Suppliers Must Prove the Worth of BPM Challenges Butler Group in its New In-Depth Report: 'Business Process Management -- Improving Business Efficiency

Business Process Management addresses the real challenges that face the business community today, or so the software vendors would have us believe. In its new In-Depth Report, Butler Group challenges the myth that this or any other process management technology comes close to providing the finished solution.

Business Process Management addresses the real challenges that face the business community today, or so the software vendors would have us believe. In its new In-Depth Report, Butler Group challenges the myth that this or any other process management technology comes close to providing the finished solution.

Business Professionals come face to face with a wide range of technology and infrastructure challenges on a daily basis. They struggle to manage the continually increasing needs of an enterprise culture that dictates that more work can be achieved by fewer staff, and all that IT can offer by way of compensation is BPM. Butler Group says that the technology lacks maturity, many of the offerings from established vendors are nothing more than re-branding exercises, and Butler Group delivers its verdict on the technology warts and all in its new In-Depth Report.

We are certain that business professionals have an urgent need for systems capable of allowing data to be passed between disparate operating systems, solutions that can manage application-to-application integration, and application-to-human interactions" says Andrew Kellett, Senior Research Analyst at Butler Group. BPM software is being put forward as the technology that can achieve all of this and more. In response, but the BPM message, even if it represents a true picture of the technology, is not being understood by its target audience, the business community".

Providing business users with application-agnostic solutions where the process-centric approach to development overrides the restrictions imposed by back-office and legacy systems, and providing the ability to respond to change whenever and wherever it occurs" are the key issues for BPM, continued Kellett. But then of course there are the normal business issues, increasing profitability, reducing error and cycle times, and the automation of manual business processes. The software vendors insist that BPM has the answers, but we believe that it has a long way to go before it earns the right to claim its place as a silver bullet technology."

In 'Business Process Management -- Improving Business Efficiency, Butler Group challenges the suppliers to prove the worth of a technology that they believe falls well short of the current vendor hype. Kellett continued: It is our view that whilst the front-end model looks good, its integration capability looks to offer nothing new, and whilst the efforts of erudite bodies such as the Business Process Management Initiative (BPMI) to develop standards are welcomed, we are of the opinion that the large software vendors will continue to dictate long term policy issues."

The Report contains reviews on most of the significant players. It considers the origins of the technology and gives the Butler Group view on the merits, or otherwise, of pure-play BPM suppliers as opposed to those that have stumbled into the arena with offerings that date back to the days of Business Process Re-engineering.

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Notes to the Editors:

The Business Process Management -- Improving Business Efficiency Report retails at 895, with discounts available on multiple purchases, and can be purchased on-line at: www.butlergroup.com, or by calling: +44 (0)1482 608355.

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About Butler Group:

Butler Group is Europes leading independent IT Research and Advisory organisation. Our mission is to ensure our clients are the most comprehensively informed IT and business managers on current, emerging, and future technology matters, and their impact on business - in short, Analysis without compromise".

Founded in 1990 by Martin Butler, Butler Group has established an enviable reputation for the impartiality and incisiveness of its research and opinions. A client base encompassing over 50% of the top 100 companies in each of our key markets evidences this.

Butler Group delivers a broad spectrum of research, analysis, and advice on all issues surrounding the practical application of technology in business. Our analysis is available via direct access to our experts, written research, and conferences.

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Helen White, Press Office, Butler Group
Tel: +44 (0)1482 608317, E-mail: press@butlergroup.com