Using a work system perspective to expand BPM research use cases Business process management (BPM) has developed as a research field primarily situated in the computer and information systems sciences. Recently, van der Aalst (2013) analyzed the results of these research efforts and identified a set of research topics in the form of a series of BPM research use cases. Those BPM research use cases emphasize technological and computational challenges and solutions. Ideally, however, BPM research should also address managerial and organizational challenges that the existing technically oriented research use cases do not fully reflect. We propose expanding the scope and impact of BPM research by drawing on work system theory (WST) to identify new BPM research use cases and directions. After comparing a WST perspective on basic BPM topics with the technically oriented BPM perspective expressed in van der Aalst (2013), we present new research topics that extend the technically oriented BPM research use cases in van der Aalst (2013). We also present new research directions that go beyond those use cases. Taken together, the extensions of the existing research use cases and the new use cases lead to a more balanced BPM research agenda that more fully blends technical and managerial challenges.

How BPM Impacts Jobs: An Exploratory Field Study Despite frequent allusions to the importance of change management and employee commitment in Business Process Management (BPM) initiatives, academics in this domain have so far failed to analyse how exactly employees perceive and experience these initiatives. Since we know BPM has an impact on employees, it is important for managers that are guiding process related change initiatives or leading people working in process oriented jobs to be aware of this impact and its consequences, as leaders play a crucial role in strategy based change initiatives. This paper aims to explore the employeeu0027s experiences with and perceptions of BPM, and whether these correspond to BPM expertsu0027 visions on BPM. Moreover, it constitutes a first test of a model that proposes an extra path through which BPM can increase the Organisational Performance: through Organisational Citizenship Behaviour. Results from eight case studies suggest a partial mismatch between the impact on employees that is generally claimed in literature and the reallife experiences of impacted employees, and reveal a potential for an increased beneficial impact of BPM.