What Problems Does Business Process Management Solve?

Every business, including manufacturing companies, runs on a complex system of processes. When those processes break down, trouble starts brewing. Whether they're missed opportunities for organizational efficiency or significant operational disruptions, problems stemming from poor workflow management principles can impede optimal business operations.

Business process management can help alleviate workflow issues by introducing a healthy dose of automation, streamlining historically time-consuming tasks and increasing efficiency and productivity across the board.

Business Process Management Defined

As with many business- and tech-related terms, not everyone agrees on what exactly business process management refers to. Some think of it as an abstract philosophy involving the improvement of operations through the refinement of its workflows. Others say the term specifically refers to the actual solutions that support such endeavors.

Either way, the core concepts are essentially the same: using internal processes and workflows as the catalysts for organizational change and optimization.

When one considers all of the workflows underpinning manufacturing operations and how their performance determines overall success, the merits of business process management become clear.

Where Business Process Management Drives Success

The first place manufacturers are likely to notice improvement, thanks to business process management, is with their bottom line.

Streamlining and automating processes will inevitably lead to a reduction in operational costs. This is particularly true if organizations are able to eliminate existing manual workflows that cause delays and impede fast internal business processes. According to a 2017 Bearing Point study, cost savings was the No. 1 goal for organizations deploying business process management solutions.

Other common objectives include:

• Improving the customer experience: 
• Enhancing organizational transparency: 
• Digitizing workflows: 

1. Improving the Customer Experience

More streamlined internal workflows ultimately benefit the customer as well as the organization. Process efficiency leads to faster services and better responsiveness, both critical components to the overall customer experience. In fact, the Bearing Point study revealed that 80 percent of business process management users saw an increase in customer satisfaction and a decrease in complaints after implementing this technology.

2. Enhancing Organizational Transparency

Too often, departmental workflows occur in silos, out of view from other areas of the business. Manufacturing companies run best when stakeholders can get a holistic view of their inner workings. Business process management tools pave the way for that level of visibility.

3. Digitizing Workflows

Many organizations still rely on manual, paper-based processes to some extent. Business process management helps replace lingering manual workflows with more efficient and more accurate digital processes.

Digitizing workflows is particularly important as organizations continue to embrace the concept of digital transformation and explore new ways to leverage digital technology to improve business outcomes. According to CIO.com, many companies that initially invested in business process management as a means to reduce their operational costs now view these solutions as a way to drive digital transformation.

Manufacturers Can Drive Success Starting Now

Manufacturers and other businesses have an incredible opportunity to address existing pain points by embracing BPM and workflow management solutions. Software solutions add a great deal of visibility, automation, and accuracy to the equation, improving various critical processes across the entire organization.

Furthermore, by automating and tracking workflows throughout the manufacturing environment, businesses can improve their operational efficiency, getting more accomplished with fewer headaches.

Issuetrak's workflow management platform allows users to customize workflows and checklists for whatever processes they want to improve. The complete visibility that Issuetrak provides ensures that everyone adheres to the same workflows and processes across the entire organization.