Business Process Management Projects Research Articles

Critical success factors for change management in business process management

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to determine the influence of project critical success factors (CSFs) on change management in the context of business process management (BPM). Despite widespread interest in BPM, the existing literature is insufficient in addressing the antecedents that contribute to change management in business process projects.Design/methodology/approachKey factors of change management success in BPM projects were initially identified in a systematic literature review (SLR) and were used as antecedents of change management through a structural equation modeling (SEM) with 464 business project stakeholders. Next, a neural network analysis allowed the key factors to be ranked non-linearly. Finally, a latent class analysis (LCA) was performed to determine the sample's heterogeneous groups based on their project management characteristics.FindingsProject management, top management support and technological competencies were the main CSFs identified as having positive effects on change management. The most important factor is project management, followed by top management support, which plays a crucial mediating role in enabling change management. Although relevant, technological competencies were secondary in the study. Regarding project management CSF, four heterogeneous classes of individuals were determined.Research limitations/implicationsAlthough this study provides an opportunity to observe CSFs, it does not address the need to analyze the phenomenon in different classifications of projects, regarding maturity, complexity, project management approach and other aspects that differentiate projects in a meaningful way.Practical implicationsThe study allows practitioners to understand the critical factors underlying change management and take necessary actions to manage it, recognizing that individuals have heterogeneous profiles regarding project management.Originality/valueThis study pioneeringly discusses the CSFs of change management BPM projects to enable successful change management, ranking the main factors and mapping heterogeneous profiles.

How Can Interactive Process Discovery Address Data Quality Issues in Real Business Settings? Evidence from a Case Study in Healthcare

The focus of this paper is on how data quality can affect business process discovery in real complex environments, which is a major factor determining the success in any data-driven Business Process Management project. Many real-life event logs, especially healthcare ones, can suffer from several data quality issues, some of which cannot be solved by pre-processing or data cleaning techniques, leading to inaccurate results. We take an innovative Process Mining (PM) approach, termed Interactive Process Discovery (IPD), which combines domain knowledge with available data. This approach can overcome the limitations of noisy and incomplete event logs by putting “humans in the loop”, leading to improved business process modelling. This is particularly valuable in healthcare, where physicians have a tacit domain knowledge not available in the event log, and, thus, difficult to elicit. We conducted a two-step approach based on a controlled experiment and a case study in an Italian hospital. At each step, we compared IPD with traditional PM techniques to assess the extent to which domain knowledge helps to improve the accuracy of process models. The case study tests the effectiveness of IPD to uncover knowledge-intensive processes extracted from noisy real-life event logs. The evaluation has been carried out by exploiting a real dataset of an Italian hospital, involving the medical staff. IPD can produce an accurate process model that is fully compliant with the clinical guidelines by addressing data quality issues. Accurate and reliable process models can support healthcare organizations in detecting process-related issues and in taking decisions related to capacity planning and process re-design.

Contributions of Business Process Management Promotion Techniques to Knowledge Management: Empirical Evidence

Goal: Knowledge Management (KM) has been increasingly used by organizations to help innovation and gain competitive advantage; however, the implementation of KM may turn in bad results, because of functional isolation. In contrast, Business Process Management (BPM) is an approach that removes functional isolation, establishing end-to-end processes perspective through cycle promotion and usage of management techniques. Therefore, the aim is to understand how the techniques used to promote BPM contribute to KM.
 Design/ Methodology/ Approach: In step 1, a systematic review of the literature was carried out on the scientific bases, trying to understand how the literature dealt with the relationship between BPM and KM techniques in the last 10 years. In step 2, there was a project to promote BPM in a public hospital. Stage 3 sought to understand the leaders' perceptions about the possible contributions of BPM techniques to KM.
 Results: BPM acts promoting participation and sharing (social aspects); collecting information about the organization and identifies problems (cognitive aspects); allowing decision making to solve problems (strategic aspects); explaining tacit information, organizing and compiling explicit information (technological aspects) in order to enable changes in systems.
 Limitations of the investigation: single case study. 
 Practical implications: BPM project collaborates to expand the diversity of information sources, opens the organization to external knowledge, with external consultant’s participation, also it provides communication expanding between areas, thus, improving customer service.
 Originality/ Value: this work contributes to show a valuable combination of techniques and how each one contributes to an essential resource as knowledge.

