1. What is process mining?

Process mining: Getting an in-depth look at your business processes

Every step of a business process leaves a digital footprint — event log data — in the transactional systems you use. Process mining software works by using this event log data to create a living picture of what your actual processes really look like — which does not always match the definition you might have worked out in process mapping workshops.

Of course, some process steps don’t necessarily take place in a transactional system — for example, sending an email or opening a spreadsheet. Task mining is the technology that collects desktop data like this. When combined with Celonis process mining, it can give an even more granular view of how work gets done within an organization.

2. The evolution of process mining

Process mining: From academia to the boardroom

10 years ago, process mining started out as an academic theory. Today, it’s a well-established business technology, used by thousands of organizations around the world, with hundreds more starting every day.

It’s been widely recognized — by enterprises, analysts, and the media— as the best way to truly understand your business processes. In 2023 and 2024, process mining was given its own Magic Quadrant™ by Gartner®, validating its growing prevalence amongst enterprises.

Professor Wil van der Aalst, who is considered the Godfather of process mining, refers to it as “the bridge between data scienc e [which includes algorithms, machine learning, data mining, and predictive analytics] and process science [which covers operations management and research, business process improvement and management, process automation, workflow management, and optimization].”

The latest advent in process mining – Object-centric process mining (OCPM) – goes one step further, offering a more dynamic 3D-view of how numerous processes work and interact (think: procurement’s impact on production), and thus enables optimization across interconnected processes. If traditional process mining is an x-ray of a single process, then object-centric process mining is an MRI, providing a 3D-view of a company’s interconnected processes.

Want to become a process mining expert, fast?

Check out our free virtual process mining course, led by the Godfather of Process Mining and Celonis Chief Scientist Prof. Wil van der Aalst.

3. Why process mining matters

We live in a world where the pace of change continues to accelerate. Companies that understand and optimize their processes are set to grow faster and innovate smarter. That’s why process mining is important. It helps you create a “digital twin” of your company: a virtual representation of your organization’s processes across its systems.

In fact, Gartner predicts in its 2024 Magic Quadrant for Process Mining Platforms:

“By 2026, 25% of global enterprises will have embraced process mining platforms as a first step to creating a digital twin for business operations, paving the way to autonomous business operations.”

Indeed, more and more companies are adopting process mining as a central part of their tech stack: global process mining software revenue grew 40% in 2023 alone, according to Gartner’s 2024 Magic Quadrant for Process Mining Platforms.

And process mining doesn’t stop there. It’s a critical pillar of Process Intelligence, a broad suite of technologies (including AI, automation, and machine learning) that helps you not only understand your processes, but orchestrate and optimize them. Plus, it gives AI the context it needs to be relevant and effective for your business.

More and more, companies are not just adopting process mining software, but embracing a Process Intelligence platform to connect their teams, processes, and technologies, and ultimately sharpen their competitive edge

Learn more about Process Intelligence

5. Video Series: Ease into the world of process mining

Wanna learn about process mining quickly? Check out our newest video series “In the Process”. Over the course of four videos, you’ll learn the basics of process mining, including what process mining is, how process mining works, why process mining matters, and how to get started.
Watch the video series

6. Process Mining for Dummies

Find everything you need to know about process mining in a single book, written in the easy to understand, hard to forget style that ‘For Dummies’ manages so effortlessly. ”Process Mining for Dummies” will help you understand what process mining is, why it’s a big deal, how it can help you (or your department, or your industry), how ready your business is for it, and how to actually get started.

7. What are the benefits of process mining?

There are many benefits to process mining:

• Objective, fact-based insights:

Process mining offers objective, fact-based insights, derived from actual data, to help you audit, analyze, and improve your existing business processes.

• Faster, cheaper and more accurate

Process mining is faster, cheaper and more accurate than lengthy and often subjective process mapping workshops.

• No rip-and-replace needed

Process mining works on top of your existing systems, helping you to leverage your existing technology investments. There is no rip-and-replace involved. We'll cover the benefits of process mining in more detail below.

