myths regarding business process management and divided them into 4 categories:
1. Myths of business process management
2. Myths of using business process management
3. Myths of implementing a process approach
4. Don't be fooled
Destroy myths that can lead to real consequences.

Myths of business process management

Creating models is business process management

Probably one of the most common myths that has firmly taken root in Russian companies. Many people really believe that the essence of business process management is to create models, but this is far from the truth. Let's find out why.

Business process management is responsible for the following activities in the company:
– Business process analysis
– Process design
– Process modeling
– Description of business processes
– Change and transformation of business processes
– Implementation
– Monitoring and control
– Increased efficiency
– And sometimes, also for organizing

Components of business process management

As you can see, process modeling is only a small part, but is responsible for the efficiency and continuous improvement of the company’s activities. Simply through the prism of business processes. Actually, this is not surprising and is not an exaggeration, because initially, the concept of business process management was created specifically to organize the continuous improvement of companies’ activities. If you want, the only goal of business process management is to continuously increase the company's competitiveness. But let's get back to modeling.

Thus, a model is a tool that facilitates the management of business processes. That's all.

That is why in many companies, business process management specialists deal only with modeling and description.

There really is another myth, related to the fact that almost every employee can prepare a model. This is not just a myth, but a very harmful opinion.
The modeling process, in skillful hands, immediately turns into analysis and design. This allows you to save a lot of time when planning further improvements, because during the modeling process, the specialist is already correcting and planning for further improvements.

In order for a model to effectively perform its functions, it must be simple and clearly understandable. And to prepare such models, I tell you, you need extensive experience and a special, specific mindset.

Modeling is a small, but rather complex, part of business process management. The purpose of modeling is to obtain a tool for subsequent analysis, design and control of business processes.

The essence of business process management is writing regulations and other documents

Creating business process models is for advanced students. Those who are not looking for easy ways, value old school and prefer hardcore, believe that in order to manage business processes, it is necessary to overwhelm employees with regulations and other documentation. Remember the example about the 70-page description of the procedure from the previous paragraph? This is exactly what this is about. I think there is no point in describing the scale of the problems generated by belief in the current myth.

A number of representatives are fanatically convinced that a large volume of documentation is an indicator of real business process management. That, in fact, business process management should do just that – develop the paper industry. Moreover, it is paper, because electronic documentation is not acceptable. It doesn’t allow you to fill up your desktop and create the appearance of work)))

In one company, I happened to see so much documentation regulating the actions of employees that, when converted “per capita,” it turned out to be about 2,000 printed pages for each employee. Those. Every person in the company must take into account and follow the internal rules described on 2000 pages in their work. And these are only internal documents. The requirements of legislation and regulatory authorities are not taken into account here.
In general, the myth is dangerous and harmful. It creates a misconception about managing business processes, wastes company resources, creates obstacles in management, etc.

In fact, here, as with business process models, the document is a tool. A tool that connects the way something is designed to the way it actually works. Just don’t talk about how the documents don’t work! Of course, they won’t work on their own; more effort needs to be made. But as an instrument, everything is exactly like that.
From the point of view of business process management, a document is any information that has a physical embodiment. This means that such information can be accessed, read, studied, sometimes covered from the rain, etc.

Documentation helps convey and use information, but is not the essence of business process management.

The goal of business process management is to turn people into robots in a rigid system

Many representatives of technical professions think so. It is necessary to regulate the activities of employees as much as possible. So that they cannot take a single step to the side. And since in Russia, the functions of process management are often transferred specifically to the technical direction, the myth about the “roboticization” of employees is firmly rooted in the corporate environment. As a result, companies and areas associated to one degree or another with the “creative” component of work are fleeing in panic from process management.

Like many myths about business process management, this one is harmful and even cruel. There is nothing more stupid than trying to make robots out of people and not taking advantage of the human component.
Most likely, those who promote this approach are supporters of the theory X McGregor. But that's not the point.