Human factor in business process management: modeling competencies of BPM roles

PurposeThe study proposes competence models for the roles of process owners, process analysts and industrial engineers based on qualitative research.Design/methodology/approachThe research methodology is a combination of a questionnaire survey and interviewing in Czech companies, which develop the process approach. The proposed competence models can be utilized during business process management (BPM) implementation while appointing process owners, analysts and industrial engineers and their further development.FindingsThis paper emphasizes the role of human factor and presents research results concerning most important BPM roles and their competencies.Research limitations/implicationsThere is lack of research (a research gap) in the field of BPM roles, what they do and what they should do.Practical implicationsA system of competence models is thus a tool for human resource management and should increase the success rate of BPM projects. Another possible utilization is in higher education in business administration.Social implicationsAnother possible utilization is in higher education in business administration.Originality/valueIt proposes competence models for the roles of process owners, process analysts and industrial engineers based on qualitative research.

Business process management (BPM): terminologies and methodologies unified

Business process management (BPM) is one of the effective performance management methodologies used in managing process-oriented organizations. BPM was adopted by many organizations and impressive results were achieved. However, BPM still in its infancy and many issues yet to be resolved. Having a unified list of the BPM critical success factors (CSFs) and BPM principles considered one of the important research areas. The literature review showed that despite the majority of BPM principles and CSFs are the same or there are minor differences between them, different terminologies were used to describe them. The literature review showed also that the methodologies used for BPM implementation were either very old, it does not cover the human interaction with BPM systems (BPMS), or it describes BPM methodology partially. Therefore, the main objectives of this research are building insights about BPM’s most recent developments, unifying BPM principles and CSFs and proposing a comprehensive BPM. The literature was analyzed to extract BPM’s developments. Moreover, the mapping process was used to propose a unified list of BPM CSFs and BPM principles. A critical success principles (CSPs) name was given to the unified list. 22 CSPs were identified, based on the nature of CSPs and implementation level, CSPs were classified into three main areas or levels namely strategic, supportive and operational CSPs. Out of 22 CSPs, 36.5% of CSPs were classified as a strategic CSPs, 45.5% of CSPs were classified as operational CSPs, and only 18% were classified as a supportive CSPs. A comprehensive BPM methodology was proposed, the proposed methodology combining the steps of generic BPM methodologies and BPMS methodologies and it is unifying the terminologies used in the reviewed methodologies. Pros and cons of the proposed methodology discussed in this research. The implications of this research can be seen in both theoretical and practical sides. For the theoretical side, the researchers can see the most recent developments in the scope of BPM, summarized in this research, and build on it to conduct future research. The proposed CSPs can be further analyzed to find the relationship between CSPs and how each one of them can affect BPM implementation. The proposed BPM methodology can be tested by applying it to the different business sectors and measure organizations’ performance during implementation stages. For the practical side, the proposed methodology can provide a guide for managers and organization leaders about the right steps to be followed during implementing BPM and conducting BPM projects. Moreover, CSPs can guide BPM project managers, organization leaders, and business excellence units to focus their efforts on the significant improvement areas and actions to be taken on strategic and operational levels.