8. What are common process mining use cases?

Process mining use cases are almost infinite, given that the technology cuts across multiple business functions and industries.

For instance, process mining can make supply chains more resilient by highlighting weak points and eliminating inefficiencies. It also has a big role to play in sustainability efforts. Any function can be made more efficient through this technology.

Common process mining use cases among Celonis customers today include:

• In Finance, speeding up transformation efforts and delivering better quarter-on-quarter results.
• In Supply Chain, increasing resiliency.
• In Shared services, driving the evolution from cost center to always-on value magnet.
• In System transformation, minimizing risk and accelerating all phases of migration journeys.
• In Sustainability and ESG, reducing shipping emissions and driving sustainable spend management.
• In Process excellence, uncovering hidden value opportunities, fast.

These use cases span across many industries, including Automotive, Consumer, Energy, Financial Services, Healthcare, Manufacturing, Professional Services, Retail, Telco and Media, Life Sciences, Pharma, Travel, and Transportation.

To dive deeper into how your department or initiative can benefit from process mining, explore our solution pages.

9. Why process mining has become a business necessity

Change has changed. New technologies keep emerging, customer expectations keep rising, and the need for greater efficiency keeps growing at a radical pace. In this new world, adaptation is critical to a business’s survival. Companies need departments that all work seamlessly together, while driving value, finding value, and leaving no value behind.

But adaptation is easier said than done because of the great disconnect at the heart of most enterprises. Departments speak their own languages. Systems don’t play well together. Processes are hard to see and harder to improve. So value is lost, efficiency is low, and customer needs are left unsatisfied.

To actually enable adaptation, businesses are missing a shared understanding of how things actually run. They’re missing a way to connect the dots, helping everything and everyone understand how things currently work, what’s going well, what needs improvement, where value is hiding, and, ultimately, how everything can work better together for the business. This is what process mining solves for, and why it’s increasingly becoming a business necessity.

10. What problems does process mining solve?

Process mining solves the problem of not understanding how your business processes actually run, and, correspondingly, being unable to leverage them to drive greater value. It provides companies with the insights they need to visualize how their processes actually run across systems, departments, and programs, so they can understand where opportunities lie, uncover which opportunities could have the biggest impact, decide what actions to take, and measure the value they generate.

Process Mining Solves Screenshot

There are several benefits to process mining. The technology enables you to:

• Get complete visibility over your processes
  Get a 100% objective, real-time, system-agnostic, unbiased view of your processes based on the data in your IT systems, helping you find, frame, and capture value opportunities.

• Quantify the impact of process improvement

So you can demonstrate value before and after implementing a fix.

• Get stakeholder alignment

Make data-driven suggestions complete with expected ROI — driving stakeholder buy-in and alignment.

• Prioritize initiatives effectively

Prioritize and direct energy and resources as needed by quantifying the value that stands to be gained.

• Get to value quickly and easily

Deliver value quickly and cheaply — with Celonis, process mining is easy to implement and can deliver results in as little as four weeks

Learn more

11. When to use process mining?

It’s never too early or too late to start using process mining in your business. As process mining becomes a business necessity across industries, the time to start is now. Process mining can be especially useful if your business is:

• Merging, partnering, or integrating with another business
• Migrating systems or updating your tech stack
• Searching for new ways to generate value
• Strengthening sustainability measures
• Tightening up compliance programs
• Transforming shared services
• Improving finance and operations processes
• Building resiliency within your supply chain
• Harnessing new technology like AI and LLMs

Boosting productivity and efficiency within your workforce

Read more

12. How to find the right process mining solution?

As with all technologies, getting started with process mining can seem challenging. As the pioneers of process mining, we’ve helped many companies begin their journey toward operational excellence.

That’s why we’ve created a Buyer’s guide as a resource for anyone considering process mining, especially those who are evaluating different vendors. Here you’ll find helpful resources like a process maturity assessment, a list of features you should ask vendors about, and a template for your process mining RFP or RFI.

Start you process mining journey