Circle of Life
With an irregular bpm, the input and output flow becomes unsteady, and over time essential organs wither to ineffectiveness. Departmental communication, efficiency, and processes will eventually clog and fail. Indeed, the clue is in the word: organization.
But how do we ensure organizations stay fit and healthy? Is being 'agile' enough? Is flexibility enough? Is it enough to align oneself and keep your backend and frontend trim? These are the ‘bodily’ functions keeping many a C-level executive, CEO, and CIO awake at night.
This is survival of the fittest. This is the manufacturing circle of life. And you need to stay strong to raise the manufacturing bpm for today’s ever-changing demands.
Indeed, manufacturing entities need a process management system that stabilizes today’s infrastructure and production, while casting an eagle eye on a company's health. This can relieve bottlenecks in operations, sales, and orders because you’re proactively on the front foot.
... And this is where Business Process Management (BPM) raises its force field.
Think of it this way: BPM is like first aid. It aligns business strategies with innovative business models and end-to-end service processes, for better internal health. In fact, Business Process Management is the shot of adrenaline needed to save manufacturing entities from flatlining.
Raise the Manufacturing bpm With BPM
It has been an implosive two decades for the global manufacturing sector with super-developing economies leapfrogging into the first tier of manufacturing nations, a severe recession choking demand, manufacturing employment falling in advanced economies, and the current threat of trade wars in steel and aluminum.
Within this ferocious food chain of competitors, suppliers, and customers, it is of paramount importance for organizations to adapt rapidly and navigate industry fluxes. It is critical to have a strong process management system that discovers, analyzes, and designs processes. This business awareness stabilizes infrastructure and production while keeping an eye on the horizon.
Business Process Management is a means to an end. It is a tool to understand, engineer, and analyze processes. Unlike other process systems, BPM is particularly well equipped to offer an overview of large and complex processes within manufacturing because it empowers better efficiency, effectiveness, performance, and productivity through automation, workflows, and synchronization.
A strong process system empowers industry manufacturers of all sizes and types to discover, analyze, collaborate, and design processes vital to its three parameters: workforce, assets, and materials. In turn, this leads to reduced turnaround for build-to-order processes, better end-to-end visibility into mission-critical processes, reduced latencies in production processes, and strengthened relationships with customers and partners.
The handling of these parameters is critical to the success of any business. A lack of synchronization will lead to a reduction in asset utilization, profits, and productivity. Thus, a solution that builds a continuous reinforcement loop between the workforce, assets, and materials is the basic building block of any successful manufacturing entity.
Business Process Management empowers manufacturers in key ways, including:
- Creating process institutions that capture the knowledge of a retiring/aging workforce
- Rapidly solving problems, isolating causes, and driving solutions
- Understanding new business cases
- Improving visibility across an organization, which in turn helps improve operations, detect variations, and monitor processes
The Industry 4.0 Earthquake
As digital change continues to rumble within the manufacturing ecosystem, a new trend of automation and data exchange promises even stronger aftershocks. Known as the “Smart Factory,” the revolution that is Industry 4.0 is shaking the manufacturing technology landscape anew. It includes the internet of things (IoT), cloud computing, cyber-physical systems, and cognitive computing.
As a broad concept, Industry 4.0 (also referred to as the “Fourth Industrial Revolution”) is blurring the gap between physical and digital technologies to create dynamic enterprises that are both interconnected and capable of more informed decision-making.
The high-tech strategy originated in Germany, and some Industry 4.0 concepts include machinery which can predict failures and trigger maintenance processes autonomously, and self-organized logistics which react to unexpected changes in production.
It is the responsibility of business leaders to safeguard long-term success, and looking outside of the box now, means looking in on new opportunities in the future. Embracing Industry 4.0 initiatives opens the lid on success and means the limited boundaries of individual factories will most likely disappear. Instead, they will evolve into multiple interconnected factories or even clustered geographical regions.
If the vision of Industry 4.0 and new sector standards are to be realized, enterprise processes and models must become more digitized and agile through process management systems. A critical element will be the evolution of traditional supply chains toward a connected, smart, and highly efficient supply chain ecosystem.
Indeed, the vision of connecting Industry 4.0 with process management systems edges towards the creation of Industry 5.0.
Touch the Future...
Industry 4.0 technologies can make existing production and operations more efficient and cost-effective. But this, in turn, requires innovative business management models that will not only drive direct and indirect stakeholder value but better protect a company from disruption.
It is therefore imperative for manufacturing entities to adapt and to keep track of their operational models. If not, they risk losing their edge on multiple levels, including market competition and customer relations.
However, for many companies, business transformation and newer concepts like Next Practice, which puts innovation at the heart of success, can be difficult to implement. This is because it is hard to identify areas for improvement, to analyze the scope of change and its impact on an organization, and anticipate possible future outcomes.
Signavio: Raising the Manufacturing bpm
From the get-go in 2009, Signavio has been committed to embracing innovation and enabling your business to find success with the IT devices and working practices of today, while keeping the future of your organization in mind.
Signavio drives the manufacturing sector by stabilizing organizations, empowering adaptability, and improving strategies, efficiency, and output. To find out more, check out Signavio’s introductory information flyer, Business Process Management: From Process to Success.
You can also learn how process management secures your Industry 4.0 future and launches organizations towards next-level connectivity and success, by downloading the white paper about the benefits of Business Process Management in manufacturing.
Fueled by Signavio
Discover how Signavio can further rocket launch your organization to Industry 4.0 excellence with SAP Signavio Process Transformation Suite. Try it for yourself by registering now for a free 30-day trial.