It’s very easy to dispel this myth using 4 arguments:

1. All business processes, except fully automated ones, involve people. If you do not take into account the features associated with them, then changes, and business process management is always associated with changes, will not be successful. All business process and change management professionals clearly agree that when planning and implementing management, it is necessary to take into account:
   – Organizational culture
   – Unspoken rules
   – Behavioral characteristics
   – Ideas and plans
   – Communications and rules adopted in the company
2. Business process management focuses on processes rather than their standardization. Who said that increasing efficiency is only possible through standardization? Oh yes, Henry Ford. He was a good guy. Made an entire industrial revolution. But product standardization is not identical to process standardization. Not always, standardization, as the only correct way to carry out a process, will be useful. Processes need to be executed in a way that is efficient rather than routine.
3. A properly designed and implemented process, provides many development scenarios and the possibility of creating new ones! Without loss of specified efficiency. This is the highest level of business process management. It is probably worth devoting a separate article to this issue.
4. The use of management levels, principles and rules allows for efficiency with very large freedom of action. There is no need to try to describe the process of painting by an artist. However, the process of creating a picture can be described. Moreover, it can improve the efficiency of the writing process by eliminating distractions such as preparing the easel, paints, etc.

Got the idea?

Creating human robots is not the goal of business process management. The goal is to ensure efficiency and development of processes. And the use of creative and human components enhances rather than harms the process.

Operations automation is business process management

Let's agree right away - automation and control are completely different things. Business process management is about, uh, well, management. Not automation. And the key word here is business. Those. This is management aimed at achieving business goals.
The myth that business process management is automation is fundamentally false. It appeared when “non-techies” did not show sufficiently systematic approaches to management and issues of consistency were left to those who were closer to them – the “techies”. And they, in turn, gave birth to a gorgeous legend about total automation as the only tool for increasing efficiency and management. Time and the principle of a broken phone have led to the fact that the meaning of automation as an auxiliary tool for business was forgotten, and the implementation of IT technologies became self-sufficient.

In fact, automation is a tool. One of the management and efficiency tools. One of many tools.

The topic of business process management is becoming increasingly popular. A huge number of services and applications have appeared on the market that do not require deep technical knowledge to use and configure. Against this background, a large number of “specialists” began to appear offering services for “business process automation.”
Most of them talk about CRM, marketing process automation, sales automation and so on. They all say that they are engaged in optimizing and setting up business processes.

Sometimes you can even see messages like this:

“By the way, we washed down the bot here. Business diagnostics and site audits are carried out...”

A curtain. Puzzled silence. Someone nervously goes to the smoking room, and someone to the buffet.

These "experts" are missing two things:
1. What they are doing is very far from automating business processes, setting them up, and, even more so, from managing business processes. The most they do is automate operations and some procedures. For example, they can arrange for recording client requests from the website into your CRM system. This is somehow very far from optimizing business processes, don’t you think?

2. Optimization of business processes is impossible without a solid foundation, in the form of strategy, methodology and assessment of business processes at many levels. And the interconnections of processes at the organizational level should not be forgotten. Otherwise, you can get, for example, a huge flow of client requests, on which you will need to spend resources, and the conversion and profitability of sales will only decrease.

Optimizing business processes and automating procedures are two different things. Automation of procedures is a part not only of business process management, but also of normal automation.

Myths of using business process management

In our company/industry, business process management will not work

It will work. It will definitely work in your industry and in your organization.
There is no industry in the world in which the principles of business process management have not yet been applied. From the aerospace industry to providing escort services. Creative agencies, travel companies, logistics operators, representatives of heavy and light industry, IT companies and even casinos! This list can be continued endlessly.

