Manufacturing consists of a series of interconnected processes, including material procurement, production, quality control, order fulfillment, and delivery, that need to be carefully managed to maintain high performance. A breakdown in even one area can ripple across the entire organization and prevent it from meeting its operational and strategic goals.
Business Process Management (BPM) provides a structured framework for understanding and improving these processes to ensure consistent performance and continuous improvement.
In this post, we’ll explore the role of Business Process Management in manufacturing, examining its key components, benefits, and everyday challenges. We’ll also highlight how technologies like Cin7 help manufacturers effectively implement BPM and thus achieve operational excellence.
Business process management (BPM) is a systematic approach to improving an organization’s business processes. In manufacturing, a business process refers to any task or sequence of activities that plays a role in the achievement of organizational goals. This can include processes like procurement, production planning and execution, inventory management, quality control, and order fulfillment.
Business process management involves reviewing how these processes currently work, finding inefficiencies or gaps, redesigning them as needed, implementing changes, monitoring results, and making continuous adjustments to promote sustained progress.
The main goal of BPM is to create smooth and efficient workflows that improve operational agility, improve product quality, and lower costs and waste.
According to research, an estimated 76% of global enterprises and organizations have currently adopted at least one BPM solution to improve operations and support more informed decision-making.
The first step in Business Process Management (BPM) is identifying and documenting all relevant processes within the manufacturing organization. This includes core activities like production planning, inventory management, and quality control, as well as support functions like equipment maintenance, customer service, invoicing, and human resources.
Visual tools such as flowcharts or industry-standard notations like BPMN (Business Process Model and Notation) are commonly used to map out these workflows. These diagrams provide a clear picture of each process, including every step, decision point, and handoff.
Overall, process identification and mapping help build a detailed view of how work, information, and materials move through the business.
Once business processes or workflows are mapped, they are analyzed for inefficiencies, bottlenecks, redundancies, and other performance issues. Manufacturers may examine metrics like cycle times, defect rates, throughput, and downtime to determine what’s working and what’s holding operations back. As part of the process, they can ask targeted questions such as:
The answers to these questions help lay the groundwork for meaningful and measurable change.
Using insights from the process analysis step, manufacturing processes are then redesigned to improve performance. Strategies might include:
The next step of business process management is implementation, where the redesigned processes are implemented across the organization. Tools such as Business Process Management Suites (BPMS) and workflow automation software are deployed to digitally execute, monitor, control, and synchronize newly designed processes.
These tools offer the following capabilities:
Once live, business processes are continuously monitored to ensure they meet performance expectations.
Key performance indicators (KPIs) such as production output, error rates, downtime, and customer satisfaction are tracked (typically using real-time dashboards, analytics, and reporting tools provided by BPMS and other similar solutions) to assess progress and detect any deviations from desired outcomes.
Based on insights from the monitoring, processes are regularly refined and adapted to respond to changing conditions, new technologies, or evolving business goals.
This final step also includes cultivating a culture of continuous improvement, where everyone in the business, including the leadership and frontline workers, is encouraged to identify opportunities to continuously improve workflows. This culture ensures processes stay efficient, competitive, and aligned with long-term objectives.
The most immediate and visible benefit of BPM is a boost in operational efficiency. BPM as a process includes eliminating bottlenecks, reducing process redundancies, and automating routine tasks.
These improvements can speed up workflows and shorten production cycles. Tasks that once took hours or days can often be completed in real time and with minimal manual effort. This boosts output and also enables manufacturers to respond more quickly to customer demands and market fluctuations.
BPM encourages consistency in manufacturing execution, which directly contributes to higher product quality. Standardized processes and clearly defined workflows make sure each task is performed according to defined protocols and that output variability is minimal.
Implementing BPM cuts manufacturing costs by ensuring more efficient resource usage and eliminating waste. Automation, which is a big part of BPM, lowers labor costs and the associated costs of human errors by delegating repetitive and intensive tasks to machines or technology software.
BPM provides a systematic framework for documenting processes, maintaining audit trails, and ensuring compliance with industry standards and legal regulations. This minimizes the risk of violations and costly penalties, while also building trust with customers and partners.
BPM introduces structure and repeatability to business processes, making it easier to replicate and scale successful operations. Whether it's opening new facilities to entering new markets, expanding product lines, or increasing production volumes, well-defined and automated processes, enabled by BPM, make growth more manageable and less risky.
BPM also improves the employee experience. For instance, automating tasks via BPM tools frees employees from tedious work, allowing them to focus on more strategic, creative, and fulfilling activities.
Additionally, clear process definitions from BPM reduce ambiguity, frustration, and the need for constant firefighting, leading to a more organized, less stressful workplace. The ultimate outcomes are greater job morale and satisfaction, and less turnover.
BPM involves rethinking established workflows, altering responsibilities, and adopting new technologies, all of which can trigger resistance from both employees and management. Long-standing habits, fear of automation, and concerns about job security can lead to pushback, even when the proposed changes are clearly beneficial.
