Creation of a template for the approval process of a requirement request. Business processes Required elements of a business process
KUBiK: Business processes is a software product for 1C:Enterprise 8, which allows you to automate business processes in the enterprise.
The business process engine allows you to describe, create and manage the execution of business processes in application solutions. The purpose of this mechanism is to automate chains of related operations aimed at achieving a common goal, usually in the context of an organizational structure that defines functional roles and relationships..
Business process automation improves the quality of work organization and management efficiency.
- Quality improvement
Business processes formulate and implement the rules for performing individual operations and their relationship, which can significantly reduce or even completely eliminate errors during the execution of a business process associated with the human factor. Working with a simple list of tasks allows employees to concentrate on their immediate duties. - Improving Efficiency
The use of the business process mechanism allows you to formalize organizational activities and assign the responsibility for managing the joint work of employees to the shoulders of the applied solution, which leads to more efficient use of working time. - Get new features
Data on the fulfillment of tasks and the course of business processes can serve as a source of information for optimizing the activities of the organizational structure of an enterprise, identifying bottlenecks and hidden resources, and being a means of supporting process management.
As you know, 1C:Enterprise 8 has a built-in business process mechanism. However, it requires the help of a programmer to implement it. Each new type of business process requires separate programming. In the configurator, you need to create a new "Business process" object, associate it with tasks and configuration objects, and program its behavior. If you need to edit it, you need to make changes to the configuration.
Unlike business processes built into the 1C:Enterprise 8 system, KUBiK: Business processes is a universal tool that allows you to create business process diagrams directly in user mode, i.e. without involving a programmer.
To create a business process route map, all design features provided by the graphic scheme can be used.
Features of KUBiK: Business Processes allow you to:
- Create an unlimited number of business process diagrams in 1C:Enterprise mode (user mode)
- Configure task addressing for different types of users: Initiator, specific user, user group, user defined programmatically
- Associate business processes with any (reference book, document) application configuration object
- Start a new business process: manually, by event (when writing a new one, when writing an object, when entering based on)
- For each waypoint in the built-in language, describe the processing of events that occur during its passage. The program provides a directory of templates that is constantly updated.
- Use different forms to display tasks. While predefined forms are available, a form builder will be added in the next version
- See what stage the business process is in
- For approval schemes, the possibility of using reviews
- Block posting of documents until they are approved
- End business processes manually
- Use a program to process various kinds of events with or without notification of users without using tasks. Determining the occurrence of an event can be carried out programmatically. For example, notifying the user about the receipt of payment, notifying the user if the order amount exceeds a certain limit, notifying the user about registering an account and / or order from a supplier, etc.
- Using various reports to analyze the performance of tasks
KUBiK: Business processes available for the following configurations:
- Trade Management for Ukraine, edition 2.3
- Trade Management for Russia, edition 10.3
- Trade Enterprise Management for Ukraine, edition 1.2
- Accounting for Ukraine, edition 1.2
Version 1.2
For the user
1. Added the ability to save / open a route map from an external drive.
2. Support for many nested business processes (one nested business process can start an unlimited number of other processes).
3. Support for launching a business process on the event "During execution".
4. Correction of found errors.
For a technician
1. Integration with the "Developer Tools" subsystem
2. Support for passing values in the parameter structure between waypoints and nested processes, preserving their values throughout the life of the process.
Version 2.1
Added a powerful universal form constructor. Generic Forms is a powerful tool for creating custom forms outside of the configurator and connecting them to tasks. Using the advanced features of the universal form using the built-in programming language, you can describe any algorithms, process events of the form and its details, add additional buttons.
Money Back Guarantee
Infostart LLC guarantees you a 100% refund if the program does not correspond to the declared functionality from the description. The money can be returned in full if you declare it within 14 days from the date of receipt of money to our account.
The program is so tested in work that we can give such a guarantee with full confidence. We want all of our customers to be happy with their purchase.
Ladies and gentlemen!
1C-Rarus invites you to take part in the webinar
about the practice of customer relationship management based on the solution "":
Business process constructor in 1C: CRM: flexible and simple
the date of the: March 27, 2018.
Time spending: 10:30–12:00 Moscow time.
Location: A webinar is an analogue of a seminar, but via the Internet. You connect the broadcast of the event via the Internet on your computer and will be able to participate in the Internet seminar (webinar) directly from your workplace.
