1. 1 Business Processes

2. Alter – Information Systems 4th ed. © 2002 Prentice Hall 2 Process Modeling A business process that involves naming business processes and subdividing them into their basic elements Helps clarify the problem the information system attempts to solve Business Process Reengineering (BPR) = the complete redesign of a business process using IT

3. Alter – Information Systems 4th ed. © 2002 Prentice Hall 3 Ford Reengineers Its Payables Process Old process: The receiving department accepted orders that did NOT match the purchasing order Lots of overhead to reconcile the inconsistencies New process: ONLY shipments that match the purchase order are accepted The information is entered into a shared database

4. Alter – Information Systems 4th ed. © 2002 Prentice Hall 4 eliminating steps that did not add value The business process was changed, by eliminating steps that did not add value The new information system was successful only because of the reorganized work flow

5. Alter – Information Systems 4th ed. © 2002 Prentice Hall 5 Data Flow Diagrams (DFDs) Represent the flow of data between different processes within a system Simple & intuitive, not focusing on details what users do Describe what users do, rather than what computers do Limitations: Focus only on flows of information Ignore flows of materials, decision points, etc.

6. Alter – Information Systems 4th ed. © 2002 Prentice Hall 6 Data Flow Diagrams (DFDs)

7. Alter – Information Systems 4th ed. © 2002 Prentice Hall 7 Context diagram Context diagram – bounds the system + summarizes the data flows Identify the business processes and break them down into subprocesses Possible to look at a process at any level of detail Important to solve disagreements about how work is being done or how it should be done in the future

8. Alter – Information Systems 4th ed. © 2002 Prentice Hall 8 Context diagram

9. Alter – Information Systems 4th ed. © 2002 Prentice Hall 9 First-level DFD

10. Leveling DFDs: how to factor a system l The BLACK BOX concept: l you know the inputs it expects l you know the outputs it should give back l you know its function (what it does) l you do not need to know the specifics to use it l Controlling complexity of black boxes l each box should solve one well-defined piece of the problem l each box should be easy to understand l connections should be made as simple as possible 10

11. Exploding DFDs 11

12. 12 National Merchandising Case

13. Second level 13

14. Third level - first process 14

15. Third level - second process 15

16. Third level - third process 16

17. Alter – Information Systems 4th ed. © 2002 Prentice Hall 17 Flowcharts & Structured English Used to fill in the details left out of the DFD Block diagrams = use standard symbols to express the logic & sequence of procedures Structured English (pseudocode) = precise descriptions of the logic in a procedure

18. Alter – Information Systems 4th ed. © 2002 Prentice Hall 18 Block diagrams

19. Block diagram symbols 19

20. 20

21. Pseudo-code example 21

22. Process Characteristics Degree of Structure: the extent to which a business process can be scripted. Structured, semi-structured and unstructured. Range of Involvement: organizational span of people associated with the business process. Level of Integration: responsiveness and collaboration Common culture : shared understandings & beliefs Common standards : consistent terminology & procedures Information sharing : business processes share data Coordination : separate but interdependent processes Collaboration : Strong interdependence Rhythm: frequency and predictability 22

23. Alter – Information Systems 4th ed. © 2002 Prentice Hall 23 Business Process Performance Activity rate and output rate Output rate = the amount of outputs produced per unit of time Activity rate = the number of interim work steps performed per unit of time The distinction is important mainly for systems that take long to complete and/or are complex The activity rate is a good predictor of the output rate

24. Alter – Information Systems 4th ed. © 2002 Prentice Hall 24 Business Process Performance Capacity and Scalability Capacity = the theoretical limit for the output rate The challenge to determine the ideal capacity and output rate Scalability = the ability to increase or decrease the capacity without major disruption or excessive costs

25. Alter – Information Systems 4th ed. © 2002 Prentice Hall 25 Business Process Performance Consistency Consistency Consistency = applying the same techniques in the same order to obtain the same results TQM: unwarranted variability destroys quality Information systems may force organizations to do things consistently Emphasizing consistency often makes it difficult to be flexible

26. Alter – Information Systems 4th ed. © 2002 Prentice Hall 26 Flexibility Flexibility = the ease with which the process can be modified to: Meet customer needs Adapt to external changes Flexibility with consistency: Avoid restrictions that can be left to the judgment of the process participants Delay as long as possible converting information to physical results that are hard to change Use technical tools and methods that are flexible Business Process Performance Flexibility

27. Alter – Information Systems 4th ed. © 2002 Prentice Hall 27 Business Process Performance Productivity Productivity = the amount of output produced vs. the resources consumed Waste = any activity that uses resources without adding value Reduces productivity Built into the way many processes operate Ford example IT does not always lead to increased productivity

28. Alter – Information Systems 4th ed. © 2002 Prentice Hall 28 Business Process Performance Cycle Time Cycle time Cycle time = the length of time between the start of a process and its completion Processing time for each step Waiting times between steps Dependencies between steps Bottleneck Bottleneck = an essential step where a capacity shortage induces consistent delays

29. Alter – Information Systems 4th ed. © 2002 Prentice Hall 29 Business Process Performance Downtime Downtime = the amount of time the process is out of operation Unexpected failures Planned maintenance Especially important consideration for e-business

30. Alter – Information Systems 4th ed. © 2002 Prentice Hall 30 Business Process Performance Security Security = the likelihood that the process is not vulnerable to unauthorized uses, sabotage, or criminal activity Depends on procedures that insure accuracy and prevent unauthorized access