BPM Task Selection: Why More Choice Means Less Control

BPM Task Selection: Why More Choice Means Less Control

One of my assumptions about Business Process Management (BPM) systems is that they can empowers users. By users I mean task participants—human workers who actually perform the jobs defined by the BPM.  These systems orchestrate processes, make them visible to the participants and facilitate collaboration across the enterprise. BPM installations, within the confines of the process defined by SMEs, provide workers with: a choice of the tasks they select from their ‘work queues’, a shared process context so they can see where they fit in to the ‘bigger picture’ and metrics that show how they are performing.

I now understand that, in some cases, this ability to select jobs is the last thing workers or the SMEs really want… (more…)

Perils of Implementing Business Rules in CEP

Recently I encountered two potential clients, in the midst of selecting business rules support software for high volume transaction processing, who were actively considering a continuous event processing (CEP) platform as an alternative to a BRMS. Given that business stewardship of their business rules (as opposed to rules managed exclusively by their IT department) was a goal of both projects – were they right to consider CEP? I do not think so.

Occasionally the event processing requirements will mandate the sophistication of a CEP, but frequently they do not. In the latter cases a BRMS is a better solution. Find our what happened to the project who chose the CEP platform. (more…)