Accelerate Enterprise Performance with Mobile BPMMovement towards the mobile enterprise is gaining momentum based on
the clear business value afforded by better leveraging today’s increasingly
on-the-go workforce. However, corporate IT developers are struggling
to keep up with the pace of mobile workers’ demands for access to key
business processes, applications and data.
This white paper describes the challenges enterprises face in empowering
a new generation of mobile workers. It also illustrates how the Appian
platform enables developers to rapidly deliver secure and high-value mobile
process solutions.
Living in a MobiLe, ConneCted WorLd
The rapid advancement of mobile computing in the past few years has given consumers more
freedom and options, while also making them more dependent on their mobile devices than
ever before. The number of mobile connected devices exceeds the world’s population — more
than 7 billion and counting1. According to the same report, global mobile data traffic will
increase 13-fold by 2017, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 66%. Not
only are there more mobile devices than people, the mobile data volume and frequency of
access are continuously growing at a rapid pace.
Mobile computing processors are now on par with many PC desktops and laptops, utilizing
quad-core processors and 128 gigabytes of storage memory or more. In addition, mobile
devices are providing consumers with a level of connectivity that has never been achieved
by PC desktops, connecting people to friends, co-workers, communities of interest, and
data. In addition to acting as collaboration tools for voice communication, SMS messaging,
email, and calendar functions, mobile devices are supplementing (and even replacing) PCs
for web browsing, video streaming, creating content, and even doing work.
Furthermore, mobile devices are delivering features never available on a PC, such as
instant-on operating systems, extreme portability, low cost, and always-on Internet
connectivity. Easy to use touchscreens and large, vibrant ecosystems of user-friendly
mobile applications are driving mobile adoption in the past few years. In addition, device-
to-device connectivity for everything from monitoring health to controlling home
entertainment systems and appliances, and integrating with work systems are making
mobile devices an increasingly integral part of daily modern life.
Accelerate Enterprise Performance with Mobile BPM 2
New operating systems specifically designed for mobile computing, continued miniaturization of powerful
processors, and the increasing popularity of tablets are driving more and more people to prefer mobile devices
over PCs.
Due to the ubiquity of mobile devices among consumers, mobile is now an essential part of business technology
strategies to increase sales and productivity. As a result, IT organizations must integrate and implement
mobile strategies across multiple mobile platforms and devices. It is no longer adequate to assume employees,
partners, and customers will be bound to a PC or a corporate issued mobile device when accessing enterprise
applications. The rise of the Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) culture means enterprise software today must be
accessible from virtually any device or platform, while still providing the same level of security and functionality
delivered by PC devices.
business ProCess ManageMent goes MobiLe
Business Process Management (BPM) platforms have delivered large gains in efficiency across a wide variety
of business processes and industries. Commercial organizations and government agencies use BPM to
improve operations and achieve measurable results for employees, customers, and partners. BPM’s return-on-
investment is exceptionally high across industries and functions.
BPM brings together processes, systems, data, and people to improve
the efficiency and quality of work. By modeling and automating
processes, BPM can systematically manage millions of transactions with
consistency, while also having the intelligence to apply business rules,
prioritize cases, escalate at-risk events, and handle exceptions. Having
the ability to track and monitor every process, decision, and action with
embedded analytics also results in better visibility and accountability
across the organization.
Traditional BPM’s dependence on PC access by every participant has
created a physical barrier to process efficiency and slowed enterprise
adoption. According to CIO magazine, 80% of employees use personal
technology for business purposes, while two out of three enterprises
will adopt a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) solution by 2017. As more
companies and knowledge workers embrace mobility as an essential part of work, the need increases for
effective mobile enterprise applications.
A mobile-enabled enterprise that gives the right employees access to key business processes, data, and reports
will see the benefits of better decisions, faster actions, shortened cycle times, and increased business agility.
Despite significant technology advancements in the past few decades, collaborative knowledge work and
decision-making is often buried in email chains, meeting notes, and water cooler chats – disconnected from
measurable and repeatable processes managed in a BPM platform.
Companies are now using BPM as an application development platform for creating fast, secure and responsive
mobile access to critical processes and information. Mobile BPM applications bridge the technology gaps
inherent to PCs for the world’s increasingly mobile workforces.
