MEDIA COVERAGE

Business process management (BPM) is back in the spotlight, ushering in a new golden age not witnessed since the 1990s digitization boom triggered by enterprise resource planning (ERP) deployments. Two key factors are driving this resurgence. First, businesses are prioritizing performance and efficiency over unsustainable, unchecked growth and, second, the growing influence of generative AI has expedited its adoption as corporations seek market advantages.
BPM in an AI-First Era — Unleashing New Capabilities and Value Across the Enterprise
PEX, Jon Knisley, 28November2024

Digital transformation, for most companies, is a struggle from the start. Jon Knisley, principal at business consultancy Reveal Group, said this is because the biggest obstacle to any complex, large-scale change is the lack of detailed knowledge on current state activities. “Most companies don’t fully understand how they operate daily and don’t have the data to draw the necessary insights,” Knisley said. “A systematic way of examining all the activities a firm performs and how they interact is necessary for analyzing the source of competitive advantage. But technologically, it’s not been possible to do this at scale until recently,” he said.
Why Your Digital Transformation Project Is Failing — and What You Can Do About It
Reworked, David Barry, 03January2023

“Marc Andreessen was right back in 2011 when he famously claimed that software is eating the world,” Knisley said. “Process is at a similar inflection point. For too long now, technology had been the focus of transformation efforts, and it has led to dismal success rates for complex change programs.” This new process data nirvana was not technically or economically feasible until now.” Executives now have real-time, comprehensive and usable insights on how their companies truly operate at the granular level required to make improvements,” Knisley said.
Why the Process Mining Market Is Heating Up
Reworked, Siobhan Fagan, 04May2022

Taking time to onboard both the business team and vendor team ensures everyone handles the implementation efficiently for a sustainable RPA program. “In addition to showcasing the range of benefits and scope of impact, you want to introduce the core team to best practices to manage continuous change and mobilize internal capability. Increasingly, companies are adopting design authority measures to establish solution standards and support best practices,” said Jon Knisley, Principal at Reveal Group.
Robotic Process Automation: A Step-By-Step Implementation Guide
Leaniar, Dee Shawn, 19April2022

But true intelligent automation will by definition require a collaborative approach, according to Jon Knisley, principal consultant for process and automation excellence at Fortress IQ. Knisley sees an increased focus on the need for a cooperative intelligent ecosystem in 2022. “No one can do it alone, and providers that think it’s possible will suffer the same fate of Icarus and fall back to Earth,” Knisley says. “Intelligent automation done right requires too many moving pieces for any one company to deliver a solution for the enterprise.”
4 Robotic Process Automation (RPA) trends to watch in 2022
The Enterprisers Project, Kevin Casey, 06Jan2022

“For organizations looking to win in the digital-first agile world, low-code is quickly becoming a critical component of a modern enterprise technology stack. Low-code offers companies all three attributes of faster, better, cheaper in the same package. However, to help accelerate utilization of low-code and scale it across the enterprise, process intelligence is a key enabler. You cannot improve how you operate tomorrow if you don’t fully understand how you work today.” – Jon Knisley, Principal, Automation & Process Excellence, FortressIQ
Big Data Industry Predictions for 2022
insideBIGDATA, Daniel Gutierrez, 15Dec2021

The biggest challenge to any complex change is the lack of knowledge on current state activities. Unfortunately, most companies do not understand how they truly operate on a day-to-day basis. You cannot get to the targeted future state efficiently without a clear view of your current operations. Process intelligence gives you that “what are we doing today” operational insight to then improve and drive value for the organization. Too much of the focus on transformation has been directed towards technology as the answer without considering the people and process dimensions. Through a more balanced people-process-technology approach, transformation success rates can be improved dramatically.
What’s In Store for Process Intelligence
VMblog, Jon Knisley, 29Nov2021

As with most technologies, to achieve full value from process intelligence, companies need to methodically implement and grow their application of the tools. We’ve developed a process intelligence maturity model to help companies measure and monitor their journey. To provide a consistent measure of maturity, the model assesses the current state of the process intelligence adoption across 5 dimensions – vision, people, technology, governance and experience.
Chasing Transformation: A Journey Towards Process Intelligence
iTechnology Series, Jon Knisley, 21Sep2021

Digital transformation is one of those topics that everyone talks about, but nobody really knows how to do it. Complex change programs are a slow and grueling process, and they suffer from miserable success rates. Analysts report that more than 70% of initiatives fail, said Jon Knisley, principal of automation and process excellence at San Francisco-based FortressIQ. People, process and technology are the required ingredients for program success, he said. But not all transformations had the right amount of each.
Targeted Technologies Are the Next Phase of Digital Transformation
Reworked, David Roe, 4Aug2021

