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About this DocumentThis document outlines learning objectives and key learning points supported by the IBM Innov8 2.0 BPM “Serious Game” and provides instructions for installing and playing the game.
Contents
Recommendation for Incorporating INNOV8 and associated collateral into a curriculum....................................................................................2
Goals:..................................................................................................2Objectives:..........................................................................................2Target Audiences:...............................................................................2Collateral includes:..............................................................................3How to get started:.............................................................................3
Updates from Version 1.0.......................................................................4Accessing and Installing Innov8 on Windows® Platforms.......................4Innov8 2.0 Learning Objectives, Game Scenario Synopsis, Activities and Discussion Points.............................................................................8Learning Objective 1: Understanding the Business Process Manage-ment (BPM) Lifecycle..............................................................................9
Suggested Activities:.........................................................................13Learning Objective 2: Glossary of BPM-Related Terminology...............13Learning Objective 2: Additional Learning Points Illustrated within In-nov8 2.0...............................................................................................21
Suggested Activities:.........................................................................23Tips for Playing Innov8.........................................................................23BlueWorks............................................................................................31Want More?..........................................................................................33
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Recommendation for Incorporating INNOV8 and associated collateral into a curriculum
Goals:
The goals of INNOV8 are - To introduce the basic concepts of Services Oriented
Architecture (SOA) and Business Process Management (BPM) to future business and IT leaders
- To address a skills gap in SOA and BPM- To provide a complimentary education offering that can
be incorporated into IBM’s existing BPM curriculum
Objectives:Upon successfully completing the game and subsequent classroom activities and discussion points, the student should be able to:
1. Understand the basic business process management lifecycle, from process discovery and modeling through process monitoring and management.
2. Understand additional key business process manage-ment terminology and concepts
Target Audiences: 1. Business school professors and students (undergrad-
uate, MBA and Executive MBA programs)2. Computer science professors and students3. Customers: Current business / IT analysts4. Customers: Call center agents5. Customers: Operations specialists
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Collateral includes:1. INNOV8 2.0 Academic Edition downloadable game2. Two mini games: supply chain & traffic (online)3. Smart Work: 3D Interactive case studies (online)4. Pre and post usage surveys (online)5. developerWorks Communities (online)6. Instruction Manual7. BlueWorks Models
How to get started:Step 1: We recommend that the course begin with the Innov8 2.0 Academic edition of the game in a facilitated environment, using this manual as a guide. Review this entire guide for suggested activities and discussion points based on key insights spread throughout the game. Please have your students complete the surveys linked to from the final score page. The data from these surveys will help prove our case for the creation of more games of this nature.
Step 2: Upon completion, the game will show a final screen with links to the online mini games. These mini games are a great way to extend the BPM learning into new scenarios.
Step 3: Ask your participants to experience Smart Work: 3D Interactive to see how real customers tackled the problems showcased in the online mini games. http://www-01.ibm.com/software/solutions/soa/innov8/smartwork.html
Step 4: Finally, our developerWorks communities are a great way to share experiences post-gameplay. These communities will include thought leaders who are prac-ticing within the areas of traffic, supply chain and cus-
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tomer service and who will be mingling with students and professionals alike.
Updates from Version 1.0
Puzzle interface redesign for all levels Glossary Addition 3D Interface upgrade Toolset upgrade Surveys (online) Community (online) Additional Mini games (online) New events in Nerve center
Accessing and Installing Innov8 on Windows® Platforms1. Customers: Innov8 is available at no charge to IBM cus-
tomers through our Customer Ambassador Program but is not available for public distribution or resale. IBM ambas-sadors must register their customers in order for their cus-tomers to be able to use Innov8. Customers must agree to the license terms before playing.
2. Academics: Innov8 is available at no charge to aca-demic faculty for teaching or research purposes. It is cur-rently being distributed through the IBM Academic Initia-tive. If you are not already a member of the IBM Academic Initiative, you will be required to join to gain access to IN-NOV8. Membership is free. Beyond providing access to In-nov8, the AI program provides faculty members with many benefits, including free use of an extensive portfolio of IBM software products and education assets. You can join the IBM Academic Initiative at
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http://www-304.ibm.com/jct09002c/university/scholars/aca-demicinitiative/ 3. Note the following Innov8 Technical Requirements
OS: Microsoft Windows Vista/XP/2000/Me/98RAM: 128 MB RAMDisk space: Approximately 750MBProcessor: Pentium III or Athlon 800 MHz or greaterSound: 16-bit DirectX 9.0c-compatible sound card and driversCD-ROM: 4x CD-ROM drive and driversVideo card: 3D hardware accelerator card, for optimal performance:
- nVidia GeForce2 or equivalent ATI card (or higher);- DirectX 9.0c (compliant 32 MB Video card and drivers)
4. Steps have been taken to enable Innov8 to run on sys-tems that do not meet the precise video card (nVidia and ATI) specifications stated above. Generally speaking, if your system is DirectX 9.03c compliant, there is a reason-able expectation that the game will run. Inevitably, there will be exceptions to this rule-of-thumb. Moreover, in some environments – where key graphics card functions have been emulated within the software – Innov8 may run but with unacceptably slow performance.
5. The current set-up should allow the game to launch re-gardless of the video feature set available on your system. If a warning message appears, there is a chance the game will exit shortly after that message. Otherwise the game should function correctly.
