Process Intelligence Glossary

An action is a smaller, more granular component of an activity. It's the specific step taken to complete a part of the activity.

An activity is a specific, well-defined step within a larger business process. Activities are often grouped together in a sequence to achieve a particular goal.

In a business process context, an agent can refer to a person, software program, or another entity that carries out an activity within a process.

AI-driven Insights are actionable findings generated by artificial intelligence systems through the analysis of data. These insights help organizations make informed decisions, predict trends, and optimize performance.

AI-Powered Process Discovery utilizes artificial intelligence algorithms to automatically discover, document, and analyze business processes. It accelerates the identification of process variations, inefficiencies, and improvement opportunities.

Application Portfolio Rationalization is the process of evaluating and optimizing the collection of software applications within an organization. It aims to eliminate redundancies, improve efficiency, and reduce costs by retaining only those applications that deliver value and align with business objectives.

askSkan is a dialogue-based feature in Skan Wing that uses GenAI to create real-time narrative insights directly from your process intelligence data. It allows you to ask questions and receive clear, actionable answers without requiring extensive data analysis expertise.

Automation Discovery is the process of identifying repetitive, rule-based tasks within business processes that can be automated. It involves mapping out workflows, assessing their suitability for automation, and prioritizing them based on potential benefits such as time savings and error reduction.

Autonomous execution refers to the ability of a system to perform tasks independently, without human intervention. In business terms, it means automating repetitive tasks and workflows within your processes.

The process of identifying stages in a workflow or system that slow down operations or create inefficiencies. This analysis helps organizations pinpoint and address obstacles that hinder optimal performance, leading to smoother, more streamlined processes.

A center of excellence (CoE) is a centralized team within an organization that focuses on a specific area of expertise. CoEs can be established for various areas, such as process management, automation, or data analytics. They serve as a resource center for best practices, knowledge sharing, and driving continuous improvement within their domain.

Compliance refers to the adherence to laws, regulations, standards, and internal policies. It ensures that business operations are conducted ethically and legally, mitigating risks and protecting the organization from legal penalties and reputational damage. Compliance involves regular monitoring, audits, and reporting to ensure conformity with relevant requirements.

Computer Vision is a field of artificial intelligence that enables computers to interpret and make decisions based on visual data. It involves techniques for acquiring, processing, analyzing, and understanding images or videos, allowing machines to perform tasks such as object detection, image recognition, and scene reconstruction.

Continuous improvement is an ongoing effort to enhance products, services, or processes incrementally. It involves gathering feedback, making adjustments, and striving for excellence over time.

Cost vs revenue analysis is a financial analysis that compares the total cost of producing and selling goods or services to the total revenue generated from those sales. This analysis helps businesses understand their profitability and identify areas where they can reduce costs or increase revenue.

A Customer relationship management (CRM) system is a software application that helps businesses manage interactions with customers and potential customers. CRM systems track customer data, support sales and marketing efforts, and improve customer service.

Data discovery involves the collection, analysis, and visualization of data from various sources to uncover hidden patterns, correlations, and insights. It is a crucial step in the data analysis process, enabling organizations to make data-driven decisions and identify opportunities for improvement.

Descriptive analytics is the process of summarizing and describing historical data to understand what has happened in the past. It involves techniques like calculating averages, creating reports, and visualizing data trends.

Diagnostic analytics digs deeper into data to identify the root causes of problems or trends. It involves techniques like data mining and statistical analysis to uncover the "why" behind the data.

Digital adoption is the process of embracing and integrating digital technologies into all aspects of a business to enhance operations, improve customer experiences, and drive innovation. It involves training employees, updating processes, and leveraging new tools and platforms to achieve business goals.

Digital transformation is the integration of digital technologies into all aspects of a business, fundamentally changing how it operates and delivers value to customers. It involves leveraging technology to optimize processes, innovate products/services, and enhance customer engagement.

Digital twin of processes is a virtual model that replicates real-world business processes using data and simulations. It enables organizations to test scenarios, predict outcomes, and optimize processes in a risk-free environment.

Documentation refers to the written or recorded information that describes, explains, or instructs on how to perform a task, operate a system, or understand a process. Good documentation is essential for ensuring consistency, reducing errors, and facilitating knowledge transfer within a company.

An enterprise resource planning (ERP) system is a software suite that integrates and manages core business processes like accounting, inventory management, human resources, and customer relationship management (CRM).

Enterprise AI refers to the application of artificial intelligence technologies within organizational settings. It includes AI-driven solutions tailored to improve decision-making, operational efficiency, and customer experiences across various business functions.

Enterprise transformation refers to the comprehensive restructuring and modernization of an organization's processes, technology, and culture to improve efficiency, competitiveness, and agility. This transformation often involves the adoption of digital technologies, reengineering business processes, and fostering a culture of continuous improvement and innovation.

