Comparative analysis of business engineering tools. Business Modeling Software Review Tool for Designing Business Process Modeling

Now, after a general clarification of the general functional tasks solved by the tools under consideration, it is necessary to compare the capabilities that these tools provide.

In further analysis, only the characteristics of the ARIS ToolSet (hereinafter, ARIS), BP-Win - Erwin (hereinafter, BP-Win) and ORG-Master (hereinafter, ORG-Master) programs will be considered. The Rational Rose program is, to the greatest extent, focused on building purely software, not organizational systems, in order to simplify the presentation, we will exclude from consideration, especially since the underlying UML methodology is now implemented in ARIS).

Functionality of business systems modeling tools

When comparing various means modeling business systems, it is advisable to consider their features in the following groups of functional capabilities:

tools for building models of business systems;
tools for analyzing models;
means of optimization of simulated systems according to their models;
support for libraries of typical models;
registration of regulations and documentation;
support for the development of database models and software;
integration with other software products (CASE-tools, ERP-systems, application programs).

general organization of business processes and the order of interaction of organizational units (performers),
distribution of responsibility for the implementation of individual functions and the use of system resources,
loading of organizational links, performers and instrumental resources in the system,
the main time and cost parameters of the simulated system,
resource requirements for the processes occurring in the system.

Analysis general organization of business processes and the order of interaction of organizational units in the system is carried out directly when studying the constructed models of business processes. Qualitative analysis also allows you to identify those role, which, under certain conditions, can be excluded from the process. Wherein visibility of the model and the ability to trace the relationships existing in the system becomes of paramount importance.

Notes regarding the clarity of the models are given below. But it should also be noted here that an important requirement for the model is the possibility of its analysis before its complete construction. Indeed, if it is possible to identify interconnections (as well as their absence) in the system only after building its complete model, then this turns out to be very inconvenient at the initial stages of work, when information about the features of the processes occurring in the system may still be partially absent or inaccurate.

Here, ORG-Master is in an advantageous position, since the model of business processes in it is not built directly in the form of an IDEF diagram. This diagram can be automatically generated after creating and filling in the classifiers that form the model (business functions, organizational units, resources, etc.) and setting all the necessary projections (relationships for resources, performers, tools, regulations and the actual links between business operations). Thus, even before obtaining a complete (or partial) model of a business process, the main relationships that determine the modeled process are already identified and can be analyzed.

In contrast to this approach, the business process models in ARIS and BP-Win are built directly, and the existing relationships between the process components must be prepared for analysis as a result of the appropriate procedures.

So, for example, after building a business process model in BP-Win, a separate data model is built using ERwin, in which links are established between system components (data model entities according to the methodology). Then these models are linked by means of a mechanism that is essentially similar to the projection construction mechanism used in ORG-Master (see Appendix 1. Model components of the ORG-Master software and methodological complex).

With this in mind, the second of the considered possibilities of model analysis: analysis of the distribution of responsibility for the implementation of individual functions and the use of system resources, turns out to be automatically implemented in the process of building a business process model in the ORG-Master system. Indeed, the projections of the Organizational link - Functions and Functions - Resources, specified when building models of business processes in ORG-Master, directly show those responsible for a particular work area or resource (and allow any combination of them to be analyzed). In addition, ORG-Master allows you to export matrix projections to MS Excel, where organizational analysis diagrams are formed on their basis.

In ARIS and BP-Win, for this purpose, it is necessary either to manually trace all connections in business process diagrams (and data models in BP-Win), or to construct the corresponding lists or reports on purpose.

Question about loading performers and instrumental resources in the system, as well as obtaining estimates for the main time parameters of the modeled system, can be decided on the basis of quantitative data on the complexity (or simply duration) of the functions they implement. To solve this problem, it is necessary to enter such data into the system in one way or another, as well as provide means for obtaining summary estimates. Support for the IDEF3 methodology (in BP-Win), ABC methods in ARIS and BP-Win, as well as simulation tools in ARIS (and, partially, in BP-Win) provides for some processing of these estimates. As for the actual initial data, they are set by the user, who, therefore, is responsible for the final result.

However, obtaining sufficiently representative estimates using statistical (simulation / event) modeling (and, moreover, using ABC methods when considering time as a resource) for loading system components is hampered by the following factors.

Modern approaches to the analysis of any process ( workflow) proceed from dividing the time of its implementation by, in fact, the period of execution of operations and the time of transmission of their results. At the same time, in office processes or the processes of providing a service, the actual work takes on average about 10% of the time, and the rest of the time is spent either on physically moving the result of the task (requiring the signature of the text of the contract that needs to be washed again) and waiting in line until the next the executor will find time to continue the process. Therefore, methods based on a simple summation of the time of operations at the present time, as a rule, do not give an accurate representation of the time parameters of the process.

You can try to get more adequate results using simulation of the system's behavior. However, for the times of service delays, one has to either make very approximate assumptions about the law of their distribution in time, or carry out rather expensive and laborious timing procedures and subsequent statistical processing. At the same time, the reliability of the results obtained will not be too high, or will require significant additional costs. Therefore, it seems reasonable to approach that: “the cost of modeling costs to obtain any information should not exceed the value (cost) of the results of its use. In addition, one should always remember about the Pareto law, from which, in relation to the problem under consideration, it follows that 20% of modeling efforts provide 80% of the effect.

Therefore, from our point of view, before the transition to complex and time-consuming and resource-intensive modeling methods associated with quantitative estimates of time and cost parameters, it is worth focusing on getting an effect from the implementation of more obvious results of business modeling. Quantitative optimization is advisable to carry out taking into account measurements and analysis of real-life processes.