BPM and change management

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to focus on the implementation of an ambidexterity strategy in a large Italian Company that works in the energy field. The aim of the study is to understand how contextual ambidexterity has been achieved during a business process management (BPM) approach by describing the main variables that interacted during the project implementation.Design/methodology/approachThe authors based their study both on primary (direct observation and interviews) and secondary (company manuals, books and procedures) qualitative investigations of BPM approach based on three business process re-engineering (BPR) projects and nine total quality management (TQM) projects, focused on change team behaviors, dynamics and dialogues.FindingsThe authors observed that the implementation of simultaneously radical and incremental change projects has been influenced by the exploration and exploitation activities related to every single TQM and BPR project considered. The findings suggest that the overall project has been influenced by four main underlying variables, which are task specialization and systems interoperability (knowledge transfer), identity and leadership (knowledge conversion) and two output variables (ambiguity and feedback to change), that, by interacting, enable ambidexterity.Research limitations/implicationsBPM is an important option to consider within the ambidexterity theory, being conceptually conceived as an approach in which TQM and BPR actually complement each other. Moreover, the results contextualize the importance of the change management team (CMT) to manage the connections between knowledge creation and refinement, and vice versa, depending particularly on the knowledge conversion process enabled by a flexible team culture. The focus of the study is mainly at the BPR and TQM project level. The authors consider structural ambidexterity and its enabling mechanisms as the framework in which BPM is implemented. Moreover, research limitations are related both to the specificity of the context, a large, highly specialized and mechanistic company and to the qualitative approach that may reduce the generalization of the empirical results.Practical implicationsManagers need to be cognizant and aware both of the BPM techniques, in order to sustain ambidexterity, and of ambiguity and change feedback as variables that enable the effective connection of the different steps of innovation or refinement strategy and, therefore, of ambidexterity. Moreover, the contextual factors such as leadership and people identity should be considered and managed as important variables related to change.Originality/valueThe originality of this paper is related to improving the understanding of how to implement the theoretical concept of ambidexterity in a real world organization, by providing new evidence that highlights the importance of contextual ambidexterity within a structural ambidexterity strategy during a BPM project.

Model for BPM implementation assessment: evidence from companies in Indonesia

PurposeEnterprise resource planning (ERP) implementation commonly fails to recognize the need to treat it as a business process automation that must be managed and monitored continuously. Moreover, many studies on business process management (BPM) assessment focus on snapshots of different areas of BPM and not on the different stages of the lifecycle. The purpose of this paper is to propose a model that combines the BPM lifecycle, program/project implementation framework, principles of good practice, maturity and critical practices to assess how companies implementing ERP apply different BPM practices, as well as which areas are lacking and why.Design/methodology/approachThe relevant literature was examined to develop the model for the study. Case studies of three companies in Indonesia were then conducted. The state of BPM implementation in each case was assessed through interviews, document reviews and observations.FindingsThis study found that three leading companies in Indonesia, implementing ERP for more than five years, obtained high scores for BPM implementation. They perform well in terms of process identification, implementation, monitoring and control, but are weak in process discovery and re-design, mainly because they do not optimally use specific tools for process modeling and there is a lack of process governance. The studies also pinpoint potential linkages between competition intensity and the nature of the industry with the need for good BPM.Research limitations/implicationsThe model has only been tested in three cases in different industries and therefore the results, while providing good insights, cannot be generalized. More detailed assessment of certain BPM practices is needed. Furthermore, the assessment for each stage of BPM implementation was made at a single time, potentially yielding less detailed results than by assessing each stage of the BPM lifecycle.Practical implicationsThe companies implementing ERP began with business process definition, but employ different process governance. The model developed here can be useful for leaders and teams to identify weak areas of practice within the stage of the BPM lifecycle; it can be used as an assessment tool for companies currently conducting BPM projects or programs including ERP implementation. It can also provide a roadmap for companies intending to conduct BPM programs.Originality/valueMost of the BPM literature focuses on specific aspects. This study proposes a different perspective by providing a model to assess BPM implementation in each stage of its lifecycle and at the same time considers practical aspects of implementation, principles of good practice, maturity factors and critical practices.

