Business Process Modeling Notation
Categories: Technology
Business Process Modeling Notation
Business Process Modeling Notation (BPMN) is a standardized graphical notation used to represent business processes in a visual and understandable way. It provides a common language for business analysts, process designers, and other stakeholders to communicate and document business processes effectively. Business Process Modeling Notation (BPMN) utilizes a set of symbols and conventions to represent various elements of a process and their interactions. Here are some key components of BPMN:
Process Flow Elements:
Activities (Tasks and Sub-processes): Represent individual tasks or steps within a process. Tasks can be further categorized into user tasks (performed by a human) and service tasks (automated by software).
Gateways: Depict decision points or branching within a process flow. Gateways can represent exclusive decisions, parallel branching, inclusive decisions, and more.
Events: Signify points in the process where something happens, such as the start, end, or intermediate stages of a process. Events can be categorized into start, intermediate, and end events.
Connecting Elements:
Sequence Flow: Arrows that indicate the order in which activities, events, and gateways are executed in the process.
Message Flow: Shows the exchange of messages between different processes or participants.
Association: Connects data objects, text annotations, and other artifacts to activities or other elements to provide additional information.
Swim lanes:
Pools: Represent high-level process participants, which can be departments, organizations, or external entities.
Lanes: Divide the pool into smaller sections, often representing specific roles, responsibilities, or functions within the participant.
Artifacts:
Data Objects: Represent data used or produced by activities in the process.
Text Annotations: Provide additional explanations or descriptions of process elements.
Intermediate Catching Events:
Timer Events: Set off after a predefined measure of time has elapsed.
Message Events: Set off when a particular message is gotten.
Signal Events: Triggered by the receipt of a particular signal.
Error Events: Triggered when an error condition occurs.
Business Process Modeling Notation (BPMN) diagrams are designed to be easily understood by both technical and non-technical stakeholders. They aid in process analysis, improvement, automation, and communication. While BPMN offers a standardized notation, it's important to note that the complexity of a diagram can vary depending on the scope and detail of the process being modeled. There are different levels of BPMN diagrams, ranging from simple overviews to more detailed specifications.