In December 2008, Umesh Jain, CIO, YES Bank had shared with Biztech2.0 that in its lifecycle, integration central BPM is one of the key initiatives that the bank would be undertaking.

This was the initiative that the bank had planned for 2009. It has stayed true to its word and is in the process of implementing the integration centric BPM solution from Cordys. YES Bank is one of the youngest banks in India, having started its operations in 2004.

With a presence of six years, why did the bank think that this was the right time to adopt BPM?

Let’s travel back to 2004 when YES Bank began its operations. The most important investment for the bank to make at that point of time was core banking, and its underlying infrastructure. Hence, the bank started expanding its product portfolio. So, the focus has always been on expanding the product portfolio and its channels.

Focus on operational effectiveness is another area that the bank is looking at it. The third very critical factor is BPM as a technology. Rolling out BPM and middleware has not been a smooth exercise for the young bank. But, the road has become smoother as the technology has matured and become more efficient in the bank’s environment.

YES Bank is convinced it has the timing right for BPM. It has also got the partner right, claims Jan Baan, Co-founder, Cordys. Cordys has brought a process-centric approach to the table for the bank, as opposed to the prevalent data-centric approach. The deal includes weaving in the 75 processes of YES Bank with Cordys BPM solutions. Both parties also plan to take this joint development forward as intellectual property and leverage it to other banks as well.

On how BPM will change the way the bank functions, Umesh Jain explains, "When we used to go to a bank earlier, we had to fill in various forms and go through endless formalities. With BPM, we are saved a lot of this trouble. In BPM, first the image is scanned, so the physical document doesn’t move anywhere, it’s only the image that moves and that happens electronically. Also, the moment a person has processed what needs to be processed it automatically appears in the queue of the next person. With this process, the branch manager can clearly see where there is a long queue and at that point itself can take corrective action immediately. In hindsight, all this can be analysed to see at different hours of the day where where the queue builds up and the workforce can then be aligned to handle it accordingly."

BPM can also help detect where the maximum rejections are taking place and the reasons for those same. Also, when you are designing new processers, simulations cab ne done simultaneously. Therefore, you can simulate the amount of transactions, how they will flow in at different time and so on. This helps in having a realistic plan in place right from day one.

Jain feels that BPM would help in simulating new processes, as well as help in dedicating more time to the business rather than technology.

"The BPM layer, the service bus, and the rules engine allow me to define rules for the organisation in a very simple way, something that your business user can change. These three components come together in one product. What it does for the organisation is that it doesn’t have to worry about three, four or five products installed on multiple servers and how they talk to each other, integrate with each other and the like. So, it takes the complexity out of my shop and that is something that Cordys handles. At the end of it, its one unified platform that gives me simplicity and hence all my effort and energy goes into thinking about business benefits," concludes Jain.