6. If your system is DirectX 9.03c compliant and you still experience problems installing or launching the game, please use the following procedure to collect infor-mation for our developers.
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a) Click “Start” on the Windows taskbar at the bottom of the screen.
b) Click “Run” c) Type in “dxdiag”; without the quotes d) Click “Ok”. e) Click the third tab labeled “Display” to view your video
card and driver informationf) Click “Save all information” to save the screen informa-
tion to a new file on your computer.g) Send the saved file to Michael Buss ([email protected]
com)7. If you are replacing a previously-installed version of In-
nov8, go to Start > Settings > Control Panel and use Add or Remove Programs to remove the previous in-stallation of Innov8 from your system before installing the new version.
8. Once a member of IBM Academic Initiative (see #1), you can download Innov8 by following the instructions at: http://www.ibm.com/innov8
9. Note: We request that you do not provide this link directly to students, but instead distribute the zip file and instructions using your own means.
10. Navigate to the down-loaded zip file. Right-click on it and click Extract All… and use the Compressed Folders Extraction Wizard to extract the contents of the zip file.
11. Find the extracted setup.exe file and double-click to in-voke the Innov8 InstallShield Wizard.
12. Click Next on the InstallShield welcome screen.13. Accept the terms of the IBM license agreement and
click Next.14. Click Next to install to the selected folder, or click
Change to install to a different folder.
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15. Click Install to begin the installation.16. Click Yes to accept the Microsoft DirectX Software Li-
cense Terms.17. Click Finish to exit the InstallShield Wizard.18. The install process should create a shortcut on your
Windows Desktop. Click the shortcut or navigate to where Innov8 has been installed, find INNOV8.exe, and double-click to launch the game.
19. If a shortcut is not automatically created on your desk-top, to expedite launching in the future, right-click on IN-NOV8.exe and click Create Shortcut, then drag the Shortcut to INNOV8.exe file to your desktop. As long as you install future copies of Innov8 in the same location, the same shortcut should work.
20. It is possible to run Innov8 in full screen mode. We do not recommend full screen mode at this time, as perfor-mance is slower and can result in situations where you ‘lose’ your cursor. However, if you want to test it or just see how it looks, you can go to Start > Run, click Browse to locate the INNOV8.exe file, and then add the switch “/fullscreen” (without the quotes) after the path/file name. Then click OK to launch the game.
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Innov8 2.0 Learning Objectives, Game Scenario Synopsis, Activities and Discussion Points
This section provides the learning objectives, game scenario synopsis, and suggested activities and discussion points for use in both an academic and training environment.
Upon successfully completing the game and subsequent classroom activities and discussion points, the student should be able to:
1. Understand the basic business process management lifecycle, from process discovery and modeling through process monitoring and management.
2. Understand additional key business process manage-ment terminology and concepts
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Learning Objective 1: Understanding the Busi-ness Process Management (BPM) LifecycleThe Innov8 storyline and game flow are meant to portray the progression of the game’s main character through and around key activities over the life of a virtual process im-provement project… and hence through the stages of the BPM Lifecycle:
BPM Lifecycle Activity
Game Level 1
Understanding the As-Is Business Process
Game Level 2
Building the To-Be Business Process
Game Level 3
Monitoring and Man-aging the New Busi-
ness Process
BPM Lifecycle Overview
“BPM 101” video shown on the large screen in the Level 1 entry area illus-trates and explains the BPM lifecycle at a high level
Prioritizing Process Improve-
ment Projects
Opening Cinematic: Mike provides Logan with a Component Business Model Heat Map to guide the process improvement effort
Process DiscoveryLogan obtains an existing process map from the computer on Stavros’ desk.
Stella helps Logan under-stand how the As-Is process has changed.
Logan discovers data to populate the process model:- KPI’s from Operations- Headcount levels from HR- Labor costs from Finance- Call statistics from Oper-ations
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BPM Lifecycle Activity
Game Level 1
Understanding the As-Is Business Process
Game Level 2
Building the To-Be Business Process
Game Level 3
Monitoring and Man-aging the New Busi-
ness Process
As data is collected, Logan incorporates it into the As-Is model. (Player can view by clicking Net > Model)
Process Model Con-struction
Logan initially imports a process map
Stella helps Logan create a new model by dragging and dropping elements into process model swim lanes.
Logan selects design ele-ments that match stated requirements.
Process Require-ments-Gathering
Logan participates in global collaboration to collect To-Be process re-quirements from col-leagues.
Sharon shares input on process issues gold-cus-tomer input on current process issues
Process Analysis Logan finds a proposal on Virtual Agent (VA) technol-ogy which contains analy-sis of potential VA effec-tiveness.
Logan uses simulation to analyze the performance of the As-Is model and val-idate it against empirical data.
Colleagues provide Logan with information that theyhave derived through their own analysis:
Logan uses simulation to analyze use cases and answer “what-if” ques-tions from Mike.
Logan publishes simula-tion results to colleagues to garner validation and feedback.
Logan can review and ana-lyze process metrics within the KPI VIEW, to determine necessary process adjust-ments.
Process DesignLogan selects design ele-ments that match stated requirements.
Logan publishes step-by-
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BPM Lifecycle Activity
Game Level 1
Understanding the As-Is Business Process
Game Level 2
Building the To-Be Business Process
Game Level 3
Monitoring and Man-aging the New Busi-
ness Processstep model refinements to garner feedback.