Accelerate Enterprise Performance with Mobile BPM 3
enabLe an agiLe enterPrise With MobiLe bPM
Mobile BPM drives more than just process efficiency. It empowers professionals to make smarter decisions
and take faster, better business actions by providing the relevant, timely information they need to do their jobs,
regardless of where they work. Important customer interactions and critical decisions take place in the field
daily. Every interaction, decision, and action defines a company’s reputation and determines its success. In a
world where a customer can walk into a store and use a mobile device to price compare products, employees
need to be equally empowered with information to win the sale.
Mobile process applications combine the delivery of enterprise information, tasks, records, reports, and actions
in a single interface. Mobile access to information enables knowledge workers to see and search data across
different systems, collaborate, make intelligent decisions, and take immediate actions that drive enterprise
processes to achieve successful results. A wide variety of industries have field personnel making important,
process-driven decisions every day that could benefit from mobile access.
Financial services government healthcare & Pharma Cross industries
Investment Bankers Case Workers Healthcare Professionals Sales Reps
Financial Advisers Inspectors Home Care Providers Attorneys
Insurance Adjusters Trainers Clinical Researchers Field Engineers
Claim Assessors Operations Specialists Site Inspectors Service Technicians
Compliance Auditors Field Analysts Quality Assurance Managers Operations Managers
An insurance claims adjuster, for example, must evaluate a claim in the field, gather information from parties
involved and update the case, make a business decision, then recommend follow-up actions based on insurance
rules and corporate policies. The adjuster may also need to access collective knowledge and collaborate with
other workers in headquarters or in other regional offices to complete a claim.
Mobile access to insurance case information, pending tasks, customer records, claim reports and related
documents would allow the adjuster to make faster and better informed decisions in the field, while increasing
the efficiency of the overall claim process through mobile actions.
This example of mobile BPM has a number of positive and measurable business outcomes, including:
• Higher customer satisfaction and retention
• More accurate and complete claims information
• Decreased claims processing cycle times
• Fewer process exceptions and risky claims
Accelerate Enterprise Performance with Mobile BPM 4
MobiLe deveLoPMent ChaLLenges
Building new mobile applications can be a daunting endeavor given the variety of platforms, devices, and
development languages. IT professionals face a number of mobile development challenges, including:
• Platform development complexity across different mobile operating systems
• Device fragmentation with hundreds of smart phones and tablets
• Security guarantees for all information handled on mobile devices
• Strategy and implementation of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policies
• Cost and time of mobile development to support multiple platforms
• Lack of mobile development expertise and limited resources
Companies need to recognize the importance of delivering mobile applications while not locking
themselves into a specific mobile platform, or creating security gaps to corporate data. Like Internet
technologies in the mid-1990’s, mobile device technologies are rapidly evolving with an overwhelming
number of choices and options for mobile application development.
MobiLe deveLoPMent oPtions
One of the most critical factors to mobile application development success is having a sustainable and scalable
long-term strategy. The three common approaches are to create HTML5 web apps, hybrid HTML5 apps
(wrapping a HTML5 web app in a native client), or pure native mobile apps designed for the specific mobile
operating system. Here is a comparison of the pros and cons:
Compared to HTML5 or hybrid HTML5 apps, native mobile applications provide a better quality user
experience, more responsive performance, and superior security on mobile devices across platforms, but
traditionally at a higher cost. Developed specifically for Apple iOS, BlackBerry, Google Android, or Windows
Phone, native mobile applications can take advantage of unique form factors and device features that can vary
greatly on each platform.
When starting a mobile development project, many companies would opt to go for the faster, more cost-
effective approach of HTML5 or hybrid. However, as mobile adoption and frequency of use continue to climb,
Accelerate Enterprise Performance with Mobile BPM 5
they realize that this strategy does not provide the best mobile experience and performance. Facebook and
LinkedIn are just two of the largest software companies that switched to native mobile applications after
fielding user complaints about unresponsive and frequently crashing HTML5 apps and lack of mobile features.