Despite its reputation as a panacea for many enterprise ills, RPA often adds to an organization’s technical debt, which will eventually be a significant problem someone has to correct. There is no doubt RPA is fast, efficient, and less expensive than other methods. But it’s more of a band-aid than a cure. … The grand promise of RPA so frequently falls short due to over planning, the inability to identify key automation opportunities, and a disproportionate focus on short-term objectives to show wins, regardless of whether they’re aligned with corporate objectives.
What RPA Is, What It’s Not, and Why It Matters
RTInsights, Jon Knisley, 26July2021

“With any technology that is seeing massive adoption, there is no shortage of unwarranted hype. RPA has been the fastest-growing enterprise software category for the last three years and is no exception. The first major fallacy is the term itself. It is not robotic process automation. More accurately, it is robotic task automation,” said FortressIQ’s Knisley.”
What Not To Automate
IDG Connect, Adrian Bridgwater, 25July2021

“IT leaders looking to raise their profile in an organization can leverage the cross-functional dimension of OKRs to help dispel the traditional view of IT as a back-office cost center,” says Jon Knisley, principal, automation and process excellence at FortressIQ. “Today more than ever, IT needs to be aligned with the business and OKRs, as well as KPIs, can help position IT for success.”
OKRs and KPIs: 6 Counterintuitive Tips for Leaders
The Enterprisers Project, Kevin Casey, 19July2021

“The major challenge for the government is addressing the ‘Missing Middle,’” said Jon Knisley, who is the Principal of Automation and Process Excellence at FortressIQ. “There are a number of very advanced programs on one end, and then there are a lot of emerging programs on the other end. The greatest opportunity lies in closing that gap and driving more adoption. To be successful, there should be a focus as much as possible on applied AI.”
Biden’s AI Initiative: Will It Work?
Forbes, Tom Taulli, 18June2021

To help accelerate use of low-code and scale it across the enterprise, process intelligence is a key enabler. You cannot improve how you operate tomorrow if you don’t fully understand how you work today. And most companies truly don’t understand how they operate on a daily basis, especially at the granular user activity level required to automate a process or streamline a workflow. They have limited process understanding. They don’t know how their applications and data interact, and they don’t really understand what their customers expect.
How Low-Code is Anchoring the Digital-First Enterprise
DevOps.com, Jon Knisley, 15June2021

“Process data is that missing puzzle piece that nobody’s had access to. Once we get it in place, that’s when you’ll have a complete and comprehensive understanding of how your company truly operates. I’m starting to play with this idea that when we get to that point, is that going to be the end of our digital transformation journey?“
Have We Reached the End of the Digital Transformation Road?
Mission.org’s IT Visionaries Podcast, Albert Chou, 1June2021

“Cognitive RPA is adept at handling exceptions without human intervention,” said Jon Knisley, principal, automation and process excellence at FortressIQ, a task mining tools provider. For example, a cognitive automation application might use a machine learning algorithm to determine an interest rate as part of a loan request. “A human traditionally had to make the decision or execute the request, but now the software is mimicking the human decision-making activity,” Knisley said.
RPA vs. Cognitive Automation: What Are The Key differences?
TechTarget – Search CIO, George Lawton, 14May2021

“With cognitive automation, CIOs can move the needle to high-value, high-frequency automations and have a bigger impact on the bottom line,” said Jon Knisley, principal of automation and process excellence at FortressIQ. One organization he has been working with predicted nearly 35% of its workforce will retire in the next five years. They are looking at cognitive automation to help address the brain drain that they are experiencing. “Ultimately, cognitive automation will morph into more automated decisioning as the technology is proven and tested,” Knisley said.
What Are The Benefits of Cognitive Automation?
TechTarget – Search CIO, George Lawton, 29Apr2021

“While there are similarities, OKRs and KPIs are not interchangeable,” says FortessIQ’s Knisley. “KPIs provide a measurable assessment of performance. They are descriptive and tend to look backward. OKRs are also measurable and timeboxed, but since they tend to be more aspirational, OKRs provide a more strategic view of what’s ahead.”
How To Explain OKRs ( Objectives and Key Results) In Plain English
The Enterprisers Project, Kevin Casey, 28Apr2021

