IDC's 2023 outlook: Process mining evolves to business value engineering

An uncertain economy and outlook in 2023 will refocus companies on driving business value through automation and process improvement, according to IDC analyst Maureen Fleming.

Fleming presented her 2023 outlook on a Celonis webinar: IDC Predictions and the Efficiency Imperative in 2023: How to Drive Value in Uncertain Times. Fleming said that process mining will evolve into business value engineering and companies that position themselves well in 2023 will thrive in the years ahead.

She said:

"We're moving into a different agenda. 2023 will be different year compared to several of the previous years. We're ending the year with increasing global economic uncertainty. Uncertainty reprioritizes focus inside an organization.

Can we come out of this period with a competitive advantage?"

According to Fleming automation and process mining will be critical to drive costs down and improve efficiency when many C-level executives are preparing for a recession. An IDC survey found that 72% of respondents expect a recession in 2023.

More:

• Supply chain outlook for 2023 revolves around resiliency, optimization, efficiency and a bit of normalcy

• Celonis customers 2022: Here are the 9 things we learned about process excellence

• Accenture talks supply chain resilience, optimization and outlook for 2023

Given that recession backdrop, Fleming said that supply chain management will have a higher profile in 2023 as will technology investments tied to financial performance.

A big challenge will for companies will be navigating a diverse technology stack. "Process mining and task mining will be used to sort out a diverse tech stack," said Fleming. "Companies need to understand that they will need to map the technology required for a use case. As we move through this economy, process and task mining will be mandatory."

Companies that are able to combine data infrastructure, an orchestration platform and process intelligence will emerge from 2023 stronger, said Fleming. These companies will have a closed business value loop between planning and execution.

"Business value engineering will put organizations into a more competitive position," said Fleming. "This is how we can go into an economic downturn and come out ahead."

Other takeaways from IDC's 2023 outlook include:

• Lowering operating costs, greater efficiency and improved customer satisfaction were the top business objectives in the IDC survey.

• 31% of respondents to an IDC survey said automation technologies don't work well together.

• FinOps is an emerging effort to tie cloud investments to tangible business value.

• Sustainability reporting and monitoring will be aligned with business value engineering.

Also:

• Process mining, optimization 2023: Here's what analysts are predicting

• Gartner at Celosphere 2022: The future of process mining will be autonomous

Larry Dignan

Editor in Chief (former)

Larry Dignan is the former Editor in Chief of Celonis Media. Before joining Celonis, he was Editor in Chief of ZDNet and has covered the technology industry and transformation trends for more than two decades, publishing articles in WallStreetWeek.com, Inter@ctive Week, The New York Times, and Financial Planning magazine.