Business process management works in any industry, and here's why:

1. Universality of principles. Basic management principles apply equally in all organizations. Special principles also apply everywhere, but, as a rule, are modified under the influence of the company's characteristics. In business process management, there are also principles that are applicable to any company. Regardless of your field of activity, you will determine the boundaries of business processes based on the same principles. It doesn’t matter what you produce - elements of space satellites, or create Internet pages, you will determine the intermediate products of the processes in the same way. The principles apply everywhere.
2. Adaptability of approaches. There are many approaches to managing business processes. The beauty is that, based on the principles of business process management, you will adapt approaches to suit your specific needs. Moreover, the correct implementation and use of approaches will include adaptation mechanisms. Every properly designed process contains such a mechanism.
3. Combinations of methodologies. Many business process optimization methodologies are good in themselves. But management involves the search and implementation of such a combination of methods that will show the greatest effectiveness in specific conditions. This combination will work best for you only. By the way, this is why blindly copying the approaches and methods of other companies will not work in your company.
4. Ease of implementation. In order to get the benefits of business process management, you do not need high-precision instruments and advanced information technologies. Yes, technology helps, but that's not the main thing. Business process management is very easy to implement because intuitive people. The process approach is based on logic and interconnectedness. And you don't need expensive tools to use them.

The process approach is always based on the reality of your company.

We tried managing processes - it doesn't work

And indeed. Many companies have tried to master process management and failed. Here are some examples of what these companies did:
– We created multi-volume descriptions of processes and procedures, and decided that people would then work on them themselves.
– They appointed owners of business processes, but did not explain why this was necessary and how to combine the roles of a functional and process manager.
– We introduced a super advanced electronic document management system, but did not transfer the employees’ work to it. As a result, costs not only did not fall, but also increased significantly.
All these are real examples, real companies.

It didn't work for them. Why? Because implementation.
The implementation is lame. This often happens with us - the idea seems good, but the execution ruins everything.
And it ruins because they underestimated and did not think through it. Didn't get the point. After all, the point, as I said above, is not in the description of the processes, but in what you do with it next.

When a person says that he tried to run a marathon, but he didn’t succeed and “it’s not my thing at all,” it’s worth finding out what was done for this and how much he ran. And it often turns out that he ran 500 meters from the bakery to the entrance, got tired, out of breath and decided to give up this idea. But he tried. I ran a full 500 meters. From 42 kilometers. Do you get my point?

Before you say something doesn't work, make sure it's done right. The instructions should be taken before use, and not after everything is broken.

Using business process management is very difficult and only works in large companies

Yes Yes. And running is only available to professional athletes.
If you have two legs and two arms (and even then it is not necessary), then you can run.

If you are already involved in management, you can use business process management.

The myth about the availability of advanced management technologies only to large companies is associated with the opinion that it is necessary to use expensive equipment, software and staff of specialists. They say that all this is expensive and only large companies can afford to spend such resources.

I hope I make you happy - all this is not true.
You don’t need super equipment, ERP software or world-class specialists.
All that is needed is to master the methodology and think about how to implement it with the available resources.
Expensive software can be replaced with affordable analogues. The specialists are not only expensive and well-known, but also very accessible and humane. And all equipment can be replaced with a laptop, notepad, pen and phone. Want to know how? Ask)))

In my practice, I have seen companies that do not take advantage of modern technologies at all, but are leaders in their industries. There were also opposite examples, when the personnel of the “interstellar ship” did not know how to work with all this and only wasted the company’s resources.

To manage business processes, you only need your company and your processes. All expensive resources can be found with an affordable analogue.

There is no point in dealing with processes in small companies

The smallest company I dealt with had less than five people.

If you provide customer service over the phone, it doesn't matter how many people in the company do the work. It could be one person and ten thousand. In this case, the processes will not differ much.
Yes, at that stage, while the company is small and all the personnel are located in one garage, management issues do not arise acutely. But efficiency issues are relevant regardless of size.

Even your personal processes can be optimized and managed effectively.

Moreover, if the company is not very large, it is usually very limited in resources, so the question of using them as efficiently as possible is a matter of survival.

Start managing business processes even at the stage of a one-person startup. This will bring much more benefits than all possible financial investments.

You can’t control “creative processes”

Creative processes can and should be managed, but in a slightly different way.
I'm not talking about the need to manage, for example, the process of writing a novella. When even the writer himself is unable to explain how such a process occurs. But it is necessary to concentrate on auxiliary processes, i.e. Those processes that will create the best conditions for the implementation of the main one.

What I mean? Well, for example, in order to summon the writer's muse and create a truly worthy work, you may need certain music and lighting. Perhaps a cup of freshly brewed coffee on the table will help you, and so on.
In this case, you need to focus on performing the processes associated with obtaining the necessary conditions as efficiently as possible.

