Low-Code BPM Best Practices: How to Automate Key Processes for Faster Results

Well-organized processes are often viewed as a key to overall business success. It’s rather simple to handle just a couple of straightforward workflows. However, the issue is that with your business growth and expansion, it will become more and more challenging to deal with all the processes you may have. That’s when efficient business process management (BPM) should enter the game. And the task for every company is to find the most feasible and appropriate way to introduce it.

In this article, we would like to talk about low code BPM and its peculiarities. Moreover, we will explain how to work with low code tools to leverage all their benefits for process automation.

What is low code BPM?

Let’s start with the most basic things that you should know. The term low code BPM describes the use of low-code platforms to design, automate, monitor, and optimize business processes with minimal manual coding.

Such platforms usually provide a visual, drag-and-drop interface and pre-built components. These elements enable both technical and non-technical users to create and manage workflows efficiently.

Advantages of low code BPM:

• Faster development. Low code platforms ensure rapid process creation and iteration. The tasks that may take a couple of months in the case of traditional development can be fulfilled in a couple of days (and sometimes even hours).
• Easy maintenance. Simplified process design tools mean fewer coding-related bugs and less complicated updates.
• Cost-efficiency. The use of these tools requires less specific expertise than traditional software development. As a result, businesses can minimize their reliance on external or internal IT teams, which allows them to optimize their tech-related expenses.
• Flexibility. Low code software makes it easy to modify workflows when your business requirements evolve.
• Improved efficiency. Thanks to the seamless automation of repetitive tasks, you can streamline your business operations and reduce the risks of human error.

How to automate processes with BPM low code tools

Some steps and approaches can greatly differ based on individual requirements. Nevertheless, there is also a row of common tactics. They will be helpful for any business striving for optimization with the help of low code BPM tools.

Step 1. Identify key processes for automation

Even before considering different low code app development platforms, you should understand what processes should be automated in the first turn.

You need to prioritize high-impact areas. We recommend you focus on repetitive and the most time-consuming tasks or processes with bottlenecks.

It would also be a good idea to involve employees from different teams in the discussion. It will help to learn about some pain points that may have gone unnoticed. The more you know about the existing processes, the better your automation efforts will align with business objectives.

Moreover, do not forget to think about feasibility. Sometimes it is not sensible at all to automate some separate processes. It happens when automation requires a lot of time and money because of challenging customization, but the value of outcomes is too low.

Step 2. Select the most appropriate low code business process management software

Today the low code development approach is gaining popularity. More and more businesses across various industries show their interest in using such platforms to build their apps quickly and efficiently. Given this demand, it is quite natural that a lot of new tools are regularly introduced to the market. With our experience in both low code mobile and low code web development, we are absolutely sure that it is impossible to find just one platform that will be appropriate for everyone. However, it is possible to find a platform that will be the best one for your business.

It means that before making your choice, you should consider the following parameters:

• The functionality of the platform;
• Scalability;
• Customization and flexibility;
• Available integrations;
• Pricing;
• Users’ reviews and reputation;
• Community support.

It’s very important to verify that the chosen BPM low code platform will not only meet your current requirements but will also support your business growth in the future.

At the same time, the platform should be relevant to your needs. Just choosing the most expensive one with the longest list of features won’t be a good approach. You do not need to overpay. And you do not need to opt for a platform intended for huge enterprises with complex processes when you have a startup or a very small company.

If you are now considering different low code tools, it will be helpful for you to read about Retool and its alternatives like UI Bakery, Appsmith, Budibase, and others.

Step 3. Map out your processes visually

To better understand and, consequently manage and automate, your workflows, you need to create their visual representations. To do it, you can rely on process modeling tools that low code app development platforms typically can offer.

While working with such tools, you need to clearly identify the process start and end, decision points, and potential exceptions.

Step 4. Integrate low code BPM software with existing systems

To make sure that all your automated processes will work well, you need to integrate the low-code platform with your existing tools and systems.

A lot of low code app development platforms offer native integrations with a variety of commonly used business tools and services. Modern software of this kind can also be equipped with special pre-built connectors that facilitate API integrations with databases, CRM, ERP, or HR systems. For example, on our blog, you can read about the integration capabilities that Retool provides.

Thanks to such integrations, you can enable data flow across platforms, avoid silos, and reduce errors in data validation and transfer.

At first, it can be rather difficult to imagine what integrations you need. Nevertheless, when you start planning your workflows, everything becomes clear. Just think about the data that you traditionally rely on for this or that task. For instance, when you work with order processing on your eCommerce website, you need to have inventory and accounting data at hand. That’s why for automating this process, you need to ensure the smooth integration of BPM low code software with inventory and accounting systems.

Step 5. Start small, scale gradually

Quite often businesses want to implement business process automation as soon as possible. They believe that if they invest a huge amount in a big project just at once, they can finish all the work rather quickly. And further, they will have the possibility to relax and enjoy the benefits in the long run. Unfortunately, it doesn’t work this way. Instead of enjoying quick results, you may have a new range of issues that you would never have if you hadn’t automated everything together.

We strongly recommend you begin with a small pilot project to test the effectiveness of automation. To do it, you need to:

• Choose a single, well-defined process;
• Focus on its automation and optimization;
• Monitor results, refine workflows, and gather user feedback for further improvements.

When you are satisfied with the results, you can proceed to the next step and scale the solution to other processes.

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Low code BPM practical recommendations

A well-thought-out and structured plan for business process management with low code app development software is very important for achieving the desired results. However, there are some other things you need to know before starting your process automation project.

Let us share the best practices and recommendations that we consider to be crucial based on our experience.

• Compliance and security. All automated processes must adhere to compliance requirements. Given this, you should embed string data privacy controls, especially for sensitive information. Always carefully check what regulations are in force in your region. Regular reviews of security settings will help to prevent unauthorized access.
• User experience first. Always bear in mind that automation should simplify workflows, not complicate them. Interfaces should be intuitive and require minimal training to deal with them. It is recommended to continuously collect feedback from employees to improve the solution’s usability.
• Improvements and optimization. We recommend you define key performance indicators (KPIs) to track automation success. What parameters can be evaluated? Everything depends on the specificity of the processes that you deal with. For example, they can reflect time savings, error reduction, or user satisfaction. Low code app development platforms typically provide dashboards and reports on the performance of your applications and workflows. They make it easier to track these metrics.
• AI-powered analytics. Low-code platforms often support AI-driven features. You shouldn’t miss this opportunity to leverage the power of this technology. You can introduce intelligent automation for decision-making, such as routing tasks to the right team based on workload. It would be also quite sensible to use advanced analytics tools to identify areas for further improvement, as well as to predict and mitigate bottlenecks.
• Efficient collaboration between IT and business teams. Low code app development platforms empower citizen developers. And their contribution shouldn’t be underestimated. That’s why it is vital to train business teams on platform capabilities and limitations. However, IT oversight and support often remain critical.

Bottom line

Traditional tools for business process management and automation often require extensive coding and development expertise. As a result, their use leads to long implementation times and higher costs. Low code BPM eliminates such challenges. This approach greatly democratizes process design and empowers organizations to:

• Respond quickly to their changing needs;
• Engage business users in automation efforts;
• Scale automation across departments without overburdening IT.

It means that low code app development platforms can fully transform how businesses streamline their operations, enabling agility and innovation in a highly competitive landscape.

Need professional consulting services or any development assistance in your business process management projects? At Akveo, we are always open to cooperation. Just let us know how we can help you and we will offer the best solution. Contact us now!

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