Work Flow and Work Process Software

Afsheen Chitnis
Member

Posted 04-Jan-2005 04:57 AM
Hi

Can you please give me some sources on the internet about BPR and introduce some softwares which we can do the workflow and work process job with.

Thank You
Afsheen Chitnis

Dick Lee, CRMGuru Panelist
Advisory Board
Member
Picture of Dick Lee, CRMGuru Panelist

Posted 10-Jan-2005 08:33 AM
For web-based information about BPM in the CRM space, I would download our free white paper on Visual Workflow (www.h-ym.com) and use Google to search for Workflow Dynamics. As for software, visit www.procarta.com and use Google to search for BPM software.

Dick Lee

Author Dick Lee is founder and principal of High-Yield Methods, a Twin Cities-based consulting firm specializing in helping clients achieve customer-centricity through CRM and proper alignment of process and technology. Dick is the developer of the Visual Workflow approach to business process improvement.

Posted 22-Aug-2005 06:47 AM
Chitnis,

At user adoption time the workflow education and enforcement should be built into a "performance support" layer eliminating the need for learning downtime (70% of offline learning is forgotten in 2 weeks anyway).

That is, focus on work processes performance rather than application education. The latter should be a free by product of successful process completion from the fist attempt. See an example at: http://www.rocketools.com/video/SalesforceDataInput.htm

Good luck.

Ray

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Posted 29-Aug-2005 06:13 AM
Unfortunately, workflow mapping software is pretty much limited to iGrafx and Visio (the former is significantly better). But for some great work process mapping software, visit http://www.procarta.com.

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Graham Hill
Guru
Member

Posted 29-Aug-2005 09:00 AM
Afsheen

I have used the business process reengineering approach described by Rummler & Brache in their definitive book, "Improving Performance: How to Manage the White Space on the Organization Chart" in over 20 major reengineering assignments (banks, telcos, airlines, automotive, govt) over the last 15 years. Although this is by no means a new book (the latest edition on Amazon is from 1995), the approach contained within in is absolutely spot on and it provides and excellent step-by-step guide to think about the different levels at which BPR operates—from the description of the flow of work within the larger business system, through the design of individual work processes, to the design of the organisational structure that fits the redisigned work processes.

I have also recently started using the approach to business rule definition described by Barbara von Halle in her book, "Business Rules Applied: Building Better Systems Using the Business Rules Approach". Defining business rules to guide how each business process is to be carried out in different conditions is critical if business processes are to be successfully automated, whether that automation supports a corporate user serving the customer or the customer serving themself.

Both approaches complement each other; Rummler & Brache's providing the framework for the traditional top-downo BPR, Von Halle's the framework for detailed bottom-up business automation.

I agree with Dick about the use of iGrafx in preference to Visio for this sort of work.

Graham Hill
Independent CRM Consultant

Posted 05-Sep-2005 03:35 PM
If your Business Processes and Workflow are Customer focussed then Onyx Softwares new Process Management suite including the Onyx Process Manager (which can be implemented independently of the Customer Management product suite) is worth a look.

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Posted 12-Sep-2005 06:34 AM
What concerns me about using process management software from Onyx is that it's designed for front office functions. Unfortunately, process improvement that improves the customer experience and delivers more value to customers typically occurs in the back office.

Dick Lee