Do you think companies like Google use a process approach? Of course it is used. You've probably heard that in the offices of this corporation, employees can eat well, sleep, relax, play games, play sports, and so on. You think this is done simply because they are big and have a lot of money. No!
This is an extremely pragmatic move, based on the above-mentioned principles of business process management - people are freed from the need to worry about and perform auxiliary processes in order to focus on the main ones.
This is how business process management works.

Creative processes are managed through auxiliary ones.

And by the way, if you are interested in direct control of creative processes, refer to the works of Edward de Bono. It offers a number of extremely interesting mechanisms.

Myths of using the process approach

To manage business processes, you need to understand the intricacies of work

This myth concerns not only the management of business processes, but management in principle. For some reason, many people believe that in order to manage, it is necessary to know in detail the features of the smallest operations.
As a result, there are situations when good specialists in their field, promoted to management positions, make decisions that harm the company. This is especially common in Russia. Last year, at a venture capital fair, a representative of a large foreign fund said, “The trouble with many companies is that excellent scientists and engineers try to take over the reins of the company without having any idea about management skills.” And indeed it is.

Managerial skills and special ones are completely different things. The manager does not need to understand the subtle aspects of performing special operations. He must be able to organize the work of specialists in such a way that they most effectively carry out tasks that lead to the company’s goals.

If you pay attention to the discipline of management, you will immediately notice the separation of management and execution. The effectiveness of this separation has been proven for a long time.

Management occurs at different levels and only at the operational level is special knowledge required in order to assess, for example, the effectiveness of the application or implementation of technology.

The higher the level of management, the less specialized knowledge is required. And vice versa. The closer a manager is to performing operations, the more specialized knowledge he must have.

Business process management also occurs at different levels, but there is a lot of work to be done at other levels before it becomes necessary to delve into technology and operations. And during this time, the manager will have time to understand the peculiarities of operating activities to the extent necessary for effective management.

A good manager will always manage more effectively than the most highly qualified specialist.

Business process management is primarily concerned with management, and management principles are universal and do not require narrow knowledge of operational work. The acquisition of specialized knowledge occurs faster than the acquisition of management skills.

We can handle it on our own

In my opinion, I have already given enough arguments to debunk the myths about the complexity of managing business processes. However, it would be a mistake to believe that everything is so simple that you can quickly implement changes in your company.

Actually, this is where the catch lies. The business process management methodology itself is really very simple. But it is directly related to change, and change must be managed in such a way that it works. This is the main difficulty for non-experts in the field of process and change management. We are now talking about highly specialized skills from the previous part. Only these skills relate not to production technologies, but to change management technologies.

Specialists can assess what difficulties the company will encounter during the change process and take care of eliminating them in advance. It is a matter of special skills, knowledge and experience. Hiring specialists is much cheaper than eliminating the consequences of changes on your own.

The second point related to the myth is that quite often, employee time allocated to the implementation of business process management is planned on a residual basis. Those. employees devote the bulk of their time to functional tasks and, if there is any time left, do something related to changes.
This approach absolutely does not work. If you want change to be implemented, it must be a daily responsibility of all employees involved. With all the ensuing impacts on them.

Again, most often, employees simply ignore change work due to high workload. Here you need not only to do the work, but also to make serious mental efforts. But high turnover is not conducive to this.

This is another reason why hiring a third-party specialist will be extremely useful, and sometimes simply necessary.

To be confident in your abilities, you need to allocate resources to implement changes. Involving specialists in business process and change management is an important, and sometimes necessary, step.

We do not have enough resources for implementation

In order to assess whether you have enough resources or not, you need to understand what resources are needed and in what quantity.

The main resource you will need is employees' time. At the same time, at the initial stage, top management spends the most time. The further the project moves through the management levels, the less time the tops require. For example, I would give the following figures:

Stage of defining business process boundaries
– Top management – ​​4-5 hours per week.
– Middle management – ​​5-6 hours per week.
– Functional managers – 2-3 hours per week.
– Specialists – 1-2 hours per week.

