B2B Integration : A Practical Guide to Collaborative E-commerce

Business Process Management (BPM) 129
A business process life cycle typically starts with a goal definition
relating to the process and its integration potential (see Figure 5.4). The
goal definition involves the scope, and in the longer term, the final
objective of the process. The goal leads to a process modeling exercise
using a graphical modeling tool to map the process. This leads to the
stage of process execution. In process execution, the process map is
tried with source and target systems to see the interactions and workflow
of the process. The working of the process leads to the monitoring and
control of the process in action which ultimately leads to the goals
being redefined and/or the process being fine-tuned or modified to suit
the requirements.
Characteristics of a good business process
In very simple terms, a good business process achieves the desired
goals in an efficient and effective manner with as little latency as
possible. In terms of B2Bi, the possible goals leading to better business
performance and practice include:
• Increased customer focus;
• Improved planning;
• Increased process improvement;
• Better supplier relationships;
• Increased people improvement;
• Better information use; and
• Better leadership.
One of the key characteristics of a good business process is continuous
improvement in the final objective of seamless B2B integration and zero
latency to promote efficient practices. All the economic and performance
indicators point to the benefits of going down the path of continuous
improvement. Continuous improvement implies changing the performance
of an organization to achieve, sustain and eventually reach the best
practices in business processes as they relate to B2Bi. Here, best practice
is the term used for management and operational practices that are more
effective and efficient when compared to equivalent practices in other
organizations.