Process Implemen-tation and Deploy-
ment
The As-Is process has al-ready been deployed when Logan is first introduced to the situation.
Sam refers to implementa-tion and deployment in first interaction with Lo-gan.
In IT, Logan (optionally) discovers software product boxes for tools used by IT to implement and deploy processes.
Logan (optionally) discov-ers Business Process Exe-cution Language (BPEL) di-agram on whiteboard within IT
Sam and Tomas mention various implementation tasks during global col-laboration.
Staged implementation of improvements occurs as Business Rules, Knowledge Base, Virtual Agent tech-nology, and customer in-terfaces are introduced separately over time.
Process Monitoring Logan finds KPI’s during (optional) interaction with Sharon and posted on wall within Operations.
Logan can monitor process effectiveness through the HOLISTIC VIEW within the Nerve Center User Inter-face (UI).
Logan can review “real-time” Key Performance In-dicators within the KPI VIEW.
Logan receives “real-time” process alerts.
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BPM Lifecycle Activity
Game Level 1
Understanding the As-Is Business Process
Game Level 2
Building the To-Be Business Process
Game Level 3
Monitoring and Man-aging the New Busi-
ness Process
Process Manage-ment
Sam mentions dynamic business rules capability during collaboration on routing schemes.
Logan adjusts business rules to modify process flow dynamically.
Logan adjusts human re-source levels.
Logan makes investment decisions regarding Virtual Agent technology.
Logan can switch in-flight workload between part-ners.
Continuous Im-provement and Optimization
Mike reconvenes the global collaboration team to consider feedback from gold customers and make further process im-provements
Mike sees the need for continued process refine-ment after the initial To-Be model is put into produc-tion.
Suggested Activities:
1. Discuss the reasoning behind decisions made in the game.
2. Discuss possible resource allocations as a group, and try running through game again with levels decided by consensus.
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Learning Objective 2: Glossary of BPM-Related Terminology Innov8 introduces the student to a number of terms and phrases as-sociated with Business Process Management:
Word or Phrase Definition Context within Innov8Activity
A unit of work performed in a busi-ness process. Sub-processes, tasks, and services are examples of activi-ties.
Mentioned by Sam during the Drag & Drop tutorial and by Stella as she de-scribes how the process really works.
Alert In the context of BPM, an automatic notification from the process server that a significant event has hap-pened or a key threshold has been reached.
The panel in the upper right of the Level 3 Nerve Center monitor screen shows “real-time” process alerts.
ArchitectIn the context of IT, 1) (verb) to map available hardware, software, mes-sage protocols, etc, against applica-tion or process requirements, in an effort to meet key metrics around performance, security, budget, etc. 2) (noun) a specialized role within the software development commu-nity that concerns itself with the above.
Architecting processes is mentioned in the BPM video that plays on the screen in the Level 1 entry area.
In the Level 2 Collaboration exercise, Logan meets Tomas, Lead IT Architect
“As-Is” Process Model
A model of a business process as it exists currently, prior to process im-provement efforts.
Mentioned by Sam when Logan first meets her, and again by Mike at the beginning of the Level 2 Collaboration meeting.
Business Agility The ability of a business to respond rapidly to marketplace dynamics, without delay due to required IT in-frastructure changes
At beginning of the Level 2 Collabora-tion meeting, Mike indicates he is seeking greater Business Agility.
Business Analyst A specialist who analyzes business needs and problems, consults with users and stakeholders to identify opportunities for improving business return through information technol-ogy, and transforms requirements into a technical form.
At the beginning of game play, Stavros introduces himself as “Busi-ness Analyst Extraordinaire”.
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Word or Phrase Definition Context within Innov8
Business Architec-ture
“The grouping of business functions and related business objects into clusters (“business domains”) over which meaningful accountability can be taken” (Wikipedia)
Mike provides Logan with a “Business Architecture Heat Map” during the opening cinematic.
Once game play begins, the player can view AFTER Inc.’s Business Archi-tecture by clicking Net>Heat Map
Business Process Any activity or set of activities per-formed within a company or organi-zation. In the context of modeling software, a process is a progres-sively continuing procedure consist-ing of a series of activities that are systematically directed toward a particular result or end.
Mike introduces the term in the Open-ing Cinematic as he gives Logan her mission.
A definition and illustration are pro-vided within the BPM movie shown on the screen in the entry area of Level 1.
Business Process Execution Lan-guage (BPEL)
A business process modeling lan-guage used by IT for the formal specification of business processes and business interaction protocols. BPEL is an executable language that orchestrates actions; for example, when to send or wait for messages. BPEL extends the basic Web ser-vices interaction model to support Business-to-Business exchanges.
A BPEL diagram appears on a white-board on the rear left wall in the main IT room.
Business Process Management (BPM)
A structured, often cross-functional approach - combining management methods with information technology - to improving business processes over time or adapting them to meet new customer or mar-ket needs.
Mike introduces the term in the Open-ing Cinematic as he gives Logan her mission.
A definition and illustration are pro-vided within the BPM movie shown on the screen in the entry area of Level 1.
Business Process Management Life-
cycle
The lifecycle of management-initi-ated activities that lead to continu-ous process improvement over time. You architect and build a base process, implement the process, ob-serve and analyze process perfor-mance, and then make changes to improve the process. And then you repeat the cycle, over and over, un-til the process is eventually retired.