IT professionals have to be able to set priorities for their daily and weekly to-do lists without extensive guidance from the boss. Jon Knisley, principal of automation and process excellence at FortressIQ, said employees also should be able to think critically and act. “With more agile and collaborative work styles, employees need to execute with less guidance from management,” he said. “The ability to conduct objective analysis and evaluate an issue in order to form a judgement is paramount in today’s environment.”
9 Unexpected Skills You Need for Today’s Tech Team
TechRepublic, Veronica Combs, 28Apr2021

“The overall hire-to-retire (H2R) process integrates a mix of disparate systems that often require swivel-chair work to migrate data across systems throughout the employee journey,” Knisley says. “Process intelligence can optimize the process by identifying opportunities for workflow automation and re-engineering.”
5 Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Trends To Watch in 2021
The Enterprisers Project, Kevin Casey, 22Dec2020

“As the market transitions from point deployments within a specific business unit to wider adoption across an enterprise, the issue of data security and privacy will get bigger and suppliers will face greater scrutiny.  Suppliers will need to be able to mask sensitive corporate data and personally identifiable information (PII) to meet requirements.”
RPA (Robotic Process Automation): Predictions For Next Year
Forbes, Tom Taulli, 19Dec2020

“Companies were beginning to suffer from transformation fatigue when the pandemic struck. Success rates for complex large-scale change programs struggle to surpass 25%, and after years of false starts and missed opportunities, everyone was tired of exploring technology to address disruption, said Jon Knisley, principal for automation and process excellence at San Francisco-based FortressIQ. COVID-19 breathed new life into stalled digital innovation programs and many have been reclassified under the automation umbrella.”
Why Digital Innovation Needs to Be a Priority
CMSWire, David Roe 18Dec2020

“Leaders need to examine their digital operations to explore how they can be leveraged to make their business stand out against the competition and prove their resilience amidst challenging and unprecedented times. Enterprises are increasingly turning to robotic process automation, end-to-end process assessment, and tools that provide operational insights to drive innovation. Without situational awareness of how a company operates, it is nearly impossible to undertake a successful digital transformation program.”
3 Ways Enterprises Can Innovate in Uncertain Times
Toolbox, Jon Knisley, 29Sep2020

“With transformation fatigue setting in across many enterprises after a decade of focus and a graveyard of stalled initiatives, automation is the new darling of technology executives trying to tackle the ongoing shift to a digital-first environment, according to Jon Knisley, principal for automation and process excellence for San Francisco-based FortressIQ, which develops a process discovery platform. But automation, he said, is a means to an end and the target state remains business transformation.”
The Role of Robotic Process Automation in Digital Transformation
CMSWire, David Roe, 15Sep2020

“RPA excels at automatically delivering clean, structured data ready for analysis,” said Jon Knisley, principal of automation and process excellence at FortressIQ, a process mining tools provider. But IT leaders need to watch out when using RPA and analytics to get a few more years out of legacy systems and avoid a costly, time-consuming and error-prone system upgrade. Less obvious costs associated with maintaining the older application include performance, compliance and security issues. These are better addressed by an upgrade that might get pushed off by deploying RPA as an interim solution, Knisley said.
Top 9 Ways RPA and Analytics Work Together
TechTarget – Search CIO, George Lawton, 09Sep2020

“Despite the massive value RPA can deliver in terms of increased productivity and improved compliance, the technology does introduce a new vector for cyberattacks,” says Jon Knisley, principal, Automation and Process Excellence at FortressIQ. “RPA bots require the same access to systems as humans because they operate at the presentation layer. Because they constantly access different applications to cut, copy, paste and move data, credentials are too often hard-coded into scripts or pulled in from an insecure location.”
Rise of the Robots: How You Should Secure RPA
Dark Reading, Joan Goodchild, 24Jul2020

“With all the talk around the future of work, we are seeing the start of a shift within the enterprise to embrace and adapt to the modern digital workforce,” said Jon Knisley, principal for automation and process excellence at San Francisco-based FortressIQ. Automation is a key element of this shift. Robotic process automation and the use of digital assistants are being driven from the bottom-up instead of the top-down. The drive to empower the citizen developer is something that Microsoft, a recent entrant into the automation space, is placing a big bet on. By enabling users to easily create a bot to take on specific job tasks – without knowledge of coding or the need for time-intensive documentation – will put the responsibility and management directly into the hands of the workforce. This is a long-term investment in employee experience, Knisley said.
Employee Experiences That Employees Actually Want
CMSWire, David Roe, 23Jul2020