Removing the barriers to the architecture discipline
Have you ever been confused by jargon-y architect language? Things like “TOGAF”, “BPMN”, and “UML” — what do they mean, and why do they matter? Or suffered through a system implementation that had a lot of upfront planning, but ended up with scope creep?
Welcome to the What’s Your Baseline Podcast, where we explore these topics and more. This podcast is about Enterprise Architecture and Business Process Management, and how you can set up your practice to get the most out of it.
It is for:
newbies who just get started with these topics,
organizations who want to improve their EA/BPM groups and the value that they get from it,
as well as practitioners who want to get a different perspective and care about the discipline.
So what can you expect here? Each episode, we’ll be diving into a topic that is relevant for you. What it is, why it’s interesting and why you should care. We’ll also share stories from the road – how to implement best practices, and their value.
Join us on this bi-weekly journey with the What’s Your Baseline Podcast and companion blog.
Latest episodes
Ep. 104 – BPM Education: Daniel Matka
We had episodes about BPM education on the show before, but this time we speak with someone who is from a different generation than your regular hosts.
And our guest Daniel …Matka is building a “Process Academy” to bring process management knowledge to the next generation. And while doing this, he’s building modern ways of structuring content that will speak to this audience.
Daniel was a product owner/project manager in the field of process automation at Robert Bosch GmbH. Today, mastering highly complex processes and automating networked business processes are at the center of my vision for a user-friendly workflow suite. This requires, among other things, creativity, which I demonstrate as the managing director of the music label Madstep even outside work hours.
One of Daniel’s main goals is to share the knowledge and experiences he has gathered throughout his career with others and support them on their journey.
In this episode of the podcast, we talk about:
— Daniel Matka returns to What’s Your Baseline? to discuss a bold idea: rethinking BPM education so it actually scales beyond workshops and slide decks. Coming from a mechanical engineering background at Bosch, Daniel explains how process automation projects grew from a two-person experiment into a 40-person automation team with real business impact.
— A key trigger for Process Academy was the challenge of educating 15,000 people, not just a handful of BPM experts, without relying on repetitive, trainer-dependent workshops.
— Daniel argues that traditional BPM training doesn’t scale: it’s expensive, inconsistent, and often depends more on the trainer’s skills than on a shared, reliable curriculum. One major pain point: “No one wants to teach BPM fundamentals 100 times.” Experts want to solve real problems, not repeat the same basics over and over.
— Inspired by Duolingo, Daniel, and his co-founder Matus envisioned microlearning for BPM—small, daily learning units that fit into real workdays.
— Process Academy is built around skill trees, not linear courses, allowing learners to unlock capabilities step by step based on their role, maturity, and interests. The focus is on T-shaped skills: broad BPM fundamentals for everyone, with deeper specialization paths for modeling, automation, mining, or architecture.
— Daniel emphasizes that learning must be continuous, not event-based: five to ten minutes a day beats a two-day workshop once a year. Gamification isn’t about points—it’s about motivation and momentum, such as streaks, progress visibility, and clear skill progression.
— Process Academy is intentionally set up as a nonprofit to attract top BPM experts who contribute out of conviction, not just commercial interest. “Nonprofit doesn’t mean no money,” Daniel clarifies—it means no cashing out at the expense of the community or inflated license models.
The long-term vision is a community-endorsed curriculum, where respected practitioners stand behind the content and skill definitions.
— Rather than chasing hypergrowth, Process Academy follows a long-term path, focusing on quality, credibility, and shared ownership by the BPM community.
— Daniel sums it up with a generational perspective: building something that still matters decades from now—not just the next funding round.
Daniel can be found on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielmatka/.
Please reach out to us by either sending an email to hello@whatsyourbaseline.com or signing up for our newsletter and getting informed when we publish new episodes here: https://www.whatsyourbaseline.com/subscribe/.Show More
Now Playing
Ep. 104 – BPM Education: Daniel Matka
We had episodes about BPM education on the show before, but this time …
We had episodes about BPM education on the show before, but this time we speak with someone who is from a different generation than your regular hosts.
