Global IT industry analyst firm Ovum has published its annual “Decision Matrix: Selecting a Business Process Management Vendor” report, a comparative evaluation of the top BPM software vendors. Appian has been named the #1 vendor on Ovum’s prestigious “Shortlist.” This is based on unmatched scores across Technology criteria (including a call-out of our innovation around Mobile BPM, Cloud BPM and Social BPM) and User Sentiment (i.e., making sure customers are happy and successful with our software).

The report places the top vendors in the “Shortlist” category, with others placed in “Explore” or “Consider” categories. We’ll have the report available as a download on our site shortly, but in the meantime, here are some stand-out quotes:

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Tags: , BPM in the Cloud, Business Process Management, Decision Matrix, mobile BPM, Ovum, Social BPM

Discussions around customer service strategies have shifted from “customer management” to “customer engagement.” A recent piece in InformationWeek on  “Seven Ways IT Can Improve Customer Service” highlights this shift. The article, by Forrester Research senior analyst Kate Leggett, pays a lot of attention to process improvement and process consistency. Kate is a leading expert on customer service strategies, and a member of Forrester’s Business Process team, so this comes as no surprise. What is a little surprising is that she didn’t call out Mobile BPM and Social BPM more directly in her analysis. These components of Appian’s BPM software are playing a huge roll in the strategies our customers are rolling out to engage with their customers.

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Tags: , Business Process Management, customer experience, Forrester, Informationweek, mobile BPM, Social BPM

Ellen Carney, lead insurance industry analyst at Forrester Research, has just published an insightful report on the changing tide for insurance companies. You can read an excerpt here. “Tech Opportunities in the North American Insurance Industry” details the transition from “business-as-usual” to what Ellen calls a “business-as-unusual” model where the customer experience takes precedence over the products and services an insurer provides. BPM software, particularly Mobile BPM and Social BPM, are key technology enablers for this transition.

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Tags: , BPM for Insurance, Business Process Management, Forrester, mobile BPM, Social BPM

Appian is the sponsor of the Process Management track at IQPC’s Process Excellence Week Orlando, January 16-20 at the Buena Vista Palace, Lake Buena Vista, FL. On Day 2 of the conference, Appian Matt Calkins will deliver a presentation that should not be missed by anyone looking to understand how to make Mobile BPM, Cloud BPM and Social BPM work in their organization.

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Tags: , Appian 6, BPM in the Cloud, IQPC, mobile BPM, Process Excellence Week, Social BPM

To kick off Appian World 2012, we’re offering optional tours of two popular Washington DC attractions on Sunday, April 15 in conjunction with USA Hosts. The spots are going fast, so sign up today for either a tour of America’s Main Street and Newseum, or the National Air & Space Museum’s Udvar Hazy Center.

End your conference experience with free training workshops on getting the most from your Appian BPM Software. Seating is limited, so register for the training you need today!

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Tags: , Appian World 2012, BPM software, Business Process Management

Forrester’s Ted Schadler recently blogged about “The Mobile Goat Rodeo.” In case you’re unfamiliar (as I was), goat rodeo is a term “used by aviation people (and others in higher risk situations) to describe a scenario that requires about 100 things to go right at once if you intend to walk away from it.” Ted’s right that the path to enterprise mobility has a lot of moving parts, but using a Mobile BPM platform for code-free mobile app development removes a lot of the complexity.

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Tags: , Appian 6, Business Process Management, enterprise mobility, Forrester, mobile app development, mobile BPM

I couldn’t end this series on the primary themes discussed at the recent National Contract Management Association’s (NCMA) Government Contract Management Conference without including budget concerns. Budget cutbacks and their effects on the acquisition community were an inescapable topic throughout the event.

Appian’s BPM software platform and Acquisition Business Management (ABM) solution can’t increase a contracting organization’s budget or magically produce more 1102s. It can, however, help make existing resources more effective while allowing an organization to start small and incrementally tackle their acquisition system issues.

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Tags: , BPM for Federal Acquisitions, BPM for Government, Business Process Management, government contract management conference, national contract management association

In continuing my review of the hot topics at the recent National Contract Management Association’s (NCMA) Government Contract Management Conference, next up is the issue of Data Quality & Standardization.

This has become a key initiative inside the DoD acquisition community.  It was very interesting to hear Nancy Gunderson’s (HHS) comments regarding the subject from the civilian agency side.  One of her comments was that we’re only as credible as our data, and that the demand for data and transparency will only increase.

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Tags: , BPM for Federal Acquisitions, BPM for Government, Business Process Management, government contract management conference, national contract management association

Last week I had the pleasure of attending the annual National Contract Management Association’s (NCMA) Government Contract Management Conference in Bethesda, MD.  Appian was again a sponsor and exhibitor at the event.  It was great talking to so many acquisition professionals and catching up with people – some of whom I hadn’t seen in years.

As always, the conference provided excellent speakers, panel discussions, and breakout sessions.  Of note, I thoroughly enjoyed GSA Administrator Martha Johnson’s keynote, the insights from Nick Nayak and Nancy Gunderson on a panel discussion regarding “the Future of Acquisition Policy,” and the Joanie Newhart-led panel on “Building Tomorrow’s Contracting Management Workforce Today.”  Common themes were presented throughout both days of the conference, and in particular, I was struck by the speakers’ focus on change, data quality/standardization, and budget concerns.

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Tags: , BPM for Federal Acquisitions, BPM for Government, Business Process Management, government contract management conference, national contract management association

Appian World 2012 is coming! If you haven’t done it yet, get registered today. The complimentary event will feature customer presentations, topical and timely panel discussions, Appian technology insights and free training, and loads of networking and knowledge sharing. It will also give you a chance to hear from four separate analyst organizations. Daryl Plummer (Gartner), Clay Richardson (Forrester), Sandy Kemsley (Column 2) and Neil Ward-Dutton (MWD Advisors) will deliver presentations on various aspects of BPM software, its usage today, and where it is headed tomorrow.

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Tags: , Appian World 2012, BPM, Column 2, Forrester, Gartner, MWD Advisors