Additional considerations when selecting a mobile development platform:
• Use of Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) standards like REST and SOAP
• Support for multi-platform deployment: write once and deploy on every mobile device
• Ensure security with data encryption and minimal data storage on mobile devices
• Provide secure communication using SSL, VPN, and Corporate directories authentications
• Empower non-developers to model, implement, and update mobile applications
• Integrate with enterprise processes and multiple systems
These points will typically rule out using any of the standard SDK platforms from mobile device manufacturers,
such as Apple xCode or Google Android so as to prevent locking into a specific platform. Enterprise developers
should recognize that the majority of mobile business applications need to deliver data discovery and reporting,
with interfaces to view and complete electronic forms, and the ability to participate in collaborations. All
of these are within the context of a business process. Rich graphical mobile apps typically seen in games
development are not necessary to empower most enterprise mobile applications.
bPM as a MobiLe deveLoPMent PLatForM
Modern BPM development platforms provide the necessary multi-platform support, SOA standards, and
integration to existing systems to make an ideal choice for most mobile enterprise applications. BPM platforms
are also focused on agile development methodologies, allowing for rapid prototyping and deployment to
support constantly evolving modern enterprises.
For these reasons, Business Process Management Suites (BPMS) with mobile BPM capabilities deliver the
optimum amount of speed to deployment and flexibility for a standard mobile application development
framework. A modern BPMS uses a highly visual design environment that is easy for business users to both
understand and deploy. In many cases, a non-developer can create a complete mobile-enabled process
application without writing a single line of code.
In addition, a BPMS ties together people, data, and systems in cohesive processes on an integrated platform.
By providing a single interface to interact with all systems and participants, BPMS can accelerate user adoption
across the enterprise, significantly reduce training costs, and increase productivity. A single mobile BPM
application can further serve as the main mobile interface for every interaction with a variety of back-end
systems, simplifying mobile development, deployment, and consumerization.
aPPian bPM
Appian is the leading innovator in BPM software and the first to:
• Offer a complete suite both on-premise and in the cloud with full portability
• Provide pure native mobile applications across major device platforms
• Enable process participation for social collaboration and customer engagement
• Deliver a “data-first” platform that enables enterprise data navigation, orchestration, collaboration, and reporting
Accelerate Enterprise Performance with Mobile BPM 6
The Appian BPM Suite is powerful, secure, and comprehensive in its capabilities to meet a full spectrum of
enterprise requirements. Appian includes a natively-integrated Process Modeler and execution engine; business
rules and Forms Designer; Business Activity Monitoring (BAM), reporting and analytics; content management,
social collaboration, data integration, and “write once, deploy anywhere” native mobile applications.
Appian is also simple for end-users to use,
enabling fast BPM adoption. An intuitive
social interface extends process visibility and
participation through native mobile device
access, real-time collaboration, filtered and
personalized views of key business events,
integration to external systems, and the ability
to take direct action. Users can easily access
enterprise information, tasks, records,
reports, and take actions from the device of
their choice.
MobiLe deveLoPMent in aPPian
Instead of taking the inferior HTML5 or hybrid approach, compromising usability and security, Appian provides
pure native mobile applications for all major device platforms. Appian releases a fast and responsive native
mobile application on major device platforms with customized navigation for each device’s characteristics,
enabling rapid user adoption.
Appian’s mobile design approach provides the
best of both worlds between HTML5 and
native mobile applications. This ensures that
Appian customers will get all of these benefits
as part of the integrated Appian BPM Suite:
Appian makes mobile application design simple and powerful through a unique “write-once, deploy anywhere”
architecture. Appian’s mobile and web user experience is powered by Appian SAIL, which allows designers to
quickly create a single user dynamic interface definition, then deploy to native mobile client applications on all
major device platforms and across major web browsers.
Furthermore, application designers can simply drag-and-drop to design mobile process patterns in Appian’s
Process Modeler. Using a graphical Business Process Modeling Notation (BPMN) modeler, even business users
Figure: Key components of the Appian BPM Suite across Process, Data and Social capabilities with user interface for multiple devices and flexible hosting options.
Accelerate Enterprise Performance with Mobile BPM 7
can model and orchestrate processes, define and update rules, create forms and enable them to render natively
in mobile applications. When ready, a designer can test, validate, and publish the new mobile application – all
from the same web interface. Once published, the updated application will be immediately available on virtually
any device with no need to compile code or publish to an app store.
