Global360 shifts tactics

By Alex Kayle for Global360

Johannesburg, 21 Apr 2009

Business process management (BPM) giant, Global360, is re-aligning its business strategies to become more user-centric in changing times, says Tim Stanley, Africa regional sales director.

As part of its new plans, Global360 will change its marketing strategy and become more user-focused, driving a Microsoft strategy using Microsoft's Sharepoint platform as a base. Stanley says amid a worldwide financial crisis, becoming process intelligent is key for businesses to ensure they are running cost-effectively.

“With the right set of expectations coupled with well-defined goals as part of a strategic direction, the business can become more efficient and save costs. The real value comes in through flexible process management and automation and transforming a 30-step process into a 15-step process to improve business efficiency.”

Stanley adds there is a growing awareness of the benefits of BPM, which is fuelled not only by the financial crisis, but also by businesses maturing. He says the industry is seeing trends where process, integration, SOA and business intelligence are all coming together to form process intelligence.

According to Stanley, one of the biggest gaps in the industry is IT working separately from the business operations. He points out that BPM bridges this gap and brings business directors and chief information officers together, allowing the business side to take ownership of the processes and conversations to develop around a strategic model.

Driving African growth

Stanley says Global360 has 15 customers in SA and double that throughout Africa. He reveals the company has intentions of growing its partner and customer base in the continent.

“We're experiencing a lot of growth and seeing an increasing uptake of BPM solutions, especially in Central Africa, particularly in Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya and Nigeria,” he says.

Global360 is headquartered in Texas and operates in North America, Europe and Africa. In January this year, the company opened its local offices in Fourways. Some of its biggest competitors include Metastorm and K2.

The company is positioned in the leader's quadrant in the Gartner Magic Quadrant report for BPM. According to the report, the financial services industry, including retail and investment banks, as well as insurance, have led the adoption of BPM systems.

It adds that in the current economic crisis, BPM initiatives are some of the few IT projects still receiving funding. Gartner says businesses can experience between 40% to 50% improvement in business efficiency within eight to 12 months.