Staffware introduces next-generation process management with release of SPS version 2

Issued by TechSoft
Johannesburg, 28 May 2003

Staffware, a business process management (BPM) software supplier, has announced the latest version of its flagship product, the Staffware Process Suite (SPS), combining ad hoc and predictive capabilities with the highest throughput of any BPM solution.

Far more than a simple upgrade, SPS Version 2 breaks new ground in the application of BPM within today`s organisations. Many of the new features have been added following real implementations and a detailed examination of how BPM is deployed in real-world situations.

Key among these is Dynamic Process Orchestration. This core function utilises the advanced ad hoc and predictive capabilities of Staffware Process Suite to control complex, flexible processes at scale. Until now, BPM systems have been limited by the ability of the process designer to foresee all possible process outcomes and possible inputs. Processes have effectively been 'hard-wired`. Staffware`s Dynamic Process Orchestration facilitates the assembly of numerous processes on the fly to attain a specified goal. Different processes are employed, dependent on inputs from external events and applications and data, allowing the process to dynamically react to external business events.

The benefits of Dynamic Process Orchestration are:

* Simplified and fast process definition;
* Flexibility to add, amend, remove steps and sub-processes without redrafting entire process; and
* Much reduced management costs.

Staffware backs this significant advance in BPM with the world`s fastest, most robust and scalable process engine. Benchmark tests on the SPS V2 engine have confirmed 7.9 million transactions per hour- making Staffware Process Suite suitable for large-scale enterprise-wide business process management solutions.

Staffware Process Suite V2 also utilises the latest Java and Web services technology, allowing easy integration with the vast majority of applications and further reduced management overhead for these systems. As the enterprise application integration (EAI) wave loses momentum, organisations are looking to BPM to link resources in a service-oriented architecture. Staffware`s Independent Process Layer and the extended support of Java and Web service technology mean that SPS V2 is perfectly suited to this role.

Says Jon Pyke, Chief Technology Officer of Staffware: "Version 2 of Staffware Process Suite is not an incremental step, but a giant leap for BPM. By effectively meeting the real-world process demands and the integration needs of today`s organisations, and providing the raw power to ensure that end-to-end processes are completed in a timely, effective, robust and secure manner, SPS V2 can claim to be the next generation of BPM software. We have listened to our customer-base and re-engineered our product to meet their business requirements so we are confident that Staffware Process Suite will continue to be the BPM system of choice in this rapidly growing market."

Benchmark test carried out by Unisys Benchmarking Centre in The Netherlands using an ES7000 server with 16 CPUs and 16GB of memory.

Staffware Plc

Staffware is the leading business process management specialist and has over 2 million licensed users in 5 000 customer organisations within the banking, insurance, telecommunications, utilities, general commercial, manufacturing and government sectors. Staffware is headquartered in the UK, has offices in 16 countries and employs approximately 350 people. The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is the leading profitable, debt-free, global vendor focused exclusively on providing BPM solutions.

Staffware`s BPM expertise has evolved from 15 years of automating and managing processes, so the interaction of people and processes has remained central to its philosophy. Unlike the majority of its competitors, it has a deep understanding and unique insight of the complex people-to-people, people-to-application and application-to-application interactions that make up business processes.

The Staffware Process Suite provides a complete set of tools to create, transform and streamline the internal and external processes and tasks of an organisation. Staffware enables the creation of an Independent Process Layer that separates process from the underlying IT/data environment, facilitating the rapid development and change to an organisation`s process. The Staffware Process Suite is an open and standards-based solution that ensures seamless integration and full interoperability with existing IT infrastructures and applications.

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