ORG-Master has a functional analogue of ABC analysis tools - Budgeting Wizard, which generates a simple budgeting system. One of the results of the work of this system is a quantitative assessment of the costs of implementing business processes (operating budgets), which is at least comparable in value to the data obtained using the ABC-costing support tools.

In addition, the ORG-Master family also includes the Time-Master software package, one of the components of which, which ensures the management of processes (workflow), allows the accumulation of statistics in the course of their execution, which provides estimates for the time parameters of the processes necessary for the analysis.

Business systems optimization tools (business processes) in addition to the capabilities of the analysis of models provide: a management tool.
generating a range of alternatives;
planning;
choosing the best course of action;
resource allocation;
setting priorities.

Typically, the implementation the listed functions, is associated with the use of special rather complex or cumbersome algorithms for solving optimization problems. A number of possibilities of this kind are incorporated in the ARIS system. However, their implementation, in general, does not seem appropriate until the stage of fine-tuning the business process after achieving the results of its restructuring using simpler methods.

Support for generic model libraries allows you to use previously created developments in the process of building new models. This capability is provided in all three considered tools. In particular, ORG-Master supports both complete reference business models of enterprises, obtained as a result of real projects carried out at Russian enterprises, and "library" classifiers describing the typical organization of individual aspects of activities.

Registration, in accordance with the constructed models, company regulations seems to be a very important opportunity to ensure the integrity and consistency of the documentary description of the business system. The importance of this component to business modeling tools can be understood by looking at regulations as a company management tool. Indeed, if a company is stable, it means that its business processes are well-oiled and lend themselves to almost formal regulation. The internal culture that must be present in such a company will allow, if necessary, to quickly rebuild the system or parameters of business processes by changing the work regulations of the relevant departments and performers.

The presence of documents-regulations on all aspects of the company's activities is one of the basic provisions of the concept of regular, systemic management. According to her, in a well-organized business, about 80% management decisions is accepted according to predetermined procedures, and only the rest, associated with non-standard situations and various innovations, rely on the creativity and heroism of employees.

The organization of the activities of an enterprise (company) aimed at achieving certain goals is regulated at the modern level by the following standard set of basic organizational documents:

provision on the organizational and functional structure, reflecting the composition of businesses and functions supported in the company, and their distribution within the company;
provisions on company policies (accounting, investment, etc.);
regulations on the organization of the main business and management subsystems of the company, containing a detailed description of functions by line of business;
documented procedures - descriptions of business processes in a form that allows both to present the process to an outside observer and to be guided by this document to the executors of the process operations;
and, finally, the traditional "divisional clauses", and " job descriptions»Personnel with lists of functional duties, types of responsibilities, rights and powers of employees.

In addition, it should be possible to create special reporting forms for creating documents in various functional areas: Terms of Reference for an enterprise management information system, Quality Manual (see, for example, Appendix 3) and other special documents in accordance with ISO9000, etc.

All information that allows you to generate these documents must be contained in the form of a coherent and consistent system in the complete business model of the enterprise (company). Moreover, many of the documents that are created should correspond as much as possible to generally accepted Russian standards(Obviously, ARIS and BP-Win systems meet the latter requirement the least).

In the ORG-Master environment, such statements and instructions are generated automatically as textual forms of descriptions of procedures, represented by the corresponding classifiers and relations-projections of links between them. Graphical forms (various digraphs and process diagrams) are a good complement to these documents.

In the ARIS environment, job descriptions and process descriptions are based on event process diagrams and, in principle, various text documents can be attempted to be constructed by analyzing process models and organization structures. Although to a greater extent here the picture is the opposite - the system is focused mainly on creating graphics, and the function of creating documents-regulations is clearly auxiliary and, as a result, not developed.

In BP-Win, the direct possibility of obtaining various regulations is not stipulated.

In a relationship project documentation two sides can be considered: a description of business processes and a description of an information system for supporting business processes for its subsequent development. The first of them is practically equally provided in each of the considered environments with the possibility of constructing various reporting forms based on the constructed models of business processes.

In terms of documentation for the development of an information system, the most traditional opportunities are provided by the BP-Win / ERwin environment, which, in fact, was created for this.

ARIS capabilities are roughly similar: in the first versions of the data model, the entity-relationship scheme was described, in later versions, in the UML language. However, ARISToolset provides more advanced development features information systems.

The capabilities of ORG-Master allow you to fully represent the data structures necessary for organizing information support for modeled business processes using its own universal tools - classifiers and projections. There are no formalisms like ER diagrams, although in latest versions visualization in the DFD standard is possible. In addition, it became possible to reflect the interaction between functional blocks on IDEF0 diagrams, not only through the direct transfer of documents and files, but also through shared databases!

Support for the development of database models and software tools usually refers to the capabilities of tools such as CASE or similar tools for configuring enterprise management information systems (for example, systems of the ERP class). Such support can provide the following functionality:

analysis and design of the architecture of information management systems,
design of databases and files,
programming (generation of program codes),
support and reengineering,
project management.

Questions analysis and design of information systems architecture are usually completed by defining the system requirements and related specifications. This stage, with a systematic approach to design, should directly rely on the models of business systems and, in fact, detail them. Therefore, here all the above reasoning is true, covering the construction, analysis and optimization of system models, as well as the design of regulations and documentation.

Database and file design(conceptual and internal levels), transformation of data models, description of file formats are most complete in the tools under consideration is supported only in BP-Win (ERwin), since this environment is specifically designed to solve such problems.

In the ARIS environment, this possibility is provided in the ARIS Toolset package at the level of the project specification and the definition of database parameters.

The approach developed in the ORG-Master environment assumes (although not necessarily) that information systems that already have databases can be used in the modeled business systems. In this case, they do not need to be redesigned unless the system is expected to be replaced. However, in the absence of information systems, ORG-Master creates the basis for the conceptual data model and data file structures. This framework is represented by descriptions of the composition and relationship of information objects and documents used in business process models.