- Business owners, directors of companies and holdings.
- Heads of sales, marketing, service departments.
At the webinar, listeners will get acquainted with the new features of the "1C: CRM edition 3.0" line and the rules for switching to a new edition. Separately, a practical business case "Possibilities for setting up business processes in 1C: CRM" will be considered.
speaker
Webinar program
10:30–11:15 - Overview of the functionality of the 1C: CRM CORP 3.0 solution:
- Initial system setup. Creation of a client base, basic principles of working with a client base, reporting.
- Interaction management. Time management (time management). Reporting.
- Business processes. Creation, configuration and launch of new business processes. Sales. Reporting and sales funnel tool.
- Company marketing management. Evaluation of marketing effectiveness. Questionnaires and surveys. Customer segmentation. Reporting.
- Project management. Project reporting. Integration "1C: CRM CORP ed. 3.0" with various third-party services (Integration with telephony, MS Outlook, Google tools, social networks, sms, 1C: SPARK Risky, CoMagic, etc.).
11:15–11:45 - Analysis of a thematic business case "Possibilities for setting up business processes in 1C: CRM".
11:45–12:00 - Answers on questions.
How to take part?
Participation in a webinar is convenient and simple. You only need to do two things:
- Fill in the online registration form.
- Get instructions and connect to the broadcast at the appointed time from any place convenient for you.
Additional information information about the event can be obtained by contacting the department of cross-industry solutions to Studnev Alexey.
At the moment, about 4,000 enterprises use the 1C: Manufacturing Enterprise Management 8 software product on the 1C: Enterprise 8 platform as an ERP system. This solution allows you to organize effective management of production, customer orders, sales and purchases, mutual settlements, cash, financial management, and budgeting. The program provides for the planning of production and sales. Implemented accounting and tax accounting in accordance with Russian legislation, as well as accounting in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). The use of "1C: Manufacturing Enterprise Management 8" allows the company to increase the efficiency of its activities and reduce costs.
At the same time, for many enterprises, primarily for machine-building, instrument-making, design bureaus and other enterprises, the task of reducing costs at the stage of design and technological preparation of production (KTPP) is of great importance. To solve this problem, PDM (Product Data Management) class systems or, in other words, “product data management systems” are used. The use of PDM systems allows you to organize the interaction of designers and technologists in the process of CTPP. This leads to a reduction in the coordination time, to a decrease in the number of returns of the developed solutions for additional refinement, as well as to the transition from the sequential execution of the CTPP stages to the parallel one.
The resulting PDM + ERP complex from 1C incorporated everything necessary to build a modern and efficient corporate information system that unites enterprise divisions into a single information space and links business processes in one information environment.
The 1C:Enterprise 8. PDM Engineering Data Management program (hereinafter, 1C:PDM) belongs to PDM class products and allows you to manage the electronic structure of a product, a file archive of design and technological documentation, keep records of originals and copies of a paper archive, calculate labor and material norms and solve other problems.
When developing a software product, the requirements of GOST 2.053-2006 “Unified system for design documentation. Electronic structure of the product. General provisions”, GOST 2.501-88 “Unified system of design documentation. Accounting and storage rules”, GOST 2.051-2006 “Unified system for design documentation. Electronic documents. General Provisions” and other normative acts.
The 1C:PDM application solution can be used independently. At the same time, the maximum effect from the use of this product is achieved when it is used in conjunction with the application solutions "1C: Production Enterprise Management 8", "1C: Trade Management 8" or other ERP solutions based on the "1C: Enterprise 8" platform, for example, with program "ITRP: Manufacturing Enterprise 8 Standard".
Sharing "1C:PDM" with the system "1C:Manufacturing Enterprise Management 8" allows you to organize a closed cycle of pre-production and planning, which provides for the automatic calculation of material requirements in connection with notifications of changes in the composition of the product and manufacturing technology.
The joint use of software products "1C:Enterprise 8. Project Organization Management" and "1C:PDM" in addition to the benefits obtained as a result of integration with "1C:Manufacturing Enterprise Management 8", also allows you to implement the capabilities of managing projects and project portfolios, project management of labor and material resources of the enterprise, financial management of the project and project portfolios, life cycle management, project content and schedule, etc. This option of complex automation is especially attractive for machine-building, instrument-making and engineering companies.
