It is known to small and medium scale businesses are struggling with market competition these days. Most of them find problems dealing with internal issues that arise within a company which includes external matters such as client servicing, partnership, relationships building with stakeholders and all.

When observed in detail, it was found that many SMEs are still at an incubation stage when it comes to applying company culture and processes. This is critical as a majority of the business owners are not aware of their process inefficiencies and lack of understanding. The problem is, that when they realise the need for change it becomes too late to revive. Incidentally, after a lot of tugs of war, these start ups are nipped in the bud.

The same has been happening to SMBs for years. For them, problems follow one after another till they cease to exist.

Situation is grave:

Some small business owners have a typical conservative mindset. They are over confident on their policies, strategies and are rigid in their decisions. This unwillingness to accept suggestions often lead to business disaster. Lack of knowledge, incomplete information and rare update are additional cause of this failure. The situation is worse that when approached for BPM solutions, they don’t seem to be in a position to react. The reason for this is that either they are confused or they don’t want to go for the alternatives.

Now we ask:

1. What makes them reluctant to alter?

2. What inhibits them to adopt BPM solutions or process management technologies?

3. Is it possible to drive them in the right direction?

4. How to make them understand where they are going wrong?

Here are the probable reasons:

The first reason could be ignorance or misconception. They don’t really understand that a simple mistake in inventory management can lead to fatal disorder in client servicing. Guesswork does not hold good in this age of business.

The second and most important reason is the myth related to BPM. SMB owners think that Business Process Management is meant to help large-scale enterprises only. They are also disillusioned that implementing a BPM would result in a high cost and companies that have the manpower and financial resources are the only ones that can afford it. They become so price-conscious that they turn a deaf ear to all suggestions.

However, these perceptions are wrong. SMBs that want to sustain in the market should be positive. They should apply process improvement techniques irrespective of their business size and capital.

There are enough reasons why BPM is the must for them.

1. Small businesses can easily understand and apply process management technologies. Monitoring process performance is also easier for them.

2. Cost of implementing BPM tool is not huge. The price varies depending on the total number of employees working on it.

3. Almost all SMBs start their businesses small scale. With time, they expand. Once they are bigger in terms of customer base and number of employees, it is important that they take help of automation and process management tools.

4. SMBs should also understand that non-value-added activities are not going to work any more. One needs to upscale customer service policies and increase ROI (Return on Investment). Therefore, exercising process management activities is a must.

5. BPM service providers offer customised training to working professionals and business managers. Therefore, you wouldn’t need to worry about its use and acceptability.

If you still have questions, it is better to consult a BPM trainer or BPM consultant today.

Author Bio: Denis Butcher is a Business Process Management analyst and a writer who shares his knowledge on BPM training. He feels that with every organisation, small or large scale, should implement BPM in full fledge. If you want to discuss more about process improvement steps, visit Prime PMG (http://www.primepmg.com).