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IBM BPM vs IBM Business Automation Workflow comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 18, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
6.7
IBM BPM delivers ROI by optimizing workflows, cutting errors, and reducing issuance time, despite initial costs, within a year.
Sentiment score
7.7
IBM Business Automation Workflow boosts ROI by enhancing productivity, streamlining tasks, and improving efficiency with real-time monitoring.
Initially performed manually, workflows now provide a better user experience and increased efficiency.
Senior Systems Developer at a healthcare company with 5,001-10,000 employees
IBM Business Automation Workflow demonstrates strong return on investment, particularly through the operation model and real-time monitoring capabilities provided by the embedded dashboards.
CEO at Exact Holding NV
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.7
IBM BPM's customer service is highly rated for responsiveness, despite occasional delays, with quality varying by location and issue complexity.
Sentiment score
6.0
IBM Business Automation Workflow's customer service is mixed, with both timely support and challenges like slow responses and communication delays.
The customer service is outstanding.
Project Manager at Ora-Tech Systems
On a scale from 1 to 10, support deserves a rating of 7 to 8.
Unit Head System Implementor at Allied Bank Limited
We had a contract that provided on-site support, which was very satisfactory.
Compliance Sanctions Senior Analyst at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
IBM provides long-term support and maintains a traditionally good customer-vendor relationship.
Deputy CEO, CIO at a insurance company with 51-200 employees
If the solution is readily available to IBM support team, they provide it instantly.
Unit Head System Implementor at Allied Bank Limited
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
6.9
IBM BPM is scalable, supports large workloads and complex tasks, but scalability varies by architecture, configuration, and concurrent transactions.
Sentiment score
7.9
IBM Business Automation Workflow is highly scalable, accommodating extensive users and transactions with flexibility in deployment and resource efficiency.
The solution has scalability issues; on a scale, I would rate it at eight out of ten.
Project Manager at Ora-Tech Systems
The architecture of the solution offers scalability; we can scale both vertically and horizontally.
Unit Head System Implementor at Allied Bank Limited
I found IBM BPM to be scalable to a certain level but it struggled with large volumes of concurrent transactions.
Compliance Sanctions Senior Analyst at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
We can manage the license usage and scale our environment while optimizing license use.
Deputy CEO, CIO at a insurance company with 51-200 employees
We are implementing load balancing and horizontal scalability.
Unit Head System Implementor at Allied Bank Limited
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.2
IBM BPM is generally stable, with on-premises better than cloud, but faces challenges in migrations and occasionally infrastructure-related issues.
Sentiment score
7.5
IBM Business Automation Workflow is stable and reliable, praised for functionality but impacted by maintenance and OS challenges.
When installed on AIX, IBM Business Automation Workflow performs very well.
CEO at Exact Holding NV
Outside of these maintenance periods, the environment is quite stable.
Senior Systems Developer at a healthcare company with 5,001-10,000 employees
 

Room For Improvement

IBM BPM needs better configuration, improved UI, flexibility, enhanced performance, affordability, cloud capabilities, and easier debugging and maintenance.
IBM Business Automation Workflow enhancements requested include better UI, AI features, simplified setup, and improved support and resources.
IBM BPM also lacks smaller solutions, so I must purchase multiple solutions to start with workflows and applications.
Compliance Sanctions Senior Analyst at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Although IBM BPM is a substantial product, adopting and integrating new technologies quickly is not easy due to the migration and upgrade paths involved.
Unit Head System Implementor at Allied Bank Limited
There are negative aspects, such as IBM BPM being quite heavy and not lightweight, and the licensing cost is higher, which has caused some companies to shift away.
Senior Project Manager at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Rather than sending URLs or documentation for customers to solve problems independently, the support team should be more involved in addressing the client's specific issues in a targeted manner, providing clear guidance on what actions need to be taken.
CEO at Exact Holding NV
Many developments are focused on AI, LLM models, and data science.
Unit Head System Implementor at Allied Bank Limited
Code management lacks merging capabilities.
Senior Systems Developer at a healthcare company with 5,001-10,000 employees
 

Setup Cost

IBM BPM is costly with complex licensing, favored by large enterprises, but impractical for small businesses due to high expenses.
IBM Business Automation Workflow is expensive but valued for high-quality features, flexible licensing, and productivity enhancement compared to competitors.
SAP is more expensive, but IBM BPM is very expensive.
Compliance Sanctions Senior Analyst at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
It is not a cheap license but in line with expectations for such software.
Deputy CEO, CIO at a insurance company with 51-200 employees
The price of IBM Business Automation Workflow is on the higher side compared to the features it offers.
Senior Systems Developer at a healthcare company with 5,001-10,000 employees
 

