There are two modes of thought when it comes to the Dummies series of books. One – let’s call it the cynic’s theory - is that when a topic makes it into the Dummies series, the fad, technology, or movement behind it has probably passed its peak.
The other theory is that when a topic like Virtualization or Lean Manufacturing makes it into the Dummies library, it’s time has officially arrived.
The truth, of course, depends completely on the topic. Some Dummies topics are very much a snapshot of a particular time - anyone still have a copy of Netscape for Dummies? Others center on topics, technologies, or management techniques that will have lasting lifespans – think Six Sigma for Dummies, originally published in 2005.
A new entry to the Dummies library, BPM Basics for Dummies is due to hit shelves in early March. The book is co-authored by Kiran Garimella, a former chief information officer at General Electric, Michael Lees, director of BPM product marketing at Software AG, and Bruce Williams, senior VP of product solutions at Software AG, and author of several other Dummies titles, including Six Sigma for Dummies and Lean for Dummies.
Williams says he is very much aware of the moment-in-time aspect of Dummies books, but as with Six Sigma for Dummies, he says the intent is to capitalize on a topic just as it is coming into full stride.
“They really reflect when a market is reaching a tipping point, rather than when it is setting sail into the sunset,” says Williams. “It’s a recognition on the part of the consumer that a topic is ready for mainstream adoption. Whether it’s orchids, marathon training, organic chemistry, or BPM . . . what the books really do is say, this thing is hitting the mainstream and we’re going to help you understand it.”
One thing the Dummies books do nicely is define in very simple terms topics that defy simple definitions. Take BPM. Here’s the Dummies synopsis:
BPM represents a culmination of all the collective experience, thinking and professional development in business management over the past decades. It’s customer first. It’s business focused. It empowers people in all corners of a business to be more successful. It brings people and systems together. BPM is where all the lofty goals and best strategies are coming home to roost.
You stir all these things together and it can start sounding pretty confusing. But really, BPM is very simple. It’s a set of methods, tools, and technologies used to design, enact, analyze, and control operational business processes; a process-centric approach for improving performance that combines information technologies and process methodologies.
The last sentence probably sums BPM up best for the IT community. It’s not about technology. BPM is about business processes and how you manage and improve them. Technology plays a supporting role, by making it easier to define and model existing processes. In turn, technology is used to integrate processes that support one another and to track, monitor and analyze those processes. As Garimella summarizes, “technology is a catalyst towards new, faster and more effective business alchemy.”
Of course, the authors of BPM Basics for Dummies have a vested interest in the topic, through their connection with Software AG (which purchased WebMethods in April of 2007). Software AG offers its own BPM software suite. But in this case, their timing appears to be dead-on.
In its report on the Top 10 Business Priorities, research firm Gartner stated Business Process Improvement was the No. 1 priority for 2008. And they’re no dummies.
