ARIS BPA Reviews

I am part of an IT service organization and working in capacity of Advisory Consultant where various customers seek advice for Business Process Analysis. The primary use case is Business Architecture Modeling, however, I've suggested ARIS BPA as an upstream to many implementations. 

I have used ARIS Architect, Designer, and ARIS Connect for various other models to complete overall Enterprise Architecture Modeling be it Applications Models, Information/Data Models or Technology/Infrastructure Models. 

ARIS-Solman Integration is another useful use case when it comes to ARIS BPA.

ARIS BPA supports various model types for business processes, customer journeys, organizational charts, applications, information, and technology views along with product and service views. It brings transparency and 360-degree views of end-to-end processes. 

Also, it avoids needing heavy documentation to maintain attributes/properties of processes, organization units, roles, positions, applications, systems, data clusters, and products and services. This list is still not comprehensive. We can easily customize attributes based on our needs and keep the information up to date. This is another important benefit that ARIS BPA has bought.

ARIS BPA provides a variety of features, however, the feature to look at the same model from a different perspective is amazing. We can show the information/view which is relevant to specific stakeholders. This also helps to avoid creating multiple views of the same model and saves a lot of time. 

Also, creating various queries, ad-hoc queries, and reports (what you see what you get) helped us in analyzing the information which is captured on these ARIS models and helped with rapid impact analysis for our application and role rationalization project.

Simulation is one area that is a bit complex. Nowadays, we are talking of digital twins. We should have simulation functionality offered in a simple way and promote process twin. Also, dashboarding is another important area where some other BI tools provide very aesthetic looks to different dashboards (e.g. PowerBI) - although ARIS Process Mining can bring us that. 

In ARIS BPA, if we are providing a dashboarding feature, aesthetics could be improved and dashboard templates can be added for easy and quick consumption.

I've used the solution for more than ten years.

This can be easily scaled. They have 3 editions that start with a Basic, Advanced and an Enterprise edition. Basic provides all essential features like modeling, sharing and optimization. Advanced will give comprehensive features, provides full flexibility of method and access control. Enterprise addition is complete stack, provides full configurability and integration capabilities.

Customer service and support are flexible and help to guide you through simple queries. If you are implementing the first time, they can assist. For complex implementations, you can always count on them to meet your needs.

Positive

I have used various other solutions as well. However, ARIS BPA provides 200+ model types that give me the flexibility to use different models depending on the context.

The initial setup was not that complex; we could manage it with an installation guide. ARIS Connect is plug-and-play. It is a SaaS offering.

We have implemented everything in-house.

ARIS BPA provides complete suites when it comes to the discovery, design, and analysis phases of implementation. Therefore, the cost it has is just not for modeling. The licensing models are very innovative. You can go with whatever it suits to your organization. The environment starts with basic and moves on to advanced and up to an enterprise-level offering.

I have evaluated multiple other options before selecting ARIS BPA, however, I would prefer not to disclose the product names.

The process modeling capabilities are what we use this for primarily.  

ARIS is probably the most mature product I know of in terms of modeling an enterprise architecture so that it has context. When you need to make changes to processes, there is a view where you can actually see what other processes within different use cases or different functional areas use the same process and what those changes can affect. Workflows can be used across different business areas and that gives a really good, holistic view of what modifications end up affecting.  

Some of the interactions with different versions of browsers caused a little bit of angst because there are certain corporate SOEs (Standard Operating Environments), which do not lend themselves well to representation in the latest version of ARIS. The product is sort of one version behind with current trends, typically.  

I have definitely seen better UIs, but the crux of why we use the ARIS process modeler is because we have everything all one suite. When you talk about enterprise architecture, application architecture, process architecture, or whatever else you want to model and monitor, these processes are all in the same place. You can make cross-references or create links between processes, you can link part of a model to an application, you can link to a capability view, et cetera. As an enterprise architecture tool, there is probably very little they can improve on at least compared to other modelers.  

Because you keep on working with different versions of a model, the only way to maintain a record is to take a snapshot. Certain things are still in design or still in the conceptualization stage. Other things have already gone into production. At a glance, it is quite hard to work out which processes are at a particular stage. The overview is very flat. Having some form of a hierarchy in terms of approvals or a sort of ranking would be good. This could show whether a process has been deployed or not, or if it is still just a conceptual model. Some sort of formal approval process that defines a released version of your models could be incorporated into the workflow approval process to help visualize what stage a process is in.  

I have probably been using ARIS (Architecture of Integrated Information Systems) BPM (Business Process Management)for about four years now. I used ARIS BPM before coming to this company, but quite a while ago. That was about a year ago, and that was version 10 or 11 or something in that range.  

