ISR Glossary

Business Process Management (BPM)

What does business process management mean?
Business Process Management (BPM) encompasses management tasks that deal with how business processes can be identified, planned, modeled, documented, implemented, controlled, and improved. It helps to make processes more effective, improve performance, and adapt procedures to short-term changes.

BPM procedure
First, the business processes should be identified. It should be noted that process management is a cross-functional task that can span various departments within a company. Existing processes can be documented and new processes planned. In addition, these can be divided into smaller sub-processes and process steps. Business process modeling is often based on standardized modeling languages such as BPMN. It should be noted that business process management can be divided into process-oriented and case-oriented concepts. Process-oriented concepts include models such as BPMN, while case-oriented concepts include case management.

Once the target business processes have been (re)defined or redesigned, they should be verified in terms of target achievement. If the new business process achieves the targets—such as cost reduction, quality improvement, throughput times, etc.—it can be implemented. Many processes can be mapped using software-supported BPM tools or ECM systems. The workflows defined as part of process management can be transferred to workflow management systems, for example. This supports and automates the process. Document management also plays an important role in BPM, as many business processes are document-based (e.g., contract management, invoice processing).

Once the new, optimized business processes have been successfully implemented, they should be monitored so that further optimization potential can be identified and continuous process improvement can be ensured.

Advantages of BPM
BPM solutions support entire business processes. They help you on the right path toward digitization, automation, and process optimization. Business process management offers the following advantages, among others:

  • Transparency regarding processes and systems
  • Central documentation of processes
  • Improved quality of business processes
  • Relieving employees by optimizing and automating routine tasks
  • Increased productivity, efficiency, and agility
  • cost reduction