Custom automation is needed to properly automate complex workflows and unique information system stacks
Have you ever considered the uniqueness of business information system (IS) stacks and the complexity of operational workflows? Just like fingerprints and snowflakes, no two are the same!
If you said “they’re unique!” for information stacks, maybe you’ve encountered a few instances of key, irreplaceable proprietary or legacy software. They are out there, sitting in the way of modernization.
If you said “fractal complexity!” for complex workflows, well, that’s not necessarily too far off. Simple workflows can be managed with simple, off-the-shelf solutions, but complex workflows that extend across departments, across physical locations, and into unique IS through integration can be complex almost all the way down.
In this article, we dive into how custom automation can simplify your life if you’re facing unique IS stacks or complex operational workflows in your company or organization.
The evolving landscape of Information System stacks
In the modern business world, software drives every organization. Business information systems include the software, hardware, data storage, and networks that the organization needs for efficient operations. These IS stacks support both internal and external processes, and with the world in continuous and rapid change, internal and external requirements and preferences are always evolving.
To remain competitive and continue to function at the performance levels that match their customers’ expectations, successful organizations embrace innovation.
While IS requirements in different business sectors may be quite different from one another - insurance vs aerospace, for example - the challenges that organizations in very different sectors may be more similar than they appear.
Here's where automation, particularly through Business Process Management (BPM) technology, can shine.
Open-source BPM-based automation platforms provide efficient means to integrate any IS technology into the business processes that need it. Connectors based on APIs and other technology “keys” permit two-way communication with these systems at just the right point where they are needed in the process. Information can be pulled or entered into databases, information pushed out to or pulled in from multiple communication channels, even hardware as diverse as machine tools or temperature control can be activated or put into sleep mode…all depending on what any specific process needs.
As an organization pushes forward with innovation and modernization, any new or updated IS element can be added while obsolete systems can be removed. Here’s where we mention that modernizing legacy systems gets a boost from BPM automation - by integrating legacy as is, the team both keeps it working as needed and buys time to develop its replacement.
End-to-end automation with BPM or orchestration across multiple services can smoothly tie together any IS stack in just the ways its elements are needed in the company’s workflows.
So what about those workflows? Unique like snowflakes?
Understanding complex workflows
In today's competitive and sensitive business operations, complexity is the norm.
Here are a few examples we can share from experience. A business operations workflow that touches multiple departments that may have different management structures may require differing approval, escalation, and governance rules for various parts of the process. This type of workflow might be broken down into several individual workflows that interconnect at different points:
- A manufacturing or assembly process may have several parallel processes that connect at various points along the flow, or processes that diverge.
- All kinds of customer-facing processes demand smooth backoffice operations that may consist of multiple individual processes tended to by different departments, employee groups, and information systems. All of that backoffice flow should be invisible to the external user, while still informing them of the progress of their interactions.
- Employee-facing processes are often intertwined with those customer or external user processes - they are the ones making the operations work, after all - and there may be external suppliers, partners, agents, or other players who also have a role in the overall operation.
Simplifying and optimizing these complex workflows may be just what a business needs to obtain a competitive advantage. Or they may find an innovation that improves the output of the workflow, be it a better customer experience, a better product, or less waste.
Again, end-to-end automation with BPM can effectively pull together any number of workflows along with the information systems they require in just the ways that make them work smoothly. Combined with process mining and other techniques to peek into what is happening as this processes run offers business a way to anticipate and avoid bottlenecks, breaks, and inefficiencies. Continuous improvement is cousin to constant innovation.
Custom process automation: the solution
Every IS stack and operational process is unique, just like fingerprints and snowflakes. The solution lies in custom automation. Building automation applications with a process automation platform means endless customization possibilities. BPM-based process automation allows flexibility, adaptability, and even scalability for the custom applications to manage complex workflows and diverse information systems stacks.
Implementation strategies
Your IT and business teams can work together with the visual, graphic-based design studio of a process automation platform like Bonita to design workflows. They can start with existing processes or ideal scenarios and ask: "Can we automate this for improvement? How and with what tool?” Aids such as RPA or generative AI can be integrated into an open-source platform with the design tools your IT very likely already has. The advantage of open-source that can be extended with commonly used application development tools, is that your team doesn’t have to learn a whole new proprietary system!
End-to-end automation with BPM
The IT team can design, organize, and customize even the most complex workflows and integrate even your unique IS into a set of processes that your system admins and business processes owners can manage and maintain over the long run. Update and adjust them as needed without having to start from scratch. Automating complex processes is a smart way to bring better operational efficiency, improved customer and employee experiences, competitive advantage - and peace of mind for longer than a minute!
Custom automation, enabled by BPM platforms, is the key to transforming your organization's unique IS stacks and complex workflows. It provides the scalability, efficiency, and integration capabilities necessary to optimize processes and stay competitive in a rapidly evolving business landscape.
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In-house development can offer businesses significant advantages concerning flexibility, customization, control, and security. At Bonitasoft, we are experts in automation and can provide you with tailored solutions to meet your specific business needs. We’ve built our BPM-based business process automation platform to accelerate business process application delivery for efficiency, continuous improvement, and innovation. Bonita’s flexibility and platform extensibility equips professional developers and DevOps teams with powerful tools to develop highly customized, fully integrated business applications faster.
Here are 3 ways to learn more:
- Build highly personalized, process-based applications today, for free, with our open source Bonita Community Edition.
- See how you can reinvent your business processes with BPM. Watch our on- demand Bonita Platform demo.
- Interested in full project lifecycle support and services from development to operations? Try unlocking the power of Bonita Enterprise Edition. Contact us today or explore our solutions to learn more about unlocking the full potential of process automation.
Bonitasoft knows its business. This article was not created with the use of artificial language technology.