Generation of program codes for application or system tools ARIS and ORG-Master systems are not provided, since they are business systems design tools, not software. To a certain extent, this feature is only implemented in BP-Win.

Maintenance and reengineering... These functions are usually implemented by means of documenting, program analysis, program restructuring and reengineering. The remarks made above regarding the documentation tools are fully applicable in this discussion.

Functions project management creation of databases and software tools are specific specifically for the development of software products. They are implemented in this form in BP-Win. Project management in the ORG-Master family fully supports the Time-Master software package. (Although, strictly speaking, these functions are not required for the class of tools in question).

Integration with other software products implies an expansion of the scope of the tool in question and can be carried out both as part of the development of a family of compatible software tools (like Platinum Technologies) or with by software other developers (third party software).

Integration with third party software products is performed for one of the following purposes:

using the functionality of the integrated product to expand the scope of your product,
enabling your product to be included in a third party product,
providing a universal, to one degree or another, interface for your product, if a specific third party is not known in advance.

From the point of view of the functional focus, integration with:

CASE means,
ERP systems,
application programs.

ARIS has interfaces with some CASE tools, and is also a model building tool for direct customization of such enterprise management systems, primarily SAP R / 3. As noted above, the system relies on its own notation for representing business processes, therefore it uses built-in simulation tools and a tool cost analysis, the results of which, however, can be exported to MS Excel formats.

The ORG-Master and BP-Win systems support the IDEF0 notation system to describe the represented business processes. In principle, this is some kind of a link between these tools and for communication with other software products using this methodology. However, without considering here the issues of the "age" of the IDEF0 notation, it should be pointed out that the internal representation of data in each system is different, and a standard interface like "sockets" or classes for the IDEF0 system is not specified. However, there is a standardized file format for representing IDEF diagrams. Therefore, although the descriptions made with its help are not very convenient for both humans and computers, it is possible to use them as a means of exchanging models if there are appropriate converters of this format. Such a converter is provided in the following versions of ORG-Master.

BP-Win supports methodologies IDEF0, DFD and IDEF3 and integrates with the following software products (mostly from the same manufacturer):

ERwin data modeling tool (Platinum Technology),
project management and storage system ModelMart (Platinum Technology),
a specialized report generator for the RPTwin model (Platinum Technology),
simulation system BPSimulator (System Modeling Corporation),
tool of cost analysis EasyABC (ABC Technologies).

(* Platinum Technology - since 1999 entered Computer Associates)

ORG-Master is initially positioned as an organizational class system focused on solving problems of modeling and designing business processes and structures and supporting organizational decisions. It provides the ability to integrate with its own developer packages ("BIG-SPB Software"), focused on solving various functional tasks. In the ORG-Master system, if necessary, simple executive information systems are automatically created in the MS Office environment:

Budgeting system (which is a simple management accounting system, management of profitability and solvency of the enterprise).
Marketing system (accumulating operational quantitative information about the enterprise's market, as well as integrating with its own CRM-system for supporting customer relations).

The introduction of these applications into the activities of the enterprise allows you to quickly master modern management techniques, which greatly facilitates the transition to more complex executive systems.

It is possible (and has been tested in projects) data interfacing through exchange files within the framework of building integrated information systems with executive and analytical programs of partner firms: 1C, A&T: Soft, Intalev, Comtech +, INEK, etc., as well as with complex control systems enterprise resources (for example, IPS production).

The new version also provides mechanisms for exporting descriptions of business processes to the Time-Master software package, which combines the properties of systems such as Project Management, WorkFlow and Personal Information System and is built on Internet / Intranet technologies.

Section summary:

The main functional capabilities of the compared instruments are presented in Table 2, where the assessment of the degree of implementation of functions or properties is indicated on a five-point scale.

As can be seen from Table 2, direct summation of the estimates gives a scatter of about ± 4%. This scatter lies within the margin of error of the estimates themselves. Moreover, the means themselves, differing in their functional orientation, received similar estimates due to the fact that the differing strengths and weak sides different means, when calculated directly, compensate each other.

However, during the discussion of the functionality, it was emphasized that directly for solving the problems of business engineering, separate groups functionalities have different meanings. This fact is reflected by the coefficients written in the column “Weight”, Table 2. Taking this factor into account, it is seen that overall assessment complex ORG-Master slightly surpasses ARIS.

But again, this may be the result of different preferences and priorities in the intended use of the product. For example, due to a lower assessment of the significance of the existing tools for quantitative analysis of models (simulation and event modeling), as well as optimization tools, which, however, are poorly represented in all considered systems. At the same time, the properties of self-documenting models or the versatility of presenting various aspects of modeling are highly appreciated.

In general, when evaluating and choosing a modeling tool, it is recommended to independently decide which of the system tools are most important in solving a specific problem of its application and, accordingly, put down "weights".

Additionally, reference Appendix 2 provides an overview of formalization standards and tools for constructing and / or analyzing certain models that are used in the systems under consideration.

Business process modeling has become a classic work of many business analysts in the framework of business process optimization and standardization of the activities of Russian companies. There are many notations that are used in different cases. This article is devoted to an overview of notations for modeling business processes.

VAD (value added chain diagram)

The VAD notation, introduced by Michael Porter in his work on corporate strategy, concentrates on modeling business processes that "create value" in the form of services or products for the consumer. The business process model, built in VAD notation, provides a general, non-detailed view of business processes.

Using VAD notation, you can describe the list and relationship of business processes at the top level, since this notation allows you to display all business processes of a company on one model. In VAD notation, you can use relationships that show the relationship of business processes relative to each other, while the flow of the process in this notation, in the overwhelming majority of cases, is directed from left to right.

