Luckily, you didn't have to actually be there this time. We wrote it all down in New Product Development: Embracing an Adaptable Process - EXFO Case Study. In the fall of 2010, I joined APQC's Collaborative Research team on a trip to Canada, where we visited the Quebec City offices and…

APQC research shows that a growing number of financial executives have resolved that traditional approaches for managing business performance are no longer adequate. As large organizations struggle to plan and execute growth strategy in an economic recovery that is hard to read, many are embracing…

Process management can become a very insular activity. Process-focused teams pore over business documentation, interview key employees, and painstakingly map out the way the organization conducts business. As definitions are written, designs drawn up, and reports presented to executives, some teams…

Shared services centers are thriving. Organizations are now brainstorming to discover other departments and services can fit into the shared services center framework. And why? Existing shared services centers are more efficient, more productive, and cost less. APQC’s Open Standards Benchmarking…

No, not the “seven tenants of process management.” We’re not asking you to get seven experts to move into your facility, pay rent, and magically imbue your business with process management power. Tenets, my friends. How do you know if you are really managing according to processes? How do you…

APQC’s Understanding the Total Cost of Payables finds that managers are now looking beyond the labor costs, and finding the true power of AP automation. Accounts payable automation isn’t just about eliminating the paper and manual entry. It’s about cutting the indirect spending, and increasing the…

Whew! A new APQC Collaborative Research study has just launched: Harnessing Enterprise Quality Measurement to Create Business Value. This summer, we’ll be investigating the ways top organizations measure quality. And with the hot, hot Houston summer upon us at APQC, there’s no better time to stay…

This is a serious pet peeve of mine. Many business professionals think of business process management (BPM) purely in terms of the technological tools that enable it. Countless vendors sell “BPM” as though you can buy it in a box, hire a developer, and magically experience fully integrated BPM…

Budgets are like sharks. Just when you think it’s safe to go back in the water… But APQC has found that the budgeting doesn’t need to be a tedious process. In fact, APQC research found that there are actually opportunities to streamline the budget process. And there are organizations that can…

Again and again, APQC members ask for more direction and insight into the processes in APQC’s Process Classification Framework (PCF). Over the past several months, we responded by publishing in-depth definitions for 8 of the 12 PCF categories along with key measures used to measure each business…