Business process outsourcing (BPO) is a popular strategy companies use to cut costs, boost efficiency, and tap into specialized skills and expertise. Experts predict that the global BPO market will reach $405.6 billion by 2027, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8%. By outsourcing non-core processes, you can save on overhead costs and focus more on growing your business.
BPO makes operations smoother, leading to quicker turnaround times, better quality, and happier customers. Its service providers bring specialized skills and knowledge, which improves service quality. A key part of BPO is business process management (BPM), which helps you enhance your company's processes and performance.
Effective BPM is crucial for business success. By exploring BPM and partnering with experienced providers, you can remove inefficiencies and stay competitive in today’s fast-paced market. Read this guide to discover the benefits, types, and best practices of BPM.
Business process management (BPM) aims to optimize and oversee a company’s processes to enhance efficiency and cut operational costs. BPM primarily establishes a structure for continuous process enhancement. Businesses can streamline operations, redefine objectives, or mitigate bottlenecks hindering optimal organizational performance by pinpointing areas needing improvement.
Some common ways to use BPM include automation, workflow, and compliance management. Many software tools are also available to help make the practice easier to test and implement. The typical life cycle of BPM methods is as follows:
During the design phase, business analysts evaluate the organization’s current processes and interview stakeholders to understand the business rules and goals. The objective is understanding the business structure and methods and ensuring the project aligns with your company’s targets. The design phase sets the foundation for the project and defines the scope, objectives, and roadmap for the rest of the life cycle.
After the design phase, the team represents the process model to support your current bylaws. The stage involves identifying areas for improvement and designing the ideal implementation. With BPM software, the team can create a detailed model that accurately represents the process and determines areas for development.
You can also use the framework to simulate how it works for different scenarios. The model phase helps you determine subsequent actions in times of crisis or sudden changes within your industry.
This step involves implementing the process changes identified while modeling—the team creates a proof of concept by testing the new BPM system with a limited group of users. After integrating feedback and making any necessary adjustments, the team can slowly roll out the process.
If the procedure involves automation, the team should artificially throttle the method to help minimize errors. Always remember to have every change documented and cite every reason. Having records can help with troubleshooting in the future.
It’s crucial to track the performance of your new process against your business strategy. Establishing key performance indicators (KPIs) and monitoring these metrics help you measure progress and flag any factors that might be an issue in the long run. Focus on macro and micro indicators to examine the entire and individual process segments. Check whether you’re meeting your goals, such as decreased costs or task efficiency.
After implementing the new process, the team must continuously monitor and optimize it using the previous steps. Optimizing involves looking for ways to improve the method and considering automation for specific tasks. It also includes making necessary adjustments to enhance business activity and aligning individual functions with the overall strategy.
BPM is a structured approach that leads to more efficient day-to-day operations. Below are some other benefits that BPM can give you and your organization:
BPM optimizes processes, resulting in improved resource allocation and productivity. It eliminates redundant tasks and automates routine operations, allowing employees to focus their time on more valuable activities.
BPM removes the need for manual data entry, reducing the likelihood of human error. The average error rate for manual data entry hovers around 1%, but it may still increase depending on the complexity of the information or worker health. Automated workflows ensure that all steps are completed in the correct order and with consistent results, lowering the risk of errors.
Process management enables you to execute processes consistently and competently, decreasing the risk of non-compliance with regulations and standards. It also provides audit trails and reporting, making it easier to demonstrate compliance with local and international regulators.
By eliminating manual processes, BPM can lead to faster turnaround times. It can help shorten the time to complete tasks and remove delays caused by human error or miscommunication.
Automating several tasks can help reduce your employees’ workload. A smoother workload with less manual work can lead to increased employee happiness and loyalty. According to Business Wire, employees who had experienced the highest levels of automation were also the happiest and most optimistic about their career prospects.
With BPM making each step more transparent and manageable, employees know which tasks must be prioritized and worked on with extra care. These well-defined steps mitigate any confusion regarding expected output and quality of work.
You can categorize BPM into types based on their workflow automation and management approach. Here are the three main types and what they can give your company:
The integration-centric BPM focuses on streamlining business processes by implementing various systems and technologies. It aims to enhance efficiency and reduce errors by automating data exchange between different systems using tools like application programming interfaces (APIs), connectors, and other integration tools that facilitate seamless system communications.
For instance, a logistics company could utilize integration-centric BPM by connecting its inventory management system with its shipping system. This integration simplifies the order fulfillment process, ensuring orders are processed accurately and delivered on time.
The document-centric BPM manages the flow of documents and data within your company for you to create, review, approve, and distribute copies efficiently and accurately. It often involves workflows tied to specific files and document management systems allowing easy access and sharing of documents.
A law firm may benefit from using this type of BPM. The firm manages contracts, records, and other documents to ensure all parties can access the latest version and promptly obtain approvals.
The human-centric BPM focuses on improving human workflows and productivity. It streamlines communication and collaboration between employees, departments, and customers. This BPM often uses task lists, forms, and other tools to standardize and automate workflows.
For instance, an insurance company might use a human-centric BPM to enhance the claims process by standardizing the documentation required, automating the approval process, and providing real-time updates to customers.
Following BPM best practices is essential to effectively manage and improve your company’s processes for success. Some of these best practices include:
Identifying KPIs helps measure a process’ success and contribution to your company’s goals. You must establish your metrics before implementing a BPM strategy to formulate a clear game plan for your organization when the project finally begins.
Communication with customers and vendors enables you to understand their needs and expectations. You can then use these insights to tailor your BPM strategies to meet those requirements better, resulting in improved customer satisfaction and vendor relationships in the long run. Speaking with your clients also helps you develop KPIs that track whether you’re meeting their demands and which areas regarding client-facing procedures need improvements.
Today, many emerging BPM tools include process mapping, workflow automation, and project management capabilities. Choosing the right technologies for your business can reduce human error and increase productivity, giving you more value for your money.
Proper employee training is an important best practice in BPM, as it ensures employees understand the BPM process and their roles in it. Well-trained staff can better engage in the process and work toward the desired outcome, improving consistency and efficiency in daily operations. Moreover, training shouldn’t be a one-time event. It should be ongoing and updated regularly to guarantee your workers remain informed and skilled.
Analyze the process thoroughly and ensure your business benefits from these improvements. Rushing or making poorly planned decisions in your strategies and methods can lead to more significant problems and disrupt operations.
Continuously monitor the process and collect data on performance metrics, such as cycle time, process time, and costs. This will help you identify problems and areas for improvement within your company and its day-to-day activities. You can use BPM software to make it easier to track all ongoing procedures and generate reports that can help you make well-informed decisions in the future.
BPM provides a structured approach to managing workflows, leading to more efficient tracking, rollouts, and product deliveries. This strategy can streamline your operations, reduce costs, and secure consistent and compliant procedure execution. To help your business succeed, consider working with Select VoiceCom as your business process management partner.
Our team of experts can provide you with software tools and help you implement BPM strategies and outsourced contact center solutions according to what best suits your specific needs. Contact us today to learn more about how our BPM services can help scale your company to success!