Business process management is complicated, but it doesn’t need to be! There are many great books out there that can teach you how to master the fundamentals of business process management. Here are five of our favorites!
Fundamentals of Business Process Management
by Marlon Dumas, Marcello La Rosa, Jan Mendling, Hajo Reijers
Description
“This textbook covers the entire Business Process Management (BPM) lifecycle, from process identification to process monitoring, covering along the way process modelling, analysis, redesign and automation. Concepts, methods and tools from business management, computer science and industrial engineering are blended into one comprehensive and inter-disciplinary approach. The presentation is illustrated using the BPMN industry standard defined by the Object Management Group and widely endorsed by practitioners and vendors worldwide.
In addition to explaining the relevant conceptual background, the book provides dozens of examples, more than 230 exercises – many with solutions – and numerous suggestions for further reading. This second edition includes extended and completely revised chapters on process identification, process discovery, qualitative process analysis, process redesign, process automation and process monitoring. A new chapter on BPM as an enterprise capability has been added, which expands the scope of the book to encompass topics such as the strategic alignment and governance of BPM initiatives.”
Yes, it’s a textbook… but it doesn’t read like one. This book provides a step-by-step guide to not just the “how” of business process management, but also the “why”. Covering the entire BPM lifecycle, this book is incredibly detailed and informative, while still being (relatively) easy to read.
A great starting point for every business process management effort.
Value-Driven Business Process Management: The Value-Switch for Lasting Competitive Advantage
by Peter Franz and Mathias Kirchmer
Description
“A team of BPM experts from the global management consulting company Accenture provides some of the key ingredients you need to achieve the highest levels of differentiation and performance. Franz and Kirchmer explain how to launch value-driven BPM in synchronicity with existing BPM efforts, and they reveal common roadblocks along with clear steps for overcoming them. With Value-Driven Business Process Management, you have in your hands a full-suite guide to:
- Achieving immediate business benefits while building lasting BPM capabilities
- Putting the right team and infrastructure in place to build an organization designed for an outcome and value-based BPM capability
- Assessing and prioritizing process improvements in alignment with the overall business strategy to meet the most vital needs and deliver the most value
The authors include several end-to-end case studies from a range of industries. These deliver valuable insight into successfully linking processes to value.”
This book, originally published in 2012, shows you how to take your business processes to the next level and tie your processes back to your business strategy. They key? Making sure every one of your processes provides value. The methods described in this book work for every industry, and show you how to put new ideas into action quickly.
Business Process Management: Practical Guidelines to Successful Implementations
by John Jeston
Description:
“Business Process Management, a huge bestseller, has helped thousands of leaders and BPM practitioners successfully implement BPM projects, enabling them to add measurable value to their organizations. The book’s runaway success can be attributed partly to its overview of all major useful frameworks (such as LEAN and Six Sigma) without over-investment in one over another, and a unique emphasis on BPM’s interrelationship with organizational management, culture and leadership. Its common-sense approach teaches how BPM must be well-integrated across an entire business if it’s to be successful: augmented and aligned with other management disciplines.
This book will prove to be an indispensable guide to any senior business executive or chief financial officer while providing practical BPM examples to undergraduate and postgraduate students alike.”
Don’t let the title fool you: this book provides a detailed, step-by-step approach to implementing any kind of digital transformation effort, not just business process management. Written for those with previous BPM experience, this book might be a bit too technical for novices… but if you’re looking for something more in-depth than the average BPM textbook, look no further.
Leading Change: An Action Plan from the World’s Foremost Expert on Business Leadership
by John Kotter
Description:
“John Kotter’s now-legendary eight-step process for managing change with positive results has become the foundation for leaders and organizations across the globe. By outlining the process every organization must go through to achieve its goals, and by identifying where and how even top performers derail during the change process, Kotter provides a practical resource for leaders and managers charged with making change initiatives work. Leading Change is widely recognized as his seminal work and is an important precursor to his newer ideas on acceleration published in Harvard Business Review.
Needed more today than at any time in the past, this bestselling business book serves as both visionary guide and practical toolkit on how to approach the difficult yet crucial work of leading change in any type of organization. Reading this highly personal book is like spending a day with the world’s foremost expert on business leadership. You’re sure to walk away inspired—and armed with the tools you need to inspire others.“
Every successful business is built on a foundation of three things: people, processes and technology. This book teaches you how to manage the “people” aspect. Written by one of the foremost experts on change management, the advice in Leading Change can apply to any situation where change management is needed—not just business situations. A must-read for everyone charged with making change initiatives work.
The Digital Transformation Playbook: Rethink Your Business for the Digital Age
by David L. Rogers
Description:
“Every business begun before the Internet now faces the same challenge: How to transform to compete in a digital economy?
Globally recognized digital expert David L. Rogers argues that digital transformation is not about updating your technology but about upgrading your strategic thinking. Based on Rogers's decade of research and teaching at Columbia Business School, and his consulting for businesses around the world, The Digital Transformation Playbook shows how pre-digital-era companies can reinvigorate their game plans and capture the new opportunities of the digital world.
Rogers shows why traditional businesses need to rethink their underlying assumptions in five domains of strategy―customers, competition, data, innovation, and value. He reveals how to harness customer networks, platforms, big data, rapid experimentation, and disruptive business models―and how to integrate these into your existing business and organization.”
Digital transformation is what Novacura is all about, so of course we have to include a book about digital transformation on this list! This book explains how to future-proof your business processes and be prepared for whatever new innovations are around the corner. A must-read for everyone who worries that their business is falling behind the competition.
Are there any books you think we should add to this list?