And our guest Daniel …Matka is building a “Process Academy” to bring process management knowledge to the next generation. And while doing this, he’s building modern ways of structuring content that will speak to this audience.
Daniel was a product owner/project manager in the field of process automation at Robert Bosch GmbH. Today, mastering highly complex processes and automating networked business processes are at the center of my vision for a user-friendly workflow suite. This requires, among other things, creativity, which I demonstrate as the managing director of the music label Madstep even outside work hours.
One of Daniel’s main goals is to share the knowledge and experiences he has gathered throughout his career with others and support them on their journey.
In this episode of the podcast, we talk about:
— Daniel Matka returns to What’s Your Baseline? to discuss a bold idea: rethinking BPM education so it actually scales beyond workshops and slide decks. Coming from a mechanical engineering background at Bosch, Daniel explains how process automation projects grew from a two-person experiment into a 40-person automation team with real business impact.
— A key trigger for Process Academy was the challenge of educating 15,000 people, not just a handful of BPM experts, without relying on repetitive, trainer-dependent workshops.
— Daniel argues that traditional BPM training doesn’t scale: it’s expensive, inconsistent, and often depends more on the trainer’s skills than on a shared, reliable curriculum. One major pain point: “No one wants to teach BPM fundamentals 100 times.” Experts want to solve real problems, not repeat the same basics over and over.
— Inspired by Duolingo, Daniel, and his co-founder Matus envisioned microlearning for BPM—small, daily learning units that fit into real workdays.
— Process Academy is built around skill trees, not linear courses, allowing learners to unlock capabilities step by step based on their role, maturity, and interests. The focus is on T-shaped skills: broad BPM fundamentals for everyone, with deeper specialization paths for modeling, automation, mining, or architecture.
— Daniel emphasizes that learning must be continuous, not event-based: five to ten minutes a day beats a two-day workshop once a year. Gamification isn’t about points—it’s about motivation and momentum, such as streaks, progress visibility, and clear skill progression.
— Process Academy is intentionally set up as a nonprofit to attract top BPM experts who contribute out of conviction, not just commercial interest. “Nonprofit doesn’t mean no money,” Daniel clarifies—it means no cashing out at the expense of the community or inflated license models.
The long-term vision is a community-endorsed curriculum, where respected practitioners stand behind the content and skill definitions.
— Rather than chasing hypergrowth, Process Academy follows a long-term path, focusing on quality, credibility, and shared ownership by the BPM community.
— Daniel sums it up with a generational perspective: building something that still matters decades from now—not just the next funding round.
Daniel can be found on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielmatka/.
Please reach out to us by either sending an email to hello@whatsyourbaseline.com or signing up for our newsletter and getting informed when we publish new episodes here: https://www.whatsyourbaseline.com/subscribe/.Show More
Now Playing
Ep .103 – Open-Source Automation: Dan Funk
There has been a lot of consolidation in the process/architecture …
There has been a lot of consolidation in the process/architecture space in the last few years, mostly driven by PE firms. But why is that so, and why does it …seem that there is no alternative to this business model?
Back in the day there were foundations behind the companies, or they were privately held, and the only thing (besides a few smaller players you might not even have heard of) that I see are some open-source projects in the automation space … mostly driven by the decision to go closed-source by Camunda.
One of these projects is SpiffWorks, and we invited the CEO of the company behind it, Dan Funk, to our little show. He is an expert in identifying organizational and technological patterns, using visualizations and written communication to build consensus around technical directions. Dan is committed to aligning technology initiatives with business objectives, fostering a culture of continuous improvement, and mentoring engineering talent.
Dan is also a thought leader and co-authored numerous publications as the technical lead for a web-based research application promoting healthier patterns of thinking using interpretation bias training. In addition to this, Dan is the co-founder of the Makerplace in Staunton, VA, where he established a makerspace offering low-cost access to state-of-the-art electronics tools, laser cutters, CNC machines, a pottery studio, and woodworking equipment.
