Everything’s in the Name! February 5, 2011
Posted by Sanooj Kutty in Business Process Management, Others.Tags: bpm, business analysis, business architecture, business process automation, Business Process Management, change, change management, culture, enterprise architecture, information management, knowledge management, knowledge transfer, process, strategy
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The name game has now creeped into Business Process Management. A former manager of mine kept referring to BPM only to see a demonstration from Metastorm’s Enterprise Architecture software and exclaim that this is the BPM tool I was looking for.
Initially, as a BPM evangelist, I was peeved, peeved enough to withdraw myself from the program and request to be assigned to conventional IT project management. The industry had suddenly fallen in love with BPM and it was the buzzword everywhere.
As a committed BPM-er, I continued to pursue personally my passion for BPM. From Aris to Adonis to Tibco to Interfacing to Metastorm to IBM Blueworkslive, my shallow time-permitting evaluations confused me at times too.
Aris calls it a Process Platform or Aris House.
Adonis calls it Business Process Management.
Tibco calls it the same.
Metastorm has both Enterprise Architecture and BPM
Interfacing calls it Process Center.
Yet, do they mean Business Processes or Business Architecture ? Or are they one and the same?
Today as I tried out the BPMN Modeller Visio add-on from Interfacing, I realised one thing. Whatever name you call them, they all aim to achieve the same objective. However, because of the difference in scope, standards and methodologies that may be adopted by different tools, it is important that when you ask for a solution, you ‘name’ it right.
Platform, Architecture, Management or Center? They can all mean the same, yet behave different. They can all produce the same result, yet look different. They are all good tools and will serve very well. However, would they fit your organization easily?
I have chosen the Visio add-on to introduce to my employers. Not because I really liked it, but because every one has a Visio on their desktop and over 5 years, there are more people who know to use Visio than just the single me who has used a BPMS before in my organization. Without a BPMS coming into the organization anywhere soon, this tool allows me to introduce the principles of Business Architecture and Business Process Management.
I would call it BPM although I know I am only Architecting/Modelling the processes. Simply because, management and others in my company call it BPM. Any other name and it confuses all. Hence, everything’s in a name.
And yes, I do not blame my manager anymore. He was merely an outcome of the industry fad to outdo each other with different fancy names.
Speed is not an Exception! September 29, 2010
Posted by Sanooj Kutty in Business Process Management.Tags: bpm, business analysis, business process automation, Business Process Management, change management, culture, data processing, governance, information governance, information management, process
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It’s funny how most situations in life can be compressed into a single quote or proverb. It’s also true that neither a quote nor a proverb can consolidate every element of that situation. As a business analyst and as a BPM consultant, I have come across almost every business user wanting to compress their functions or processes like a proverb; something short that does it all… and fast!
Quite justified too. Who on earth wouldn’t want to get their job done as fast as possible. Domino’s does it in thirty minutes or its your money back. Internet and Mobile banking 
means no more queues and instant gratification, well almost. 140 characters can take your message to a gazillion followers in one click. We are in a world where speed no longer thrills, it merely fulfills.
The world of business, though, in reality is no Autobahn. Wishful speed is not acceptable and perhaps this is so to avoid that single moment’s lapse in concentration. And we all know what that can result in – fatal accidents.
This is where regulations and governance comes in. To ensure business moves at a pace in which it can be maneuvered conveniently and calmly enough to change directions. A pace in which information management is controlled to ensure the right information reaches the right location in the right manner. In a difficult economy, this becomes even more necessary.
How does one convince this to a business user? Like a layman driver, controls and convictions are hassles and an annoying bot
tleneck in their daily journey. Auditors and regulators find themselves in a difficult position like the cops, can’t be everywhere all the time. Every speeding journey is an emergency; every speedy function or process is an exception.
But, Speed can never be an exception.
This is where the art and science of Prioritization comes into effect.
Prioritization is the way to go; just like you change your driving lanes and overtake other vehicles. No rules are broken or over-ridden, instead, you merely step on the gas, shift to the other lane and overtake.
To keep your SLA in the green and to control your processes; never compromise on your functions and check points. One may increase the speed of delivery by simply changing priority; but the process behaves exactly as a normal one.
This way you manage your processes, execute your functions properly and still deliver a world-class service.
Practice BPM before you Preach! November 19, 2009
Posted by Sanooj Kutty in Business Process Management.Tags: bpm, business process automation, Business Process Management, ecm, eim, Enterprise Content Management, information management, process, Project Management, strategy
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Shane Warne versus John Buchanan.
Few linen have been washed in dirty waters the way Warne and Buchanan have had a go at each other in public over the years.
One , cricket’s most successful leg-spinner (and a successful coach with the Rajasthan Royals in Indian Premier League), and the Other, an acclaimed and hugely successful coach of the legendary Australian cricket team of the 90s (failure as the coach of Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League and a nobody as a player himself).
So how do Cricket, Warne and Buchanan fit in with this BPM blog? Well, while there has never been any doubt of Warne’s skills and performances (ask Mr. Gatting), there have been quite a few critics of Buchanan’s credibility. A view I personally endorse is that Buchanan has surely been sleeping with Lady Luck to have been in the right place (Australia), right time (1990s) and the right team (a team where each was a legend in their own right). Later, when Buchanan with his “heavy on theory” approach had to manage less stellar players, he has fallen flat on his face.
Honestly, BPM faces the same set of challenges in organizations where BPM projects are rolled out to end users but neither does the senior management nor project management really become active users of the new solution. I believe it is time to change that. Start with the ones who introduce the change and not the ones who get affected by it.
Business Process Management is truly an effective and very positive change. As I read recently in my favorite blog on Business Process, “Process Café”, implementing processes by stealth is a very good way to introduce BPM into the organization. And what better way, than to start with defining a process to run the BPM Project and having the first deployment to be the Project Management processes.
This would help the PMO to understand the solution that has been procured and the capability of the vendor contracted to deploy it without upsetting the existing way of working or forcing core operations through a difficult transition period.
Sadly, this is as true as politicians changing our governance policies, as the higher you are up the ladder, the more you are connected to instructions and less to actions. I also have to be honest here that neither have I been a part of any project where this has been practiced nor have I ever been empowered to practice this. But, rest assured, when that stage in my career comes when I have full ownership or leadership over a BPM project, my first process would be the process of the BPM project management.
Until then, I wish any one of the few readers of my blog, start “practicing what they preach.” (If they don’t already do!)