Referred to and illustrated within the BPM movie shown on the screen in the entry area of Level 1.
Business Process Model
An abstract or conceptual represen-tation of a business process usually developed for understanding, ana-lyzing, improving, or replacing the
First mentioned by Sam when meet-ing Logan.
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Word or Phrase Definition Context within Innov8process being represented. A model can include representations of activ-ities, relationships, information flows, and constraints.
Business Rules In the context of BPM, a program-ming device by which business strategies are implemented and au-tomatically enforced by the applica-tion or Process Server. Modern BPM systems often allow the Line of Busi-ness to modify business rules “on the fly” without having to modify the underlying IT infrastructure.
Business Rules are mentioned first by Sam during the Level 2 Collaboration, as a means to route calls to Partners under certain conditions.
CIO (Chief Informa-tion Officer)
A commonly used job title for the highest-ranking executive who over-sees the information technology group within an enterprise.
When Logan first meets Sam, Sam in-dicates that the CIO has mandated the use of the modeling software Lo-gan will use.
Collaboration “A structured, recursive process where two or more people work together by building consensus and sharing knowledge in an intellectual endeavor toward a common goal which is typically creative in nature. Collaboration does not require leadership and can even bring better results through decentralization and egalitarianism.” (Wikipedia)
Collaboration is first mentioned by Sharon if/when Logan meets her in the Level 1 entry area.
She and Mike co-host the “Global Col-laboration” meeting that is the basis for Level 2.
Connection A link between two elements in a process map or diagram. Connec-tions are typically used to specify the chronological sequence of activi-ties in a process.
Mentioned by Sam in the Drag and Drop tutorial. Then, as Logan builds the As-Is model, we see the model el-ements auto-connect.
Connections also appear in various model diagrams in the BPM video and throughout Levels 1, 2, and 3.
Core Activities (a.k.a. core compe-
tencies)
Strategic business capabilities that must be performed well, in order for the business to thrive. Businesses often seek synergy with one an-other, by outsourcing their own non-core activities to external partners who view the very same activities as their core activities.
During the Collaboration, Mike asks his team to identify non-core activities that can be minimized.
Dashboard In the context of IT, a business man-agement tool used to visually ascer-tain the status (or "health") of a business process or enterprise via
The monitor screen that Logan sees in the Level 3 Nerve Center (with its KPI panel) is representative of a business dashboard.
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Word or Phrase Definition Context within Innov8key performance indicators.
Decision Symbol A process element that routes an in-put to one of several alternative out-going paths, depending on its condi-tion. A decision is like a question that determines the exact set of ac-tivities to perform during a process run. Questions might include "What type of order?" and "How will the or-der be shipped?"
The “decision” symbol is defined and first used during the Drag and Drop challenge in Level1.
It also appears in model diagrams in the BPM video and throughout Levels 2 and 3.
Flexible Infrastruc-ture
An IT infrastructure that has been architected specifically to provide business agility - capable of re-sponding dynamically to both planned and unplanned business events.
Mike suggests in the Level 2 Collabo-ration that proposed changes are re-sulting in a more Flexible Infrastruc-ture.
“Heat Map” In the context of Component Busi-ness Modeling, a graphical repre-sentation of data wherein the con-centration of multiple factors under investigation is illustrated by a cor-responding concentration of colors in the model. A heat map can be used to identify the greatest oppor-tunities for reducing costs, deliver-ing competitive advantage, or other factors.
Mike provides Logan with a “Business Architecture Heat Map” during the opening cinematic.
Once game play begins, the player can view AFTER Inc.’s Business Archi-tecture by clicking Laptop>Files>Heat Map
“Import” To bring a model design – created within one tool – into a second tool, thereby saving time and reducing human errors due to re-keying. For example, a model developed by a Business Analyst may be imported into development or integration tooling used by IT.
Near the end of the Level 2 Collabora-tion, Sam indicates she will import Lo-gan’s To-Be model into tooling used by IT.
Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s)
A significant measurement used to track performance against a busi-ness objective. A key performance indicator has a target or ranges, or both, to measure the improvement or deterioration in the performance of an activity that is critical to the business.
First mentioned by Sharon if/when Lo-gan meets her in the Level 1 entry area.
Later, Logan finds AFTER Inc Call Cen-ter KPI’s posted on a wall in Opera-tions.
Knowledge Base (a.k.a. Repository)
“A special kind of database for knowledge management. It provides the means for the computerized col-lection, organization, and retrieval of knowledge.” (Wikipedia)
Mentioned by Sam during the Level 2 Collaboration as a means to collect and store call information for later re-trieval.
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Word or Phrase Definition Context within Innov8Merge Symbol A process element that recombines
multiple processing paths, typically after a decision. A merge brings several alternative paths together.
A “merge” symbol is defined and first used during the Drag and Drop chal-lenge in Level1.
Portal “A Web framework for integrating information, applications, and pro-cesses across organizational bound-aries.” (Wikipedia)
The monitor screen that Logan sees in the Level 3 Nerve Center is represen-tative of a business portal.
Process Automa-tion
A process that businesses use to contain costs, by deploying and integrating software applicationss and cutting labor wherever possible.
In Level 1 play, Logan may discover a proposal for Virtual Agent technology that automates call-handling. During the Level 2 Collaboration, Mike asks if it is not possible to automate the handling of certain calls.