Business process description stage


– Functional managers – 4-5 hours per week.
– Specialists – 6-8 hours per week.

Change planning stage
– Top management – ​​4-5 hours per week.
– Middle management – ​​7-8 hours per week.
– Functional managers – 7-8 hours per week.
– Specialists – 4-5 hours per week.

Change implementation stage
– Top management – ​​1 hour per week.
– Middle management – ​​2-3 hours per week.
– Functional managers – 8-12 hours per week.
– Specialists – 8-10 hours per week.

In general, 20–30% of the working time of the employees involved should be allocated to implementing changes. Remember - changes are not implemented simultaneously, but in waves, so that in fact, you allocate very little time relative to all the company's resources.

This is, of course, a very approximate and rough estimate, but it should give an idea of ​​the time required. And yes, this assessment takes into account the presence of a specialist who will lead the changes.

If you are willing to allocate 20% of the working time of responsible employees, you will cope with change.

Hired specialists will do everything for you

Involving specialists in business process and change management will be very useful. This will make the task much easier. However, you need to understand that third-party specialists cannot do everything. They are not magicians, they do not have a universal button or a super robot. Specialists work most effectively when they work closely with company employees.

The “We pay, let them do it” approach will not work here. You will have to help them. And they will help you. This is a completely mutually beneficial cooperation.

The division of roles here is very simple. Specialists have management skills and technologies. You know your business and your industry best.
Specialists know what and how to do in management. You know how and what to do in technology.

Experts will not do everything for you. Only joint work brings results.

It is difficult to assess the effect of business process management

There are many ways to evaluate the effect of implementing business process management.
The simplest is functional cost analysis.

The point is this.
When all components of a business process are known, the cost of its implementation can be calculated. To calculate the cost of the process, the following is taken into account:
– Costs of performing operations by employees. Based on the duration of operations and the cost per person per hour of employees.
– Costs of raw materials and materials
– Costs of using tools based on their service life
– Costs of using infrastructure. If it is needed.
– Other production costs. For example electricity, water, etc.

In addition to this list, other costs may be taken into account. It depends on the characteristics of the field of activity and the company.

The cost of performing a process is assessed before changes and after a certain time. As a rule, when we believe that changes have become obvious.

The difference in the cost of performing the process is the effect you get.

Additionally, the return on investment for process changes can be calculated.
To do this, it is necessary to estimate the costs of changes and divide by the difference in the functional cost analysis before and after the change. This way you will get a number of repetitions of the process that will fully compensate for the costs incurred. If this figure suits you, the efforts were not in vain))

Methods for assessing the effectiveness of using business process management are varied, but simple to use.

We will see the results tomorrow

Not really.
Any changes take time. First, to organize changes. Then for their implementation, i.e. Direct process change. It then takes time for the changes to fully take root (or not) and for employees to begin performing work in accordance with the new process.

Implementing changes always meets resistance. And it also takes time to overcome it.
If you went to learn to swim, this does not mean that tomorrow you will be able to calmly swim several kilometers.

Different changes require different times. Some are very easy to implement – ​​literally in a couple of weeks. Others take years. Accordingly, the effect of the changes will also be visible on different time horizons.

We divide changes into “rapid” and “planned”. The effect of rapid changes is visible no more than 2 months from the date of implementation. Everything else is systematic improvement.

The speed of change myth often hurts companies. When the point of no return is just a short distance away, the company may give up. It is important to be able to soberly assess the possible speed of change and the effect obtained.

Change doesn't happen quickly. Neither in life, nor in companies.

Don't be fooled, or Quick cheese usually smells bad

Any specialist who has dedicated himself to the Cause is outraged by quackery. I'm not an exception.
Business process management is my profession, to which I devoted the main part of my working life. Along this path there have been both outstanding successes and tremendous failures. And there will be even more of them. This is the natural development of a professional. It's impossible to know everything, but I know 3 things for sure:
1. He who wants to get everything and cheaply receives nothing and is expensive.
2. Methodology, consistency and patience always bear fruit.
3. Only bad things happen right away. Everything good takes time.

