Joachim Van den Bergh

A global investigation of key turning points in business process maturity

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to report on the results of research into the precedence of the maturity factors, or key turning points in business process maturity (BPM) implementation efforts. A key turning point is a component of BPM that stabilizes within an organization and leads to the next maturity level.Design/methodology/approach – Several years of data from over 1,000 companies in the USA, Europe, China, and Brazil that have completed a BPM assessment are analyzed to identify which components of BPM stabilize, when and in what order. Different analysis methods are employed in order to identify global commonalities and differences.Findings – The paper identifies key turning points from several different perspectives using several different approaches and develops some conclusions common to all methods used in this research.Research limitations/implications – The relationship between the components (dependencies) is only suggested but not statistically analyzed. Several data sets are also o...

The process-oriented organisation: a holistic view developing a framework for business process orientation maturity

Processes are the core of organisations. Business ProcessManagement (BPM) argues organisations can gain competitive advantage byimproving and innovating their processes through a holistic process-oriented view. An organisation can be more or less process-oriented depending on theirexperience in applying process thinking for better results. The aim of this paperis to define a framework for identifying characteristics of Business ProcessOrientation and to provide a valid tool for measuring the degree of BusinessProcess Orientation (BPO) of an organisation based on empirical research in 30international organisations. A holistic view on integrated process managementand change is taken as a starting point.

Practices of knowledge intensive process management: quantitative insights

Purpose – In contemporary businesses, the importance of knowledge workers and the knowledge intensive business processes (KIBPs) is ever increasing, yet they seem very hard to control and manage. The purpose of this paper is to grasp the specific characteristics of KIBPs and how they differ from non‐knowledge intensive business processes (non‐KIBP), also to question how organizations are using business process management (BPM) to manage and improve KIBPs. The differences in maturity and effectiveness of both types of processes are also evaluated.Design/methodology/approach – Data for this research were collected through an online survey. The survey was designed based on a previously conducted exploratory study with semi‐structured interviews as well as the literature. The target group was BPM practitioners and the final sample included 98 respondents. Due to non‐normality, the analyses were conducted with non‐parametric tests. The research questions were analysed using Mann‐Whitney U test and Spearmans c...

Promises from SOA

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to support the application of a combined BPM (business process management)/SOA (service‐oriented architecture) approach and contribute to the body of knowledge on the business value of SOA.Design/methodology/approach – This case study highlights the promising results of a process reengineering project at Belgacom Mobile, Belgiums largest mobile telecommunications operator. The reengineering effort centered around a key automation pillar involving in particular the optimization of the SIM card ordering process. SOA principles were applied to ensure both the flexibility of the redesigned process and its capability of dealing with newly emerging SIM card types. This case demonstrates the potential benefits of combining BPM and SOA concepts to establish IT‐enabled process innovation.Findings – In terms of performance improvement, the studied project resulted in: increased process flexibility and consistency, considerably shorter lead times, and enhanced process control....

Knowledge Intensive Business Processes: An Exploratory Study

In todays business world, the role of knowledge and knowledge intensive business processes (KIBPs) is ever increasing. Subsequently the capability of Business Process Management (BPM) in managing KIBPs is being questioned. Academics and practitioners alike suggest that BPM needs to evolve into a more flexible discipline that is capable of dealing with KIBPs. As a first step towards this goal, it is important to understand KIBPs better and the way they differ from non-KIBPs. Based on 20 in-depth interviews with process owners from 10 different organizations, this exploratory work provides insight into the identification of KIBPs and how they differ from non-KIBPs in terms of characteristics. The results confirm most of the suggestions in theory, yet challenges some of the existing categorizations such as the continuum of structured to unstructured processes. Furthermore, a range of information sources used to manage both types of processes are identified, suggesting new areas for research.

