Do you integrate reporting in your business process modelling?

[Former Member]

I work as SAP BW consultant and have not really much experience in business process modelling. But with my clients I often have the discussion, the BW system is not so important, It's an reporting system only. The real important system is ERP, because there are the processes. If the processes don't work properly or return the wrong results, it's the bigger error.

I then argue, that a report is the outcome of many processes. Take month close for example. You put all the financial data of your different companies together, consolidate it. You define a business process how the consolidation of your companies should be done and which business rules have to be taken into account. And at the end you get your formatted financial statement in the colours and look and feel of your company. Every one is happy.

The second fact, if the report returns the wrong figures because of a wrong business process implemenation no one is happy. Sometimes the report at the end reveals that are some open issues in the business process, which have not been foreseen.

I think most of the business processes create documents in the normal process flow. Some of the created documents are used for a corporate reporting.

From my point of view there is a strong dependency between ERP and BW system even from process modelling view and that you should think of integrating reporting in business process modelling.

My questions are:

What are your experiences with integration of reporting into bussiness process modelling?

How is your argumentation pro or con to integrate reporting in business processes modelling?

I'm tensed to read your comments and arguments.