There are many variants of the VAD notation implemented in various tools, and each with its own set of symbols, but they all look approximately the same - a set of business processes, often interconnected by "predecessor-successor" links.

For example, the extension of this notation in the ARIS toolkit allows you to show performers, risks, documents, data and much, much more on the business process model.

In addition to modeling a map of an organization's business processes, VAD notation allows you to model end-to-end business processes when they are initially defined. But you need to understand that VAD is not designed to simulate logical conditions in the process, and therefore it is well received by management. In practice, after modeling business processes at the top level in VAD notation, a more detailed modeling of business processes in other notations follows, which we will consider in detail below.

The VAD notation model can be drawn in a variety of tools, such as MS Visio, and many other business process modeling tools.

Business Process Modeling - EPC (event-driven process chain)

The EPC notation was developed by Prof. August Wilhelm Scheer within the framework of the ARIS toolkit methodology. A business process is modeled as a list of process steps triggered by events. The notation is convenient for the subsequent regulation of the business process, as well as for analyzing the information flow of the business process (incoming / outgoing documents).

The freedom of EPC notation makes it possible to describe additional objects within the framework of business process modeling, such as operational risks, control procedures, displays, information systems, indicators and much more.

In the framework of the EPC notation, the process is modeled "top-down", and the order of execution of steps / functions / actions / operations of a business process is determined through a system of events and logical conditions. The beginning and end of the process steps, as well as external events that require a response from the organization, are considered as events in EPC notation.

The business process model consists of “event-function-event” sequences and logical operators “AND”, “OR”, “exclusive OR” that represent decisions, check conditions, parallelization and convergence of flows of a modeled business process.

There are many options for EPC notation, in the format of columns, rows, as well as with different lists of objects used, however, all these options are available only in the ARIS toolkit, while in other tools, for example, MS Visio or Business Studio, modeling of EPC business processes is only available in the classic format.

Modeling a business process in EPC notation allows you to subsequently obtain a text or tabular regulation of business processes, since a correctly drawn EPC model can be converted into a sequence of sentences in a regular language, which becomes the basis for the regulation. That is why this notation is considered the most convenient for modeling business processes for the purpose of subsequent analysis and regulation.

Modeling business— processes- BPMN (Business Process Model and Notation 2.0)

BPMN notation was created by the Object Management Group (OMG) consortium and is designed to model business processes for the purpose of their subsequent automation. BPMN notation is used for detailed modeling of a business process, and the number of objects in this notation exceeds 100, which makes it possible to describe all the nuances of the behavior of business processes so that the information system can transform the created model into executable code.

The openness of BPMN notation and support by most tools for modeling and automating business processes have made this notation a leader in modeling business processes.

In BPMN notation, in addition to business process steps, you can model the start, intermediate and end events of the process, information flows, and message flows. One of the notation features is the use of the default Swim Lane modeling style, when the performer is shown with a vertical or horizontal strip, reminiscent of swimming pool lanes, and it is on this lane that the actions / operations performed by this performer are located.

The streamlining of the business process in the Swim Lane format makes the transfer of responsibility and work flow between the participants in the process visual, but at the same time makes it difficult to model in the case of several collaborators in one operation.

Models drawn in BPMN notation are often difficult to assemble into a coherent hierarchy, since the methodology was originally created to automate end-to-end business processes.

Some experience is required to apply BPMN notation, which often limits the number of data modelers to only system and business analysts. Representatives of business units rarely model business processes in BPMN notation.

Despite the graphical differences, BPMN and EPC notations are very similar to each other, and in the ARIS toolkit they can already be converted into each other, albeit with certain methodological limitations.

Business Process Modeling - Flow Charting

The name of the Flow Charting notation is easiest to translate as flowcharts. This notation originally appeared in the ANSI standard in 1970, and contains a very simple character set.

Over the years of existence of the Flow Charting notation, many variants of flow charts have been drawn, containing symbols for solving various problems, for example, for describing material flows, roles and works, equipment, for analyzing the inputs and outputs of functions.

In fact, block diagrams were the forerunners of modern business process modeling notations, and up until now have been taught in most educational institutions within the disciplines of information technology.

Flow Charting notation does not have a rigid standard, which allows you to model business processes from different points of view, adding certain objects to the model as needed. In this way, this notation is very similar to EPC, but it has even more freedom in terms of application. The freedom to use Flow Charting and the support of most inexpensive and even free business process modeling tools have made this notation applicable in many companies.

One of the disadvantages of Flow Charting is the lack of a standard list of objects and attributes, which is the reverse side of the "freedom" of this notation. This allows you to model the same business process in a given notation so that the models will be significantly different from each other.

Despite the fact that business process models in the Flow Charting notation can be found quite often, it will most likely become a thing of the past, giving way to more "strict notations"

Modeling business— processes- IDEF (Integrated Definition Language)

IDEF notation emerged in the 1970s as a US government standard that focuses on the inputs, outputs, mechanisms, and controls of a business process and links organizational processes in a hierarchy. The key element of this notation is function, while all other objects and interactions are modeled using links.

The notation uses a very simple set of symbols: process rectangles and arrows representing inputs, outputs, controls and mechanisms, this notation features a "built-in" numbering system for business process steps, which allows you to keep track of the relationships between parent and child processes.

Given the history of this standard and its fairly widespread use, it is implemented in many modeling tools, but nevertheless, this notation can be attributed to the outgoing generation, since it has fewer supporters, and business representatives often treat these "microcircuits" with skepticism.

UML (Unified Modeling Languages)

The Unified Modeling Language (UML) is a set of notations and modeling techniques designed to describe the requirements for information systems, but among the UML notations there is also a specialized notation designed specifically for modeling business processes. UML is supported by the Object Management Group (OMG), which has made this methodology quite common among IT professionals.