In this episode of the podcast, we talk about:
– Dan’s background
– Open-source projects require community support to thrive—SpiffWorks aims to bridge the gap between business and technical teams; Python is chosen for its readability and ease of use in process automation.
– Building a sustainable open-source project involves finding a viable business model, and community engagement is crucial for the success of open-source initiatives.
– Open-source software is foundational to modern technology infrastructure.
– The future of process automation lies in making technology accessible to non-technical users.
– Effective communication is key to resolving conflicts between business and technical teams.
– The open-source model can be compared to a city with shared infrastructure. Support for open-source projects can (and should) come from larger companies benefiting from them.
To implement AI (and processes) correctly, you need good data. But …
To implement AI (and processes) correctly, you need good data. But what does that mean? Well, firstly it means that you can define your data product and to achieve that …you need good data governance.
But are we now in a super-nerdy topic? No, this is what we all do in some form or another … but in different fidelities and maturities.
To shed some light on the topic of data governance, we invited Angelika Rinck for this episode. She started her career studying public administration and then served in the German federal police before switching to the regular industry (in the aerospace industry, and while that might not be enough, she studied economics in parallel).
Somehow she found her way into consulting and is working now in digitalization and IT projects. Her main focus here is product lifecycle management and data governance.
In this episode of the podcast, we talk about:
– Angelika’s career journey: from e-commerce working student in Hamburg to aerospace, engineering, and ultimately major IT and data governance initiatives.
– Her first agile project—complete with a physical Kanban box—sparked her love for IT project management and structured delivery.
– A detour into underwater orienteering reveals surprising parallels to data work: precision, navigation, and making decisions in the dark.
– Defining data governance: the framework of rules, processes, and responsibilities that guide how organizations create, use, secure, and improve data.
– Why it matters: Governance drives clarity, accountability, and value creation—not just control or compliance.
– Understanding the difference between data governance (framework and value creation) and data management (the operational “doing”).
– A common failure pattern: organizations naming “business data stewards” without training, tooling, or understanding the expectations.
– Governance only works when decentralized experts feed real issues into a central team—not when policies are pushed top-down in isolation.
– Data products demystified: they’re the outcome of well-governed data—reusable, high-value information assets that improve processes, decisions, speed, or cost.
– Real examples: using historical field data instead of simulation data to accelerate engineering calculations or using decades of bird-flight video to predict weather with AI.
– Risks of bad data with AI: incorrect system guidance, support tickets exploding, contradictions between outdated documents, and misplaced trust in “the easy button.”
– Governance foundations: critical data identification, metadata transparency, ownership, RASCI clarification, and understanding who creates, changes, and consumes data.
– The messy reality: access rights often don’t match process needs—leading to shortcuts, bypasses, and unintended process redesign opportunities.
– Final takeaway: data governance isn’t bureaucracy—it’s a structured path to value, clarity, and safer AI adoption, but it requires real effort, definitions, ownership, and cultural change.
In this episode, we welcome Finnish enterprise architect and author …
In this episode, we welcome Finnish enterprise architect and author Eetu Niemi to explore what it means to make enterprise architecture (EA) “lightweight”—practical, collaborative, and relevant in the real world. …From frameworks to fiction writing, from ivory towers to coffee-fueled collaboration, this conversation dives into how to make EA actually work for organizations.
With over 16 years of experience in architecture consulting at CGI, Coala, and Accenture, Eetu has guided more than 45 private and public organizations in transforming their business and IT landscapes. He specializes in enterprise and solution architecture, helping organizations align technology with strategy, improve EA practices and tools, and strengthen information security.
A published author and recognized thought leader, he wrote the first EA book in Finnish and two bestsellers on IT consulting and frequently shares insights through blogs, newsletters, and speaking engagements.
Holding a PhD in enterprise architecture benefit realization and an MSc (Econ.), his cross-industry work spans finance, telecom, manufacturing, and the public sector—delivering results in EA modeling, governance, and tool implementation with platforms such as BiZZdesign, Ardoq, and Sparx EA.
