Why and How Responsive Process Management Differs and Augments Business Process Management

Next month I’ll be speaking at the Progress Revolution Conference in Boston.  As I prepare for my talk and review presentations by our customers I’m struck and pleased by just how much companies have improved their bottom line through Business Process Management (BPM).  It’s incredible to see the growth from a mere technology solution to an established best practice.

Obviously, it’s not surprising that a solution that reduces costs, improves quality and boosts efficiency delivers better business results. However, cost management and streamlining processes are only half the picture.

Many companies are challenged by the increased velocity of business operation, reporting lags, fragmented functional areas and an inability to quickly and effectively analyze a complex chain of business events and respond appropriately.  When you don’t have visibility into business events and access to all the information you need at your fingertips precisely when you need it, opportunities are lost.

The key to Responsive Process Management (RPM) is actionable insight. Without it you’re analyzing what HAS happened instead of what’s about to happen. Hence, you’re powerless to affect the outcome. Consider how many companies first learn about a problem from their customers – after the damage is already done.

Imagine that you work for a transportation company and that one of your trucks carrying a critical shipment on behalf of a key customer breaks down on the highway.  With RPM in place, all stakeholders have immediate visibility to the situation and can act quickly to implement a solution. They do not need to wait until they are told about it. Your logistics team will know to send another truck to complete the shipment, your scheduler will be able to update the delivery window and shift resources as needed, and your account management team can keep your client appropriately updated.

Without RPM it’s highly likely that your team will learn about the incident only when the customer calls to report that the shipment never arrived. The damage is done – your people are scrambling, your customer is dissatisfied, and your relationship is compromised.

The cost of cleaning up business messes extends beyond time and resources.  Your reputation and brand equity suffers.  You’re distracted and likely missing out on revenue producing opportunities.  Your position in the marketplace erodes as your competitors pass you by.

It is critical to be able to dynamically control the outcomes and handle exceptions that impact your business.  By responding to opportunities and threats within the actionable window, you eliminate disruption and distraction while increasing revenue.

RPM provides actionable insight. It presents a company comprehensive visibility into any combination of processes and events.  All users of the RPM solution have access to the whole picture.  Information flows seamlessly from all relevant sources within the organization and outside of it.

This puts everyone on the same page at the same time.  Your staff can anticipate and solve problems, reset priorities, keep customers happy, and leverage dynamic revenue producing opportunities.

Because everyone’s operating from the same vantage point, you can proactively collaborate on day-to-day operations to improve efficiency, increase revenue and provide a better customer experience.

Businesses are facing increasingly complex operational challenges – more stringent regulations and higher transaction volume increase compliance requirements and risk.  RPM helps you anticipate threats around non-compliance and fraud by providing the insight necessary to head off these events before they become full-blown problems.

It’s not enough to focus on cost reduction and streamlined processes.  To achieve meaningful business performance improvement, you can’t ignore RPM and the power of agility and ability to sense and respond through real-time visibility.  It’s good for the organization and it’s good for the customer.

I hope you can attend my breakout session, “RPM Enables Enterprises to Improve their Top and Bottom Lines” at the Progress Revolution Conference in Boston this year. I’m speaking on Tuesday, September 20, 2:30 – 3:30pm. Click here to learn more.