Extensive user management capabilities enable
Appian Administrators to easily view, add, and
edit users and groups to allow the right level of
control and permissions. Providing an intuitive
design environment empowers business
analysts to create powerful mobile BPM
applications, then update them to address new
requirements with speed and ease.
aPPian MobiLe bPM aPPLiCation
Appian provides native mobile client apps for Apple iOS, BlackBerry, and Google Android that enable users to
securely authenticate and interact with your mobile BPM solutions. Users can directly download the Appian
mobile client from each respective app store. After download and installation, Appian authenticates with
designated servers to securely communicate with mobile BPM applications for that organization.
Organizations can custom-brand the Appian
mobile client app for either distribution in the
public app stores, or direct side-loading to
select mobile devices approved to operate with
that organization. Custom-branding the Appian
mobile app provides a unique branded
experience for that organization, with branded
application icons, welcome screens, and menus.
Appian also provides managed branding,
enabling our support organization to entirely
manage the distribution process of mobile
client applications to public app stores for an
Appian customer. Managed branding removes
the IT concerns of working with multiple
application stores and ensures mobile client app versions are always compatible with the latest mobile BPM
applications. Appian’s mobile BPM offering allows employees to stay connected, informed, and empowered
Figure: Appian Process Modeler
Figure: Appian’s native mobile applications
Accelerate Enterprise Performance with Mobile BPM 8
to make important business decisions, regardless of where they are and which mobile device they use. It also
extends BPM participation beyond predefined process participants to include everyone in the organization.
With mobile BPM from Appian, employees, partners, and customers can use market leading smartphone and
tablet devices in a wide spectrum of scenarios across the organization, enabling:
• Executives to see and engage with the key business events, tasks, records, and reports they need to make better, faster decisions in leading the organization
• Suppliers, distributors, and field staff to access enterprise data to receive updates, collaborate, and participate in business processes
• Customers to check account details and related documents, request information, or see the status of a service request
MobiLe bPM Case study: CraWFord & CoMPany
When you need to file an insurance claim, chances are good that Crawford & Company is doing the work. Crawford
(NYSE: CRDA; CRDB), with 700 offices in more than 70 countries, provides outsourced claims management
services used by the largest insurance providers in the world. Crawford Community is a revolutionary mobile and
social application built on Appian that streamlines Crawford’s catastrophe-related resource management, from the
assignment of insurance adjusters to the management of claims and final claim resolution.
In the past, Crawford would assign claims based on Excel spreadsheets, emails, and phone calls. Now, the
company uses Appian’s capabilities and a claim adjuster’s mobile device to allow Crawford to pinpoint the right
adjuster to review a claim, based on GPS positioning, capacity, certifications, past performance scorecards, and
client specifications. Adjusters then use the Appian mobile app to upload electronic claim forms, along with
photos of a claim site, directly from an iPad, iPhone, Android tablet, Android phone, and even a Blackberry.
Using Appian, Crawford is able to optimize adjuster utilization, reduce travel time, and improve the quality and
responsiveness of service levels.
ConCLusion
Enterprise computing is now at an important crossroad driven by the rapid adoption and growth of mobile
devices. Organizations must align their critical business processes with a mobile strategy to maximize
organizational efficiency and customer responsiveness to stay competitive in this era of mobility.
The Appian BPM Suite is the ideal platform for rapid development and deployment of key business processes,
enterprise data, and mobile applications. Appian’s native mobile client is available on every major mobile
platform to provide a single point of access to critical information, tasks, records, reports, and actions that drive
key processes across multiple systems. Download the Appian mobile app today from any of the major app stores
to evaluate how you can accelerate enterprise performance with Appian.
As the market leader in modern Business Process
Management (BPM) software, Appian delivers an
enterprise application platform that unites users
with all their data, processes, and collaborations
— in one environment, on any mobile device,
through a simple social interface. On-premise and
in the cloud, Appian is the fastest way to deliver
innovative business applications.
For more information, visit www.appian.com
1 Source: Cisco Visual Networking Index: Global Mobile Data Traffic Forecast Update, 2012–2017