In this episode of the podcast, we talk about:
– Eetu’s background — Author, architect, and advocate for democratizing enterprise architecture so it’s accessible beyond the ivory tower.
– Rethinking EA’s relevance — Success comes when EA shifts from being “nice diagrams” to being indispensable guidance that helps organizations plan, adapt, and reduce risk.
– Defining “lightweight EA” — It’s all about communication and cooperation, using models as tools for dialogue, not as ends in themselves.
– Avoiding EA’s common traps — Filling every box in a framework or modeling everything down to cables and servers misses the point. EA should focus on solving real business problems.
– Where to draw the line — Model at the logical level (applications, processes, data) — not every internal detail. EA is the layer above IT and process modeling, not a replacement for them.
– Kickstarting EA right — Start small, plan with stakeholders, and document goals and methods early. Collaboration beats over-engineering every time.
– Who to talk to first — Don’t wait for the C-suite; start where you have access, build trust, and work your way upward.Quick wins matter — Focus on tangible outcomes like system maps for upcoming projects — those early wins open doors and earn invitations “to the next party.”
– Light tools for light EA — Begin with approachable modeling tools instead of overcomplicated platforms. Save the big systems for when you truly need them.
– Governance without the grind — Keep EA blueprints current but concise. A handful of well-maintained diagrams is better than hundreds of forgotten files.
– Collaboration is key — EA succeeds through engagement: creating models with people, validating them with people, and helping those people make better decisions.
– Selling the value — Show how EA helps others succeed — whether that’s IT planning, compliance, or transformation — and you’ll overcome “I have no time for this” resistance.
– EA + AI = opportunity — Complexity is growing, not shrinking. AI can help classify, visualize, and assist — but architects still provide the judgment and storytelling.
– Making EA stick — Keep the practice alive through persistence and visibility. Even when budgets tighten, lightweight EA thrives by staying practical, connected, and useful.
You can reach Eetu on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eetuniemiphd/
Please reach out to us by either sending an email to hello@whatsyourbaseline.com or signing up for our newsletter and getting informed when we publish new episodes here: https://www.whatsyourbaseline.com/subscribe/.Show More
Now Playing
Ep. 100—A Special Occasion With Friends
Welcome to a very special episode of What’s Your Baseline? — where we …
Welcome to a very special episode of What’s Your Baseline? — where we demystify enterprise architecture and business process management. In this milestone 100th episode, we are joined by fellow …BPM podcasters from Prozess Philosophen and BPM360 to celebrate, reflect, and talk about the wild ride of creating content in this niche space.
In this episode of the podcast, we talk about:
– Milestone celebration — 100 full-length episodes! A look back at the journey and what’s ahead.
– Origin stories — How each podcast got started: from Munich restaurants to airport lounges, and “anonymous alcoholics for BPM enthusiasts.”
– The evolution of podcasting — From rough first episodes to polished productions (or intentionally unpolished ones).
– Video vs. audio debate — The pros, cons, and time costs of adding video to podcasts; why some stick to one-take recording.
– Editing realities — 10 minutes vs. 8 hours: wildly different approaches to post-production and what works for each team.
– Authenticity over AI polish — Why staying real and soulful matters in an era of AI-generated, hyper-polished content.
– Community-driven content — Listener feedback shapes episodes; the power of niche audiences and recurring themes.
– Lessons learned — Top advice for aspiring podcasters: just start, don’t overthink, make guests comfortable, and embrace imperfection.
– Underrated vs. Overrated — Change management (underrated), AI hype (overrated), process models (underrated), BPMN notation alone (overrated).
– The future of BPM podcasting — Where the medium is headed, from knowledge lexicons to safe spaces for authentic discussion.
– Listener challenge — What content do you consume? How do you consume it? What resonates with you and why?
– Gratitude and reflections — A heartfelt thank you to the audience, guests, and the BPM community for four years of support.
