Improvement of Business

Process Management in
Higher Education
institutions
(HEI-UP)

doc. dr. Tomislav Rozman, Mateja Geder, MA ODE

4th Conference of DOBA Faculty - DYNAMIC ENTREPRENEURSHIP FOR THE ECONOMY GROWTH
Promoting sustainable growth for the prosperity and new jobs – Maribor, 7 May 2012
Agenda

• About the project

• The purpose of the project
• Objectives, results, partners
• What is BPM
• Similar work
• Process Frameworks
• The research
• Conclusion

This project has been funded with support from the European Commission.

This publication [communication] reflects the views only of the author, and the
Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the
information contained therein.

Contract no.: 2011-3846/001-001

Project no.: 518035-LLP-1-2011-1-AT-ERASMUS-ECUE
About the project
Project acronym: HEI-UP
Project title: Improvement of Business Process Management in
Higher Education Institutions
Sub-programme or KA: Lifelong learning, Erasmus Multiateral
Contract no.: 2011-3846/001-001
Project no.: 518035-LLP-1-2011-1-AT-ERASMUS-ECUE

Duration: From 01/10/2011

To 30/09/2013
Beneficiary organisation: IMC FH Krems
Project coordinator: Michael Reiner (applicant), Tomislav Rozman
(coordination)
Project coordinator organisation: IMC FH Krems, BICERO
Project coordinator telephone number: +386 41 692 020
Project coordinator email address: tomislav.rozman@bicero.com
Why?

The purpose of the project is...

... to improve the visibility of HEI

processes to all stakeholders:
students, professors, management,
external stakeholders.
What is BPM?
Business Process Management (BPM) is the
discipline, which covers:

• identification,
• modeling,
• analysis,
• documentation,
• measuring,
• automatization,
• maintenance and
• optimization of business processes.
Project partners
• IMC Fachhochschule Krems, Austria (Applicant partner)

• BICERO, Business Informatics Center Rozman Ltd., Slovenia

(partner, idea)

• DOBA Faculty of Applied Business and Social Studies Maribor,

Slovenia (core partner)

• I.S.C.N. International Software Consulting Network LTD (core

partner)

• Vakaru Lietuvos verslo kolegija, Lithuania (core partner)

• SZCZECINSKA SZKOLA WYZSZA COLLEGIUM BALTICUM, Poland

(core partner)

• American University in Bulgaria, Bulgaria (core partner)

Project outcomes and results

• analyses of current state of BPM practices in HEIs,

• a set of BPM projects case studies transferred from ENTs to

HEIs,

• a BPM framework for HEIs,

• a new course unit for Certified Business Process Manager

course,

• educated HEI management staff,

• consortium which gathers ENTs/HEIs on the field of BPM.

Sources, similar work:

APQC process framework:

Charles Strut University in Australia

-
Process framework
What is a process framework?

• CSU example:
What is a process framework?

• APQC example:
What is a process framework?
• APQC example:
Potential users of project results

• Employees at HEIs (management)

– CIO, CEO, HRM, CRM, CTO, QM, PM,
CFO
• Students
– Potential, studying, graduated
• Lecturers, professors
– Internal, contractual
• External stakeholders of HEIs
– Agencies, subcontractors
The research

4 groups of research:
o State of BPM in HEIs
o BPM related curiccula in HEIs
o BPM knowledge analysis of HEI management
staff
o Analysis: BPM knowledge needs in HEI
market

Goal: to find out what is the state and needs

of Business Process management in HEIs
Research: State of BPM in HEIs

• Quantitative analysis:
– Research instrument: web survey in SI, EN, GER, LT, BG, PL
– Target group: HEI staff, employees, students (employed)
– Sample size: 50-100 / country

• Qualitative analysis:
– Focus group
Research results: demographics

Organization types Share of sold services vs. products

Organization ownership Process documentation

Research results – what‘s interesting?

• Maturity of the management processes:

– On average: high: 3-3,7 (out of 5)

• Too good to be true?

• This fact caused the action -> we switched the focus to the
operating (core) processes
– Teaching, research, studying, cooperating with external
parties, sales-related processes
Research: Focus group

• Target group: partner represenatives (2 per partner from 7

countries)
• Moderated discussion
• Questions:

Q1: "What’s the state of Business Process Management in your

organization?"

Q2: "Which processes in your organizations need the improvement?"

Research - Focus group - summary

• Structured answers (what‘s important for ideal BPM):

– Communication (at design, implement, maintenance, change

time)

– Supporting templates, documents and samples (easy to

find)

– Attractive design (of process framework - VISUAL)

– Three main target groups in HE:

• students, teachers and researchers.
Researches in progress...
• Analysis of courses at HEIS
– Which topics of BPM are missing?

• Analysis of knowledge at HEI employees

– Are there any blindspots?

• Analysis of market needs for BPM knowledge

– Who else needs this type of knowledge?
ECQA – European Certification and Qualification organization:
o Is a non-profit association, joining institutions and thousands of professionals
from all over Europe and abroad.
o Provides a Europe wide unified certification schema for numerous
professions.
o Brings together experts from the market and supports the definition and
development of the knowledge (Skills Sets) required for professions.
o Defines and verifies quality criteria for Training organizations and Trainers to
ensure the same level of training all over the world.
o Promotes all certified professionals.

© ecqa 2010
Stakeholders and Key Relationships in Certification Process

© ecqa 2010
Modularity in ECQA Certified Professions

The same structure for:

•
Trainings
•
Self test
•
Exam
•
Certificate
Certified Business Process
Manager
Certified Business Process
Manager for HEI

Consistent with EQF

© ecqa 2010
Discussion...

You‘re invited to participate in the research –

It will reveal a new view on the maturity of your organization.

At the end, you‘re invited to use the results (process framework,

course).