The Six Core Elements of Business Process Management

The previous chapters gave an insightful introduction into the various facets of Business Process Management. We now share a rich understanding of the essential ideas behind designing and managing processes for organizational purposes. We have also learned about the various streams of research and development that have influenced contemporary BPM. As a matter of fact, BPM has become a holistic management discipline. As such, it requires that a plethora of facets needs to be addressed for its successful und sustainable application. This chapter provides a framework that consolidates and structures the essential factors that constitute BPM as a whole. Drawing from research in the field of maturity models, we suggest six core elements of BPM: strategic alignment, governance, methods, information technology, people, and culture. These six elements serve as the structure for this BPM Handbook. 1 Why Looking for BPM Core Elements? A recent global study by Gartner confirmed the significance of BPM with the top issue for CIOs identified for the sixth year in a row being the improvement of business processes (Gartner 2010). While such an interest in BPM is beneficial for professionals in this field, it also increases the expectations and the pressure to deliver on the promises of the process-centered organization. This context demands a sound understanding of how to approach BPM and a framework that decomposes the complexity of a holistic approach such as Business Process Management. A framework highlighting essential building blocks of BPM can particularly serve the following purposes: M. Rosemann (*) Information Systems Discipline, Faculty of Science and Technology, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia e-mail: m.rosemann@qut.edu.au J. vom Brocke and M. Rosemann (eds.), Handbook on Business Process Management 1, International Handbooks on Information Systems, DOI 10.1007/978-3-642-00416-2_5,  How can all relevant issues within a BPM approach be safeguarded? When implementing a BPM initiative, either as a project or as a program, is it essential to individually adjust the scope and have different BPM flavors in different areas of the organization? What competencies are relevant? What approach fits best with the culture and BPM history of the organization? What is it that needs to be taken into account “beyond modeling”? People for one thing play an important role like Hammer has pointed out in his chapter (Hammer 2010), but what might be further elements of relevance? In order to find answers to these questions, a framework articulating the core elements of BPM provides invaluable advice. l Vendor  How can service and product offerings in the field of BPM be evaluated in terms of their overall contribution to successful BPM? What portfolio of solutions is required to address the key issues of BPM, and to what extent do these solutions need to be sourced from outside the organization? There is, for example, a large list of providers of process-aware information systems, change experts, BPM training providers, and a variety of BPM consulting services. How can it be guaranteed that these offerings cover the required capabilities? In fact, the vast number of BPM offerings does not meet the requirements as distilled in this Handbook; see for example, Hammer (2010), Davenport (2010), Harmon (2010), and Rummler and Ramias (2010). It is also for the purpose of BPM make-or-buy decisions and the overall vendor management, that a framework structuring core elements of BPM is highly needed.  How can the complexity that results from the holistic and comprehensive nature of BPM be decomposed so that it becomes manageable? How can a number of coexisting BPM initiatives within one organization be synchronized? An overarching picture of BPM is needed in order to provide orientation for these initiatives. Following a “divide-and-conquer” approach, a shared understanding of the core elements can help to focus on special factors of BPM. For each element, a specific analysis could be carried out involving experts from the various fields. Such an assessment should be conducted by experts with the required technical, business-oriented, and socio-cultural know-how. l Standards Management: What elements of BPM need to be standardized across the organization? What BPM elements need to be mandated for every BPM initiative? What BPM elements can be configured individually within each initiative? A comprehensive framework allows an element-by-element decision for the degrees of standardization that are required. For example, it might be decided that a company-wide process model repository will be “enforced” on all BPM initiatives, while performance management and cultural change will be decentralized activities. l Strategy  What is the BPM strategy of the organization? How does this strategy materialize in a BPM roadmap? How will the naturally limited attention of all involved stakeholders be distributed across the various BPM elements? How do we measure progression in a BPM initiative (“BPM audit”)? 108 M. Rosemann and J. vom Brocke