Business process modelling, simulation and reengineering: call centres

Abstract

Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to develop a flexible framework through which business processes can be modelled, simulated and reengineered in a cost-effective way. Design/methodology/approach -This paper is mainly based on a review of the literature and the methodology is discussed in the context of a typical call centre business. Findings -Reengineering business processes involve changes in people, processes and technology over time. In this paper, a flexible business process modelling, simulation and reengineering (BPMSR) approach is presented. Modelling starts with precisely defining model objectives and boundaries, and carrying extensive data analysis. Simulation modelling allows testing and analysis of different scenarios to understand their impact on a broader "system" and evaluate feedback before moving forward with reengineering implementation plans. The need for a flexible and adaptive methodology is stressed to augment efficiency and effectiveness of reengineering cycle. Originality/value -Flexibility and adaptability in the reengineering cycle are effective to identify early modelling incompatibility and simulation defects. It adds intelligence to BPMSR and accommodates for any technical or process changes that may subsequently arise. This approach is reliable for future process improvement or reengineering endeavours due to its flexible configuration, which can be adapted to both radical or incremental change.

Testing success factors for manufacturing BPR project phases

“…The literature contains numerous references to project development and implementation methods thought to be useful for project success [1,4,30,53]. Proposed methods in some cases target specific tasks necessary to accomplish specific BPR project development/implementation phases [3,15]. In other cases, the proposed methods take a more holistic BPR development/implementation view [2,4,36,40].…”

Business Process Reengineering–A Case Study on Computer Center Service

“…It was successful to decreased cycle time and waiting time as Sung J. Shim study [11] and Doomun study [12]. When implement on organization the result going on the same way according to Chou, Ghannouchi and Zhang study [13] [14] [15].…”

Investigating the Effectiveness of Variance Reduction Techniques in Manufacturing, Call Center and Cross-Docking Discrete Event Simulation Models

“…With the progression towards skill based routing of inbound customer calls due to advances in technology, Erlanger calculations for call centre performance analysis has become outdated since it assumes that agents have a single skill and there is no call priority (Doomun and Jungum 2008). On the other hand, the application of simulation ensures the modeling of human agent skills and abilities, best staffing decisions and provides an analyst with a virtual call centre that can be continually refined to answer questions about operational issues and even long term strategic decisions (L'Ecuyer and Buist 2006).…”

“…While passing through the call centre, incoming calls occupy trunk lines, wait in one or several queues, abandon queues, and are redirected through interactive voice response systems until they reach their destination, the human agent. Otherwise, calls are passed from the interactive voice response system to an automatic call distributor (Doomun and Jungum 2008). …”