Nuno Melão

A conceptual framework for understanding business processes and business process modelling

It is increasingly common to describe organizations as sets of business processes that can be analysed and improved by approaches such as business process modelling. Successful business process modelling relies on an adequate view of the nature of business processes, but there is a surprising divergence of opinion about the nature of these processes. This paper proposes a conceptual framework to organize different views of business processes under four headings. It also aims at providing an integrated discussion of the different streams of thought, their strengths and limitations, within business process modelling. It argues that the multifaceted nature of business processes calls for pluralistic and multidisciplinary modelling approaches.

Use of business process simulation: A survey of practitioners

In order to understand the requirements of people engaged in business process simulation (BPS), a survey was conducted among potential business process simulation users. The survey had a 37% response rate and revealed a low usage of simulation in the design, modification and improvement of business processes. It confirms that BPS projects are typically short, relatively non-technical, and rely on good project management for their success. Most BPS users employ general-purpose simulation software rather than purpose-designed business process simulators. There is no evidence of a skills gap, rather a feeling that there is no net gain from employing simulation methods when simpler methods will suffice. These findings are discussed and conclusions drawn.

The impacts and success factors of ISO 9001 in education

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the benefits, disadvantages and success factors associated with the adoption of ISO 9001:2000 in educational organizations, more specifically in Portuguese vocational schools.Design/methodology/approach – Through a rigorous literature review, an a priori model was developed which was then refined and validated by case studies in five Portuguese vocational schools.Findings – The findings reveal rich and meaningful insights into a much under‐researched area, including four internal benefits, two external benefits, three disadvantages and four success factors. This research uncovered that vocational schools are using the standard as a means to provide strategic focus and as a foundation for planning. Interestingly, contrarily to previous studies, bureaucracy is depicted in a more positive light and, management commitment and support is not seen as the most important success factor.Practical implications – The findings suggest the need, on the one hand, for sc...

E-business processes and e-Business Process Modelling: a state-of-the-art overview

Although e-business is increasingly seen as an essential approach to remain competitive in the globalised economy, many e-business projects fail to attain the expected benefits. To help overcome this, the modelling of e-business processes has been suggested but there is a surprising lack of research. This paper provides a state-of-the-art overview of the different approaches to model e-business processes. It compares and assesses the suitability of methodologies, reference models, standards, techniques and tools for e-business process modelling. A framework showing the relationships between the modelling approaches is proposed and avenues in the pursuit of better modelling approaches are identified. It is hoped that this research is beneficial to researchers and practitioners wishing to improve the effectiveness of modelling approaches.

Using component technology to develop a simulation library for business process modelling

Abstract Though much of the hype about business process change and re-engineering has, thankfully, died away it remains true that many organizations wish to improve their business processes. To meet this need, Business Process Simulation has been promoted, often by consultants and software companies, the latter with their proprietary software. Most of the software tools are very easy-to-use, but lack flexibility beyond pre-defined constructs. BP Sim ++ is a re-usable library of modelling components for simulating business processes, implemented in C++ using the Visual Component Library of Borland C++ Builder. It combines the ease-of-use of a graphical user interface with the flexibility of a component framework. To illustrate and assess the library, a case study of a call handling process is described and the strengths and limitations of the approach are discussed. The paper concludes that component technology as used in BP Sim ++ can be profitably employed to address both ease-of-use and flexibility.

Exploring the impacts of ISO 9001 on small- and medium-sized social service institutions: a multiple case study

Although there is an extensive body of literature about the implementation of the ISO 9001 standard, the study of its impacts on non-mainstream areas such as social services has received little interest. The purpose of this research is to explore the benefits, pitfalls and professional practice impacts of ISO 9001 on social services. A multiple case study of three small and medium-sized institutions certified on multiple services was conducted. The results show that (1) social services saw improvements in processes, employee motivation, internal communication and job design rather than service outcome improvements; (2) some impacts are specific to social services; and (3) the administrative workload of social workers increased, but they were better able to structure and tailor their work to the specific needs of users. This paper contributes to the understanding of implementing ISO 9001 in social service institutions. The implications and limitations are discussed together with suggestions for further research.

Quality Management and Excellence in the third sector: examining European Quality in Social Services (EQUASS) in non-profit social services

Third sector organisations are increasingly pressured to implement Quality Management and Excellence programmes. However, there is a paucity of literature investigating the impacts of such programmes. This research discusses the benefits, pitfalls, and professional practice effects of the implementation of the European Quality in Social Services (EQUASS) certification in non-profits. It uses a qualitative multiple case study approach of four Social Services Organisations (SSO) that have adopted the Assurance and Excellence levels of EQUASS. The findings indicate evident enhancements in process quality, whereas service outcome improvements or economic benefits were unclear. Although some impacts are specific to EQUASS Assurance and Excellence, they are consistent in many ways with those of ISO 9001 and the European Foundation for Quality Management Excellence model, respectively. The practice of social workers became more systematic and user centric, while their workload and time management difficulties also increased. Overall, the EQUASS certification may generate benefits that offset costs, but some challenges remain if quality of service/life is to clearly improve in SSO.

Data Envelopment Analysis Revisited: A Neophyte's Perspective

Data envelopment analysis (DEA) is an approach to efficiency measurement that has been the subject of much academic enquiry. During the last two decades or so thousands of papers, books and dissertations have been written. However, given the fast-growing nature of this field, it is essential to provide comprehensive and systematic guides. This paper revisits DEA in a language palatable to educators, students and practitioners. It defines the approach, illustrates its use and discusses its strengths and limitations. After discussing the basic models, it describes some of its extensions, applications and software available. The issues surrounding the practical application of DEA are also reviewed. The paper concludes by suggesting that the use of DEA is still the province of specialists and that further research should consider ways to make it more widely accessible.

Disclosing Paths for Multi-channel Service Research: A Contemporaneous Phenomenon and Guidelines for Future Investigations

The present paper reports on the findings of a systematic literature review on multi-channel services. In doing so, it uses an affinity diagram to show the results of a content analysis regarding the issues addressed by the existing literature in the field. This enables to understand areas of interest in the contemporary subject of research, find gaps in the literature and, lastly, to uncover guidelines for future research. The results suggest that future investigations should focus on the integration of traditional and virtual services, on quality issues and customer behaviour towards the use of multi-channel services. Previous research also suggests that multi-channel services are largely unaddressed, regarding issues as back-office processes, within the scope of operations management. Subsequently, since multi-channel services are multidisciplinary in nature, these guidelines represent a fruitful opportunity for future research to involve other disciplines.

ERP in the Education Sector: Evidence from Portuguese Non-higher Education Institutions

Although there is a considerable body of literature on Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems, the education sector has received little attention. This paper responds to calls for sector-specific research by investigating the adoption, implementation difficulties and post-implementation benefits of ERP systems in non-higher education institutions. To this end, it uses a multiple case study approach of three Portuguese small and medium-sized schools and develops a model based on the Technology-Organization-Environment (TOE) framework. The findings show that the TOE framework provides a useful explanation of ERP adoption, while many implementation difficulties and benefits are generally consistent with extant literature. Some unique, sector-specific insights also emerged. The findings are discussed, and avenues for further research are suggested.