Nedcor Limited has spent the last few years rejuvenating its business processes by automating and digitising its systems for greater efficiency and productivity. Not only has the banking company been able to improve the quality of its service, but it has been able to reduce costs and delivery times substantially.
Nedcor attributes this success to its adoption of business process automation tools and processes, such as those offered by Staffware, a global provider of business process management (BPM) and automation technology.
Supported by the success of Staffware`s recent implementation of an enterprise workflow/BPM solution at Nedcor, the bank decided to add a business process outsourcing (BPO) service offering to its local and international clientele in the financial services marketplace.
"We aim, with assistance from business process automation tools such as those which Staffware offers, to differentiate ourselves through the provision of best practice BPO," says Harry Wilson, general manager Technology and Operations at Nedcor.
According to Wilson: "Today`s competitive business environment demands operational productivity, administrative efficiency, business agility, shorter turnaround times and increased shareholder value. BPO is the survival key in transforming processes to achieve these end results.
"Nedcor, using Staffware`s BPM tools as the necessary building blocks and integration layer, will continue to seek ever-improving levels of service and efficiency in the provision of business process outsourcing to our clients."
According to Gartner Dataquest, BPO is defined as: "The delegation of one or more IT-intensive business processes to an external provider that, in turn, owns, administrates and manages the selected process(es) based upon defined and measurable performance metrics."
Mark Ehmke, managing director at Staffware SA, adds: "As the modern enterprise seeks to focus ever more narrowly on its core activities, BPO is being increasingly considered as a business strategy that provides access to `best-of-breed` processes and cost predictability.
"This growing trend for enterprises to review their internal operations to more fully understand what their true core competencies are - and to focus only on these core competencies - is the primary driver behind the growth of the BPO market."
Wilson adds: "The Computing Supplier Survey in September last year reported that only 25% of organisations using BPO services are satisfied with their current service providers. To ensure Nedcor is well placed to address this market growth, we realise there are a number of challenges to face."
Some of the challenges for Nedcor include:
* Visibility of ongoing improvements in operational efficiency;
* Reducing processing costs through continuous process improvements;
* Maximising BPO revenues within shortening BPO contract terms;
* Increasing customer satisfaction by realising business benefits sooner;
* Improving service levels through accurate process monitoring and reporting;
* Avoidance of long and costly development cycles to achieve a faster ROI;
* Defining and enforcing `best practice` processes; and
* Implementing effective change management capabilities.
"The Staffware Process Suite - Staffware`s BPM technology - is aimed specifically at helping the BPO service provider - such as Nedcor - address the twin challenges of improving customer satisfaction levels and their returns from existing BPO contracts; and gaining a competitive differential when bidding for new business," points out Ehmke.
"In many ways, Staffware`s Process Suite and other BPM technology - provides us with the integration layer required to offer our BPO service," Wilson comments.
"It is user-friendly, and is furthermore easy to set up and deploy in a server-based, online manner."
The tools which Nedcor are using already, in terms of their recent enterprise workflow/BPM implementation, and which link in with Nedcor`s process modelling tools, are Staffware`s Process Engine, Process Integrator and Process Objects.
Share
Editorial contacts