Ethical Decision Making in ICT: Discussing the Impact of an Ethical Code of Conduct

In December 2007 and January 2008 a survey on ethical aspects of ICT was executed. The aim was to assess the ethical behaviour of ICT-professionals in Belgium and thus opening a discussion on the need for an ethical code of conduct in the ICT-management domain. Respondents were asked to give their opinion on the ethical impact of nine ICT related cases. The target group involved in the survey consisted of ICT-professionals and managers involved in ICT-related decision making. This paper presents and discusses the results of the survey. So far few studies have been dealing with the topic of the impact of codes of conduct and ethics in the domain of ICT. Statistical evidence of the impact of an ethical code of conduct in ICT on decision making in potentially hazardous situations is presented in this work. In some cases, respondents with a code of conduct in their organisation tend to be more critical towards potentially unethical behaviour.

Open data platforms: Discussing alternative knowledge epistemologies

Abstract Although vast amounts of data have been opened by several levels of government around the world and high hopes continue to be expressed with respect to open datas potential for innovation, whether open government data (OGD) will live up to expectations is still questioned. Up to now, the OGD literature has focused mostly on the technical side of open data, with little focus on network aspects. We argue that a definition of what an OGD platform is, and what is within its scope, is lacking. In this exploratory article, we use three knowledge epistemologies – cognitivist, connectionist, and autopoietic – as a lens to examine OGD platforms and to define three different platform types. To validate and further enrich the platform types and to identify which types are most prevalent in case study research and which are underrepresented, we performed a literature review of case studies on OGD platforms published in the main e-government outlets between 2009 and 2016. Looking for elements of each OGD platform type in the case study literature resulted in a pressing question for more empirical research focusing on the network aspects of OGD platforms. We also highlighted the underrepresentation of the autopoietic OGD platform type in case study research. We conclude this article by providing a research agenda for OGD platforms.

Fast Fish Eat Slow Fish: Business Transformation at Autogrill

(a) Situation faced: Autogrill Belgium, part of the world’s largest provider of catering services to travellers, drifted into a worrisome position in 2006. The company had just gone through a merger, was experiencing financial difficulties, and appeared unable to respond adequately to a changing market context. (b) Action taken: The case addresses Autogrill’s approach to aligning its staff with the company’s vision and strategy, and increasing internal communication and cooperation between functions and departments using a business process perspective as part of a holistic approach to business transformation that led to organisational survival in adverse conditions. (c) Results achieved: The main outcomes of the business transformation were the establishment of an internal customer orientation, increased decision-making speed and the organisational resilience required to thrive under adverse market conditions. (d) Lessons learned: The Autogrill case study provides a valuable example of and insights into how business transformation can be managed successfully. The story triggers critical thinking about major pitfalls and success factors and how the business process perspective can add value to a holistic approach to business transformation.

Smart city projects and citizen participation: the case of London

We apply Arnstein’s ladder of citizen participation to a smart city context, focusing in particular on the ‘Smart London’ case. With this exploratory case study we contribute by setting out a replicable step-by-step approach to assess a smart city plan vis-a-vis citizen participation. Furthermore, this study investigates the link between the smart city ambitions of London and the concrete citizen participation levels of several projects within their smart city strategy. From the qualitative coding and classification we formulate a first proposition for further scientific elaboration on the relationship between the potential levels of citizen participation in a smart city project and the way stakeholders are represented in the project.

Unlocking the Potential of the Process Perspective in Business Transformation

The purpose of this research is to gain insights in the positioning and role of the business process support function and, more generally, process-oriented thinking in a business transformation context. The main promise that has been associated with the discipline of Business Process Management (BPM) and process orientation is providing critical support for making business transformation successful. Thus, intuitively, we can expect process support functions in organizations which apply the BPM principles in day-to-day business activities, to take a prominent role in realizing their organization’s current transformation agenda. But is this the case? Through an interview-based qualitative research approach, the question is raised whether business process support function today, in what is claimed to be a more turbulent business environment than before, is actually a co-driver for business transformation. From this research, key takeaways are distilled on the elements shaping the context for process support functions to co-drive business transformation.