Stability is very much dependent on the network. If the network is not so good, then you might experience some stability issues. It would be good if you had an offline version or some means of caching development. I am not sure whether that is in the ARIS roadmap. 

All BAs (Business Analyst) use ARIS, especially for process modeling. We have a team of probably 50 people who use ARIS modeler to see the process flows, but there are different roles. I am an architect so I can see everything. BAs can only view or read, they can not contribute to the capability models. The roles help scale out so the right people get the appropriate access without causing development issues.  

We have our own administrators here who maintain the product.  

The initial setup and installation are very straightforward. The administration is a bit clunky because of the way it is set up as a Software-as-a-Service. There was not really a Single Sign-On capability for the tool. You have to maintain your login separately and that is a little archaic.  

Because it was already running, there was not really a deployment to get me going with the product. It was just a matter of adding me as a user.  

I definitely recommend the product to users seeking this kind of solution, especially for the architecture practice. If you want to have a knowledge base or a repository for architects it is very good for an overview of the enterprise architecture. Normally in a new business venture — that being a business case, a new software offering, or a new capability — the new process needs to be introduced to an existing architecture. Companies will already have a mature backend with legacy applications and integrations. It is good to keep a repository of the development to make sure that the history of that evolution stays within the company's knowledge base for later reference.  

On a scale from one to ten (where one is the worst and ten is the best), I would rate the ARIS BPM solution overall as a product as probably an eight-out-of-ten. It is not rated higher because the user interface is not as modern as other modeling tools like Bizagi, which looks nice. With ARIS you are quite limited when it comes to the look and feel.  

That issue with look-and-feel becomes more important when you try to present something to executives. When it looks like your ten-year-old has done something to present in grammar school, it is not the right thing to be showing at a high-level meeting. The content is all there, but it just looks like it is just scraped together rather than properly designed.  

1. With a tool like ARIS, it helps to maintain a single source of truth regarding the processes followed within an organization. This creates a more efficient organization with just one single view of the processes across the organization and eliminates any ambiguity. 
2. The analysis and reporting capabilities make ARIS the best tool for process modeling. In addition, the flexibility and versatility of the tool can be gauged by the sheer number of model types it supports which is close to approximately 200.

Any organization big or small should have the capability of capturing the process details of an entire organization using this tool.

Process modeling and process analysis. Due the meta model of the tool, it forces a particular way for the processes to be modeled in the tool, which in turn helps to carry out the analysis and generate reports for business and senior management. This helps the business make an informed decision.

Needs flexibility in automation of the modeling processes and real-time analysis of data, not just a static view.

Since ARIS 9.X was released, the product has not been as robust and responsive as the previous versions.

None.

I would rate it as a seven out of 10. There is not enough documentation provided for the tool's support or administration.

No previous solution was used.

The setup was a bit complex compared to the previous version of the tool.

It is on the higher side.

No.

Excellent product if process modeling/documentation is its primary purpose, not automation of processes.

We use ARIS BPA for various operations and processes.

ARIS BPA has a good directory option, which helps to keep track of all of your metadata, and that's very useful.

It would be helpful if ARIS BPA could have a simple database to get the extract of various attributes.

The solution should include a simpler database where one can select the required columns or attributes to be downloaded and various reports. Also, the report formats could be simpler.

I have been using ARIS BPA for three years.

ARIS BPA is a stable solution.

ARIS BPA is a scalable solution. We have close to 20 to 30 end users working on the solution.

The solution’s technical support is good.

Positive

SAP is better than ARIS BPA because it has some positive features.

The solution’s initial setup is easy.

It is easy to maintain ARIS BPA. The solution is deployed on-cloud in our organization.

ARIS BPA is a simple-to-use solution with good cloud-based support.

Overall, I rate ARIS BPA an eight out of ten.

ARIS BPA was underutilized because they used the ARIS modeling paradigm, including value-added chains, EPCs, and functional allocation diagrams.

ARIS BPA is coming up with a centralized repository of local business processes that could be referenced for design work and operations.

The most valuable features of ARIS BPA are the centralized repository and the automatic rendering of diagrams.

ARIS BPA’s usability could be improved.

I have been using ARIS BPA for almost three years.

I rate ARIS BPA a nine out of ten for stability.

ARIS BPA’s initial setup was straightforward.

ARIS BPA is too costly from a licensing perspective. It is also too costly to maintain, configure, and integrate.

I am using the latest version of ARIS BPA. Do your due diligence to ensure that this is the product you need from a feature and cost perspective.

Overall, I rate ARIS BPA a seven out of ten.

Process Modeling or Process Mapping/Documentation. This is the most comprehensive tool for capturing the process details. Any organization who wants to embark on a BPM journey, process mapping/documentation, lays the foundation for the BPM led implementation.