In the case of using "1C: PDM" together with "1C: Trade Management 8", it becomes possible to ensure the calculation of material costs for the product, reserve the necessary components in the warehouse, form orders for purchased components and materials, and solve a number of other tasks.
Design information management
The Design Information Management subsystem maintains the electronic structure of the product, manages electronic documents, creates and edits designs. The subsystem implements the possibility of collective work on projects by several specialists using the differentiation of access rights. Work with the restrictive list of standard, and also other products and materials is provided. Checking the relevance of change notifications is performed automatically in the subsystem. The creation and maintenance of a secure electronic archive of files is provided.
For the design of products, a special tool is used - "Designer's workplace". The central part of this workplace, in turn, is the "Product Structure Management" window. The designer performs all the main actions for managing the composition of the product, for creating options for its execution, for generating reports and other actions in this window.
Note that the program allows you to represent any product in the form of a tree-like hierarchical structure, the elements of which are the component parts of the product. The window is divided into three areas. In the left part of the window there is a product structure tree, which, as a rule, displays folders, assembly units, complexes and kits, and, in some cases, elements of other types. On the right, in the upper part of the window, the composition of the element selected in the tree is displayed, close to the view of a single design specification. On the right, in the lower part of the window, there are three tabs that are responsible for displaying the properties of the element, valid replacements, as well as documents and files.
Documents and files can be attached to any element. Attached files can be opened in their associated applications in both read-only and edit mode.
The system provides opening of documents created in such CAD systems as Solid Edge, SolidWorks, Autodesk Inventor, Autodesk Autocad, KOMPAS, etc. In addition, the possibility of importing into the information database about objects, such as composition, attributes, and relationships from documents created in CAD systems.
To edit the structure of the product, the designer can use a specialized tool - "Editor of the composition of the product". With it, you can create new elements, as well as make changes to the structure of the product. The program implements convenient mechanisms that allow using previously developed assembly units and parts as components in a new product. For example, a mechanism for borrowing previously designed products and elements is provided. The use of previously developed elements in a new product, as well as the development of a new product by modifying an existing one, makes it possible to increase the design efficiency.
For quick creation and editing of variants of product execution, the "Editor of executions" is intended. Using this tool allows you to reduce the time spent on creating options and reduce the number of errors at this stage of pre-production.
Process Information Management
The subsystem "Management of technological information" ensures the maintenance of uncoated routes, as well as single, group and standard technological processes of various types of production. The system allows for technological preparation in accordance with technological GOSTs, as well as the use of flexible modern technology for small businesses, based on the use of a cover-route map.
One of the main elements of this subsystem is technological routes. On the one hand, they describe the undercarriage, and on the other hand, the routing technology for manufacturing the part. Technological routes are created for each manufactured item and represent a set of route points with a list of operations performed at each point. The route point defines the department in which the specified operations are performed with the product element - processing, storage, verification, etc. The set of route points with operations describes the technological route for the manufacture of the product.
A product can have several manufacturing routes. Technological processes are connected to the route on the corresponding tab. Waypoints can be created and operations connected to them automatically based on workflow data.
Diagnostic tools for the correct filling of technological data, built into the system, ensure the use of reliable information on labor and material standards, the correct use of equipment, etc. The built-in rationing system allows you to calculate labor and material standards based both on general engineering standards and on the basis of the user's own rationing charts. The design and technological reference book, also built into the system, allows for the classification of basic and auxiliary materials, as well as technological equipment.
Management of changes in design and technological documentation
The product, as well as the elements of the product during the life cycle, are described by various states, which also apply to related documentation. These states are: "Development", "Archive" and "History". The "Development" state characterizes the documentation that is currently being developed. This state does not impose any restrictions on the modification of the element or document. An element in the "Archive" state cannot be changed, that is, the author has lost the right to edit the element of the product composition. The "History" state characterizes canceled documents that were previously in the "Archive" state.
Changing the state of an element in the system occurs with the help of a specialized business process "Changing the state". This business process describes the state transition path map and specifies the source and target states of the item.
The subsystem provides a built-in mechanism for maintaining change notifications. A specialized document is intended to generate a notice of change. When this document is posted in the system, the structure of the product changes.
