Process Mining for Beginners

Process mining is relatively easy to explain: in this business process management (BPM) method, software recognizes and analyses the processes in the company. These are then analyzed for efficiency and optimized. To do this, the application evaluates the log files of the IT systems involved in a business process and uses them to create a process model.

Process mining therefore makes visible what actually takes place in the systems - and therefore in the company - on a daily basis. One of the main differences to business process management is the way in which the actual processes are recorded. Instead of asking about and documenting these in time-consuming workshops, the software automatically maps the status quo from the log data of all relevant systems.

The process mining tool derives the individual work steps, working and waiting times directly from this and visualizes them in a standardized flow chart. Process mining thus uncovers potential weak points, susceptibility to errors and bottlenecks. It can also be used to check compliance with regulations and legal requirements. It therefore supports compliance.

Overall, the process improves the quality of workflows, increases productivity and thus reduces process costs. For processes that interface with customers, the customer experience can also be improved. There are not too many prerequisites for the use of process mining.

However, a decisive success factor lies in the data. This starts with access to the log data of all systems involved in a process. In addition, it must always be consistent and complete.