Since ARIS provides such a rich modeling environment, it can be leveraged not just for automation of the processes, but more importantly for maintaining the blue prints of the processes for any organization be it business, internal or support processes.

This, then, provides a real picture of the status quo of any organization at any given time.

Using ARIS, an organization can document their business processes.

Also, the tool provides the facility to capture process details not just at one level but at multiple levels, depending on the audience who would consume it.

It helps not only to capture the process steps but with different aspects of the processes like org, KPI, systems, roles, infrastructure, documents, etc.

Once captured, the tool helps to analyze the processes and impact of changes in the organization from the system, process, KPI, perspective.

Since this is a design tool, seamless interface to make the process flows executable.

Between 9-10 years .

None.

None, since the launch of ARIS 9.x, the product architecture has changed and this has made it bit more complex from Administration perspective.

Three out of five.

None.

Medium complexity.

Pricing is a bit on the higher side.

Not really.

Best tool for documentation of business processes.

Features like SAP SolMan sync, Alfabet EA integration (another Software AG product). Also, a good defined framework for BPM or any consulting practice across any verticals or domains, whether it's TOGAF methodology, running BPM Lifecycle or Six Sigma process analysis.

It has helped to a great extent in defining and maintaining repositories for various industries, further facilitating projects like portfolio management, etc.

Vendor continuously brings updated versions to market with bug fixes from earlier versions and fulfilling user/customer expectations, so they are inline with continuous improvement.

Regarding stability, when there are any customized settings being done at customer end - post upgrade to newer versions - it makes the customer environment unstable for a short duration. But this is made stable and back to service with their 24-hour support help.

Have been using this product for three years.

Not many issues with stability, other than as noted above.

No issues. They offer ARIS installation for Cloud as well as server-client scenario, so no major issues seen so far.

Technical support is good and response time is good as well. They have priority request types set already, so in case of crisis with ARIS, or any major issue, we can reach 24-hour support by phone or drop them an email; they are always available to respond.

I am a BPM and Enterprise Architecture consultant and hence have been using different BPM and EA tools for my consulting practice. Until now have used Opentext Provision, EA, Sparx EA, MS Visio and IBM Blueworks. All of the tools used are good and have there own unique features and capabilities. ARIS BPA is widely used by my current organization for different projects, hence the switch.

The initial setup is straightforward for a user with ARIS BPA installation experience. There is not much that is complex, even for someone who is not experienced with ARIS and tries installation. But that person should be technically sound with installation practices.

The pricing and licensing costs are available on their website. They will assign a relationship manager to assist if you show further interest in their products.

I was not given the option to choose this product, as it was already in use. But evaluation can be made on how globally and widely this product have been used by different industries over others like IBM BPM, Oracle Enterprise Manager, Appian BPM, Pega BPM, and the tools mentioned above.

This product is excellent for any consulting assignment as it offers products and views for different stakeholders to represent the information and data. Advice to others/new users is to get trained on basic usage of this product initially to get an idea of it's benefits and usability. Study and document the exact requirements/purpose and expectations you seek from this product. Software AG should have different options/offers available for its first time users.

EPC is by far the best notation to process modelling form. The idea of the corporate repository with all business information connected has no competition!

The ARIS Connect Collaborative Portal is a good idea, too!

• Thousands of AS-IS models documented
• Analysis and re-design
• Go to TO-BE models with semantic checks

Scripting has room for improvement and the documentation is a "must".

Model-to-execution methodology must be improved, too, IMHO.

I have used it for seven years.

We have encountered deployment issues. All the products have issues, but really, the quality of ARIS is spectacular, at a level that strikes excellence. Unusual in proprietary software.

I have not really encountered any stability issues.

I have not encountered any scalability issues.

Well, the Software AG helpdesk is not the best in the world, but the Software AG salespeople are very willing to help and push to accelerate the solution.

I rate technical support higher than usual.

The principal reason we switched was EPC Notation. This notation, IMHO, is the best option to design the whole organization, it is Software AG property, and the other tools can´t use it.

You can start from scratch in a very easy way and after that, increase the complexity. The tool supports it.

An in-house team with vendor team support implemented it.

• 2.000 designers design ARIS models and don´t create large Word documents.
• Thousands of models to publish to the citizens, hot documentation and short time-to-market.
• Reduces the misunderstanding with countries and users.
• Removes bottlenecks and barriers.

The pricing is not my business but they have a large catalog of license models. It isn´t possible that they don´t have a specific license for you.

• MEGA
• Casewise
• SAP

ARIS with Alfabet is the best EA/BPM solution in the world; no competitors. Somebody might say to you that the x tool is the best or that the y tool is the most stable tool in the market, but believe me, it will be bull. ARIS is unbeatable!!!