Programma 'Working with Business Processes'
Defining, Mapping and Improving Business Processes

Het programma start om 09.30 uur en duurt tot 17.00 uur. Registratie is mogelijk vanaf 08.30 uur.

Detailed list of topics:

Thinking in process terms – concepts, terminology, principles, and techniques
· Variations on what is meant by “process,” and the impact on process identification
· Three guidelines for well-formed processes
· What makes a process a “business process?”
· Real-world impacts of incorrectly identifying business processes
· A clear method for determining when one business process ends, and another begins
· Example – using this method in identifying “true” business processes
· Summary – five rules for business processes
· Impact of process identification for application and process architects
· A brief history of “business processes” – the rise, fall, and rise again of “BPx”
· Hammer’s legacy – understanding functional and process perspectives
· The good and the bad, part 1: Why functionally-based organizations are a good thing
· The good and the bad, part 2: Why functionally-based organizations introduce process difficulties
· Reconciling the two – philosophies and methods for helping functions and processes get along
· Introduction to modeling techniques – when to use decomposition, when to use flow diagrams
· What makes for an effective “swimlane diagram?”
· A five tier framework for relating business objectives, processes, applications, and data
· Modeling techniques for each perspective
· Achieving progressive levels of detail – working through scope, concept, and specification levels
· Understanding the six enablers of a business process
· A three-phase approach to completing a process-oriented project
· A reading list

Discovering your enterprise’s business processes
· “Process areas” – families of related business processes
· Depicting process areas with an “overall process map” or “process landscape”
· The role of standard process areas such as “Customer Relationship Management”
· Why top-down process identification often leads to incorrect results
· A bottom-up method for process discovery
· Beginning your analysis by clarifying terminology – a structured approach
· Introduction to the major case study
· Hands-on practice with process discovery – team work and group debrief

Framing the process – scope, issues, and goals
· A critical concept in all business analysis – separating the “what” from the “who and how”
· Four components of the “what” scope definition – the essence of the process
· Three components of the “who and how” scope definition – the current implementation
· Tips for ensuring you haven’t defined the process smaller than it really is
· Case study – hands on practice with documenting process scope
· Initial assessment of the "as-is" process and goal-setting for the “to-be” process
· A compelling and blame-free format for the case for action, and methods for communicating it
· Clarifying strategic direction – the process “differentiator”
· Case study – hands on practice with process assessment and goal specification

Workflow models – techniques for modeling process workflow
· Components and terminology in workflow models (“swimlane diagrams”)
· The most common errors in workflow modeling – missing the point, “deception by sanitization,” and a rapid descent into detail
· Avoiding errors with three questions to drive the development of your initial swimlane diagram
· A real-life example of applying the three questions
· Principles and guidelines – making your models useful, and knowing when not to model
· Guidelines for actors – who or what can or cannot be an actor on a swimlane diagram,
· Guidelines for steps – naming, multi-actor, and sequential, parallel, and collaborative steps
· Guidelines for flow – what that arrow really means, common errors, parallel vs. exclusive flows
· Representing the basic concepts in BPMN (Business Process Modeling Notation)
· Additional symbols, keeping it simple
 
Managing detail – controlling the detail of your models, knowing when to stop
· Real-life example – why detail must be managed
· Controlling detail – three levels of workflow model (handoff, service, and task)
· Definition, use, and example of each of the three levels
· Business modeling vs. specification modeling, and the problems with being too precise
· When to stop – how to know when you’ve crossed the line and aren’t modeling workflow anymore
· Making the transition to use cases, procedures, and task specifications

Techniques for facilitating an as-is workflow modeling session
· The basics – participants, resources, and tools
· Facilitated session ground rules – specifics for “process” sessions
· Tips and guidelines to ensure you’ll actually get through the process
· A reminder – the three questions to drive your initial “handoff level” workflow model
· After the initial pass – five questions to validate and extend the model
· Case study – hands on practice with developing the initial workflow model
· Progressing to further levels of detail

Tips for designing the to-be process
· Three common redesign problems, three techniques to avoid them
· Final assessment of the as-is process – a framework for assessment and its role in redesign
· Surfacing and challenging assumptions – using a “challenge session” to generate improvements
· Characterizing the to-be process – generating creative improvements
· Uncovering unanticipated consequences – using an enabler-based assessment to avoid problems and understand the requirements for process change
· Factors to make the new process sustainable
· Creating the new workflow – turning the to-be characteristics into a workflow model