This month I will be discussing the Process Management Focus Area. Of the eight Focus Areas, Process Management is the most neglected throughout our industry even though it is a necessity for many companies’ objectives. For example, why do we look to remove redundant data? Typically it is to simplify, limit and optimize our processes. These very same companies that are looking to remove their redundant data do not always realize that they are doing Process Management.

The Software Engineering Institute (SEI) developed a “Capability Maturity Model” (CMM), based on the work of Watts Humphrey at IBM. A maturity model strives to assist organizations in improving the quality of their software development through implementation of processes that are “mature”, meaning that these processes have a high predictability of results and low risk of encountering unknown variables or situations. The model takes an organization through five scales, from Level 1 (Initial) through Level 5 (Optimizing), and measures the operation’s effectiveness at each level based on assessment of certain areas.

Data mining is often confused with “writing lots of SQL queries and reports,” when in fact data mining activities do not involve any traditional report writing or querying at all. Data mining is performed through a specialized tool, which executes predefined data mining operations based on analytical models.

Analytics solutions require many different efforts, tools, and components in order to be successful. Good data capture and validation, sound integration practices, and an appropriate front end user tool that is set up and deployed successfully. It also takes a valid business need and a user that is willing and able to receive value out of the resulting solution in order for the organization to realize value.