Getting it right! Critical Success Factors of BPM in the Public Sector: A Systematic Literature Review

The continuously evolving and dynamic social, economic, political environments and public pressures demand governments to deliver effective and efficient public services. In the quest for meeting these demands, governments respond by designing extensive reforms and performance objectives to improve the efficiency and responsiveness of their agencies. Many governments have adopted Business Process Management (BPM) as a strategy to achieve these reforms. However, the successful implementation of BPM initiatives has been a challenging task for agencies responsible for these initiatives, with many projects not reaching completion or not achieving the intended outcomes. This paper reports the results of a systematic literature review on critical success factors (CSFs) related to BPM projects in the public sector. We analysed 31 papers in this review covering both the developed and developing country contexts, sourced from refereed and peer reviewed journals. A quasi-deductive approach was applied for the qualitative data analysis using NVivo 10 software. This resulted in the synthesis and identification of 14 critical success factors of BPM in the public sector, each defined and described in detail with specific attention to the sub-factors mentioned within the literature. Any differences between developed and developing country contexts were sought for, and the observations critically analysed. We propose a series of research questions, designed to support the progression of BPM in the public sector of developed as well as developing countries.

Organizational culture in Business Process Management: The challenge of balancing disciplinary and pastoral power

Business Process Management (BPM) is a management technique which seeks to constantly innovate business processes to improve customer service while reducing costs. While much IS research has looked at the design and implementation of BPM, including its critical success factors, methodology and processes, until recently little IS research has looked at the broader organizational issues associated with BPM. This paper looks at one organizational issue in particular, that of organizational culture in BPM. Based on an action research study of one BPM project, our findings reveal that BPM’s current conceptualization of organizational culture is potentially problematic. Using Foucault’s concepts of disciplinary and pastoral power, we suggest that BPM faces a challenge in trying to balance disciplinary and pastoral power.

Utilization of Discrete Event Simulation in Business Processes Management Projects

Discrete event simulation (DES) software is often used in business process management (BPM) projects, in order to support modeling, change and automatization of process modeling. However, the current research lacks systematic overview of the benefits and pitfalls of using DES software for BPM. The goal of this paper is to provide a systematic analysis of research paper related to the operations research, computer science, business and management that report the usage of DES in BPM projects, in order to shed some light in this area. Results of this analysis could be useful to academics and business practitioners in their projects.

Business process point analysis: survey experiments

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present business process point analysis (BPPA), a technique to measure business functional process size, based on function point analysis (FPA), and using business process model and notation (BPMN). This paper also discusses the assessment results of BPPA compared with FPA.Design/methodology/approachTwo experimental studies with participants from academia and industry were conducted. The following aspects in the experimental studies were focused: similarity, application easiness, feasibility, and application benefits. The purpose of the experiment was to assess BPPA comparing with FPA as the BPPA design followed the FPA pattern.FindingsExperimental results showed that both academia and industry groups highly rated similarity and application benefits for BPPA compared with FPA. However, only participants from industry highly rated BPPA for application easiness and feasibility. The results also showed that participants’ previous experiences did not influence their ratings on BPPA.Originality/valueBPPA helps project managers to measure functional process size of business process management projects. As BPPA is derived from FPA, its mechanism is easily recognizable by project managers who are used to FPA. These results also show that both techniques are in most cases considered rather similar.

Software Engineering Inspired Cost Estimation for Process Modelling

Up to this point business process management projects in general and business process modelling projects in particular could not rely on a practical and scientifically validated method to estimate cost and effort. Especially the model development phase is not covered by a cost estimation method or model. Further phases of business process modelling starting with implementation are covered by initial solutions which are discussed in the literature. This article proposes a method of filling this gap by deriving a cost estimation method from available methods in similar domains namely software development or software engineering. Software development is regarded as closely similar to process modelling as we show. After the proposition of this method different ideas for further analysis and validation of the method are proposed. We derive this method from COCOMO II and Function Point which are established methods of effort estimation in the domain of software development. For this we lay out similarities of the software development process and the process of process modelling which is a phase of the Business Process Management life-cycle. Keywords—Cost Estimation, Effort Estimation, Process Modelling, Business Process Management, COCOMO.

