IBM Launches Business Process Management Consulting Practice

LAS VEGAS – IBM announced a new global consulting and services practice to help companies improve the performance of core business processes such as marketing, human resources and finance, as well as industry-specific processes such as insurance claims, campaign management and compliance.

Announced at the IBM Impact 2011 conference here, the new IBM Business Process Management (BPM) practice will provide solutions at all phases of process transformation, from enterprise strategy and governance to specific process solutions.  IBM’s BPM and service-oriented architecture experts will provide these services from a variety of locations in the U.S. and around the world, the company said. The practice will run out of IBM’s Global Business Services (GBS) unit.

According to Gartner’s recent Magic Quadrant report for Business Process Management Suites, “Gartner estimates that the size of the BPMS software market in 2009 totaled $1.9 billion in revenue, compared with $1.6 billion in 2008 – an increase of 15 percent.”  In that report, IBM’s WebSphere Lombardi Edition is positioned in the Leaders Quadrant.1 IBM’s BPM product portfolio, which is growing at a double-digit pace, includes offerings from IBM WebSphere software and technologies from IBM’s acquisitions of Lombardi and ILOG, as well as new offerings such as IBM Case Manager.  

The practice IBM is introducing today is designed to help line-of-business executives rapidly deploy technology solutions to improve business processes. BPM enables line of business executives to control specific processes and associated tasks, giving them ownership of the assets that are key to their businesses. These technologies are simple for executives to use and understand and can drive increased return on investment.

Among the clients IBM has worked with in BPM is Lincoln Trust Company, a provider of self-directed IRA accounts, as well as recordkeeping, administrative and custodial services to 401(k) plans and other defined contribution plans, IBM officials said.

“Our business process management initiatives helped us survive and even thrive through the global financial crisis,” said Helen Z. Cousins, executive vice president and chief information officer at Lincoln Trust Company, said in a statement. “This practice is much needed to accelerate business improvements and give control to people in each department that really run the business every day.”

For more, read the eWEEK article: IBM Opens New BPM Consulting Services Practice.