Automate & Integrate
New Business Models with Software AG’s Global Deal Desk
Business case
Software AG is the largest independent vendor of infrastructure software for enterprise processes in the world. Every month we handle a sizeable number of license and service agreements with new and existing customers.
Until just a few years ago, our subsidiaries employed different procedures for internally approving the highly complex quotes on these agreements. The lack of consistency among processes hindered their approval. Furthermore, the absence of automation and coordination among the offices slowed contract processing. Senior sales employees were spending far too much time on internal approval before a deal could be closed.
With the acquisition of webMethods, we recognized an opportunity to completely revamp the process. We reorganized, harmonized and automated our approval process using the webMethods Business Process Management Suite and within one year implemented a corporate-wide ”Global Deal Desk.”
Now our approval process runs without a glitch. It is transparent to our sales force and upper management. It allows for detailed revisions of issued approvals. Thanks to thorough, systematic quote checks, risks to the company are minimized. And best of all, the process is consistent in all our offices around the world.
Technology
The Global Deal Desk is an internal joint project with input from Sales, Finance and Controlling and Legal. It was coordinated by the Auditing department. And our IT department was responsible for technical conceptualization, realization and ongoing development.
In every business division of every branch office, our sales employees fill out the same standardized Web form and then attach relevant documents. After the form is manually checked for missing information and/or accuracy, a workflow is initiated, which automatically sends the documents to the appropriate employee depending on the type of quote. Key process participants are responsible for their assigned task and nothing else. The flow is transparent and swift. Employees can track status online of any open quote at any point until the final approval. They can see which quotes are waiting on whose approval. All approval processes are stored in a contract database and can be tracked retrospectively as well.
This project was carried out with the help of the Software webMethods Business Process Management Suite (BPMS). BPMS features comprehensive functionality for defining process rules and rolls and for adapting quickly to new business or organizational circumstances when necessary. All requirements, from analysis to implementation,can be modeled. BPMS is based on a service-oriented architecture approach and can be integrated with existing IT components.
IT terms
business process management; cross-over integration; service-oriented architecture.
Products
webMethods Business Process Management Suite