Overcoming this resistance requires strong leadership, clear communication, and a structured change management strategy that includes employee involvement, training, and ongoing support.
One of the biggest challenges in implementing BPM in manufacturing is integration with legacy systems. Many older organization platforms were not built to communicate with modern BPM software, making data exchange slow, inconsistent, or even impossible. Addressing this challenge may require investing in expensive middleware, APIs, or data transformation tools to standardize and synchronize information flows.
Data Management Complexity
Effective BPM depends on access to timely, accurate data. However, manufacturing operations generate massive volumes of data that can be difficult to manage. Disorganized, incomplete, or inaccurate data can undermine BPM initiatives and lead to flawed insights and suboptimal decision-making. To succeed, businesses must invest in powerful data validation and governance practices to ensure data quality and consistency.
Successful BPM adoption requires new skills and capabilities, such as process mapping, data analysis, and the use of BPM software. Many employees may not possess these skills initially. Without targeted training and upskilling programs, organizations risk underutilizing BPM tools and falling short of expected returns. Investing in workforce development is essential to maximize BPM’s potential.
Implementing BPM typically requires a significant upfront financial investment, including software licensing, integration, consulting services, and employee training. For manufacturers operating on narrow margins or with limited budgets, these costs can be a significant deterrent.
Cin7 is an integrated production and inventory management platform that helps manufacturers get more from BPM by offering tools that enhance operational efficiency, provide real-time visibility, and connect the entire supply chain.
Cin7 provides instant access to accurate, up-to-date information across every aspect of manufacturing operations, including inventory levels (raw materials, WIP, finished goods), production schedules, sales orders, customer demand, and supplier information.
This real-time data visibility eliminates information delays and discrepancies that can lead to issues such as stockouts or overproduction. It allows manufacturers to make proactive, data-driven decisions that boost performance.
As we’ve seen, one of the more significant challenges in BPM adoption is integrating new tools with existing infrastructure. Cin7 addresses this offering native connectivity with over 700 platforms, including ERP and MES systems, e-commerce platforms, point-of-sale (POS) systems, third-party logistics (3PL) providers, and mor.e
This extensive integration ensures smooth data exchange across departments, reduces manual entry errors, and promotes cross-functional collaboration.
Cin7 is built with scalability in mind, making it well-suited for growing businesses. Its cloud-based infrastructure supports increased transaction volumes, expanding inventory, and additional users without requiring heavy IT investment. This scalability ensures that your BPM-enhanced workflows remain effective and aligned with business needs, even as operational complexity grows.
Cin7 includes built-in manufacturing automation tools that support BPM by taking over repetitive and time-consuming tasks across the manufacturing lifecycle, including demand forecasting, production planning, and inventory management. Automating these processes frees up your staff and resources to focus on higher-value, strategic work.
Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) are increasingly being used in BPM to improve planning and decision-making. AI in manufacturing can analyze production data to identify inefficiencies, predict maintenance needs, and forecast demand with greater accuracy. Machine learning models can recognize patterns in workflow performance and suggest adjustments to improve resource allocation, reduce downtime, and boost product quality.
The Internet of Things (IoT) connects machines, sensors, and devices across the factory floor to create a rich stream of real-time data. When integrated into BPM systems, IoT enables real-time monitoring and control of manufacturing processes.
For example, IoT sensors can detect anomalies in temperature or vibration, and then automatically trigger maintenance or quality checks. This level of responsiveness enhances equipment reliability, ensures consistent product quality, and supports more efficient process execution.
In 2023, nearly two-thirds (63%) of BPM deployments were cloud-based, compared to 38% of deployments on traditional on-premise systems.
Cloud-based BPM solutions offer manufacturers greater flexibility, accessibility, and collaboration. Teams can access data and workflows from anywhere, enabling faster decision-making and smoother coordination between global operations.
Additionally, cloud platforms make it simpler to scale operations up or down based on demand, without the need for costly hardware changes. What’s more, the cloud provider manages software updates and maintenance, reducing the burden on your internal IT team and freeing them to focus on other tasks.
Blockchain technology is increasingly being used in manufacturing to improve transparency and traceability throughout the supply chain.
When integrated into BPM frameworks, blockchain can provide secure, tamper-proof records of every transaction or process step. This makes it easy to trace materials back to their origin, verify quality certifications, and demonstrate compliance with regulations.
Business Process Management in manufacturing is about creating structured, efficient, and adaptable workflows that align day-to-day operations with long-term business goals. When effectively applied, BPM increases operation efficiency, improves product quality, lowers costs, and boosts employee experiences.
Cin7 all-in-one platform supports manufacturers in their BPM journey by providing real-time data visibility and access, seamless connectivity with existing systems, and powerful automation features that simplify complex workflows. What’s more, its scalable architecture makes sure that your improved processes remain effective and manageable as your business grows and evolves.
Request a personalized demo of Cin7 today to see how it can strengthen your BPM strategy and cultivate long-term success.