For instance, he said, the learning curve for Metastorm tools was steep. To make sure all the developers gained proficiency in the product, the company required that its entire development team first attend training as a group and then immediately begin work on a pilot project with limited scope and integration.

In addition, the developers had to make sure Interwoven's MailSite product -- which captures and stores content directly from Microsoft Outlook -- was tightly integrated with the desktop information manager.

Dennis Byron, an analyst at IDC in Framingham, Mass., said the ideal application of BPM tools is making communications with internal and external users -- such as business partners or suppliers -- easier. In addition, he noted that overhauling and automating business processes isn't trivial.