Choosing BPMS Software: Six Questions Before You Buy
Before buying BPMS software, ask about no-code process design, data carried between stages, per-stage user access, the Kanban board, the form builder and e-signatures.
When you search for "BPMS software" you meet two kinds of product: tools that only build forms and approvals, and systems that tie the workflow to the organization's real documents. The difference is whether, when a document moves to the next stage, you have to retype its data. These questions help your decision, and the answers are based on Afrandeh BPMS software.
1. Is a process defined without coding?
In Afrandeh each process is built from four layers: main group, process category, stages and transition rules. Each stage represents a real document type in the system, and all of it is defined from the "process designer" page with no programming.
2. Does moving between stages carry the data over?
With transition rules you decide which stage can be "converted" to which. The next stage's document is pre-filled with the previous document's data, and the user only reviews and saves.
3. Is each user's access separate at every stage?
Whether a user may approve, reject, edit or close a document at each stage is stored separately per (user, stage) and enforced on the server side; that is, a button is not merely hidden.
4. Is there a Kanban board view?
Each stage is a column and each document a card, and dragging a card runs the defined "convert" transition. Each column shows the document count and the total payable amount.
5. Is the form builder tied to the process?
The no-code form builder offers field types such as text, number, amount, Persian and Gregorian dates, CRM customer, item, fixed list and formula, with field grouping and a calculated field. A form is attached to a process stage.
6. What about history and signatures?
Each document's history records the before and after values, who changed them and when. A multi-stage electronic signature also exists, based on org-chart positions, with a quorum of "one signature" or "all", amount and date conditions and signature delegation.
An honest note
In the current phase, electronic signatures are connected only to the contracts module; connecting other document types needs separate development. The Kanban board also shows only processes that have the "Kanban" option enabled.
BPMS and office automation
BPMS in Afrandeh is not separate from office automation: forms you build in the form builder appear in "My forms and approvals" when they reach a user's stage. To understand the difference between the two, read the BPMS and office automation guide. To learn the BPMS concept itself, see What is BPMS? at Fekrgostar.
Ask before buying
- Does each stage tie to a real document, or is it only a text status?
- Is data pre-filled when moving to the next stage?
- Is each user's access at each stage enforced on the server?
- Do the form builder and the process work together?
To review your approval processes and document flow, request a demo.
Frequently asked questions
How should we choose BPMS software?
Check that a process is defined without coding, moving between stages carries the data over, each user's access at each stage is enforced on the server, and the form builder and the process work together.
Which documents do Afrandeh electronic signatures work on?
In the current phase only the contracts module is connected to the electronic signature engine; connecting other document types needs separate development.