This notation is very similar to EPC and BPMN, the only difference is in the display of logical operators and events, and although there are many books on the UML notation and it is supported by many modeling tools, the UML Activiti Diagram is used mainly for systems analysis and design, and only a minor number of companies use UML to model business processes

VSM (Value Stream Mapping)

The name of the VSM notation can be translated into Russian as mapping the flow of customer value creation. The original name of this notation in the Toyota corporation, where it is believed that it was invented, is the Material and Information Flow Map.

VSM notation was developed as part of the Lean Manufacturing methodology, and uses a set of specific symbols to represent resource and time items to analyze business process efficiency in 6Sigma Lean projects. A value stream map depicts the physical environment and the flow of materials and products in production and is used to link resources and time to a process and thus provide insight into productivity.

The task of this notation is to involve its participants in the analysis of the business process, in order to stimulate them to independent search optimization possibilities. As a rule, VSM models are drawn in projects on Flip Chart and do not require serious tools for modeling business processes, because decisions are made on its basis, and the model itself does not become the basis for either regulations or for an IT solution.

The main thing when creating a model in VSM notation is filling in temporary attributes by process, to find "bottlenecks" and places of excessive storage of stocks.

This notation has a limited circle of followers, and among the broad masses of business analysts, it will not be widespread in the near future due to the specificity of the tasks solved with its help. But at the same time, many tools for modeling business processes, for example, ARIS, have already developed extensions to support modeling of business processes in this notation.

SIPOC

SIPOC stands for Supplier, Input, Process, Output, Customer. This is a template for documenting processes, adopted in the Six Sigma methodology, in fact, it is not even a model notation, but a table format that allows you to describe a business process at the top level. The SIPOC model is most effective when defining business process boundaries, communicating parties, and process I / O.

There is no notation for SIPOC, because it is a simple table with appropriate headers that allows you to structure the selected business process for subsequent analysis and optimization.

The usefulness of SIPOC, in contrast to other diagrams, lies in the possibility of its use by employees of business units, since it does not contain complex logic and many objects, such as EPC or BPMN notation.

Business Process Modeling - Conclusions

So, I looked at some of the business process modeling notations that can be found in the Russian market (they are described in more detail in the BPM CBOK chapter on business process modeling). Which of the notations to choose for use is an open question, for example, for modeling the business processes of an organization at the top level, I use the VAD notation; for the primary modeling of the business process selected for optimization, it is easier to use SIPOC or VAD. To create detailed models of business processes, a simplified BPMN for modeling cross-functional interaction or EPC for detailed modeling in order to formalize the information flow and a set of objects associated with a business process. Well, if you need to automate a business process in a BPMS system, then you can't do without BPMN notation.

The material was prepared by the specialists of the company "Abis Soft"

How to make a choice

Before you start choosing a software product, you need to answer three basic questions:

1. What needs to be described?

2. To what extent do you need to describe?

3. How will performance be monitored?

When answering the first question, you should determine which areas of the control system you are going to describe, whether a comprehensive description of the entire system is necessary.

The answer to the second question should give an idea of whether the management system will be described for a particular business, department, or for the entire organization as a whole.

The third question will determine the restrictions that can be imposed on a software product so that its integration with the executive system can be carried out in the future.

Having answers to these questions, you can significantly narrow down the range of possible software products.

Possibility of multi-user work,
Methods for presenting results,
Interface and ergonomics,
Availability of documentation and technical support,
Hardware and software requirements,
Price.

Without pretending to be the ultimate truth, the authors of the review offer some options for evaluating the reviewed products.

1. If the company has already developed a strategy and it needs to be controlled, then of the foreign products discussed in the article, the solution is best suited for this Hyperion Performance Scorecard presented by Oracle.

2. If the main focus is on the business processes in the company, then the company's product is optimal. IBM - IBM WebSphere Business Modeler.

(It is necessary to clarify that the choice software manufacturers such as IBM, Oracle, SAP, determined by the choice ERP-systems of the respective manufacturer. Their business modeling software is subsystems of complex products.)

3. Of Russian products, it is most advisable to use INTALEV: Corporate navigator if you want to make a description of the entire company (holding) as a whole, and not just a single business unit (division or branch).

Information was obtained from representatives of manufacturers in the Russian Federation or from the official websites of manufacturers.

ARIS Business Performance Edition.

Implemented by means of the system IBM Rational ClearCase

Obtaining a holistic picture of the life of the organization, agreeing different points of view on a constantly developing and changing business.
Ensuring mutual understanding at all levels of the organization, bridging the gap between the managing and performing parties.
Ensuring the reduction of production costs and an increase in the level of quality and service.

In the process of business modeling, there is a transition from the concept of "what" should be done to the concept of "how" should be done. The result of the simulation should be a document that gives the development team a clear understanding of the project boundaries, as well as the client's software and hardware. The data obtained is reflected in the project specification, which may include the following sections:

a description of the main entities of the application data;
a formal description of the application specification;
business logic and business rules;
functional requirements;
non-functional requirements;
application form / page templates;
a vote or a list of abbreviations;
auxiliary diagrams.

