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Utilizing Business Process Management (BPM) for Performance Improvement: A Case Study of an Express
Company in Taiwan

The Plan Stage
According to Association of Business Process Management Professionals (2013), the
plan stage should be used to define the current business context and design an improved
business process. In this stage, the inputs, outputs, deliverables, and participants must be

identified. The purpose of the process also needs to align with corporate strategy. Any
policy or national legislation that may restrict the business process must be identified.
Before starting to design the improved business process, an organization should decide

what IT tool will be used in the project.
In the case company, the project team visualizes the current process, collects
information on relevant regulations, maps the current process against the FOCUS strategy,
and selects the IT tool before designing the new process. The steps that the project team
takes are consistent with what the ABPMP suggested.

Nonetheless, we discover one special action which is not included in the ABPMP’s
PDCA cycle. That is, the case company emphasizes the importance of informal meetings
with key stakeholders prior to and during the project. This type of social connection can,

as the senior corporate advisor states, “reduce their resistance against changes.”

The Do Stage
The purpose of the do stage is to push the new process designed into operation.
Several actions have been suggested to help implement BPM projects, which include

changes in work responsibilities, restructuring the organization, changing the operational
tools that add to the deployment, and adjusting the performance control mechanism.
In the case company, the project team uses different means to help implement the

BPM project. During the compensation approval process, the project team partially
restructures HR functions to gain the support of HR business partners. The team also
modifies recruiters’ and C&B specialists’ responsibilities. Managers participate in several
training sessions to familiarize themselves with the new system. A user manual is provided
for future reference. An in-time performance dashboard has also established to monitor the

process performance.

The Check and Act Stages

The check and act stages aim to measure a new process against expectations and

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