Reference information management
To maintain regulatory and reference information on materials, on standard and other products, a design and technological reference book is used. Also, this directory can be used to store elements of other types. At the same time, the main purpose of the design and technological reference is to organize a restrictive list or, in other words, a list of the applicability of standard products, materials, other products and blanks.
The 1C:PDM system includes a design and technological reference book, which is integrated with the reference book of the general nomenclature of the enterprise. The mechanisms implemented in the directory allow you to borrow its elements by drag-and-drop (drag and drop) directly into technological processes or product compositions.
Archive of design and technological documentation
For the use of "1C: PDM" by the technical archive service of the enterprise, the system provides a workplace for an archive worker. The system allows you to keep records and control archival documents in accordance with GOST 2.501.88 "Rules for Accounting and Storage". Data about documents is stored in the information base on cards, each of which corresponds to a specific document on paper. Tools are provided for quick search and management of documents.
Rationing
The 1C:PDM system contains a built-in environment for performing engineering calculations, calculating material consumption rates and labor standards. Normalization is based on a set of normalization tables (maps), formulas and sets of calculation parameters, between which there is a relationship. Normalization tables are a universal mechanism for the formation of normalization reference data, similar to the data of tables that are stored at enterprises in paper form. A convenient mechanism for selecting parameters from normalization tables makes it possible to significantly simplify, in comparison with manual calculation, the search for the required coefficients. Further use of the selected coefficients in the calculation formulas and calculations using these formulas completely cover the need for the calculation tasks of the enterprise for normalization. In addition, the mechanism for independent updating and storage of normalization tables allows you to create your own normalization maps. The system allows you to adjust any calculation formulas and coefficient values.
A ready-made set of cards according to enlarged labor standards allows you to calculate the time for performing various operations - grinding, planing, milling, drilling, locksmithing, cutting, forging, running in, rolling, drying, straightening, rolling, etc. Calculations are carried out according to rationing maps, which include all the parameters and conditions for calculating the norms.
Algorithms for calculating labor standards are developed on the basis of general machine-building standards for auxiliary time, time for servicing the workplace and preparatory and final time for the technical regulation of machine work.
When using rationing to calculate the consumption rates of materials, the system allows you to calculate the consumption rates of the main and auxiliary materials.
Product configuration
The manager accepting the buyer's order may not know about all the technological relationships between the materials and components present in the order, and even more so about the elements of the production process. At the same time, he must quickly accept the order, estimate its cost, as well as the deadline for execution, and avoid, if possible, at the same time a lengthy approval process.
The "Product Configuration" subsystem helps the manager place the buyer's order quickly and as accurately as possible, taking into account all the design relationships between the elements of the product. To automate the work of the manager in the subsystem, a universal model for receiving technical specifications is used.
In the future, at the stage of KTPP, the technical task formed by the manager allows the designer to automatically form the composition of the product. The technologist, based on the technical specifications data, can automatically generate product manufacturing routes, as well as calculate labor and material standards. This allows to reduce the time of work of the designer and technologist at the CTPP stage.
Separation of access rights and security
The 1C:PDM system contains advanced tools for differentiating access rights to information. Creating users and groups for PDM and ERP is done once. For each element, two types of access control means are implemented. The role view provides for hard-coded access rules generalized by a specific role. A type of access based on privileges is also implemented. This approach to organizing information allows the user not to worry about access rights, since the system automatically builds a security policy for new and existing elements based on the owner and group data. Data security is ensured by a triple level of protection - access rights based on privileges, then role-based access rights, and, finally, access rights to the infobase. In addition to this, each file is stored in a specialized form, which prevents unauthorized access to data.
As practice has shown, the introduction of the software product "1C: Enterprise 8. PDM Engineering Data Management" leads to a reduction in the development time of a new product and an increase in its quality. The designer gets rid of unproductive time costs associated with searching, copying and archiving data, which sometimes make up 25-30% of the total design time. The ability to search for a component with the required characteristics allows you to significantly, sometimes up to 80%, increase the proportion of borrowed or slightly modified elements. Support for a parallel design methodology improves the interaction between designers, technologists and other participants in the product life cycle and leads to a reduction in the number of product changes.