That's why:
– Three-day trainings guaranteeing a 30% increase in sales – quackery
– Automation of business processes in a week – a hoax
– Automation of marketing processes is dangerous, because only calculations based on rough templates are automated.
– Twenty-five-year-old business process optimization expert – a brazen adventurer
– If you see “business process management” and “CRM” in the same sentence, this is about public CRM and nothing else.
– If a business process management specialist tells you that a business process is “a stable, purposeful set of interrelated activities that, using a certain technology, transforms inputs into outputs that are valuable to the consumer” - run away from him!
– Analyzing your business using a website is like treating teeth using a photograph.

Beware of myths and charlatans. Everything fashionable becomes a subject of speculation.

Business process management systems came to Russia from the West, where this class of solutions is called BPM systems or BPMS (Business Process Management System). Their main goal is to provide software support for process management in organizations.

Here you should immediately decide on two key concepts. First, there is a management concept BPM. This is a certain stage in management, during which the company’s work is built and developed as a system of interconnected business processes. Departments and divisions are still responsible for performing specific business functions (process management complements, rather than replaces, the functional approach to management). In turn, BPM is aimed at the effective interaction of various business functions through building and managing business processes.

Concerning BPMS- this is the main technology that helps to implement the concept of process management in the actual practice of companies. BPM can exist without IT, but with the help of a specialized tool, work becomes easier and faster. A business process management system allows you to model company processes and automate their execution. Provides the ability to monitor work at all stages and quickly make improvements.

Main stages of process implementation

BPMS works based on a simple idea. At the solution implementation stage, business processes are modeled using visual diagrams. Processes immediately become executable in the system. This means that the system will automatically send tasks to responsible employees - in strict accordance with the order of operations that is defined in the model of this process.

This approach allows you to build the company’s business processes and bring their actual implementation as close as possible to the ideal model that was originally developed.

ELMA BPM has a wide range of capabilities that ensure the execution and maintenance of business processes. In this case, all functions of the system can be divided into 4 groups in accordance with the stages of the PDCA process life cycle (Deming cycle) - planning (plan), execution (do), control (check), improvement (act).

Thanks to the use BPM systems the organization's work becomes transparent. The company receives ample opportunities to monitor and control performance discipline. Can change and improve business processes at any time to achieve greater efficiency.

ELMA BPM allows you to automate:

• The main business process of the company, within which profit is generated. An organization may have one or more such processes.
• Supporting business processes - they are also called enabling or service processes. They support the stable operation of the main processes.
• Management processes related to the development of company goals and strategy, optimization and development of its work.

Find out more about what processes exist in the organization. See the universal classification of business processes APQC PCF (Process Classification Framework)

Design (modeling) of business processes

Working with processes in the ELMA system begins with their modeling. Modeling is carried out in the ELMA Designer program, which is included with the system. This is a simple graphical editor for building business processes.

Business analysts can create processes and perform their modeling in the system without the participation of programmers. For this, the common BPMN 2.0 notation is used - a set of simple conventions. The notation has been translated into Russian by ELMA specialists. The process models created with its help are familiar to analysts and understandable to the company's top management.

Business Process Modeling

The management concept of BPM determines the company's business processes - what is the architecture of processes in the organization, what stages of the process determine the technology for creating greater value for consumers. In turn, the ELMA system makes it easier to build these business processes, allowing you to create visual work schemes.

Business process diagrams indicate their participants, the list and sequence of actions they perform. Graphic models are built by placing the required blocks of operations on tracks that indicate the areas of responsibility of different performers. The operations are then connected by transitions.

When the process model is created, operations are configured (the work context is set). For example, an organization determines how user tasks will be performed—what data they will work with, what actions they will be required to perform, and what results they will be required to provide.

Process modeling ends with its publication, after which the business process is compiled and becomes available for launch in the ELMA web application.

Data moves within a business process

Execution of business processes

In a BPM system, you can simultaneously run as many instances of one business process as you like. All of them will be executed independently, using the same model as their basis. Company employees work according to processes in the ELMA web user interface - they log into the system through a browser using a login and password.

