Wptapthepowerofthecollaborativeemployee PDF
Wptapthepowerofthecollaborativeemployee PDF
Wptapthepowerofthecollaborativeemployee PDF
Collaborative Employee
Driving Digital Business and Engagement through
an Application Platform
Executive Summary
Introduction
The good news is that digital transformation is more common in the workforce than ever before
Business is rapidly changing, but our goals remain the same. Regardless of the industry we claim
(only four percent of respondents expressed digital transformation as not being a priority for their
as a profession (financial services, insurance, retail, government, etc.) we all strive for the same
company). Technologies that were once only discussed as forwarding looking ideas are now
goals when it comes to growing the business, exceeding customer expectations, and ensuring
driving factors in helping business maintain a competitive advantage and attract new customers.
work productivity.
At the same time, innovative technology has matured to become applicable across a vast spread
of industries. In financial services, improved interactions from social collaboration allow financial
and current goals in process excellence. The results provided compelling insight into what
analysts to create a more personalized experience for the customers who put their trust in wealth
organizations value in terms of process improvement, digital business transformation, and where
management services. Mobile enablement plays a crucial role for retailers that are now equipped
with tablets and devices to conduct on-site store inspections in real-time, a crucial component in
As we move further and further along in this fast-paced digital age, many functions of our dayto-day job responsibilities have and will continue to alter. Were on the go, more mobile than
ever. Were able to process greater amounts of information at an increased rate, allowing critical
business decisions to be turned into smarter actions more quickly.
preserving customer brand loyalty. And in the highly-regulated pharmaceutical space, improved
access to data and analytics allows drug companies to better comply with frequently-changing
regulation mandates.
And theres more on the way. More than half of respondents view their companys approach to
technology as successful. More than 70 percent of respondents state that up to a quarter of
Catching up to Innovation
Business has responded to the challenge and opportunity of mobile, social, and cloud
technology. Today, most leading organizations have developed a business strategy to meet
their enterprise business applications are already mobile, and when it comes to cloud, nearly 40
percent of respondents believe that as much as half of their business applications will be hosted in
the cloud this time next year.
increased customer service requirements through apps on our phones, on our tablets, and
in the Cloud. This embrace of digital innovation has driven investment in customer-facing
It is more crucial than ever that business act quickly to stay ahead of the competition. In recent
According to the survey, 37 percent of respondents cited data and analytics as the most important
emerging technology to their business success, with enterprise mobility a close second, coming in
years, technologies like mobile, social and cloud has been the ingredient to ignite operational
speed and ensure prosperous companies.
at 30 percent of respondents.* This makes sense, as data and mobility have been hot topics in the
But, as they say, you get better or worse, theres no staying the same. The challenge ahead
for business lies in a shift in innovative ideology. Forward-thinking organizations must look at
business transformation holistically, not a series of applications that serve a single purpose.
Though each technology mentioned above certainly plays a role in successful business, they
alone do not meet sustainable growth and customer needs. An app-by-app development
methodology, or business siloed approach, creates a huge burden for IT departments.
A singular purpose app development approach only adds to the poor spending of money that
has created a major flaw in the custom application industry. According to the survey results,
nearly 40 percent of business professionals say their company has a huge backlog of
development work making them slow to implement new technologies. Further halting this
development, 60 percent stated employees still do not have access to key enterprise data
or core business procedures accessible via mobile platform limiting the value of enterprise
mobility for todays on-the-go work environment.
developed applications to serve a single function of business. This could be a mobile solution to
approve timesheets and expense reports, or an application that automates the request processes
for office supplies. These are traditional BPM workflow apps, delivered in the traditional (that is
to say, outdated) way. The challenge developers face is a two-step process: Cease the single-
Modern workplace technologies play a crucial role in the engagement level of employees. Too
purpose application development mindset, and embrace an enterprise platform that encompasses
often, we look at building applications strictly to serve a particular business function or customer
need. While this is important, applications must first serve the workforce before they can truly
To provide a concrete example, lets look back at the retail store inspection application mentioned
earlier. At the on-set, the business value of this application is its mobile enablement. Having a
store inspector walk around a particular location using an iPad to assign scores is much more
efficient than pen and paper data compiling.
Consequently, limiting the innovation to mobility does not make this a modern application. There
must be data to support the app, providing store performance history to the inspector. Is the
application hosted in the cloud or on-premise? What does the inspector do once data is collected?
Is there a collaborative interaction with the store manager? Using a traditional design approach,
each of these functions would be its own app, creating maintenance difficulties and high cost of
development for the organization.
ignite behavioral change at the customer level. A mobile app allowing customers to place an
order or lodge an issue is great. But what about the people within the organization that must
then do the actual work to fulfill that request? Where is the cloud, mobile and social technology
innovation for them?
Business applications must be transparent and visible to employees across the entire organization.
Informed, engaged employees are the foundation of the customer experience, and the source of
increased work productivity and performance growth. Well-designed apps must enable business
people to do their work in the same easy and flexible manner that customers can now engage
with a company. Rigid, complicated, hard-coded, and siloed IT solutions will not cut it. Business
employees and IT must collaborate through a shared visual model of business records and
processes to deliver new products and improve customer service. This collaboration and control
over their work empowers and engages employees across the company.
Enterprise applications designed to enhance the employee experience provide the mechanism to
rally around a business cause for change. Collaboration, coaching, and feedback are at the heart of
Appians approach to process improvement focuses on the entire enterprise itself, as opposed
every great company. Employee engagement begins with a strategic vision, but success requires
to developing a series of apps that each addresses a single function of business. An application
human connections. The challenge for IT developers is to incorporate business solutions that allow
platform that touches all levels of business keeps employees engaged, regardless of their
work to get done across an entire employee base, where employees are empowered with the
department or title. Appians design approach better engages developers by enabling them to build
applications without writing code. A shared, visual model of the business empowers collaboration,
measurement, and agile response leading to improved engagement company-wide.
Conclusion
lies in one approach. Rather than looking at one-off applications, new platforms have arisen to
No technology alone can ensure employee engagement, but enterprise platforms combine agile
meet a broad range of needs across the organization. Such an application platform leverages the
delivery methodologies in ways no previous technology can match. Appians modern application
technology innovations of data, process, mobility, collaboration, and cloud to radically accelerate
platform is designed around continuous improvement and enables design flexibility for organizations
application delivery. This is the necessary ingredient to cost-effectively evolve the entire business
to keep up with the fast-paced digital world. This approach empowers employees to experiment,
not just the customer-facing front end across the digital divide.
take risk, and test new products and service lines, adding to their overall feeling of self-worth.
This approach is what Appian calls the modern enterprise application platform to deliver business
The Appian application platform allows business to address their toughest challenges through
transformation. To ensure rapid business innovation, IT needs a single application platform that
modern development. This easy to use, code-free environment keeps employees excited to develop
integrates process, data, mobility, collaboration, and cloud. Thats what Appian delivers.
the next great solution to address a customers ever changing demands and needs, ultimately
Appians application platform design transforms legacy business systems into cutting-edge mobile,
social and cloud connected engines of change and empowerment. More importantly, an application
platform enables your employees to keep up with a 24/7 consumer culture with continuous
improvement, rapid product introduction, and improved customer engagement.
About 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.