The ever-growing demand of users shows the correctness of choosing a PDM system from an ERP solution provider, thus providing a solution to the problems of not only preparing engineering data, but also pre-production tasks, transferring work in a single information space to the realm of reality. Many users have already appreciated the effectiveness of just such an approach to the implementation of the concept of Product Lifecycle Management - a technology for managing the life cycle of a product.
The "Corporate Processes for 1C: Document Management CORP" module provides a popular and very interesting opportunity - the use of typical business processes "1C: Document Management CORP" as nested processes (subprocesses) in the visual designer of business processes. Using the "Corporate Processes for 1C: Document Management CORP" module, you can draw a complex (or simple) business process and include previously created standard processes in it as nested processes.
This use of standard (standard) business processes allows you to expand the capabilities of the standard configuration without additional changes to each process in the Configurator. It is enough to install the Module once and then use its powerful capabilities to create new business processes.
It is worth noting that all calls to nested processes, as well as the construction of business processes in the visual designer in general, are performed with the mouse in the user mode, without any programming or changing the metadata structure in the Configurator.
You can use as nested processes not only standard processes, but also any other previously created business processes by your programmers. Thus, no investments in the already completed setup will be lost, they will simply be supplemented with new features provided by the "Corporate Processes for 1C: Document Management CORP" Module.
Let's consider an example of using the standard business process "1C: Document Management CORP" as a nested process. For example, we have a bill payment business process drawn in a visual designer. In it, if the invoice amount exceeds a certain value (in our example, 10 thousand rubles), the task of registering the contract in the registry is issued. An example of such a process in the visual editor is shown in the figure below.
We can replace this simple issuance of the task of registering an agreement with a call to the standard nested business process “Instruction”.
Let's add a new point "Nested process" to the route of the business process (after deleting the point of issuing one task). At the point of the nested process, we indicate that the nested process will be the standard process "1C: Document Management CORP" with the name "Instruction", more precisely, we will point to one of the previously prepared templates of the standard process "Instruction". Specify the parameters that will be passed to such a nested process from the main business process. The figure shows an example of setting up a nested process call point in the visual business process designer.
Now, if our drawn business process goes along the branch with a certain amount, the system will automatically generate a new standard business process "Instruction" with the passed set of parameters and the executors we need.
The list of executors can also be passed from the main process to the nested process, or you can take the list of executors previously assigned to this typical process. This business process "Instruction" will be executed in the usual mode and issue its tasks to the performers.
When configuring the invocation point of a nested business process, you can specify whether the main process should wait for the called process to finish executing. If the checkbox "Stop the current process until the end of the subprocess" is enabled, then the execution of the main process will be suspended until the end of the nested process, in our example, until the end of the execution of the "Instruction" business process.
Using the "Corporate Processes for 1C: Document Management CORP" Module, you can create complex processes that include calls to the following standard processes:
Execution
Familiarization
order
Consideration
Registration
Coordination
Statement
Invitation
Integrated process
Processing an internal document
Processing an incoming document
Outgoing Document Processing
You can also add another visual process as a nested process. To do this, in the "Nested process" point setting, set the "Subprocess type" switch to "Corporate process type" and specify one of the process types.
The module "Corporate processes for 1C: Document Management CORP" allows you to create complex business processes with many calls to nested processes, which, in turn, can also have calls to other nested business processes.
Another option for using the "Corporate Processes for 1C: Document Management CORP" Module is a quick and easy addition of standard business processes with new features. For example, you have a standard Assignment process template and you need to supplement it by issuing an additional task to the right employee after the process is completed. You can change the standard process "Agreement" by adding a new point to its route in the "Configurator" and write the program code in the "1C" language. But, it will be much easier and more efficient to create a new type of business process in the visual designer by including the call of the standard nested process “Agreement” in its route immediately after the “Start” point, and then add after this call point, also using the mouse and without programming the point of issuing the task to the executor. An example is shown in the figure below.
Now, if we start our new business process, then the standard business process “Agreement” will be launched immediately, and after its execution, the system will create the required additional task.
