Managing Service Development (SaaS) as a project: business process modeling
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Keywords
Business Process Management (BPM) ; Software development ; Managing service development ; Project management ; SaaS modelAbstract
In the context of the present thesis, we will be studying core principles of Business Process Management, and how we can take advantage of them in combination with Project Management Methodologies and modeling tools in the context of Software as a Service businesses and their development.
Initially we provide the reader with an introduction to Business Process Management, how it can be used, and how the life cycle is structured. We further define the first three phases of the life cycle to understand how this process is kickstarted, and how it can assist forward thinking and planning for a business that has not yet been created. We continue to present a short history of software in the market, from on premise to SaaS, and introduce the SaaS model in detail for the reader.
In the next stage we move on to project management practices that can be used to manage the development of a SaaS service, and which methodologies are best for that business model. We continue by introducing the maturity factor of a SaaS business by presenting two maturity models that could represent a SaaS business’ growth phases.
Following this, we detect five distinct stages and set up a more relevant maturity model for SaaS businesses, combining information from the two theories presented before as well as utilizing personal experience.
Lastly, we implement this maturity model for a SaaS business to capture its growth utilizing Business Process Model and Notation and swim lanes, showcasing the design and evolution of processes through the model’s phases.