A map for the holistic BPM diagnosis

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to develop a map for the holistic business process management (BPM) diagnosis in order to guide the choice of techniques that encompass all dimensions of the business process.Design/methodology/approachThe design science research method was used, with the elaboration of seven steps to project solutions to empirical problems: (1) identification of the problem, (2) awareness of the problem, (3) definition of expected results, (4) design and development, (5) demonstration, (6) evaluation of artifacts and (7) communication. These steps were organized in different analyzes: descriptive, experimental and observational. The descriptive analysis comprised steps one to three (identification of the problem, awareness of the problem, definition of expected results) and made use of the systematic literature review procedure for proposing artifacts. The experimental analysis comprised steps four to five (design and development, and demonstration), where the consultation with specialists' procedures and then the Delphi procedure for the construction of the artifacts were carried out. In the observational analysis, steps six (evaluation of artifacts), where two case studies were performed, and step seven (communication), in which the map for the holistic BPM diagnosis was presented were carried out.FindingsThe article systematizes the BPM diagnostic techniques scattered throughout the literature and relates how these techniques relate to dimensions. A map for the holistic BPM diagnosis is generated containing 21 techniques and 9 dimensions, with 45 relationships between these techniques and tools. Another aspect is that the map shows that in BPM promotion projects, techniques are not restricted to any specific phase of the life cycle.Practical implicationsProfessionals can use the map to form a blend with selected techniques and use them for holistic BPM diagnosis according to the skills and other resources of the project team.Originality/valueThe map developed is innovative because it relates a set of consolidated techniques for each dimension of the process to provide the holistic diagnosis for the organization. It is important to highlight that these techniques and dimensions were scattered in the literature.