2006 At the forum of SQL specialists, the question of the advisability of modeling business processes in CRM systems is suddenly raised. Words are heard: long, expensive, Siebel, not necessary, difficult.
year 2014. Increasingly, customers are asking for advice on CRM with the ability to build and run business processes. What is the reason? The first suspicion is that they heard somewhere and are now reaching for fashion. To the question "Why?" comes a balanced response: “Tired of lawlessness and confusion in the organization of work. At least in frequently repeated actions, order is needed. One cannot but agree that the main purpose of regulating business processes in a company is precisely order. Admit it, it's nice to realize that many processes in the organization go smoothly, smoothly, quickly, with minimal nervousness.
What are business processes and why are they in CRM?
In Russian practice, CRM systems are usually considered as programs for automating sales and interacting with customers. Today, however, vendors that have been operating on the market for a long time have functionally expanded their programs and turned them into a tool for complex business automation. Now everyone uses CRM as a technology to improve efficiency and organize the work of a business: salespeople, marketers, accountants, logisticians, top management. Accordingly, CRM must be able to meet the new user demand - to resolve issues of intercompany communications and management. Simply put, be able to build and automate business processes.In fact, a business process is a universal interaction scheme, an algorithm that employees go through from time to time to achieve a result. This scheme (action map) should take into account a number of factors:
- plan time
- provide task setting
- track key process points
- inform employees
- build reports
- stable ties(transitions, conditions, multiple choice, etc.)
- actions during the process(including notifications, attachments, calls, etc.)
- logical conclusion(target achieved).
The use of business processes turns the usual CRM into a technology for transforming the chaotic organization of interaction chains within the company into orderly and coordinated processes. Having spent time creating and debugging a process inside a CRM (another CIS), you will get a huge savings in time and nerves in the future - the relay race will be simple and reliable. In addition, a smart process will not allow you to forget to take actions that may be missed (for example, issue an invoice on time, make a call, or notify stakeholders about an event). In general, CRM with built-in business processes is a new level system that connects the company into a single network of connections and interactions. Such a structure reduces the human factor and generates order, which will necessarily affect the result of activity.
Who needs business processes?
It may seem that building and, moreover, automating business processes is the concern of large, bureaucratic companies with a huge staff. This is wrong. Everything is a process: approval of a document, an order from a product supplier, shipment to branches, customer service, fulfillment of a customer order. These actions are mandatory and take place in the company with a certain frequency. To be honest, there are often unpleasant mistakes, hitches and delays that negatively affect not only relationships within the company, but can also become fatal in relationships with clients.
Remember the fairy tales where the magic ball helps the bewildered hero find the right path? This is a great illustration of how business process automation helps businesses. Fulfilling their duties, everyone receives their own stage, acts according to the instructions and reminders, passes the stage on ... The tangle of the process is unraveled until it leads to the desired result. Thus, the business process designer is needed by all companies that want to:
- create a unified IT infrastructure
- put things in order
- remember all the details of actions: from the most important to the smallest
- minimize the impact on the processes of the human factor
- include customers in your business processes
- share responsibility fairly and reasonably
- save time and money on company management
What does it cost us to build a process
Building a business process is not only a necessary task, but also an interesting one. I would recommend creating processes in two stages: on paper and in the program. Before adding a business process to the program, describe the process as accurately as possible on paper, paying attention to all the details: notifications, time, responsible ... After that, try to eliminate the unnecessary, optimize the path to achieve the goal, and only after that enter the process into CRM using the built-in instruments and notations.You can build processes using familiar flowcharts, simple data organization, lists, and special BPMN (Business Process Model and Notation) notation. The BPMN notation combined the procedure notation (the same functional flowcharts that everyone saw at least in school) and the event tree notation, laying at its core a chain of processes made up of these same procedures and events. This is a simple and clear notation that describes the step-by-step execution of a process and builds a visual map of the process. In my opinion, only very large companies need the BPMN notation in its classical sense, the rest will need a fairly adapted, simplified BPMN with responsible tracks, and the vast majority will do without using the notation at all.
The main advantage of using non-BPMN builders in CRM is a clear and simple interface that can be mastered in an hour of training. Moreover, the process can be built from blocks, or by filling out the forms of each stage of the process, when the graphic card is drawn automatically. It is subjectively more convenient to fill in the card (fields) - it is easier to take into account all the nuances and provide for the smallest conditions and connections based on the form fields thought out by the developer.
After creating a business process, be sure to run it and test paying attention to the following points:
- Are the due dates correct?
