SAP, Oracle playing catch-up with BPM tech

SAP, Oracle, IBM and other large software vendors are racing to address gaps in their business process management (BPM) portfolios, as more businesses are examining processes as part of service-oriented architecture projects.

According to SearchOracle.com, SAP, which has an established relationship with Germany-based IDS Scheer to address process modelling, is embedding IDS Scheer`s ARIS technology into its NetWeaver platform.

Still, SAP`s BPM workflow tools are too complicated, have too few rules management features, and lack human-to-human task support, according to Jim Sinur, VP and distinguished analyst at Stamford, Connecticut-based Gartner Research.

JBoss on Monday will bolster its open source middleware stack with the release of a JBoss-branded version of a formerly commercial transaction server.

The company will also unveil a BPM software and rules engine. The announcements are being made at the LinuxWorld conference in Boston, reports Computerworld.

Products being made available for download as part of the JBoss Enterprise Middleware Suite include JBoss Transactions 4.2, JBoss Rules 3.0 and JBoss jBPM 3.1.

Lombardi Software, a specialist in BPM software for Global 2000 companies, has announced a strategic OEM agreement with Cognos, provider of business intelligence and corporate performance management.

Cognos plans to embed Lombardi Software`s TeamWorks within its pre-packaged Analytic Applications to deliver integrated BPM functionality, says ebizQ.

This agreement signifies overall market movement toward tighter integration of business intelligence and BPM for process-driven initiatives at large organisations worldwide.