Prototyping a business process improvement plan. An evidence-based approach

Abstract

Knowledge absorption, information, and management tactics play a vital role for organizations to pursue process improvement. In this work, we aim to support organizations in building a prototype business process improvement plan through an evidence-based approach to make the most of the available information and knowledge.We exploit existing data that describe the business process’s execution to capture the governing process behaviors. By comparing the process’s execution across multiple business units, we assess the versatility of organizations and the pervasiveness of the process behaviors. Through a bipartite network, we suggest the concept of Operations Sophistication and deliver insights for the improvement prospects.Our approach contributes by identifying the behaviors with the greatest potential in a rapid and evidence-based way, by indicating a prioritization customized per organization, and by highlighting the most secure change paths. To illustrate our approach, we applied it to a real-world case from Siemens AG, and we present the methodology and the results through that case study.