What do beer and business process management (BPM) have in common? Besides both starting with the letter B, actually, a lot.
The beer-making process is seemingly more flexible than, say, car manufacturing, but both require a clear way to deliver a final product. Beer brewing starts with hops and moves through processes involving water, mashing, heating, and adding yeast and sugars. Then it’s finally bottled or transferred to kegs or vats. Depending on pH, yeast strains, and water quality, processes may need to be adjusted as the brew master evaluates its progression—thus making a rigid process more flexible.
While beer making may be flexible, beer packaging isn’t. Very few beers are shipped in clear bottles—I can think of only two brands. Tinted bottles are used because beer is easily oxidized (spoiled) by light, and stores are typically well lit. Brown, green, and aluminum containers are used to protect it from spoiling.
When Corona first splashed onto store shelves, it spoiled at an extreme rate. So the brewing company came up with a very clever marketing scheme. They told consumers to stick a lime in their beer, and, it stuck, literally. The lime cut the rancidity, making it almost undetectable to the average consumer. In the meantime, food scientists and brew masters were frantically solving the oxidation issue. And while they’ve modified the process to reduce spoilage, it looks like the lime is here to stay.
BPM software acts like stout packaging material. But, don’t think it can’t be as flexible as beer making. Today, ActiveMatrix BPM 3.0 from TIBCO can respond to events as they occur throughout the system and modify the process to respond accordingly. This means responding in runtime to data to create a process that can be dynamically assembled. The BPM engine acts as our brew master, ensuring that the right people, process, and places receive the attention they need. ActiveMatrix BPM understands your organization’s complex relationships, which aren’t always hierarchal.
Check out the ActiveMatrix BPM 3.0 ebook to learn more about how BPM can take your organization to refreshing, full-bodied heights.
