5 Ways to Harness the Power of Process Mining Digital Twins [2023]

ByPaul Christiano Last Update on

Digital twins and process mining are two of the most valuable technologies for optimizing business processes. On their own, each technology offers powerful capabilities. But together, they can take your business optimization to the next level.

In this guide, I‘ll walk you through 5 key ways you can harness the combined power of process mining and digital twins to transform operational efficiency, reduce costs and power data-driven decision making.

An Introduction to Process Mining and Digital Twins

Before we dive into the ways to use these technologies together, let‘s briefly review what each one does:

Process mining involves collecting data from your systems like ERP, CRM and enterprise software and using algorithms to visualize and analyze real processes. Instead of having to piece together how work flows using interviews and manuals, process mining gives you an objective, data-driven view of your actual processes.

Digital twins are virtual models designed to accurately reflect physical assets, processes or even entire organizations. Digital twins integrate data from multiple sources (like IoT sensors or business data) to create living representations that can be used to run simulations and what-if scenarios.

Now let‘s explore 5 ways you can use these technologies together to take your business to the next level:

1. Get a Complete View of Your Processes

Process mining gives you an objective view of your as-is processes based on system data. But it focuses specifically on mapping out process flows.

Digital twins take a broader view – integrating data from across your business to create holistic models.

By combining process mining and digital twins, you get the best of both worlds: a complete end-to-end visualization of your processes for a single source of truth.

For example, say you use process mining to analyze the workflow for issuing refunds to customers. It may show the steps from receipt of a return request to issuing the refund.

But a digital twin could enrich this view by incorporating data from your e-commerce platform, ERP system, customer database and more. This provides greater context and visibility into the entire refund process.

2. Identify More Areas for Optimization

Process mining empowers you to spot bottlenecks, waste and inefficiencies by visually mapping your as-is processes.

Digital twins take it a step further. Their simulation capabilities let you model the impact of changes before you implement them.

Together, they become a powerful optimization engine.

Let‘s go back to our refunds example. Your process mining analysis identified excess wait times between return authorization and refund issuance.

You hypothesize that implementing robotic process automation (RPA) could reduce this bottleneck. But rather than guessing, you could first build a digital twin simulation to model the RPA change.

The digital twin would validate whether the RPA bot would achieve the desired reduction in cycle time. It could even help you pinpoint the optimal amount of automation.

This combination enables you to optimize tactically based on hard data – not just assumptions.

3. Assess Risks and Opportunities of Changes

Digital twins are great at answering "what-if" questions. Their simulations allow you to assess the business impact of changes in a low-risk environment.

Process mining makes the models more robust. By providing an accurate starting point for as-is processes, it ensures your digital twin simulations are based on real data.

Let‘s look at our example again. Implementing RPA could have unintended consequences. Your digital twin based on process mining data can surface potential risks. What if the bot makes errors that increase rework? What if it causes downstream delays?

You can also identify opportunities. Could the bot take on other tasks to further improve efficiency? Using simulations grounded in process mining intelligence allows you to iterate to an optimal solution.

4. Continuously Monitor Processes and Systems

Process mining and digital twins are both designed for ongoing process improvement. They‘re not one-and-done analysis tools.

Process mining can be configured to automatically refresh its process visualizations on a recurring basis. This enables you to continuously monitor for process deviations or new inefficiencies as they emerge.

Likewise, digital twins can be designed to integrate streams of live data. This allows them to detect changes in performance as they happen.

Combining these capabilities provides complete visibility into your business. You can instantly see the impacts of new processes, systems, bottlenecks or other changes across the organization.

5. Empower Your Employees with Process Knowledge

Both process mining and digital twins provide powerful self-service analytics capabilities. They allow your employees to easily access visual process maps and models.

This arms your team with knowledge to optimize their own workflows and processes. No need for months of interviews, complex VSM exercises or outdated process documentation.

Unlocking this real-time process intelligence for your entire organization accelerates your transformation. It breaks down silos and aligns everyone to a common understanding of your business processes.

The more insight you can push to your employees, the faster they can help improve your operations.

Key Takeaways

  • Combining process mining and digital twins provides complete visibility into end-to-end processes.
  • Together, they offer stronger capabilities for identifying and assessing opportunities to optimize processes and mitigate risks.
  • These technologies enable continuous, live monitoring and improvement of operations.
  • They democratize access to process insights across your organization.

6 Examples of Companies Combining Process Mining and Digital Twins

Process mining and digital twins might seem like advanced technologies limited to huge enterprises. But organizations across industries and geographies are already seeing major benefits from combining them:

Bpost

  • Global postal operator
  • Used process mining to build digital twin model of parcel sorting process
  • Identified opportunities to improve productivity by 11% [9]

Johnson & Johnson

  • Global healthcare/pharma company
  • Created digital twin of invoicing process enriched with process mining data
  • Identified $40 million in potential savings [10]

Samsung Electronics

  • Global technology manufacturer
  • Combined process mining and digital twin to optimize TV manufacturing
  • Reduced process cycle time by 50% [11]

BASIK

  • Colombian bank
  • Implemented process-based digital twin in commercial loan department
  • Improved efficiency by 20% and visibility across processes [12]

Remia

  • Food manufacturer in the Netherlands
  • Created digital twin of sauce production process based on process mining analysis
  • Identified opportunities to reduce lead time by 150 hours [13]

Queensland Urban Utilities

  • Australian water utility provider
  • Using process mining to create digital twin to simulate dispatch and response processes
  • Aims to achieve 25% improvement in service efficiency [14]

These examples demonstrate the power of process mining and digital twins working together – from cost savings and productivity gains to improved visibility and risk reduction.

Are You Ready to Transform Your Business with Process Mining and Digital Twins?

As the examples show, combining process mining and digital twins can yield game-changing benefits:

  • Accelerated operational efficiency and cost reductions
  • Enhanced visibility into processes and systems
  • Better data-driven decision making
  • Proactive optimization vs. reactive fixes
  • Risk and impact assessment of changes

These technologies perfectly complement each other. Process mining provides the foundational data for digital twins. Digital twins enrich process mining with simulation and predictive capabilities.

Together, they make your organization intelligent, proactive and continuously improving.

So are you ready to join the leaders transforming their business with process mining and digital twins? Here are a few tips to get started:

  • Start small. Focus on one critical process or system – don‘t try to tackle your entire enterprise at once.
  • Choose the right tools. Select solutions that integrate process mining and digital twin capabilities seamlessly.
  • Involve stakeholders. Work closely with process owners to ensure alignment and adoption.
  • Scale across the business. Once you have results, showcase successes to expand to other processes.

With the right strategy, you can harness these technologies to new heights – and leave your competition in the dust. Reach out if you need any guidance getting started or finding the ideal platforms for your business. The future of intelligent process optimization is now.

I am Paul Christiano, a fervent explorer at the intersection of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and their broader implications for society. Renowned as a leading figure in AI safety research, my passion lies in ensuring that the exponential powers of AI are harnessed for the greater good. Throughout my career, I've grappled with the challenges of aligning machine learning systems with human ethics and values. My work is driven by a belief that as AI becomes an even more integral part of our world, it's imperative to build systems that are transparent, trustworthy, and beneficial. I'm honored to be a part of the global effort to guide AI towards a future that prioritizes safety and the betterment of humanity.

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