Picture this: A business analyst, energised by a fresh cup of coffee, sits down to outline the requirements for the company’s next big automation project. They review a mountain of artefacts to establish the current state, and perhaps they are lucky enough to have some documentation describing the future needs. But wait – which description is definitive? What about the conflicting information? Which version of the requirements is the latest? Are these descriptions even representative of what’s already in production? – If you’ve been in their shoes, you know the confusing and conflicting perspectives that can arise, and the challenges involved in determining the current ‘truth’, and in describing future functionality.

But there is a better way; imagine all your business processes are documented in a uniform, comprehensive, understandable, centralised, version-controlled, hub – much like the source code control systems software developers use.

This ‘single source of truth’ (SSOT) offers the difference between working with a tangled web of information/documents, and having a clear view of your current, and desired, business processes. This SSOT alone, will significantly simplify, speed, and mitigate costs, of your organisation’s automation journey.

Why SSOT Matters in process automation

Automation’s very essence is to increase efficiency, reduce errors, and drive consistency. Agility and precision are paramount, and a key foundation is a universally understandable, and trusted, SSOT.

The full potential of automation can be significantly undermined without a clear, consolidated view of the requirements driving business processes. Diverse and disconnected requirements can hinder progress, cause misalignments between teams, and even lead to costly misunderstandings, mistakes, and delays.

By championing a SSOT in business process automation, you can:

• Drive consistency: automation runs on precision. With a unified set of requirements, processes are consistently executed based on a specification derived from a shared understanding, ensuring predictable and desired outcomes.
  
  
• Facilitate faster iterations: as businesses evolve, so do their processes. A centralised version-controlled repository means quicker updates, reduced time-to-market for changes, and an agile response to evolving business needs.
  
  
• Reduce conflict and rework: fragmented, incomplete, requirements can lead to unexpected outcomes, resulting in operational hiccups. By rallying around a SSOT, teams can align their efforts, reducing the chances of inaccurate implementations and/or overlapping or contradictory automation initiatives.
  
  
• Enhanced traceability: for every automation or process change, understanding the ‘why’ behind it, is crucial. With versioned requirements described in language that all stakeholders understand, enterprises can trace back changes, ensuring accountability and informed decision-making.
  
  

SpecMojo’s approach: Bringing SSOT to life

Understanding this critical need for a SSOT, we’ve designed our product to manage business processes documents/requirements by applying the key features of the source control, including:

• Collaborative editing: Business process automation often involves multiple stakeholders – from analysts and designers to IT specialists and end-users. SpecMojo provides a collaborative platform where all these contributors can work simultaneously in a universal vocabulary, without overriding each other’s change. This ensures a harmonious workflow, where ideas from various experts seamlessly integrate. Collaborate in real-time, with changes tracked.
  
  
• Structured workflows for approval and review: SpecMojo enforces a systematic review and approval process. Before any process change is finalised, it can be routed through the necessary stakeholders for validation. This means that every change can be subject to the rigorous standards set by the organisation. SpecMojo streamlines the validation process, reduces the risk of unvetted changes making their way into production, and fosters a culture of accountability and shared responsibility.
  
  
• History at your fingertips: Ever wished to revert to a previous version of a process or understand the lineage of a particular requirement? With SpecMojo, every process modification is logged. Roll back to previous versions if needed, ensuring you never lose track of changes. Also, SpecMojo provides a clear audit trail, crucial for compliance and continuous improvement.
  
  
• Version control: Knowing exactly what version of requirements is driving your automation is invaluable. It removes guesswork. This leads to reliable, consistent automation outcomes.
  
  
• Enhanced security: SpecMojo comes with built-in mechanisms to manage permissions and access. This means that sensitive business requirements are only accessed and modified by authorised personnel, safeguarding the integrity of your automations.
  

At SpecMojo, we believe establishing a SSOT for business process automation is not just a best practice; it’s a game-changer. It streamlines your operations, reduces errors, and fosters collaboration across teams. SpecMojo makes the transition to a SSOT seamless for you, with our collaborative platform, structured workflows, version control, and enhanced security.