Process Deploy-ment
The actions that IT takes, to move a process from the development and test environment into production.
Deployment is mentioned in the BPM video that plays on the screen in the Level 1 entry area.
In the main IT room, Logan may ex-amine product boxes for software that AFTER Inc apparently uses to “deploy and run business processes.
Process Implemen-tation
The actions that IT takes, to convert the business process model into working application code that runs on specific computer hardware and software.
During the Level 2 Collaboration, Sam mentions implementing Virtual Agent and Knowledge Base technologies.
Process Improve-ment
1. A proactive set of management activities aimed at identifying, analyzing, adapting and improving existing business processes to meet specific goals and objectives. 2. An incremental result of such activity.
During the BPM video shown on the screen in the Level 1 entry area, process improvement is mentioned as a basic objective of BPM.
Process Innovation A change in a process which results in a radical shift in process metrics and/or structure, typically in re-sponse to evolutionary changes in the marketplace.
During the BPM video shown on the screen in the Level 1 entry area, inno-vation is mentioned as a means to dramatically reduce the cost and time of business adaptation.
Process Map (a.k.a. Process Diagram)
A diagram that depicts the activities and decisions that are performed within a business process and the order (chronological time sequence) in which they are performed. Process maps are augmented with various element attributes, such as costs and durations, to yield more comprehensive process models to
When Sam first meets Logan Sam ad-vises to look for someone in Opera-tions who may have a Process Map to use as a starting point.
Logan retrieves one of several process maps from the computer on Stavros’ desk.
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Word or Phrase Definition Context within Innov8support simulations and other process analysis tasks.
Process Model A typically visual representation of a real business process that is com-posed of the individual steps or ac-tivities that make up the process, contains the conditions that dictate when they occur, and identifies the resources required for its perfor-mance or run.
First mentioned in the BPM video that plays on the screen in the Level 1 en-try way, and again by Sam when Lo-gan first meets her.
Process Model Ele-ments
Distinct, self-contained units of a business process map or model. Ex-amples of elements are tasks, deci-sions, merges, and connections.
Sam discusses the various model ele-ments during the tutorial for the Drag and Drop exercise.
Process Server Specialized software platform for ex-ecuting and “choreographing” busi-ness processes during run-time (i.e. in production).
During the Level 2 Collaboration, Tomas mentions the Process Server as the group discusses dynamic selec-tion of services.
“Publishing” In the context of process modeling, the notion of posting a copy of a modeling project or some of its ele-ments to a server for review and ref-erence by process stakeholders.
First mentioned by Sam when Logan first meets her.
Then, Logan has to publish her inter-mediate results during the Collabora-tion meeting.
Service A capability – typically external to an organization - that can be utilized repeatedly within the processes of that organization, using a pre-scribed interface. Services typically implement functionalities most humans would recognize as services, such as checking an individual’s credit history, or placing an airline ticket order. Services that can be invoked over the World Wide Web are referred to as Web services.
Logan mentions services in the con-text of SOA if/when she finds the book in the Level 1 entry area.
She mentions services again if/when she finds the Service Lifecycle or the BPEL diagram in the main IT room.
Then, Sam and Tomas mention ser-vices several times in the Level 2 Col-laboration.
Services Registry A software facility for storing basic information about services, includ-ing how to interact with the service, who has access rights to the ser-vice, and which applications cur-rently use the service.
Mentioned by Tomas, during the Level 2 Collaboration, as a mechanism for enabling dynamic service selection.
Simulation A key analytical capability providing faster-than-real-time execution of a process in a virtual environment. Simulation enables organizations to observe how a process is likely to
First mentioned by Sam when Logan first meets her.
Logan uses simulation to validate the As-Is model.
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Word or Phrase Definition Context within Innov8perform in response to variations of inputs to the process. Simulation output can provide detailed informa-tion regarding resource usage levels and the results of cost and cycle-time calculations.
Logan uses it again to explore To-Be model use cases during the Level 2 Collaboration.
SOA (Services Ori-ented Architecture)
A business-centric IT architectural approach that supports integrating business as linked, repeatable busi-ness tasks, or services. SOA helps users build composite applications, which are applications that draw upon functionality from multiple sources within and beyond the en-terprise to support end-to-end busi-ness processes.
The book lying on one of the tables in the Level 1 entry area is titled “SOA and Web 2.0 – The New Language of Business”.
Logan’s corresponding “thought dia-logue” expands on the SOA acronym.
SOA Governance SOA governance is an extension of IT governance that focuses on the lifecycle of services and composite applications in an organization’s ser-vice-oriented architecture (SOA). Key functions of SOA governance are 1) to define decision rights for the development, deployment and management of new services, and 2) to monitor, capture and commu-nicate results.
Mentioned in Logan’s “thought dia-logue” if/when she finds the Services Lifecycle screen saver in the main IT room.
Standards-Based Tooling
The notion that some tooling imple-ments and enforces accepted indus-try standards – including protocols and user interface elements - that enable interoperability and ex-change of information between tools, and facilitate rapid assimila-tion of the tooling by new users.
When Logan first meets Sam, Sam in-dicates that the CIO has mandated the use of standards-based tooling.
