BPM is key for business success because it means companies can increase both their efficiency and consistency. As a result of this, costs are also reduced as fewer resources are used/wasted as the relevant business processes are streamlined. This leads to the ultimate benefit of bpm by combining these features which leads to improved overall business performance.
A study from Villanova University found that “60-70% of business optimization projects fail.” Some of the reasons for these failures included “Unclear Start and Finish, Lack of Ownership and Support, Not Embedding Process Changes, Launching BPM Efforts Without Validation”. All these issues come from businesses looking to rush through BPM projects to try and keep pace with competitors.
At abp, we have a vast amount of experience in delivering such projects. To achieve this success, we follow a consulting process that has been moulded and adapted to suit the changing demands of businesses today. This blog delves into the three secret ingredients of our consulting process that ensures the success of BPM projects.
Using these three key ingredients will ensure that a BPM project will succeed. That is because these ingredients make sure that the project is set out with the right business objectives, provides the structure and governance to ensure implementation is smooth. Finally, it allows the building up of internal knowledge so new and improved businesses performance can be sustained and improved further.
Many firms make the mistake of not having a clear plan or direction that is specific to the business in question needs. Assessing these from the outset and ensuring that there is a structure to building internal knowledge is essential to success. There also needs to be a sense of realism when assessing the changes being made to business processes. Business owners need to be made aware that the improvements should be progressive and won’t transform the whole business overnight. Drilling down the precise areas that need support and listening to the expert's advice on what is achievable will have a huge effect on the success of such BPM projects. In knowing the importance of these points, now is the time to explain what we at abp do to guarantee this continued success. 1. Where to get Started? The first step in the consultancy stage is - Process Discovery & Mining The aim of this step is to provide tools, techniques, and expertise to build and visualize what your automation pipeline will look like. It is often difficult for businesses to identify which is the best business operation to automate or where to start their automation journey. Drawing on our years of experience and expertise, we at abp use tested methodologies and frameworks to help identify the best/most productive path for your automation initiatives. Although automation is not an overnight job, we understand getting stakeholders buy-in to automation projects requires clear evidence of improvements. That is why we immediately assess areas within your business that can be turned into quick, early wins. To make sure your automation project sets off on the front foot, we use various tried and tested methodologies. These include: - Identifying automation opportunities The aim of this is to spot an opportunity in your processes that could be automated and that could transform your customer journey. To find these opportunities, we do a complete customer journey mapping to identify moments of truth and areas
of improvements. Some direct results of this process discovery are reduced customer acquisition and customer lifecycle management costs, improved customer experience. These changes can lead your business to provide benefits such as further customer loyalty and increased revenue. - Define your automation pipeline This is based on your priorities and where you can see quickest return on investment. By using our tried and tested methods, we can support your business in creating a prioritized automation pipeline that will give you and your staff a full view of the changes being made and how they can support it. Having such timelines means that there is a clear direction to work towards while also reassuring and keeping staff in the know. - Preparing to win Our consulting approach goes a step further from just identifying automation opportunities but also uncovering potential gaps and issues that might stand in the way of process automation success. By utilising our partnerships with ABBYY and UiPath, we like to delve deep into your business processes to see if we can help in resolving gaps of inefficiencies in the process workflow. Small automation fixes to such gaps can have a great benefit on a businesses processes and that is why we will leave no stone unturned. 2. Implementing for best Results The second step in the consultancy piece is - Design and Governance This is an important step as a strong governance model and design standards will ensure consistency and adoption in any transformation. Abp brings hands on experience of implementation of hundreds of successful projects combined with standard delivery methodologies that include the right infrastructure, resources, training, communication and planning st
rategy and governance. The way we ensure success in this step is by providing your business support with the following. - Centre of Excellence Design Throughout the automation project, we will support your business in the design and implementation of your Automation Centre of Excellence. The Centre of Excellence will include directions for roles & responsibilities, governance, planning as well support & aftercare. Having this rounded operating model in place gives your business a clear view of what is happening and how it will work in the long run. The ultimate aim is to achieve scalability and maximise your ROI. - Portfolio Management By utilising the best portfolio, mining and discovery tooling as well as our own expertise, we aim to provide your business with an automation portfolio that will create value and achieve strategic goals. This is another example of our tried and tested methods that are used to create clarity and direction for businesses undertaking BPM. 3. Scalability and growth of automation
The final step in the consultancy strategy is – Asses & Scale
Abp steps into its customer shoes and promotes a strategic view of applying process automation. We assess requirements, identify obstacles, and help build an internal centre of excellence to overcome challenges. We review existing ways of working and Automation Operating Model to identify gaps or improvement opportunities that support a successful transition to BAU. This helps scale the existing automation program through the whole organization and ensure maximum returns.
By focussing on Infrastructure, Governance and the Development of Assets & Practices our automation assessment covers the three key areas that are critical for a successful initiative.
A review of infrastructure, practices, and processes to accelerate internal knowledge and promote new and fit for purpose ways of working. An organisation can benefit from the compounding results of intelligent automation if it's applied with an enterprise-wide strategy in mind.
The ultimate goal is to have a successful BPM project that can then be scaled further within the business. At abp we won't just solve one issue, we will help you look and map out what the future holds for your businesses process changes and needs.