Michael Porter defined three types of business processes in his 1985 value chain framework: core processes generate income directly, support processes keep operations running, and management processes steer everything. The type tells you where to improve first.
Process architecture maps how work flows through an organization. IEEE Spectrum projects that 40 percent of enterprise apps will embed AI agents by 2026. Without a map, AI just breaks things faster.
McKinsey estimates that organizations lose 20 to 30 percent of operating expenses to process inefficiency every year. Here is how to fix BPM before it quietly drains your team.
Continuous improvement tools including the 5 Whys from Taiichi Ohno at Toyota and the 7 Quality Tools from Kaoru Ishikawa help teams find root causes and fix broken workflows. This guide covers which proven methods deliver real results and how to pick the right one for your situation.