Item: IBM Blueworks Live
Rating: 9
Author: Verified User

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

I use Blueworks to develop process maps of business processes and technology workflows.

Pros and Cons

Easy to create process diagrams quickly, while collaborating with others.
Create linkages to sub-processes and other workflows.
Track activities using metadata such as which IT systems are utilized.
Use the glossary terms to find where different roles or systems are involved in processes throughout your org.

I wish there were more options for activity-type icons besides just activities and gateway diamonds.
I really wish IBM would fix the way the icons for Activity Type, such as "Robot Task" or "Service Task," appear in the corner of the activity box in a way that often overlaps the text description so you can't read it.
It's a silly thing, but for darker color coding shades, the text should turn to white for the legibility of the text. It is hard to read when some colors are applied.

Return on Investment

It's been a very positive tool for process improvement.
Very useful for conceptualizing system and data integrations.
Helps identify automation opportunities and which ones could have the most ROI.

We use it as the source of truth for process details such as handoffs between roles, systems, etc. We haven't yet fully realized the potential of these features, however, as we still store a lot of documentation outside of Blueworks.

Real-time Collaboration

We definitely utilize the real-time collaboration aspect. Process diagraming "live" during working sessions is much more effective/efficient in Blueworks. We're not presently using much of the change notification features, however.

Business Challenges

Blueworks has helped a lot with standardizing process mapping throughout our organization. It also vastly increases visibility, as we can see connections between different processes across teams and workflows. And using metadata in the documentation, combined with the glossary, adds more visibility and analysis potential.

IBM Cloud Portfolio

IBM Secure Gateway

I'm not aware of our use of any of these additional products.

Key Insights

Do you think IBM Blueworks Live delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with IBM Blueworks Live's feature set?

Yes

Did IBM Blueworks Live live up to sales and marketing promises?

Yes

Did implementation of IBM Blueworks Live go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy IBM Blueworks Live again?

Yes

Other Software Used

Microsoft Visio, Miro, Microsoft 365

Likelihood to Recommend

It's an excellent tool for quickly creating detailed process maps and diagrams on the fly right when you're collaborating on process design or changes. I love the ability to step through a path using the Playback mode. The glossary and use of metadata in the documentation for process steps create a lot of useful analysis and reporting options. If you commit to using Blueworks across a whole team/dept's workflows, you can get some great insights on process opportunities (automation?) and challenges very efficiently.

Blueworks is easy to use and provides powerful analytics.

Overall Satisfaction with IBM Blueworks Live