- Are there notifications, reminders
- whether automatic goals and objectives are set
- Are the responsible people listed correctly?
- does attaching files work, generating documentation (if necessary)
- are there any unmotivated interrupts
- How are permissions assigned to a process?
- whether the actions of the process are logged.
Russian market players: CRM overview
If we talk about the segment of small and medium-sized businesses, then you should choose universal CRM with a built-in ability to create business processes. In addition to my favorite systems, I included new players in the review. As for foreign rather strong solutions Bizagi and Bonita Open Solution, I do not consider them, since these are process modeling systems without Russian localization, which, moreover, are not part of CRM. My goal is to consider the complex automation of a business that needs business process modeling.Terrasoft CRM(for review purposes - cloudy bpm online sales) is perhaps the most famous CRM with embedded business processes. It includes the ability to build processes in BPMN notation, as well as a number of ready-made business process templates based on "ready-made practices", as the developer himself claims. Knowing the peculiarities of a business that implements automation, I can safely say that ready-made packages with built-in business processes are nothing more than a beautiful marketing ploy, since not a single process can be customized in advance for a specific company. As a rule, it is required either to create business processes to order, or to train employees to create business processes on their own.
bpm "online sales allows you to create processes using the wizard and the process designer (available only in the paid version). Processes in the wizard are easy to create, even without knowledge in the field of business design - the system itself separates the process along the paths of responsible and departments. This is not the most convenient BPMN constructor, however, the process map is simple and clear, the process of launching, tracking and logging the stages of process execution is obvious. You enter the stages, responsible and transitions, and the system draws the map itself. Alas, I could not test the paid version of the process designer in bpm "online sales, but, knowing the designer from the Terrasoft desktop, which is no longer available, I can assume that this is a powerful and interesting tool.
Among the shortcomings, I note the inability to appoint several responsible for a stage without creating groups of employees, the "stretched" scheme on the monitor and the roughness of the graphical implementation of the process map.
RegionSoft CRM integrated a business process editor into his CRM system in the latest version 5.0. The developer abandoned the use of formal notations and implemented his own logic with a human-readable interface. The business process designer is simple and convenient - the user enters the parameters of each stage into special forms, including notifications and child processes with infinite nesting, and at the output he receives a graphical implementation of the process.
Each participant in the process is assigned a task according to its stage, the business process can be suspended until the task is completed. As the process is created, a notification about the correctness of the process construction is displayed below - the user will not be able to start an incorrectly created process. In notifications received by the user, a process card opens, in which you can easily mark the necessary links, attach files and related documents. A separate advantage is hints and explanations in windows that make it clear what this or that mechanism does.
Among the shortcomings, I can note not the most elegant graphical implementation, which in a loaded process may seem a little confusing. It is worth recognizing that by refusing to use the BPMN notation, RegionSoft did not lose, creating a constructor that is understandable and fits well into CRM. However, if we talk about integration with the same Visio or Business Studio, then the rejection of BPMN is critical.
Microsoft Dynamics CRM includes business processes without a graphics card, which is initially inconvenient, especially after testing several systems with visualization. However, for the very essence of the business process, this is not critical. It was not possible to find the process settings module right away, after walking through the menu I had to turn to the manual. MS Dynamics CRM provides three ways to customize business processes: through the menu in the system, based on the CRM SDK for advanced, and by purchasing ready-made processes from a third-party developer. Let's consider the first way as not costly and not requiring special skills.
Adding steps, conditions and entries is familiar to users of corporate Microsoft systems: conditions are set by drop-down lists and logical expressions familiar to many advanced users. This is a convenient implementation that almost everyone encounters in various information and analytical systems. Unfortunately, the interface does not display areas of responsibility, the general view of the process is not obvious, it remains to be hoped but the accuracy of the settings and the internal logic of the created algorithm. In general, setting up a business process is convenient, but it is worth remembering the inconvenience of perceiving an already built process.
Bitrix-24 (1C). Contrary to my principle not to consider 1C products, I could not bypass Bitrix, because the range of systems with business process designers is limited and includes a number of new players, in addition to the already familiar participants in previous reviews. Strictly speaking, Bitrix-24 is not CRM at all, but a social network for a company (corporate portal), into which the CRM module is built in, which will be discussed.
