Introduction to Business Architecture

Business Architecture is a holistic approach, representation and mindset which serves as a bridge between strategy and its successful execution within an organization and facilitates resolution of complex, enterprise problems.  It is a powerful way for the business to understand, improve and transform the organization and become more empowered to take control of its own destiny.  However, most organizations lack a well-articulated blueprint of their organization.  While everyone can see their small piece of the puzzle, no one has visibility into the enterprise as a whole. This constrains the organization’s collective ability to understand and communicate the root causes of critical issues and design holistic Business and IT solutions to address them.  It also reduces the speed and effectiveness with which they can react to customer demands, competition and other external forces.

Process measurement skills are essential to BPM success. In this course you will acquire a solid understanding of practical measurement techniques as applied to the analysis and design of business processes.

Determining what to measure and defining clear measurement criteria are at the basis of success in process measurement. This session presents key concepts and tools on the basic principles of process measurement, and how to apply these principles at both the organizational level and the business process level. You will learn how to apply process measurement to both the analysis and design of business processes, and what are the critical success factors and the pitfalls to avoid. Participants will practice key process measurement skills on case studies and apply these to their own organization through connections exercises.

Embracing a set of methods and standard approaches are critical for accelerating BPM adoption across an organization. This advanced course is designed to expose the student to a broad array of methods used during different phases of a BPM program. The course is also is meant to demystify much of the hype around using Six Sigma and Lean while managing business processes. Throughout the course case studies are presented to guide the student through the best use of approaches such as iterative and water-fall, and techniques such as the use of work-out-sessions and face-to-face interviews. The course places special emphasis on business-facing process discovery, modeling, simulation, and deployment techniques. The goal is to instill confidence within the student regarding where and when to best apply any given method or tool. Since the course is focused on process management methods the student should have a basic understanding of BPM prior to attending.