“Swim Lane” Derived from an analogy to lanes in a swimming pool, a visually sepa-rated row in a process flow diagram that groups all the activities in the process that are performed by a particular combination of roles, re-sources, organizations, or locations.
Swim Lanes are explained by Sam during the Drag and Drop tutorial and illustrated during the Drag and Drop challenge.
Task The lowest unit of work (activity) represented in a process model dia-gram.
The “task” symbol is defined and used during the Drag and Drop challenge. The symbol is also used in process di-agrams throughout Levels 1, 2 and 3.
“To-Be” Process Model
A model of a business process as it is intended to look in the future, fol-
Mentioned by Sam when Logan first meets her, and again by Mike at the
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Word or Phrase Definition Context within Innov8lowing process improvement efforts. beginning of the Level 2 Collaboration
meeting.Tooling Specialized software for modeling,
designing and building applications or entire business processes.
First mentioned by Mike in the Open-ing Cinematic when he tells Logan to acquire needed tooling from Sam. Sam later explains the function of the tooling Logan will use.
Validation In the context of business process modeling, ensuring that a model is correct syntactically and that it ac-curately reflects the process as it is or as it is expected to be. Automatic syntax checking (validation) is often provided within the modeling tool-ing. But determining model accu-racy requires inspection by true process experts and/or comparison of simulated results to empirical data.
When Logan first meets Sam, Sam ad-vises Logan to make sure she vali-dates the As-Is model with a true process expert.
Web 2.0 A set of “second generation” web-based technologies, communities and hosted services — such as social-networking sites, wikis, etc — which aim to facilitate collaboration and sharing between users. (Adapted from Wikipedia)
The book lying on one of the tables in the Level 1 entry area is titled “SOA and Web 2.0 – The New Language of Business”
“Wiring” Connecting services together within a process or composite application. Some BPM tooling enables the Inte-gration Developer to “wire” services to one another through a graphical user interface - connecting the out-put interface of one activity with the input interface of the next activity within the process sequence.
Logan mentions wiring in her thought dialogue if/when she finds the BPEL diagram in the main IT room.
Later, Sam mentions wiring services during the Level 2 Collaboration.
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Learning Objective 2: Additional Learning Points Illustrated within Innov8 2.0
Learning Point Context within Innov8Successful implementation of BPM usually requires a
strong partnership between the Line of Business and IT.
Logan finds a poster describing the partnership between busi-ness and IT in the main IT room, and wonders if it is all “just fluff”. Then, in the Level 2 Collaboration, IT and the business work together to recommend and eventually implement needed process improvements. IT provides the tooling and implementa-tion support, while the LoB supplies process expertise.
To help maximize ROI, process improvement efforts
should be guided by some overarching strategy, based on methodologies like Com-ponent Business Modeling
hot-spot analysis.
In the Opening Cinematic, Mike provides Logan with a Heat Map which assesses various business areas with respect to opportuni-ties for lowering costs, gaining revenue, etc.
The point is not that a specific methodology must be used, but rather that an organization should have some rational approach to prioritizing potential improvement projects.
There are many ways to help reduce risk during a busi-ness process improvement
project.
Logan and AFTER Inc manage risk in a number of ways, includ-ing: Executive sponsorship from Mike; recruitment of Logan to drive the project (she supposedly is uniquely qualified for her mission); group collaboration during process re-design; use of simulation to test To-Be model variants; etc.
You don't always have to start from scratch. Often there is someone who can provide a helpful starting
point.
Sam advises Logan to look for someone in Operations who might have an existing process map which can be used as a starting point.
You may get erroneous and even intentionally mislead-
ing inputs from some individ-uals and you have to be able
to sort that out somehow.
Logan obtains a process map from Stavros, a self-described “Business Analyst extraordinaire.” But Logan learns from Call Center guru that the map is out-of-date. Logan might have guessed there would be problems with Stavros’ map, given his poor attitude towards work and his lack of eagerness to help Lo-gan in her quest.
You should always validate As-Is process flows with real
experts, i.e. people that know the real business flow
first-hand.
This is a corollary to the point above.
The point is, you can't always trust supposed experts who may have personal agendas, nor information sources like procedures manuals that are often obsolete and may never have been accu-rate in the first place. Too often, “current” process maps portray processes as they used to be, or are thought to be, or as they should be, rather than as they are.
Successful modeling typi-cally requires translating
verbal or text requirements into representative diagram segments and/or elements.
Logan puts this critical skill to use in the Drag and Drop exercise of Level 1 and the Collaboration exercise of Level 2.
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Learning Point Context within Innov8A standard set of modeling symbols helps to communi-cate effectively & to share
design information between tools seamlessly.
Sam stresses that the modeling software is standards-based and mandated by the CIO, partly because it enables better communi-cations. Stella leads Logan through the Drag and Drop exercise where standard symbols are used to construct the As-Is model. Then, in the Level 2 Collaboration, individuals from all areas of the business are able to quickly understand model changes which Logan has made.
In the real world, there is no one standard set of symbols used by all modeling software vendors, although the industry appears to be moving in that direction with the growing acceptance of Business Process Management Notation (BPMN) – a standard pro-posed and maintained by the Object Management Group.
There are typically many variables (resource levels, event arrival rates, etc), within the process, which
must be specified correctly if the model is to reflect real-ity. The better the inputs, the more reliable the out-
puts.
Sam makes this point with Logan, following the Drag and Drop challenge. Logan must visit all four departments within Level 1, in search of data to populate the model.