Please reach out to us by either sending an email to hello@whatsyourbaseline.com. And meanwhile, don’t forget to subscribe to the What’s Your Baseline? podcast on your favorite platform.Show More
This podcast is hosted by Roland Woldt and J-M Erlendson, two experienced consultants with decades of experience in large consulting firms and tool vendors.
About Roland
Roland is the main author of this site and the podcast host.
He is a well-rounded executive with 25+ years of Business / Digital Transformation consulting and software development / system implementation experience, in addition to leadership positions within the German Armed Forces (11 years).
He has worked as a Team Lead, Engagement / Program Manager, and Enterprise / Solution Architect on many projects. Within these projects, he was responsible for the full project life cycle, from shaping a solution and selling it, to setting up a methodological approach through design, implementation, and testing, up to the roll-out of solutions.
J-M is the co-host of the podcast, and is a Business Process Architect, Methodology Specialist, Conference Speaker, and Transformation Engineering Lead with over 15 years of experience in Business Process Management (BPM), Enterprise Architecture, Supply Chain Management, and Project Management. He helps clients develop and implement business process frameworks, hone process-centric strategies, and execute process improvement and architecture modernization projects.
He is a leader in business, founding and running multiple highly successful independent arts companies and charities.
Here are the guest on our show so far. Click on an image to open the episode in a new tab.
Mike Idengren: Scaled Agile and Arch.
Julian Krumeich: Process Mining
José Pires: Get the most out of conferences, ...
Carlisle Gunn: EA strategy & capabilities
Zach Bennett: Strategic process consulting
Caspar Jans: Management of change
Jason Jovanis: Working with recruiters
Amar Modi: Interacting with analysts
James Dening: Process Mining
Jakub Dvořák: Consulting in Process Mining
Ansgar Bittermann: Selecting the right team
Kevin Scully: Task Mining & RPA
Ziv Ilan: Task Mining & RPA
Laurie Kelly: Communic. the Value of EA
Wings Liang: Quality Excellence
Avi Ghosh: Open Source
Rick Smith: Security Architecture
Josèphe Blondaut: Women in Process
Gabriela Galic: Women in Process
Mirko Kloppenburg: How to inspire people
Bernd Rücker: Process automation
Ron Baker: Lean and Six Sigma
Jeremy Voltz: WYB Shorts 9
Sebastian Kotulla: Lean and Process Mining
Dan Marquez: Strategy to Execution
Jehane Adam: Org. Change Management
Adi Klevit: Process Mgmt for Small Orgs
Walter Bril: Process Notations
Luca de Risi: Why CiOs need EA
Marc McGregor: Enterprise Mining
John Hill: Process Simulation
Anthony Gilbreath: Sustainability
James Toomey: Design-driven Transformation
Kevin Tan: Process Modeling
Christoph Piller: Subject-Oriented BPM
Moritz Berger: APQC
Gia Thi Nguyen: Center of Excellence
Peter Dern: Learning & Enablement
Adam Egger: Learning & Enablement
Ron Cohen: Learning & Enablement
Michael Schank: Process Inventory
Shoeb Javed: Operational Intelligence
Martin Holling: BPM Implementation
Lotte Vugs: Process Mining Data
Wiebke Apitzsch: Data Projects
Caspar Jans: BPM Adoption
Maximilian Neumaier: Low-Code/No-Code
Scott Armstrong: AI and BPM
Heather Wendt: Building Community
Breanne Casteel - Bus. Arch. Implementation
Peggy McCann - Retirement Challenge
Amy Levine - High-Performance Teams
Olaf Geyer: Process Mining Readiness
Mike DeCamp: Business Arch. For New Product
Russell Gomersall: EA/BPM Misconcept.
Caspar Jans: EA/BPM Misconceptions
Nick Reed: Mergers & Acquisitions
Luca de Risi: Mergers & Acquisitions
Michael Schank: GRC & Process Perspect.