Social Business Process Management and Knowledge Intensive Processes

Business process management (BPM) is a worldwide spread holistic management discipline which increases organizational performance by managing its business processes. A number of researchers indicate the need for further examination of the role of organizational culture in BPM and its maturity. In addition, there has been a recent development of social BPM as an effort to overcome the traditional BPM limitations by using social software for managing the organizations’ business processes and increasing collaboration between BPM project teams. Therefore, we conducted a case study in one Croatian IT company which operates as a consultant company and deals with software implementation. Since their processes are knowledge intensive, they are not always formal and structured so social BPM helps the company with process change and optimization. The aim of this paper is to examine the role of organizational culture and social software usage on BPM maturity in the observed company. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

On the role of context in business process management

Business Process Management (BPM) has proven successful to help organizations improve and innovate, and its application has grown in scope and context. One essential problem related to this development is that the BPM body of knowledge does not account for a broader variety of business contexts. On the contrary, most approaches, methods, or models in BPM suggest one way forward, and we recognize that BPM projects following a one-size-fits-all approach are prone to fail, since they do not sufficiently consider situational requirements. In this viewpoint article, we argue that BPM needs to be contextual in order for projects to be most efficient and effective. We observe a lack of research on how to identify and characterize business contexts relevant for tailoring the right BPM approach. Therefore, we examine contextual factors that influence BPM and propose a framework to identify the context in which BPM is applied. We define context in BPM as situational factors related to goal-, process-, organization-, and environment-dimensions. Our viewpoint article not only creates awareness for contextual BPM, it also intends to stimulate research on the role of context in BPM and to help practitioners better understand the specific business context in which BPM initiatives are applied.

Knowledge-intensive process management: a case study from the public sector

Purpose – There is very little literature about improving and managing knowledge-intensive business processes (KIBPs). Since innovation plays an important role in knowledge work, these processes are different from traditional business processes, for which most business process management (BPM) methods have been developed, and therefore KIBPs should be improved differently. The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the understanding of BPM in the case of KIBPs by describing some methods that can be applied to manage and improve KIBPs. Design/methodology/approach – The paper presents a case study of a BPM project in the public sector, where most processes are knowledge-intensive. In conducting the longitudinal case study, established guidelines for interpretive case study research were followed. Both qualitative and quantitative data were collected. Findings – The paper presents some findings about the methods that can be applied for BPM in the case of KIBPs. It shows that the main phases of a BPM project can be the same as in a typical project; however, within each project phase different methods have to be applied. Appropriate methods for modelling the existing processes were workshops and interviews. Qualitative methods were suitable for the analysis phase, while it was not necessary to develop detailed to-be models in the business process redesign phase. Originality/value – The paper contributes to the body of knowledge on BPM in the case of KIBPs. Previous findings from the literature claiming that participative, incremental and continuous methods are suitable for improving KIBPs were confirmed. The case study also showed that proper project management, communication, the active role of top management and the involvement of external consultants during BPM projects are very important.

The Role of Process Performance Measurement in BPM Adoption Outcomes in Croatia

The state-of-the art literature finds that business process management projects very often fail to fulfil the measurement requirements. The reason lies in the fact that companies understand the need to identify and define process measures, but do not implement the measurement practices. The objective of this paper is to examine the role of process performance measurement in BPM adoption outcomes. To achieve that, the literature in this field is reviewed and the results of an empirical study conducted in Croatian companies are analyzed and discussed. The results of statistical analysis support the proposed theoretical background. In practical terms, this survey identifies process performance metrics and performance linkages as the key factors that need to be in place for a company to effectively adopt BPM.

Effective application of process improvement patterns to business processes

Improving the operational effectiveness and efficiency of processes is a fundamental task of business process management (BPM). There exist many proposals of process improvement patterns (PIPs) as practices that aim at supporting this goal. Selecting and implementing relevant PIPs are therefore an important prerequisite for establishing process-aware information systems in enterprises. Nevertheless, there is still a gap regarding the validation of PIPs with respect to their actual business value for a specific application scenario before implementation investments are incurred. Based on empirical research as well as experiences from BPM projects, this paper proposes a method to tackle this challenge. Our approach toward the assessment of process improvement patterns considers real-world constraints such as the role of senior stakeholders or the cost of adapting available IT systems. In addition, it outlines process improvement potentials that arise from the information technology infrastructure available to organizations, particularly regarding the combination of enterprise resource planning with business process intelligence. Our approach is illustrated along a real-world business process from human resource management. The latter covers a transactional volume of about 29,000 process instances over a period of 1 year. Overall, our approach enables both practitioners and researchers to reasonably assess PIPs before taking any process implementation decision.