Business modeling tools and their evolution

To create business models, information systems design tools and corresponding description languages are used (the most famous among them is UML - Unified Modeling Language). With the help of such languages, graphical models and diagrams are built that demonstrate the structure of the organization's business processes, the organization of interaction between people and the necessary changes to improve the performance of the organization as a whole. Business modeling tools are constantly evolving. Initially, with the help of such tools, it was possible to describe only the business functions (work) of the company and the movement of data in the process of their execution. Moreover, if the same business function was used when executing different types work, it was difficult to know if it was the same business function or a different one. The inability to explicitly define the hierarchy of business processes (for example, “value chain”, “business process”, “sub-process”, “work”, “function”) created problems when using such descriptions. The descriptions themselves were just a collection of pictures. Later, tools began to appear that allow you to describe the organization not only from the side of business functions, but also from other sides. So, it became possible to create separate diagrams that reflect organizational structure companies, data flows in an organization, the sequence of execution of business functions that make up a single business process, with the ability to use logic symbols, etc. Due to the continuously increasing requirements for business modeling tools, more and more diagrams have begun to appear to describe various aspects of activities organizations, which made the creation of the model more and more difficult. In this regard, the next important stage in the development of business modeling tools is associated with the idea of using a single repository (storage) of objects and the idea of a possible reuse of objects in different diagrams. Whichever tool is chosen, it is required to ensure the interaction of local information systems with each other. Today, the most modern and at the same time generally accepted standard for organizing business process management is BPEL (Business Process Execution Language). On the basis of this product, you can create a single integration platform for all applications used. After modeling the processes, one of the modeling tools uses special translators to bring the model to BPEL.

Examples of business modeling and its results

Reducing costs. The business model will provide insight into where unnecessary costs can be avoided and how to optimize the use of resources. Based on the business model, a functional cost analysis is carried out to calculate the cost of a product or service, and a budget management system is built that allows you to control the costs of an enterprise.
Increased efficiency. The ability to reduce the cost of adaptation and staff training. Regulatory documentation based on the prepared business model corresponds to the current state of affairs of the organization, distributes responsibilities, build a hierarchical system of career growth.
Expansion of the sphere of influence, expansion of the network, organization of branches. The presence of a business model will reduce costs and make it possible to describe the structure of the arrangement of new branches of the enterprise.
Adequacy of investment. With the help of business modeling, it is possible with a sufficient degree of accuracy to determine the amount of capital investment, reduce risks and financial losses at the start-up stage of a new project.
Implementation of the EDMS. The business model of the enterprise standardizes the composition of the documents of the enterprise and establishes the routes for the movement of documents.
Automation and implementation of ERP, SCM, CRM or other software. Based on the business model, it is possible to formulate higher quality requirements for the system and select a solution that is optimal in terms of cost and functionality.
Quality management system certification. Development of business models the enterprise allows you to significantly reduce the time and costs for the development, implementation and certification of the quality management system and obtain a set of necessary documents for successful certification, reduce the cost of maintaining the quality management system.

Features of business modeling

Creation, implementation and support of a business model is an expensive investment project. And like any project, the creation of a business model should be preceded by an analysis of the feasibility and feasibility of its implementation. Large projects require powerful business modeling tools with well-developed functionality: with the ability to store information in a single repository, teamwork on a modeling project and check the created model for integrity, semi-automatic generation of diagrams, integration with other software, analysis and documentation of the model - while on small projects, for cost reasons, it would be wiser to use less powerful tools. For the analysis of the activity, the development of the existing structure, an adequate business model should first be built. That is, initially a theory, and only after - its implementation.

Solutions

Today there are a large number of software products that are designed to describe the architecture of an organization. According to the reports of the analytical company Gartner, the following companies can be attributed to the leaders of this segment.

Roman Isaev

Organizational Development and Process Management Expert

Partner of the Group of Companies "Modern Management Technologies"

Head of organizational and corporate development projects

Professional Business Coach and Business Studio Specialist

The article is devoted to tasks and projects in the field of business modeling, business engineering and organizational and corporate development. It systematizes information that should help a deeper understanding of the meaning and characteristics of business modeling in organizations, and also shows the role of business modeling in obtaining additional competitive advantages. Various examples, interviews, links to methodologies and practical solutions are provided.

Business modeling is the process of developing and implementing various business models of an organization (strategy, business processes, organizational structure, quality, etc.) in order to formalize and optimize its activities. The definition of what a business model is immediately suggests itself.

Business model Is a formalized description (for example, graphical) of a specific aspect or area of activity of an organization.

There are 4 main ways to develop business models. Let's list them in descending order of the level of efficiency of building and using business models.

In the notation (rules) of a specialized business modeling software product: a combination of graphics, tables and text. For more details see Chapter 8;
Graphic: tree, block diagram, routing etc. ;
Tabular;
Text.

Many organizations are engaged in business modeling, but each is at different stages of development in this area. Someone has already developed and is actively using a complex business model (a set of models, documents and systems that describe all the activities of an organization). Someone has only graphical models and regulations of several business processes.

The main types of business models that are developed in organizations:

tree (hierarchical list) of business processes - see Fig. 1;
graphic models of business processes;
organizational structure model - see Fig. 2;
models of goals and indicators (strategic maps BSC / KPI);
document library models (document tree), information systems models (system architecture) - see Fig. 3;
product and service models - see Fig. 4;
quality management models and much more.

All these models enable the development of professional business modeling software (BMSP).

For more than 10 years, the author has been using in projects and in his own developments most of the solutions known on the FPBM market: Business Studio, ARIS, AllFusion Process Modeler(BPWIN), Business Engineer, Microsoft Visio. Each of them has its own functional features, limitations and advantages. You can learn more about the methodology for comparing software products developed by the author in the book Chapter 8.

Rice. 1. Tree of business processes of the bank (top level)

Rice. 2. Model of the organizational structure of the bank (top level)

Rice. 3. Model of the bank's document library (fragment)

Rice. 4. Model of products and services of the bank (top level)

A "gentleman's set" of business analyst knowledge and tools

Let's list a set of basic knowledge and tools that, according to the author, should be mastered by a modern business analyst, a specialist in business modeling. This list can also be useful for young professionals to analyze their strengths and opportunities for development.