The Future of Work encompasses the evolving trends and changes in the workplace driven by technological advancements, societal shifts, and economic factors. It includes the integration of AI and automation, the rise of remote and flexible working arrangements, the need for continuous learning and upskilling, and the emphasis on employee well-being and engagement. This concept addresses how these changes will shape the workforce, work environment, and organizational strategies in the coming years.

Generative AI is a subset of artificial intelligence that focuses on creating new content or data by learning patterns from existing data. It uses algorithms, such as generative adversarial networks (GANs) and transformers, to generate text, images, music, and other forms of content that are indistinguishable from human-created output. This technology has applications in various fields, including art, entertainment, healthcare, and business process automation.

The use of advanced technologies, including AI, machine learning, and robotic process automation, to automate complex business processes end-to-end. For example, a company might use hyper automation to automate the entire order-to-cash process, from receiving orders to generating invoices.

Knowledge discovery is the process of using advanced analytics techniques to identify previously unseen patterns, trends, and insights buried within your data.

Machine learning is a subset of artificial intelligence that focuses on building systems that can learn from and make decisions based on data. It involves algorithms and statistical models that allow computers to perform specific tasks without explicit instructions, continually improving their performance as they are exposed to more data.

Manual process discovery is the traditional approach to identifying and understanding business processes through interviews, observations, and manual documentation. This method often requires significant time and effort and may be prone to human error and biases, making it less efficient compared to automated discovery techniques.

A branch of AI that enables machines to understand, interpret, and respond to human language. NLP can be used to analyze unstructured data such as emails, documents, and chats to extract valuable insights and streamline workflows.

Operational Excellence refers to the continuous improvement of processes and systems to achieve sustainable business growth, efficiency, and customer satisfaction. It focuses on eliminating waste, optimizing resources, and delivering high-quality products/services.

Operational intelligence focuses on using data and analytics to improve the day-to-day operations of a business. It involves analyzing data from various sources, such as sales figures, customer interactions, and production processes, to identify trends, opportunities for improvement, and potential problems.

Predictive analytics uses data and statistical models to predict future events or trends. It involves techniques like forecasting and regression analysis to anticipate potential outcomes and make informed decisions.

Prescriptive analytics uses data and algorithms to recommend the best course of action based on specific scenarios. It involves techniques like machine learning and simulation modeling to predict future outcomes and suggest optimal decisions.

Process analysis is the systematic examination of a business process to identify areas for improvement. It often involves techniques like process mapping, process mining, and unit cost analysis. Process analysis helps businesses streamline workflows, reduce costs, and improve overall efficiency.

Process automation involves using technology to execute recurring tasks or processes in a business where manual effort can be replaced. This automation increases efficiency, reduces errors, and frees up human workers to focus on more strategic activities. It includes the use of robotic process automation (RPA), AI, and other digital tools to streamline operations.

Process drift refers to the gradual and often unnoticed changes in a business process over time, which can lead to deviations from the intended process design. This drift can result in inefficiencies, increased errors, and compliance risks. Monitoring and managing process drift is essential for maintaining process integrity and performance.

The process of identifying and mapping out business processes using data and analytics. For example, a company might use process discovery to understand how customer orders are processed, identify bottlenecks, and optimize the workflow.

Process Intelligence refers to the use of AI and advanced analytics to monitor, visualize, and analyze business processes in real-time. It helps organizations gain an end-to-end view of their processes, identify inefficiencies, optimize workflows, and improve operational performance.

A process map is a visual representation of a business process, outlining the sequence of activities, decisions, and agents involved. Process maps are often flowcharts or diagrams that help visualize the steps involved in achieving a specific outcome. They are a valuable tool for understanding, documenting, and improving business processes.

A more advanced process discovery technique that analyzes event logs to visualize and understand business processes in detail. For example, a bank could use process mining to analyze customer onboarding processes, identify inefficiencies, and improve customer experience.

A process model is a more formal representation of a business process, often created using specific modeling languages or software tools. Process models can be more detailed than process maps and can be used for simulation, analysis, and optimization purposes.

Process optimization involves improving business processes to achieve higher efficiency, lower costs, and better-quality outcomes. It encompasses redesigning workflows, eliminating redundancies, and adopting best practices.

ProcessPilot is a Skan Wing feature that keeps your process documentation and standard operating procedures (SOPs) readily available at your fingertips. This helps improve efficiency and reduce errors by ensuring everyone on your team has easy access to the latest process information.

Process revolution refers to a profound transformation in how business processes are designed, managed, and optimized. This involves leveraging advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, and automation to create more efficient, agile, and data-driven processes that significantly improve productivity and operational performance.

Process renaissance signifies a revival or significant advancement in process management and optimization methodologies. It encompasses the integration of modern technologies such as AI, machine learning, and process mining to revolutionize traditional process improvement approaches, leading to more dynamic, efficient, and adaptive business processes.

Process variants are different versions or variations of a business process that occur due to variations in tasks, inputs, or conditions. Identifying and analyzing these variants is crucial for understanding the full scope of process performance and for optimizing and standardizing processes across an organization.

