BPM Software

Connecting People
BPM technology goes beyond its predecessors: workflow management and enterprise application integration (EAI). While traditional workflow management connected people by automating inefficient manual processes within a single application, it was limited because it couldn't connect applications without extensive custom coding. EAI technology, on the other hand, connected these applications by routing information between them so that data was automatically synchronized throughout the organization. However, because it couldn't automate long-running or interactive processes (which required someone to take action or make decisions), it failed to connect people.

Connecting people and applications, BPM software brought together and transcended these two technologies. At a minimum, the typical pure-play BPM application includes the following components:

• Process Designer allows a trained user to analyze and model a process, step by step, as well as asssign logic to it
• Process Engine executes the actual process flow, assigning
  manual activities to people and automated activities to
  applications as the process unfolds
• Rules Engine manages the flow of information and
  activities within a process according to the formulas and
  rules assigned to it
• Process Analytics provide continual feedback on the
  process itself so that improvements can be made in the future

This set of tools allows an organization to actively manage its processes from beginning to end, improving them along the way. But despite this extensive functionality, pure-play BPM software has actually turned out to be somewhat limited and tactical in nature. Although it works well for simple, transactional processes within departments, BPM software doesn't provide the functionality or infrastructure needed to support complex, collaborative processes that extend throughout the enterprise as well as across the value chain.

Learn About Appian's BPM Software Suite

• Appian BPM Suite
• Appian Anywhere

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