Introduction To The Book

Abstract

This book is organized into various chapters that have been thoughtfully put together to communicate many times a complex topic into a replicable and manageable structure – that you as a reader can apply. Furthermore, the book is structured into 6 parts with the intention  to guide you in turning business processes into real assets.

In Part I, we introduce a comprehensive “history of process concepts” from Sun Tzu’s, to Taylorism, to Business Process Reengineering  to Lean and BPMN, providing the reader with an in-depth understanding of the evolution of process thinking, approaches and methods: a fundamental insight to what has shaped and what is shaping process thinking.

In Part II, we introduce the “Way of Thinking” around Business Process with focus on the value of an Ontology, and a comprehensive BPM Ontology – the essential starting point that creates the guiding principles.

In Part III, we establish a “Way of Working” with Business Processes – the critical discipline of translating both strategic planning and effective execution. Exploring the current and future process trends that you need to be aware of with a detailed practical guide on how to apply them in areas such as BPM LifeCycle, BPM Roles, process templates, evidence based BPM and many more.

Part IV, provides essential guidance to help you in a “Way of Modelling” in traditional Process Modelling concepts to BPMN and Value Oriented Process Modelling, how to work with and model Business Processes variations, as well as how to interlink information models and process models.

In Part V, we focus on the Way of Implementation and Way of Governance – the approach the practitioner follows in order to apply and steer what exists, spanning issues ranging from BPM change management, agile BPM, business process outsourcing, and holistic governance to project, program, and portfolio alignment.

In Part VI, we focus on the Way of Training and Coaching – to provide insight into ideal process expert, process engineer and process architecture training, from online to class based learning and coaching.

While this book certainly can be read cover to cover, depending on where you are in your Business Process journey, you may wish to choose a different path. If you’re new to Business Process concepts, you might start at the beginning, with part I. If you are beginning a BPM project, or it has already begun its journey, or you are looking for inspiration, we recommend using the book as a reference tool to access it by the topic of interest.

But no matter how you plan on building your knowledge, the book has been design and architected to be a guide and a handbook able to create the right way of thinking, working, modelling implementation and governance.