Process transparency is the clear and open visibility into all aspects of a business process, from start to finish. This transparency allows stakeholders to understand how processes are functioning, identify bottlenecks, and ensure compliance with regulations. It is achieved through detailed documentation, real-time monitoring, and comprehensive reporting tools.

Productivity refers to the efficiency with which resources, such as labor and capital, are used to produce goods and services. Higher productivity means more output is generated with the same or fewer inputs. It is a critical measure of economic performance and competitiveness in business.

Quality assurance (QA) is a systematic process designed to ensure that products and services meet specific quality standards and fulfill customer requirements. QA involves establishing quality criteria, conducting audits, and implementing improvements to prevent defects and ensure consistency in production.

Robotic process automation (RPA) is a technology that allows software robots to automate repetitive, rule-based tasks typically performed by humans. RPA tools can automate tasks across various processes, such as data entry, form filling, and report generation.

Simulation involves creating a digital model of a real-world process. This allows you to experiment with different scenarios in a virtual environment, without affecting your actual operations. You can test new strategies, identify potential bottlenecks, and optimize workflows before deployment.

Skan JumpStart is a two-week free trial opportunity to experience the full potential of Skan's process intelligence platform.

Skan Wing is a suite of Generative AI (GenAI) solutions designed to bridge the gap between cutting-edge AI and your specific business needs. Powered by ProcessGPT, it combines the power of AI with real-time process intelligence data to uncover hidden inefficiencies within your operations, guide workflows by providing insights and recommendations, automate tasks using GenAI for smoother and error-free execution.

A standard operating procedure (SOP) is a documented set of instructions that outlines the exact steps required to complete a specific task or process consistently.

Standardization refers to the process of establishing consistent practices, procedures, and specifications across an organization. Standardization helps to ensure quality, improve efficiency, and reduce costs.

A subject matter expert (SME) is a person in the clients’ company with deep knowledge and expertise in a specific process or domain. Their insights and guidance are crucial for configuring Skan's virtual assistant to effectively monitor and interact with various systems relevant to the process. This ensures the virtual assistant acts appropriately and provides valuable assistance to users.

Task mining captures user interactions with software applications to analyze and identify patterns in task execution. It provides a narrow, task-level view of processes, focusing on unstructured data, which is ideal for low-complexity robotic process automation (RPA). This technique helps in understanding how specific tasks are performed, uncovering inefficiencies, and pinpointing opportunities for automation and improvement. However, it does not offer an end-to-end process view.

Technology insights are data-driven analytics derived from Skan to analyze clients’ digital investments (ERP, CRM, etc.) to reveal how effectively they are used. This helps clients minimize software costs and maximize return on investment by optimizing their technology stack.

Transformational intelligence refers to the use of data and analytics to drive significant and lasting changes within an organization. It goes beyond simply reporting on data and aims to identify opportunities for innovation, growth, and process improvement.

Turnaround time (TAT) refers to the amount of time it takes to complete a particular activity or process, from start to finish. It's a key metric for measuring efficiency and identifying potential bottlenecks within a workflow.

Unified process view provides a comprehensive and integrated perspective of business processes across an organization. It consolidates data from various sources to offer a holistic view that facilitates better decision-making and strategic planning.

Unit cost analysis is the process of determining the exact cost associated with completing a single unit of work. This unit could be a physical product, a completed service, or the final output of a specific activity within a larger process. Unit cost analysis helps businesses identify areas for cost optimization and improve overall efficiency.

Unit cost of work (UCOW) is a specific type of unit cost analysis that focuses on the cost of completing a single unit of work within a business process.

Skan's unique Virtual Assistant is a lightweight software that sits on the front end of a user's device, leveraging computer vision to observe workflows in real time. It captures and stitches together data attributes using AI, providing seamless insights into processes without intruding on the user’s experience.

What-if analysis is a powerful tool that lets you explore potential outcomes of different decisions or scenarios. By creating simulations in a virtual environment, you can predict the impact of changes before actually implementing them. This helps you make informed decisions and avoid costly mistakes.

Workflow automation automates repetitive tasks and workflows using technology, such as AI and robotic process automation (RPA). It aims to increase productivity, reduce errors, and accelerate process execution.

Workforce insights are data-driven analytics derived from Skan's process intelligence platform. These insights provide valuable information about how employees work, measured through key metrics like productivity, proficiency, utilization and skill gaps.

Workforce monitoring refers to the practice of tracking and analyzing employee activity on computers and other digital devices. This can include monitoring keystrokes, website visits, applications used, and time spent on tasks. Workforce monitoring is often used to improve productivity, ensure compliance with company policies, and identify security risks.

A process management approach that separates tasks into two streams—one for standard processes and one for exceptions—before merging them back into a unified workflow. Skan's platform helps manage the complexity of Y-model processes by providing visibility into both streams and optimizing their coordination.