Workflow Addicts Rant

Why are Workflow Management Systems or Business Process Management Suites (BPMS) catching on like the pastel suits of the 80's (Growing at 15% a year right now). Why? Easy - it's because workflow helps business managers and CIO's solve old problems as well as some new ones....

Increased productivity, governance, customer service a nd the proverbial more with less are always putting pressure on IT systems and business processes. Next we add to the mix harnessing legacy and e-business systems with future flexibility to adapt to changing business environments, and many CIO's start looking for careers in agriculture.

Like some masked superhero with underwear on the outside of his pants, BPMS are coming to the rescue. BPMS address these needs by offe ring a system to create systems. Ladies and Gentleman it's no longer about comparing apples to oranges but apples to orchards. BPMS have inherent structures for integration, task routing, process mapping, automation, co-ordination and validation. BPMS also offer a middle ground between pre-built but inflexible software packages and flexible but costly custom development.

BPMS have already taken hold in North America with $566m* in license sales alone in comparison to approximately $50m* in our neck of the woods. As the economy is set to go thro ugh a cooling off period organisations will have to look to their IT department s for ways in which BPM software can make their organisation more Thorpedo - like.

Craig Cameron - Workflow Addict

* Gartner Research 8 February 2005