Business modeling software: Business Studio, ARIS, AllFusion Process Modeler (BPWIN), Business Engineer, Microsoft Visio;
Business modeling notations and descriptions of business processes: IDEF0, IDEF3, Data Flow Diagram (DFD), extended Event Driven Process Chain (eEPC), Value Added chain Diagram (VAD), Cross Functional Flowchart, etc. modeling has its own set of notations, and they are described in detail in the User's Guide to the software product;
Business engineering / management techniques and methods:
- Development and implementation of a balanced scorecard BSC / KPI;
- Description of business processes;
- Analysis, optimization, improvement of the quality of business processes;
- Business process management on a long-term basis;
- Functional value analysis (FSA) and simulation;
- Description and optimization of the organizational structure, number of personnel;
- Creation of personnel motivation systems;
- Construction and organization of the functioning of the quality management system (ISO 9000);
- Project management (including PMBOK - Project management body of knowledge);
- Building a comprehensive business model for the organization;
- Benchmarking;
- Lean, 6 Sigma;
- TQM (Total Quality Management);
- Various industry methodologies and standards developed by consulting companies. A complete list and a detailed description of all methods applicable to the banking industry are presented in.
Typical solutions, examples, developments and materials. In order not to develop most of the materials from scratch and not to make mistakes that other specialists have already gone through, a set of standard solutions, models, documents, etc. is required. For example, an electronic database (reference book) "Comprehensive typical business model of a commercial bank".

Thus, the following scheme can be formed (see Fig. 5):

Methodology + Typical solutions + Software product = Result

Rice. 5. "Gentleman's" set of business analyst knowledge and tools

Here Techniques and Techniques show you HOW to complete projects and tasks.

Typical solutions and materials demonstrate WHAT should be the result (result).

With the help of PCBM, the execution of all tasks and projects is automated. This reduces the time several times and increases the efficiency of work. For example, the Business Studio system allows, at the click of a button, to automatically generate regulatory documentation based on the developed models of business processes, providing significant savings in financial and labor resources.

Business Modeling: Features of Practical Application

The main feature of business modeling is that it should be based on business processes. It is the business process management system (SMS) that is the foundation on which a large number of other management systems and technologies are built.

In many organizations, various approaches, methods and technologies of management, improvement and optimization have been actively implemented and continue to be implemented.

Practice shows that in some cases these techniques are successful at the initial stage of implementation, but then gradually lose their effectiveness and are forgotten.

The failure of attempts to improve the organization's performance using these approaches / techniques is often due to the unsystematic and fragmented actions that do not involve in-depth analysis and fundamental changes in the organization's work.

The main way to overcome this problem is to implement a process approach to management in an organization (i.e., build a business process management system) as a basis for the implementation of other techniques, management / improvement and optimization technologies.

Complex business modeling techniques that cannot be reduced to simple and straightforward actions usually do not work in organizations. Indeed, in the end, the implementation of these techniques and the results of their application fall on the personnel and line managers of the organization, who do not always possess specialized competencies in the field of modern management and business engineering techniques, and sometimes meet them with hostility.

In order for the methodology (technology) implemented in the organization and the project as a whole to be successful and bring the planned results, it is desirable that they be:

Inexpensive. This is especially true for medium and small organizations that cannot afford to implement expensive solutions;
Simple and understandable for ordinary employees of the organization;
Practically directed, to have fairly “quick”, and at the same time, long-term results;
We took into account the specifics of the management of Russian companies;
Contained examples and typical solutions.

It is also appropriate here to cite 8 main principles of quality management, which apply to all tasks of business modeling and allow you to ensure their implementation.

Consumer orientation;
Leadership of the head;
Involvement of employees;
Process approach;
Systematic approach to management;
Continuous improvement;
Fact-based decision making;
Mutually beneficial supplier relationships.

Indeed, non-compliance with even 1 or 2 principles can have a negative impact on the development of an organization.

The value of business modeling

When starting to develop business models, organizations highlight certain human and material resources for the implementation of the project. In this case, the improvements as a result of the work done should exceed these costs. How does the business model ultimately help the organization to function? There are several of the most noticeable and well-known positive effects that are manifested in a competent and systematic description of business processes.

Increasing the transparency, manageability and controllability of the organization's activities at all levels;
Reducing lead times and costs, improving the quality and efficiency of business processes;
The ability to replicate the business of an organization (create additional client departments, offices, representative offices);
Comprehensive and sustainable development of the organization, systems approach to decision making;
Reducing dependence on personnel, correct selection of employees, increasing the efficiency of personnel and managers;
Increasing customer loyalty and satisfaction, and, as a result, the reputation of the organization;
Financial results.

However, there are other aspects that are not well known to a wide range of business leaders and owners.

Business modeling and related technologies / solutions have a significant impact on the organization's ratings, which are assigned by rating agencies, including international ones (Fitch, Moody’s, S&P, etc.).

As a result of the analysis of the methods of assigning ratings of various international and Russian agencies (including), as well as following the results of interviews with representatives of the agencies, the author was able to find out that many agencies, when calculating the ratings of organizations, take into account a group of factors called "Corporate governance / management" (non-financial assessments ). This parameter includes the following factors:

Adequate and detailed strategy of the organization;
Developed risk management system (including an operational risk management system);
The level of regulation (formalization) of business processes;
The quality of business processes (history of KPI indicators);
The level of automation of business processes, the state of information systems and technologies (IT);
Organizational structure (formalization, efficiency, transparency, distribution of responsibility and authority);
Evolution and functioning of various management systems in an organization (quality management system, work system and customer relationship, personnel management system, etc.).

Detailed terms and conditions and estimates depend on the specific agency.