Best practice usually sug-gests validating the As-Is
model before embarking on the To-Be process.
This only makes sense, because the To-Be model is typically an adaptation of the To-Be. And validating the As-Is can build needed credibility in the face of difficult process changes.
Logan validates the model flow with process expert Stella, and then uses simulation to validate the complete model against em-pirical data (KPI’s).
Collaboration can greatly ac-celerate process improve-
ment and innovation.
The Collaboration meeting of Level 2 brings together individuals from several areas of the business, each contributing their own perspectives, expertise, ideas and values.
Flexible business rules make a process more dynamic and responsive to changing con-
ditions.
In the Level 2 Collaboration, the team decides to implement business rules to control call flow, allowing Logan to react to new information and “tweak” performance, in response to changing arrival rates and call mix.
Simulation can help identify bottlenecks prior to imple-
mentation.
In the nerve center level, Logan can adjust the business rules and simulate prior to implementation.
There is no such thing as an “optimal” process because, in theory, there is always some way to reduce costs, shorten durations, etc for
particular process activities.
In this case, for example, AFTER Inc. could always spend more money on call-taker education, seek a new business partner who is willing to undercut the prices set by Partner 1, or invest more money in Knowledge Base and Virtual Agent software to achieve greater efficiencies.
For a given business process and scenario (use case), de-
In the Level 3 Nerve Center challenge, there are many combina-tions of business rule setting and resource levels which will result
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Learning Point Context within Innov8pending on the objectives
there can be multiple “good”, "right", or “accept-
able” solutions.
in KPI values that meet Mike’s objectives.
Suggested Activities:
1. Complete each of the puzzles in the game in teams of 2-3 participants with one game “driver”.After each puzzle, discuss learning points as listed above
Tips for Playing Innov81. You can reposition the game window after the game
launches. When you click Start Game the Opening Cine-matic will play (1 minute and 40 seconds).
2. If you have already played the game and want to skip the introduction, you can right-click during the Cinematic to end it and go directly to game play.
3. When game play begins, note the NET button in the lower right of the UI. You can click to view the assets you have collected (initially, only the Heat Map that CEO Mike has provided). You can also view your To-Do List, which will be automatically updated as you progress. So in the-ory, if you forget what your next mission is, you check your to-do list.
4. There is also a Menu button which includes player con-trol options. Go to Menu>Options>Controls. The Menu section will eventually enable the player to Save/Restart, but that function is not yet activated.
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5. Below are repeated the key assignments for player con-trols. I find it easiest to control movement using the “w” and “s” keys with my left index finger while controlling di-rection using my right hand fingers on the left and right arrow keys. Note that we may change this navigation scheme later, as our use of “s” for jogging forward is con-sidered non-standard w = up arrow = “walk forward” s = shift+up arrow = “jog forward”Ctrl + s = “run high speed forward”d = right arrow = “turn right”a = left arrow = “turn left”space bar = “jump”
6. As you approach a character, you will automatically en-gage him/her when you get within their “zone”.
7. When you come near a “Point of Interest”, you will see an option to “Examine” it more closely. Just click the mes-sage on the screen. “Thought dialogue” appears as Logan examines each item.
8. As you move through the game, you can adjust the camera angle/direction by right clicking and moving the mouse simultaneously. This will allow you to see into cubi-cles and peek around corners but can sometimes be diffi-cult to direct precisely.
9. The UI for the drag and drop challenge with Stella has been improved. The idea is to create the model to look like the image below, one column at a time, starting from the left.Stella gives a hint, a column will be highlighted, and you point, click and drop the appropriate shape(s) into the col-
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umn. You select from the choice of labels provided. You have to click “Next” to move to the next column. After the last activity, the model transforms and you are off to the next challenge. If the player doesn’t get a column right af-ter a few tries, Stella takes over and completes that col-umn, and you advance to the next column.
Correct Answer.
10. Following the drag and drop, you have to locate and download four assets to advance. We plan to introduce some character interactions into this part of the game, but in the meantime,
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Performance data (KPIs) are posted on a wall as you en-ter Operations.
Call Statistics are in a spreadsheet on a desk in IT Resource Levels (HC) are in the left-rear cubical in Hu-
man Resources. Resource Costs are on a desk in the front-right cubical
in Finance. 11. Level 2 (Collaboration: Follow the dialogue by clicking
“Continue”, when prompted by Mike, use the large up and down arrows scroll vertically and select the appropriate de-sign element. Press COMMIT.
12. SIM LEVEL: The objective is to get both KPI gauges at or below target values.
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It is critical to click on the BLUE BALLOONS for more informa-tion.
In this first scenario, the power outages has affected your partner and you need to balance the calls across your own internal queues. By distributing the difficult and average calls to the high skilled workers as well as a small por-tion of the low easy calls, you maximize output. By studying the distribution of avg call service time between the high and low skilled employees the most optimal distribution of calls is shown below:
First Scenario: Correct Answer.
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In this challenge you are now introducing a Business Partner whose employ-ees work out of their homes. By clicking on the blue balloons for more infor-mation you can get a better understanding of the costs and throughput of the employees. In this case, high skilled employees should again handle all the hard calls and most of the average calls, whilst sending all your easy calls to the new BP. Definitely go paperless to minimize carbon footprint.