In Search of Competencies Needed in BPM Projects

Business Process Management (BPM) and supporting BPM-systems are increasingly implemented within organizations and supply chains. However a common accepted definition of the BPM-concept is omitted and the same is true for the competencies (knowledge, skills and attitudes) that project members need during a BPM-implementation. In this paper we present the results of a survey among Dutch consultants, developers and end-users of BPM-systems. The survey is designed to investigate whether there is a shared view among different disciplines with regard to the definition of BPM and the relevant competencies for BPM implementation. After presentation and interpretation of the results of this survey, we propose an international study to explore if BPM definitions and its relevant competencies differ across regions and cultures.

An analysis of BPM lifecycles: from a literature review to a framework proposal

Purpose – Business process management (BPM) is an emerging research theme in management. BPM lifecycles are models that systematize the steps and activities that should be followed for conducting BPM projects. The theoretical and empirical studies present differences regarding the number of steps and activities that should be carried out for promoting BPM. Using the BPM lifecycle model of the Association of Business Process Management Professionals (ABPMP) – an entity that proposes a common body of knowledge on BPM, as a parameter, this paper conducts a literature review to investigate lifecycle models within the academic-scientific ambit, identify convergences and variations and analyze the alignment between business strategy and processes in BPM activities in these models. The purpose of this paper is to propose a framework that deals with alignment between strategy and business processes in an explicit manner. Design/methodology/approach – A literature review was conducted aimed at prospecting papers about the BPM lifecycle. For such, the Scopus, Google Schoolar and Science Direct databases were accessed. The selection process was structured in two steps: the first filtered studies based on a reading of the title, abstract and key words; the second step consisted of selecting papers based on a complete reading of those papers resulting from the first step and from the references they contained. Findings – Seven BPM lifecycle models were selected and analyzed. A comparison was presented between the model steps and the model proposed by ABPMP. The particularities of each model were identified and the study suggests an alignment of these models with the BPM lifecycle proposed by ABPMP, in particular with the analysis, design and modeling, implementation and monitoring and control steps. Four models do not include the planning step, whereas four others do not incorporate refining. The majority of models studied projects the automation of business processes. This study reinforces that ABPMP's BPM lifecycle is a reference model, observing that the activities in the other models studied are projected in it. However, it was observed that in the ABPMP model as well as the models studied, there is little emphasis on organization strategy and on defining process architecture. Thus, this study suggests the incorporation of activities proposed by Burlton (2010) as an additional instrument for the ABPMP BPM lifecycle model to align strategy to processes in BPM projects. For such, a framework was proposed that deals with alignment between strategy and business process in an explicit manner. Originality/value – This study presents a typology of BPM lifecycle models, with common characteristics and peculiarities, and it analyzes the alignment between processes and strategy in the models’ activities. This study can assist professionals in the adoption of a model for implementing BPM projects and for continuous improvement.

Absorptive Capacity as a Precondition for Business Process Improvement

Improving organizational performance by redesigning business processes and supporting them with a proper information system is a daunting challenge. We analyze the possibilities of business process management in general and in the healthcare sector in particular. The role of business process modeling as a way to increase an organization's absorptive capacity is analyzed. A longitudinal case study of a European public healthcare insurance company identifies the factors either increasing or hindering absorptive capacity. The case presents that the dilemma between radical and incremental approach to improve business processes is somehow artificial since the radicalness of changes depends on the difference between the absorptive capacity and the extent of the proposed changes. The paper shows that business process management projects should not merely focus on the development of methodologically correct models, but should be used as an opportunity to increase the absorptive capacity of an organization.