Craig Overmars: Exec.-Aware Strategy
Dan Marquez: Execution-Aware Strategy
Hanneke Loefs-Mos: Process Community
Leslie Robinet: Unleashed EA
Ben Lamorte: OKRs
Matúš Mala: Process Mgmt Education
Tuhin Chakraborty: AI-Driven Task Mining
Zbigniew Misiak: BPM Trends
Kastin Deal: Legacy Modernization
Neelesh Harmalker: Effective Change
Steve Ponting: Emotional Intelligence
Maxwell Smith: AI Hype
Katharina Paulick: Green BPM
Vassiliki Spentzou: Integr. Mgmt System
Tony Phillips: Decisions, decisions ...
Daniel Matka: Episode 100!
Russell Gommersal: Episode 100!
Christoph Piller: Episode 100!
Caspar Jans: Episode 100!
Eetu Niemi: Lightweight Enterprise Arch.
Angelika Rinck: Data Governance
Dan Funk: Open-Source Automation
Daniel Matka: BPM Education
Michael Hill: PEX & BPM Publication
What others say
Praveen Edwin
The What’s Your Baseline? podcast is a tool I keep in my back pocket to navigate the challenges in an ever-changing business technical ecosystem.
The podcast episodes cover topics that are relevant to business process management, process optimization and enterprise architecture domains.
The podcast gives me an immediate perspective on how, as an enterprise architect, I should look at these topics with a lens to see where and how it applies within my landscape.
Praveen Edwin
Reddy Ice
José Pires
Enterprise Architecture and Process Management nowadays are filled with technical jargon, which is an unnecessary obstacle for organizations and professionals who want to get started or stand up their own practices effectively and efficiently.
The What’s Your Baseline podcast demystifies these disciplines with clear information and targeted advice. In addition to architecture-relevant topics, the podcast includes culture, business, and digital transformation practical insights that will help you run your practice better.
Roland and J-M also have great chemistry, which makes listening to their show both valuable and entertaining.
José Pires
Excellence & Innovation
Dr. Helge Hess
In a business world deluged by so many buzzwords, clarity is power. That is exactly the value that the podcast ‘What’s your Baseline?’ delivers.
The two hosts Roland and J-M have decades of practical experience in the fields of Business Process Management and Enterprise Architecture and manage not only to explain theoretical concepts, but also to show the very concrete practical benefits for companies on their way to Operational Excellence.
A must-hear for all BPM/EA stakeholders!
Dr. Helge Hess
Software AG
Kevin Scully
Whats Your Baseline tackles the myths and facts of the multi-billion dollar Process Intelligence market; covering topics such as Task Mining, Process Discovery, Process Mining, Process Modeling and RPA.
Roland and J-M, with their guests, provide valuable insight into the nuances of each approach to better understand how to optimize business processes. Using a medical simile, process mining provides the “prognosis” and RPA provides the “medicine.”
It’s refreshing to hear from experts who have been in the trenches versus industry analysts who just review spreadsheets and hearsay.
Kevin Scully
Kryon
Nina Bourgeois
In a world where podcasts have become more and more popular, it is hard to find one that is informational, provides transparency, and has facts from experts in the field.
The “What’s Your Baseline?” podcast provides valuable insight into the Business Process Management and Enterprise Architecture world. It uncovers multitudes of questions one may have, and secrets to help one succeed in this space. It is the perfect on-the-go podcast for someone who is looking to learn more without having to get on a call with a sales person. J-M and Roland have 15-25 years of success in the field.
This is a must-listen to podcast for anyone looking for something relatable and to keep them hooked!
Nina Bourgeois
Zuora
Jakub Dvořák
Despite competing for every valuable minute of listeners’ time in an already crowded podcast scene, it’s always a pleasure to compliment a show of people who are as passionate about their work as you are.
And I can honestly say that it is precisely what I feel from Roland and his co-host J-M on the What’s Your Baseline podcast. It’s a great show about the fascinating world of BPM!
Jakub Dvořák
Process& - Host of the Mining Your Business podcast
Where to find us?
The What’s Your Baseline Podcast can be found on all major platforms. Click on an icon below or search in your favorite podcasting app.