Work on a business process is carried out in accordance with its graphical model - starting from the starting event, following the chain of transitions, to the final event. ELMA allows you to maintain the correct sequence of operations. It automatically assigns tasks to different performers when the process reaches the appropriate step.

Instructions that employees receive in the ELMA system are formatted as task cards. They already have all the necessary information for work and decision-making. Performers may be required to enter some data - in this case, the task card will contain the corresponding fields, the filling of which can be made mandatory.

Task card in ELMA system
All incoming and outgoing tasks in one place

After completing a task, the employee does not need to think about who should perform what actions next - ELMA BPM takes care of these issues. Each business process of the company has clear regulations for execution. The system ensures that the correct work order is followed.

Those tasks that do not require the participation of real employees are automatically performed by the system. For example, scripts and sending messages.

Control and monitoring of business processes

For each instance of a running process, a card is created in the ELMA system. It contains detailed information: current parameter values, tasks, their execution statuses and employee comments. Having the appropriate access rights, you can control the progress of work from the card - for example, change a number of parameters or stop execution altogether.

Organizing business processes in the ELMA system opens up wide opportunities for monitoring their implementation. Users have several tools at their disposal:

• My Processes Page contains a list of all instances of business processes in which the employee is the initiator, responsible or executor. There is a convenient filter for searching. By selecting a specific process instance from the list, you can go to its card in the system.
• Process Monitor Page allows you to analyze work by processes in which the user acts as an owner, curator or informant. At this stage of management, the employee does not have to be the performer of any of the operations. From the Process Monitor page, you can go to the card of any of the displayed processes to get detailed information.
• Process map- another convenient way of monitoring. It looks the same as the graphical process model in ELMA Designer. In this case, the map displays an instance of a specific business process already running in the system, which allows you to track additional tags. Here the operations already performed and the current stage of work are indicated. You can open a process card from its card in the system.

We looked at several monitoring tools. At the same time, managing bpm business processes in the ELMA system does not require managers to manually track each operation. Since you can specify a time limit for any action in BPMS, if the tasks are overdue by the performers, the system will send notifications. In addition, you can monitor tasks by process using standard reports on performance discipline, which are automatically generated by BPMS.

Business process monitor shows the situation as a whole
Displaying work progress on the Process Map

Business Process Optimization

Based on work monitoring, as well as during the development of the company, the need to change business processes often arises. Operators can offer rational ideas for optimization. Thanks to the use of a BPM system, any business process remains flexible to change. The company can adjust the work procedure and create new processes at any time.

Business processes change along with the company

BPM technology supports the idea of ​​continuous development of business processes. It will not be possible to organize the work once and thereby ensure the constant efficiency of the enterprise. With the development of the company, an increase in staff, and new realities in the market, the need arises to change processes. In ELMA, optimization is carried out on the fly without stopping the system.

For example, after analyzing the work related to customer service, the company decides that budgeting operations are better performed by the commercial director rather than by sales managers (this may be due to the specifics of the organization's activities). To change this order of work, it is enough to make the necessary changes to the graphic model of the corresponding process in ELMA Designer.

When you change the bpm process in a company, it does not in any way affect or interrupt the ongoing work of the enterprise. All instances of this process that were already running on the system at the time the changes were made will terminate in accordance with the original scheme. And each new launched process will work according to the improved model.

Business Process Management Systems (BPMS)

Business Process Management (BPM) solutions allow your company to optimize business processes using existing applications. Typically, a BPM solution is a set of open, standards-based components for modeling, executing, managing and optimizing business processes, as well as integrating enterprise applications.

The services created as part of application integration are the “building blocks” from which it is possible to build a sequence of execution in an integrated system of “end-to-end” business processes that combine processes from various functional areas. The BPM system ensures the formation of a sequence of automatically executed business process steps and application interaction rules (information transfer) at each of these steps. BPM modules from leading integration platform vendors provide the ability to design, develop, test, execute, monitor and manage business processes. BPM class applications serve as a convenient tool for modifying an integrated information system in the context of changes (reengineering) of an enterprise's business processes.

