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A model for business process management maturity

Research · January 2021

DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.12914.53443

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 A model for business process management maturity
Freek Hermkens
Eindhoven University of Technology
Department of Industrial Engineering & Innovation Sciences
P.O. Box 513, 5600 MB Eindhoven, The Netherlands
E-mail: F.J.A.Hermkens@tue.nl

Introduction

The services sector and its environment are changing rapidly. To withstand strong
international competition and major changes, a higher level of organizational performance is
required. (Hammer 2004; Steiber and Alänge 2016). Implementing changes in organizations
are complex (Dawson 2019; Wee and Taylor 2018). This also holds for organizations that
implement Business Process Management (BPM). BPM leads to a process-oriented
organization set-up and assumes that processes are well embedded in the organization
(Kerpedzhiev et al. 2020). Well embedded implies: accepted organization wide all people ,
and secured within the organization. However, this often requires a significant change in the
ways of working (Binci et al 2019). For measuring and securing the necessary change a
maturity model can be used (Rosemann and De Bruin 2005. Röglinger et al. 2012). BPM
maturity is a measure to evaluate how professionally an organization manages its business
processes. Previous research provides evidence that higher BPM maturity leads to better
performance of processes and of the organization as a whole (Hammer 2007; De Waal et al.
2017).
This essay presents a Business Process Management Maturity Level Model (BPM
MLM) for measuring and improving the business process competence within organizations.
The BPM MLM comprises maturity levels that are associated with: Process documentation;
Governance; Risk and Controls; Automation; Methodology and Tooling; People and Skills.
The model presented here was developed by combining many years of experience in
implementing BPM with previously developed maturity models in the field of BPM
(Röglinger et al. 2012).

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Business Process Management (BPM)
BPM is a management philosophy of process thinking that offers solutions to today’s
problems (Jeston and Nelis 2014). An important point of interest within BPM is: managing
processes in such a way that customers receive products and services effectively and
efficiently. Thinking in processes, as opposed to tasks and product divisions, is at the core of
BPM. (Dorr 2009; Spanyi 2006).
One of the most important reasons to focus on an organization’s process orientation is
to prevent sub-optimalisation, thus increasing the entire organization’s performance (Tolsma
and De Wit 2009). BPM is a valuable tool in a process of gradual change, advancing the
chance of process improvement (Melão and Pidd 2000; Spanyi 2006). BPM solutions
influence the way in which company activities are managed, directly and indirectly. BPM
solutions can be applied for many reasons, such as (Dorr 2009; Jeston and Nelis 2014;
Schmiedel et al. 2020):

• Increasing efficiency and effectiveness;

• Increasing customer friendliness and customer satisfaction;
• Increasing predictability and manageability;
• Shortening throughput time;
• Quality improvement;
• Improved risk control and management.

BPM uses existing processes as a starting point for improvement, and establishes a sound
understanding of and insight into the present situation (Van der Aalst et al. 2016). Based on
years of practical experience we develop a broader perspective on BPM which consists on
various elements: Process documentation; Governance; Risk and Controls; Automation;
Methodology and Tooling; People and Skills. And overall the organization needs to develop a
BPM vision.
These elements are combined in a BPM cycle (figure 1). The BPM cycle supports
process thinking in organizations. Using it as a methodological frame of reference will help
organizations to work in a process-oriented way.

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Figure 1 BPM-cycle Overview of elements Business Process Management

In fact, BPM covers all aspects related to business processes in all process areas of an
organization (Schmiedel et al. 2020; Vom Brocke and Mendling 2018). If process thinking
takes place on a strategic level, it will be presumably followed by efficient execution on an
operational level in well-organized departments. The fact that department efficiency can lead
to sub-optimalisation or problem shifting within the organization, is one of the reasons for
addressing the business from the BPM perspective (Tolsma and De Wit 2009).
Implementation of BPM is a change process that not only requires knowledge transfer,
but also changes of attitude and behavior. BPM combines doing the right things (strategy and
effectiveness) and doing things right (efficiency) with a change implementation plan, making
it possible to secure lasting productivity improvement. With the BPM MLM, organizations
can see at which level of organizational development they are and where opportunities lie to
further improve the implementation of BPM.

Business Process Management Maturity Level Model (BPM MLM)

By applying the BPM MLM, continuous attention is paid to improving the process
organization and making sure it meets the set demands. The BPM MLM enables
organizations to gain insight into the – often complex – reality of their own company, and to

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apply process management concepts across all aspects of their organization, relating it to the
desired organization and direction (table 1). In addition, process-oriented organization
requires processes to be well-implemented. By applying the BPM MLM implementation will
get the attention it deserves, increasing the overall success of this implementation.

Table 1 Business Process Management Maturity Level Model

Introducing a process-centric organization entails a comprehensive change process which

generally requires gradual implementation, linked to the achievement of established
objectives. Thus, organizations should not only think about the technical aspects of
implementations, such as the development of a new IT system to support the change, but also
about whether people are still well placed in the organization, and whether they are
sufficiently trained to handle the change (Binci et al 2019; Pereira et al. 2019). This requires
considerable time and attention in a change process.

Change management and BPM

The implementation of BPM demands a whole new way of working in an organization, and
also implies looking differently at your organization (Binci et al. 2019). This is something that
many organizations underestimate. Old, existing ways of working and managing/directing
people must be changed (By 2005). This asks for a clear change at management level but it
also requires change at lower organization levels.

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 When organizations decide to implement process improvements and/or BPM, they
should not only pay attention to the new possibilities and the factors that stimulate successful
implementation. They should also be aware of the restrictions. These restrictions or barriers
are often bound to the organization culture, to the comfort one obtains from holding a certain
position, and to power and status (Binci et al. 2019; Dorr 2009). Management must deal with
these barriers and actively deal with the factors that stimulate implementation as well (Pereira
et al. 2019).
As mentioned, it is important to have a good understanding of and insight in the
processes of the organization. An organization can use this insight to optimize these processes
(Hardjono and Bakker 2001). However, this alone is not enough if an organization wants to
achieve sustainable performance improvements. Insight does not produce a change in attitude
and behavior. Besides that insight provides only a starting point for improvement. The insight
itself does not do anything (Binci et al 2019).

Future research

Further research can be done on how agility is finding its way into BPM to make them more
effective and more responsiveness to the changing circumstances (Badakhshan et al. 2019). It
is important to understand the impact of a agile context on BPM in a organization.
Furthermore we should investigate why and how BPM makes organizations Agile
(Kerpedzhiev et al. 2020).

Closing remarks

Setting up a process centric organization entails more than describing processes and making
these descriptions available to those involved. Setting up the organization, its management
and an appropriate philosophy are equally important aspects. The BPM MLM offers a
stepping stone with which organizations can determine whether their ambitions are in line
with their initial situation. The degree of process-orientation and the degree with which the
organization wants to manage processes depends on the organization’s level of ambition.

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