The rating assignment algorithm is quite simple and straightforward. Rating agency auditors study and assess the organization's activities in accordance with the rules and criteria laid down in the rating assignment methodology. The following are used as input information:

Regulatory and reporting documents of the organization;
Observation of the activities of the organization and interviews.

Therefore, it is important not only to develop a large number of correct and relevant documents, but also to bring them to the attention of employees, to ensure the effective execution of business processes and the functioning of management systems in practice.

The scores for all criteria are summed up according to certain rules and, based on the total score, the rating of the organization is determined. Each group of criteria can have a different weight, therefore large sum points on a group of criteria with a low weight will not have a very large contribution to the final grade.

Legend for the assigned ratings (rating scale) may be different depending on the rating agency and the type of rating itself (credit rating, reliability rating, management quality rating, financial strength rating, etc.). For example: the highest level of reliability, a satisfactory level of reliability, a low level of reliability, etc.

Participation in tenders and accreditations;
Improving the image (authority) of the organization in the market, among partners and contractors;
Improving the image (authority) of the organization among government bodies;
The expansion of the customer base;
Attracting investors;
As a consequence of all of the above points, there is an improvement in financial performance.

Thus, for public companies interested in increasing international or national ratings, when assessing the effectiveness of a project for building a comprehensive business model, it is advisable to take into account additional opportunities to improve rating positions. Note that an adequate study of all of the above factors affecting the rating of an organization certainly requires the use of professional software products for business modeling (BMSP).

Additional opportunities in this direction are provided by the use of typical successful industry solutions. As an actual example, we can cite the "Comprehensive typical business model of a commercial bank", developed in the Business Studio software product. Summarizing the best practices of process management in credit institutions, this model serves as a model on the basis of which companies in the financial sector can improve corporate governance for all of the above parameters.

Business modeling practice in financial and credit institutions

The decision to create a business model for an organization can be made in different ways, depending on the specifics of the management of certain companies. Sometimes this is the sole decision of the top manager; it is also possible that the owners of the company realize the need for business modeling. In the practice of working with banking organizations, the author had to come across such examples.

"All activities of the bank at the click of one button on the computer"

At one of the meetings, the Chairman of the Board of Bank A ordered: “It is necessary that all the activities of the bank be formalized, so that by pressing a button on the computer, I can see the work of any employee and any business process of the bank: its goals, indicators, processes, technologies , results, etc. ".

To solve this problem, an electronic business model of the bank was developed. There is a web browser window on the desktop of the Chairman of the Board. The links located in it allow you to track all activities: a manager can open any document, a diagram of a business process, find out who are responsible for business processes and procedures, statistics on indicators of business processes and actual values, a list of those implemented in currently in the bank of projects and their status, the organizational structure of any unit and much more.

The Chairman of the Board was very pleased with the work done. It should be noted that the work was completed in a short time: 1.5 years passed from the moment of setting the problem to the receipt of the final results. High speed The project was successfully implemented thanks to the use of a standard solution as a methodological basis - the "Comprehensive typical business model of a commercial bank", which is a system of interrelated models, documents and reference books describing most of the areas of activity and management systems of a universal commercial bank.

By the way, by the time the project was completed, the Chairman of the Board had already become a shareholder of the bank. The resulting Integrated Business Model of the bank provided a systematic approach to bank management, which allows quick decision making and any changes in the bank's work, increases the efficiency and quality of both individual business processes and divisions, and the bank as a whole.

"Systematic approach to bank development"

Bank B shareholders set the task of developing a comprehensive and long-term development strategy for the bank based on modern technologies management. After conducting research and taking part in several business trainings, the bank's organizational and corporate development specialists proposed the following solution to the shareholders.

Since the corporate strategy of the bank has already been determined, one can start with the development of a system for managing the bank's business processes, since it is business processes that are the essence of the entire work of the bank, and the satisfaction of customers and the bank's profit depend on the results of business processes.

We will describe all key business processes, create process teams and train them, ensure effective interaction of all participants in business processes so that business processes are executed faster;
We will improve (optimize) the processes where it is required, then we organize the management of business processes on an ongoing basis. Within each business process, we organize strategic planning so that each business process has a strategy based on current market trends, customer requirements and the bank's strategy, as well as goals and indicators;
When business processes and their management become transparent and streamlined, we will move on to the next task - building a bank's quality management system (according to ISO standards 9000) based on a process control system. That is, the QMS will be a superstructure for the process control system. This will allow the bank to obtain an ISO 9001 certificate of conformity and improve its image, both among clients and among partners. Also, thanks to the QMS and ISO 9000 standards, we will significantly reduce the number of Clients' claims against the bank and the costs of low-quality products and services, minimize operational risks, supplement the bank's activities with new requirements and management methods;
In parallel with this, we will begin to automate business processes. We will update and transfer to a qualitatively new level of the system electronic document management and operational management (DocFlow / WorkFlow), customer interaction (CRM), etc. We will create a single project office that will oversee all projects on organizational and corporate development of the bank, qualitatively improve the bank's personnel management so that this activity is a system.

As a result, we will get an integrated management system of the bank - a modern effective instrument for managing an organization for shareholders and top managers of the bank.

Conclusion

In modern conditions, in a number of markets, a situation arises more and more often when the importance of price competition decreases, and low price goods or services is no longer a key way to attract and retain Customers.

For example, in the financial sector, more and more Clients are paying attention to the quality and manufacturability of the products / services of the credit institution, the convenience of interacting with the bank to resolve all issues and problems, and the ability to quickly meet the new needs and requests of Clients by the organization. Of no small importance are such important parameters as the reliability and stability of the bank, one of the indicators of which is its rather high rating in domestic and / or international agencies.

Therefore, there is every reason to assume that the need for business modeling, implementation of business engineering technologies and organizational development will only grow.