Applications such Siebel's CRM, MS-Word (Word processors) and Documentum (Document Repositories) can improve the productivity of a single department or what I call “a local problem.” These applications ensure, for example, that the representative in a call center takes in orders more quickly and accurately, the paralegal processes a document faster with less errors, and an analyst produces a report efficiently and effectively.
The productivity for the given task was greatly improved, but it didn't solve company-wide business problems such as: Did the order make it to fulfillment? Did the offer letter get processed properly by HR? Did the final report get assembled and submitted on time with proper management oversight and control?
Gaining real productivity improvements and cost savings comes from having local processes working efficiently, and having a connection between each of the local processes. Tuesday, I will discuss how BPM and POA connect all of the vertical departments together, giving C-level executives the ability to review the entire organization to see where the bottlenecks are, where inefficiencies exist and what the cost drivers might be.
Next week: BPM Solves the Problem