Second Scenario: Correct Answer.
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In this scenario you are introducing a new product. Whenever there is a new product introduced, there will probably be a considerable amount of new calls of people who need help. You are also introducing a new business model where you would like the agents to be able to cross-sell and up-sell products and services to customers. That being said, it is more cost-effective to leverage your highly skilled employees who are better trained at cross-selling and upselling than their lower-skilled counterparts. The Virtual agent handles many of the easiest calls automatically.Third Scenario: Correct Answer
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These solution combinations will give you positive or ‘win’ situations for each event.
Customer Service Event 1High Skill Employees: 15
Difficult Calls: 100%Average Calls: 100%Easy Calls: 40%
Low Skill Employees: 6Difficult Calls: 0%Average Calls: 0%Easy Calls: 60%
Customer Service Event 2High Skill Employees: 12
Difficult Calls: 100%Average Calls: 100%Easy Calls: 0%
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Low Skill Employees: 2Difficult Calls: 0%Average Calls: 0%Easy Calls: 30%
PartnerDifficult Calls: 0%Average Calls: 0%Easy Calls: 70%
Go Paperless
Customer Service Event 3High Skill Employees: 10
Difficult Calls: 100%Average Calls: 100%Easy Calls: 35%
Low Skill Employees: 4Difficult Calls: 0%Average Calls: 0%Easy Calls: 65%
13. If you get stuck or have any questions, go to our discus-sion forums at https://www.ibm.com/developerworks/mydeveloperworks/groups/service/html/communityview?communityUuid=21276fb8-a2f7-428e-9a3b-e1d6d8484dc3
BlueWorksBPM BlueWorks provides business users an easy on‐ramp to business process management (BPM) with cloud‐based process and strategy tools. Business Leaders and Business Analysts can create, share, and collaborate ‐ leveraging pre‐built BPM content and contributions from BPM experts and users around the world to move quickly from strategy map-ping to process execution. Now that you have played IN-NOV8 and are familiar with the As‐Is and To‐Be Customer Service models from the game, you should be able to recog-nize these same models which we have made available to you here in BPM BlueWorks. Feel free to login, modify and
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simulate on these same models available here within Blue-Works.
BPM BlueWorks allows you to work with various asset types: Define a business strategy using Strategy Maps Design a business structure or what the business does,
using Capability Maps Design a process, how the business performs its capa-
bilities, using Process Maps
For the After Inc. Customer Service scenario, a capability map is provided which describes at a high level some of the business capabilities of the customer service domain. These would be capabilities that exists irrespective of the business processes and business structure that provides the capabili-ties.Next, you’ll find a process map that corresponds to the start-ing point of the Customer Service scenario in Innov8 2.0. We’ve used the term “To‐be” to denote that this represents the flow of the process before we improved the process via the gameplay. It is common when applying BPM methods to firstunderstand the current process in order to help gain the un-derstanding and insights to find improvements.
The last two assets provided at this time are a strategy map and a process map that represents the final process as it looked when completing the gameplay to implement process improvements. We’ve used the term “To‐be” to denote that the assets represent where we want to take the “as‐is” process.The strategy map helps us document organizational strengths and weaknesses, as well as goals and associated actions to take to realize our goals. Along with these, we can document measures so that we’ll know how we want to mea-sure and track business effectiveness.
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BPM BlueWorks provides the tools needed to view, modify, and create brand new assets of any of thesetypes.
BlueWorks INNOV8 Asset Manual INNOV8 Maps on BlueWorks
Want More?Let our Learning Innovation Practice and Center of Excel-lence help you transform education and training programs with 21st century “Serious Games” and other Learning 2.0 and 3D Immersion strategies within our patented optimized blended learning model and method. In our experience, a well-crafted and designed “Serious Game” like Innov8 2.0 combines the instructional power of scenario-based role play simulations with the engaging ap-peal of quest-and-mastery-based video games designed for single players (stand-alone interactive program) or multiple players (team(s) engaged at the same time in 2D, 2.5D and/or a 3D delivery format). “Serious Games” place learn-ers in a graphically-rich simulated world of virtual characters (or avatars) engaged in a compelling storyline through which they:
Achieve desirable goals and recognition of achievement, or levels of mastery, for targeted, role-based competencies (e.g., effective partner-ing, team building, informed risk-taking, etc.)
Exhibit the relevant behaviors and traits/attitudes needed to address challenges and solve problems
Practice and build targeted knowledge and skills through the various levels of challenge (including 'fail forward' learning through errors)
We also recognize that a successful Serious Game occurs in the greater context of a curriculum or training program, and
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is dependent on addressing specific requirements and con-straints, including:
Criticality of the targeted roles and competencies for the curriculum or training program
Complexity of the real-world environment and ex-periences to be simulated
Budget and timeline for solution implementation IBM’s Learning Development organization consists of a world-wide team of over 600 highly-skilled learning and tech-nology professionals with development teams located in 10 countries across the Americas, Asia Pacific and Europe. Our Learning Development teams use common processes, plat-forms and tools to effectively support work on a 24x7 basis using a “Work follows the Sun” approach in order to best ac-commodate customer requirements, timeline and budget for optimal blended learning solutions.
To explore how you can incorporate learning innovations today, contact:
Dr. Janis Morariu, IBM Distinguished EnginerDirector, Learning Innovation Practice and Center of [email protected]
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