Finding a module with business process customization is difficult. For those who are interested: CRM → more → settings → business processes. When creating a process, you must select the category for which the business process is configured, if necessary, you can set user parameters and variables, and commands can be written using PHP code, which is interesting in itself, but requires certain skills.
A business process in Bitrix is built using a convenient visual constructor in which the user selects the necessary blocks and functions from the columns on the right. This is not the classic BPMN notation, but certain of its rules are followed. From a user point of view, the editor's interface is not the most intuitive, you have to edit each block individually, opening its "card". In my subjective opinion, creating a process in Bitrix is the most time-consuming.
ELMA(ECM, CRM+) has become a completely new product for me, which I have never encountered before. However, in this review, this system occupies a worthy place. Despite the serious congestion and the combination of WEB and desktop interfaces, it uses the BPMN notation in its purest form and is interesting for this. Business processes are created in a separate desktop constructor with functional windows. In addition to the standard BPMN notation, ELMA supports the creation of scripts and custom scripts for business processes in C#, which, with the right skills, is a good advantage. It also supports importing processes from Business Studio in XPDL format.
Processes are already executed in the WEB interface, there is a separate responsibility matrix, process logs, process metrics, you can create process instances. In general, personally, the interface of both the system and the designer seemed redundant to me. I am sure that only a few will use all the opportunities, and then only in large companies. In general, we can safely say that this system exists for the sake of and for business processes. ELMA is supplied with various platforms and programs, when choosing it should be understood that the price will consist of CRM and a platform for developing business processes.
All of these systems have the possibility of additional integration of CRM with the site, which, combined with business processes, reports and internal CRM logic, opens up the possibility of creating many interesting features related to customer service on the site or in the online store.
Speaking about all systems, I want to note one common drawback. I suppose that all developers look at Habr and see a remark that, for all its obscureness, causes great inconvenience: it is impossible to select several responsible people by holding Ctrl, you have to do one at a time everywhere or pre-create groups of employees.
In the table, I grouped some basic information about the listed vendors and, of course, indicated the prices, because in today's situation this is an important criterion, especially if the manufacturer ties the price figures to the exchange rate.
| Solution | Terrasoft CRM | RegionSoft CRM | Microsoft Dynamics CRM | ELMA | Bitrix 24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Editorial |
Bpm"online sales enterprise |
professional |
Online Professional |
CRM+ |
Team |
| System class |
CRM |
CRM |
CRM |
BPM+ECM+CRM |
Corporate portal with built-in CRM |
| Business process interface |
Logic + graphics |
Logic + graphics |
Logics |
Logic + graphics |
Logic + graphics |
| Notation |
BPMN |
Without notation |
Without notation |
BPMN |
Without notation |
| Deployment scheme |
Cloud, some on-site versions |
Desktop |
Cloud, on-site |
Cloud + desktop |
Cloud, on-site |
| Website integration |
Possible |
Possible |
Possible |
Possible |
Possible |
| Base purchase price 15 licenses |
400€ - user/year in the cloud 550€ - user on-site For prices as of 12/5/14: |
144 900 rub./ lump sum | 421 560 rub. in year |
281 875 rub./ lump sum = CRM: 130,000 rubles + BPM: $106,875 + MS SQL Server at least 45 000 rub. |
Cloud - from 59 880 rub./ year Box - |
Summing up a short review of solutions, I want to say that when choosing a CRM with embedded business processes, you must be guided by three important principles.
- It's important to understand how large are the business processes in the organization. So, if we are talking about a plant with production cycles, approvals and numerous distributors, then you should choose a system with BPMN notation (I would prefer Terrasoft in a “full” configuration or ELMA). If your company is more interested in CRM and business processes are not overloaded, then I would prefer fast, versatile, functional RegionSoft CRM or bpm "online sales. Do not underestimate or overestimate your company in terms of process complexity - only a real picture will allow you to do right choice.
- Should be aware level of implementation costs. So, a platform for building serious business processes can be supplied separately and cost almost 100% of the cost of licenses. Or, for example, the implementation of a cloud project in a period of 2-3 years can be much more expensive than the delivery of a desktop once and for all.
- Gotta be ready incur additional costs for employee training. Moreover, training your specialists is much more effective than buying ready-made models - processes can change and grow, and an employee within the state will always be ready to promptly make changes.