Articles

The Enterprise Service Bus

Author(s):

BPMInstitute.org

Business Relationship Manager - Product Lifecycle Management, Chevron Corporation

Suddenly every platform vendor worth its salt is introducing an Enterprise Service Bus (ESB). So, what’s going on and why is this important? Simply put, it represents the evolution of middleware from the era of “hub and spoke” and application servers to an abstracted model that is tailor-made for the movement to a service-oriented architecture. In our view, the only way to get the needed scalability and robustness in a world where we can’t predict outcomes is through this abstracted model.

In a perfect world, all vendors would implement this infrastructure in a common and consistent way.

Getting Started in BPM

Author(s):

Daniel Morris

Managing Principle, Wendan Consulting

While there is no one right way to get started in BPM, there are some guidelines that will make your life a lot easier. It should be remembered that getting started in BPM will be based on a belief in process oriented operational improvement and your ability to sell BPM to your management.

Although BPM may well become a strategic initiative in your company, the simple fact is that it is unlikely that many BPM efforts will get started at the enterprise level with formal strategies and aggressive adoption plans.

Understanding the Enterprise Business Architecture

Author(s):

Ralph Whittle

Enterprise Business Architect, Independent Consultant

During the past several years, many companies have implemented Business Process Management (BPM) initiatives with great success. You can find several web sites and research companies providing excellent information about BPM frameworks, methodologies and approaches. Some provide monthly bulletins and newsletters which can keep you current on the progress of these initiatives and their emerging capabilities.

Understanding Business Rules as a Key Enabler for Business

Author(s):

Neal McWhorter

President, Strategic Value Partners

For many organizations, business rules represent their core differentiating offerings. This is particularly true in industries where the product offering is actually a service that is implemented by complex software systems. The financial services industry, such as banking, insurance, finance, loan processing and credit cards, is a prime example of a domain (or many domains) where business rules take center stage and are the MVPs of differentiation.

Who Supports BPM in Your Organization?

Author(s):

BPMInstitute.org

Business Relationship Manager - Product Lifecycle Management, Chevron Corporation

It has been almost three years now since BPM was first conceived as a breakthrough technology and transforming strategy so why is it that many organizations have still not fully implemented BPM technology let alone developed an enterprise BPM strategy? One key factor is the lack of focused IT support. Who supports BPM in your organization? Most organizations will answer – “Well, there really are multiple people…” and those are the ones who don’t just give you a blank stare.

Business Performance Management Meets Business Process Management

Author(s):

Janelle Hill

VP & Distinguished Analyst, BPM Research, Gartner Inc.

Interest in business process management (BPM) continues to accelerate. Users increasingly offer the right responses to questions about their interest in BPM technology. Despite good business drivers, however, many companies struggle to get started. Too often, the business leaders can’t agree on what it means to be ‘adaptive’ or ‘more efficient.’ Until business leaders agree on process and performance goals and quantify metrics that reflect these objectives, any BPM initiatives will be investments in technology for technology’s sake.

The Process-Centric Company and the Value of BP Frameworks

Author(s):

Ken Orr

Founder & Chief Scientist, The Ken Orr Institute

Ken Orr is the founder and chief scientist for The Ken Orr Institute, a business technology research organization. He is an internationally known and recognized expert on technology transfer, software engineering, information architecture, and data warehousing.

Performance Measurement: Correcting Measurement Myopia

Author(s):

Andrew Spanyi

Faculty Member, DBizInstitute.org and Managing Director, Spanyi International

This article originally appeared in the members only BPM Strategies Magazine. Join today to receive your own copy.

BPMS Watch: BPMS and Business Rules

Author(s):

BPMInstitute.org

Business Relationship Manager - Product Lifecycle Management, Chevron Corporation

From its earliest beginnings back in the 1980s, process automation technology has always emphasized the notion of “rules-based” logic. Meanwhile, in parallel, a completely independent technology evolved for the enforcement and management of business rules, primarily for decision support. While many BPMS vendors have shamelessly promoted their own process models as examples of “business rules,” process engines and business rule engines – and their respective notions of rules – are actually very different.

Case Study: Process Thinking Applied to a Large Merger

Author(s):

BPMInstitute.org

Business Relationship Manager - Product Lifecycle Management, Chevron Corporation

The $20 Billion Dow Chemical Company merged with the $6.5 Billion Union Carbide Corporation in 2000. The combined company had to merge thousands of operations worldwide in a short time. Stephen Graham was in charge of the merged supply chains. He analyzed the work processes, sub-processes and associated activities so the merger would work from the first day.

Dow Chemical used the “Most Effective Technology” (MET) concept, with alignment to the business strategy, the metrics, and the organization.

Graham pointed out that over 60% of mergers and acquisitions fail to create value.