01 Intro and basic concepts

Question 1

What is a model? What do models help to overcome?

Why models?

Answer 1

• A model is an attributed graph that represents a business issue, consequently, it represents a business process.
• Models helps us to realize a business requirement with an information system by means of a concept that helps to understand business and IT specialists:
  
  • Business requirement =>
  • Conceptual model
  • Design specification
  • Implementation
  • => Information System

Question 2

What is EPC? Name some key characteristics of it:

Answer 2

• A graphic modeling language for the representation of business processes.
• EPC = Event-driven process chain
• Event driven: events cause functions.
• Process chain: events and functions follow an alternating sequence.
• Elements:
  
  • Events
  • Functions
  • Logical operators
  • Linking lines/arrows
• Advantages: easy to learn, intuitive, relative freedom in design, many tools available.
• Disadvantages: large models or complex processes can get unclear, missing standard lead to propietary solutions.

Question 3

What is Business Process Management (BPM)?

Answer 3

• BPM includes concepts, methods and techniques to suport the design, administration, configuration, enactment and analysis of business processes.
• A business process consists of a set of activities that are performed in coordination in an organizational and technical environment.
• These activities jointly realize a business goal. Examples:
  
  • Credit applications and approvals (bank)
  • Claim settlements (insurance)
  • Building a car (automotive industry)

Question 4

What are the key elements of Business Processes?

Answer 4

Business Processes consist of:

• Tasks (what is done in which order?)
• People (who does it?)
• Information (what information is needed?)
• IT (which IT systems can support process execution?)
• Products/services (what is the outcome?)

Business processes are also related to

• Business partners
• Customers

Question 5

In relation to the needs for action (change), what are some sources of faulty/inefficient processes?

Answer 5

Sources of faulty/inefficient processes:

• Quality pressure in products and services
• Certification obligation
• Quick adjustment to frequently changing bureaucratic and legal demands
• Increased competitive pressure
• Handling of steadily increasing complexity
• Requirement for transparency in and beyond the company
• Higher requirements of internal audits
• Achievement of customer satisfaction
• Constantly increasing customer requirements
• Easier and more accurate control mechanisms for the management
• Permanent cost pressure

… implies continuously improving business processes.

Question 6

What are the tasks of BPM?

Answer 6

BPM includes concepts, methods and techniques that support…

• Design of processes
  
  • How should a business process look like?
  • How should be individual tasks of a business process be arranged?
• Administration of processes
  
  • How do we organize BPM? How BPM using BPM tools?
• Configuration of processes
  
  • How can business processes be implemented organizationally?
  • How can business processes be implemented technically?
  • How do we align business software to the business process? (customizing)
• Enactment of processes
  
  • How are business processes being executed in software?
  • How can process instances be routed correctly?
  • How can we trace the current state of a process instance?
• Analysis of processes
  
  • How can we improve business process?
  • How can we analyze business processes: from a representation? based on data produced from a running process?

Question 7

What is the focus of the Information Modeling Lecture? (in the business process lifecycle)

Answer 7

The focus of the Information Modeling lecture on the Business process lifecycle:

1. Design: process identification and modelling. <– InfoMod
   
   • Letures: ​​BPM Tools overview, Graph-based model formalization, Meta modeling, Meta modeling tools, Modeling frameworks, Terminological standardization, Configurable process models
2. Analysis: validation, simulation, verification. <– InfoMod
   
   • Lectures: ​​Model query languages (grap search based, temporal logical based)
3. Configuration: system selection, implementation, test and deployment.
4. Enactment: operation, monitoring, maintenance.
5. Evaluation: proces mining, busines activity monitoring. <– InfoMod
   
   • Lectures: ​​Process mining