Architecture of a typical BPMS

BPM solutions use closed loop engineering to identify gaps in processes, giving your company the ability to control the full lifecycle of business processes. The result is a fast and flexible platform built on your existing applications, allowing you to quickly respond to new business demands and improve productivity.

Business process management systems provide significant benefits on two levels. The first level is strategic, it includes such advantages as the connection between the company's daily activities and its strategic objectives. The second level is quantitative: these are those benefits that can be counted or measured, for example, saving millions of dollars or reducing time, for example, entering and agreeing on contracts from days to several minutes. And one more advantage, perhaps the most important one, is a change in the atmosphere in the team, orientation of employees towards increasing the efficiency of their work, awareness of how their actions affect the overall result and the company’s overall position in the market, as well as faster and more active reaction to changes in the competitive environment.

Areas of use

Business process management systems are based on a process approach and are best suited primarily for automating customer-oriented and end-to-end business processes of the Company.

Most often, business process management systems are used to automate complex end-to-end business processes that include several divisions of the company and the functions of many existing information systems subordinated to one common goal.

Another common case is the automation of those areas for which there are no ready-made, well-proven, or relatively affordable ready-made solutions.

Also, business process management systems can be useful if there is a need for quick (from one to several months), targeted automation of any critical business process of the Company.

Key Features

Functional BPM architecture

All currently offered business process management systems (BPMS), regardless of the implementation platform, provide the following basic functions:

• employee task management (the ability to combine individual tasks into business processes, manage transitions from one task to another, reassign tasks and assign them to groups, functional units);
• the ability to quickly track the progress of tasks (current stage, performer and state of the process, as well as the history of changes);
• operational monitoring (in real time) of key process indicators, displaying warnings about errors and drops in indicators;
• the ability to connect partners to the system (for example, collection agencies, assessment partners, etc.) and full control over their activities by your company’s employees (employees see what stage the process is at and the partners’ tasks);
• building strictly regulated business processes for all employees (the decision to move to the next phase is made by the system, based on the data already entered and the logic of the business process);
• access control based on the role of each user in the process (an employee has access to only his tasks and only the data that is necessary to complete the task);
• integration with other corporate systems directly during the execution of a business process (receiving and transmitting data);
• management of business rules without stopping the execution of business processes (for example, the deadline for satisfying the requirement for full early repayment, the maximum period for initiating claim proceedings in a credit case, etc.)

Advantages of implementing a process-oriented business process management system

The key features of BPM solutions are that they allow:

• provide flexible automation of “end-to-end” business processes (affecting the functioning of several functional divisions of the company and information systems);
• provide the basis for the introduction of a process approach to organizing the work of organizational units of the enterprise;
• allow you to organize effective control over the implementation of business processes in real time;
• reduce the costs of interaction between different departments of companies and partners;
• provide “seamless” integration between various business applications of the enterprise and partners;
• allow you to reduce the implementation time of new solutions and business functions;
• increase the return on investments already made in the company’s information systems.

Implementation approaches

Tops BI specialists have the competence and experience in creating integration solutions on industrial platforms of the world's leading manufacturers:

Oracle SOA Suite/Oracle BPM Suite;

SAP NetWeaver BPM;

Microsoft SharePoint and BizTalk Server.

Immediately before the start of implementation, a survey of your company’s business processes can be carried out both by TopS BI specialists, and business processes already formalized by your specialists in some tool can be used (Aris or Visio can be used as description tools).

TopS BI provides the following services when building business process management systems:

• conducting a comprehensive survey, including analysis of the company’s business processes and IT infrastructure to formulate subsequent proposals for building an integration solution;
• development of integration solution architecture;
• design of a software and hardware complex, preparation of specifications for the necessary equipment and software, supply, installation and configuration of a software and hardware complex for an integration solution.
• development of business components and integration logic, user interface;
• setting up and adapting tools for monitoring business processes, information security and administration;
• creation and modification of components that expand the capabilities of existing integration solutions;
• development of operational documentation and training of system users;
• comprehensive testing of the integration solution;
• providing technical support and maintenance of implemented solutions.