Valuable Features

IBM BPM enhances business efficiency with robust process execution, integration, responsive UI, automation, and comprehensive management tools.
IBM Business Automation Workflow integrates RPA, offering rapid app development, AI-enhanced automation, and robust cross-departmental communication tools.
From IBM BPM, you can track your processes, automate your workflows, and that is what we use it for.
Senior Project Manager at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees
The integration capabilities of IBM BPM are excellent.
Compliance Sanctions Senior Analyst at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
IBM Business Automation Workflow integrates seamlessly with other IBM products, such as Enterprise Content Management, FileNet, Case Manager, and Operational Decision Management.
CEO at Exact Holding NV
The system is fully customizable, very resilient, and fault-tolerant.
Unit Head System Implementor at Allied Bank Limited
It assisted in making users concentrate on the process flow rather than just features.
Deputy CEO, CIO at a insurance company with 51-200 employees
 

Categories and Ranking

IBM BPM
Ranking in Business Process Management (BPM)
5th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
113
Ranking in other categories
Application Infrastructure (6th), Process Automation (5th)
IBM Business Automation Wor...
Ranking in Business Process Management (BPM)
12th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
26
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2026, in the Business Process Management (BPM) category, the mindshare of IBM BPM is 4.1%, down from 7.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM Business Automation Workflow is 1.6%, down from 2.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Business Process Management (BPM) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
IBM BPM4.1%
IBM Business Automation Workflow1.6%
Other94.3%
Business Process Management (BPM)
 

Featured Reviews

Ateeq Rehman - PeerSpot reviewer
Unit Head System Implementor at Allied Bank Limited
Automation platforms streamline processes and offer flexibility, but AI integration and version upgrades pose challenges
In the technology world, there is always room for improvement. Technologies evolve day by day, especially with the emergence of artificial intelligence and generative AI models. Although IBM BPM is a substantial product, adopting and integrating new technologies quickly is not easy due to the migration and upgrade paths involved. Every time new versions are released, we face business and production challenges that make rapid adoption challenging. The main concern bothering me today regarding IBM BPM is the integration of AI components.
IsmailEl Dahshan - PeerSpot reviewer
CEO at Exact Holding NV
Automation has transformed financial workflows and has improved revenue tracking and compliance
Regarding Watsonx, I am uncertain whether it is fully complied and fully integrated with IBM Business Automation Workflow yet. Currently, we use some AI in Enterprise Content Management, particularly when searching documents. Archiving snapshots would be very beneficial. It would be good to reduce the administration effort required to archive snapshots, as this is a main issue with the product. I would also recommend that IBM engage with customers more deeply. Rather than sending URLs or documentation for customers to solve problems independently, the support team should be more involved in addressing the client's specific issues in a targeted manner, providing clear guidance on what actions need to be taken.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
24%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
8%
Insurance Company
6%
Financial Services Firm
31%
Computer Software Company
9%
Insurance Company
6%
Government
5%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business30
Midsize Enterprise19
Large Enterprise72
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise17
 

Questions from the Community

Which is better, IBM BPM or IBM Business Automation Workflow?
We researched both IBM solutions and in the end, we chose Business Automation Workflow. IBM BPM has a good user interface and the BPM coach is a helpful tool. The API is very useful in providing en...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM BPM?
Once it is installed, maintaining it is not a big issue.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Business Automation Workflow?
The price of IBM Business Automation Workflow is on the higher side compared to the features it offers.
What needs improvement with IBM Business Automation Workflow?
Code management lacks merging capabilities. If parallel development requires merging, improvements in this area would be beneficial. Additionally, the user interface could be more visually appealin...
What is your primary use case for IBM Business Automation Workflow?
In my organization, IBM Business Automation Workflow ( /products/ibm-business-automation-workflow-reviews ) is mostly used across banking services, creating backend solutions for banks. This includ...
 

Also Known As

WebSphere Lombardi Edition, IBM Business Process Manager, IBM WebSphere Process Server
Business Automation Workflow
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Barclays, EmeriCon, Banca Popolare di Milano, CST Consulting, KeyBank, KPMG, Prolifics, Sandhata Technologies Ltd., State of Alaska, Humana S.A., Saperion, esciris, Banco Espirito Santo
Key Bank, Barclays, Control€xpert, MIR Insurance Brokers, Conqord Oil
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM BPM vs. IBM Business Automation Workflow and other solutions. Updated: February 2026.
881,384 professionals have used our research since 2012.