Creating a first BP-model

Guten Tag,

Let us create a simple description of the process from the original one that the BA has before starting.

How? Well, you open Intalio Designer. Create a new Project, by selecting File->New->Intalio|BPMS Business Process Project; write down the name of the new project and configure the environment (by default, just say OK on this part). Then, you have an empty project with a single sub-directory named “build” ( “DO NOT TOUCH!!!” ).

In Intalio Designer you identify several zones of the screen: the menus at the top, the Process Explorer on the left, the drawing or working area (empty) at the center and up to the right margin; at the bottom you’ll also find two small windows with detailed descriptions, and at the bottom margin you’ll see the tabs chooser (on the left) and the status of the compiler/ deployer (on the right).

In each project, you can create as many process descriptions as you want. The idea is to create one diagram per process description, so let us do it: Right-click on the name of the project, and a menu will appear. Choose New->Business Process Diagram. Then, write down the name of the BP (it can be the same than for the project, no problem).

A new process diagram is created, opened in the drawing area, and a couple of default elements have been pre-built: a default pool, and a default task.

What is a pool? very briefly, it is the representation of the space of action of a given role/actor; it is used as a graphical container of all the tasks that are performed by such a role.

And, what is a task? well, a task is an action or activity performed by a role. It must be put inside a container (pool) in order to be assigned to that role. Tasks are what is listed in our original process description.

Making the system more comfortable for Business Process Modelers

The default perspective in Intalio is the Intalio|BPMS Designer perspective, , that contains the detail needed by the IT specialists. In order to change it, please choose the view menu (top right corner, or go to Window->Open Perspective->Intalio|BPMS Modeling or Window->Open Perspective->Other->Intalio|BPMS Modeling ). This view will allow the BA to use the whole space for the process diagram.

Choose the Palette tab (behind the Project Explorer). The palette offers you the whole set of BPMN symbols you need in order to create your graphical process description. If you want to put a task symbol in the pool, then you click on the Task symbol, and then you click on the drawing (do NOT drag it, please). That’s it.

You must set a name. You may either double-click inside the task, or do the modification using the Properties tab (Click on Properties, then at each task in the drawing. You can edit the content of Properties->Process Execution->Label)

(If you want a full description of this step, please go and visit the Intalio Tutorials and Screencasts in order to understand how to introduce the symbols. My goal with this blog is not to replace the documentation that is already there.)

Specifying the causal relationships: what comes after what

Continue introducing as many tasks as you have in the list of the original process description. Put the next task always to the right of the preceding one. Try not to be too generous, since screen real-state is scarce. You can also zoom out from the menu bar (the only option with the % sign in it ).

You will get a long “chorizo” of tasks. They’re not a network of consecutive tasks yet. This is why a red error symbol appears at the left margin of the pool when you save the file (CTRL+S).

In order to connect the tasks, choose the Flow Connector from the Palette, and then draw it in the working area: click once on one task and click once on the destination task, the arrow will appear indicating the correct direction. The Flow connector is actually a transfer of the control flow among tasks, not a transfer of the data flow.

As you see, by default, the tasks are done in linear-sequence. However, most interesting processes are made up of a non-linear sequence patterns (parallel, one task-or-the-other, a-minimum-of-iterations-of-a-task, a-minimum-of-instances-of-tasks, etc.). For the moment, we will not address these issues.

Once you finish entering the tasks in sequence, we have a first version of the process. Isn’t it difficult to change the control flow later? NO!! That’s the good thing of BPMN and Intalio. It is actually pretty easy, as we will see in a future entry.

Now you’re notified of an error when you save the project. Mmmmmhh… if you put the mouse over the error symbol on the first task of your process, you should read “The first task of an executable pool must receive a message” … ? It is not that terrible, but we have to go back to the original process description:

• what is the event that can trigger this process? what makes the organization to launch a process like this?
  • Is it a request/claim made by the person herself or by indirect means?
  • If it is the person: can she do it by mailing a letter? can it be done by phone? by fax? by e-mail? via a form in a website?
  • If it is done indirectly: what is the kind of system and of information that is received? what are the rules that enable the detection of a certain condition?

Very often, we can represent the launch of a process as an event, one that arrives or that is detected. This is represented by a Starting Event. The Intalio Palette proposes three events: Empty, Message, and Rule. Please select the Message Start. Put it as the first element in your process timeline.

Specifying the causal relationships: connecting to an external trigger

As the message must come from somewhere external to the orchestrator, you should draw another pool. Select the Pool from the Palette, and then draw it in the working area. It should be a non-executable pool, as explained here, since it is an external actor or system the one who initiates the process. It is not an element under the control of the orchestrator. Click once with the right-button of the mouse, and choose the last option of the list, Set pool non executable. As a result, the left margin of the pool becomes dark.

Put a task in this new, external pool: choose the Task from the Palette, and then draw it in the working area. This time no error is notified, since the non executable pools do not require an external starter.

In order to connect the tasks from different pools, choose the Message Connection from the Palette, and then draw it in the working area: click once on the origin task (the new task) and click once on the target task (the message start event of your process), a dotted arrow will appear indicating the correct direction. The message connection is actually a transfer of the data among tasks that is used as a synchronization point by the control flow.

Save the project. Both the error symbol and the error messages have disappeared.

BPMN is very zealous about well-formedness: please close every opening element, and start and end every process explicitly. I know! I know! Intalio is not telling you anything, but it will surely if you don’t correct the situation early. Pls listen to me: avoid the problems and save time. In this case, the orchestrator should include an explicit termination, and End Event. Please select the Empty End from the Palette, and then draw it in the working area, at the right of the chain of tasks. Insert a Flow Connector from the preceding task. We’re done.

The first iteration of our BP-model is complete. It is not possible to generate an executable description from this first model. We will see why very soon.

Vaarwel !!

What is too often tacit and that should be know by both IT-guys and Biz-people

Konichiwa,

There are several aspects of the interface between the theory and practice of BPMS (and of the more general
workflow-systems) that are just never explained.

They are not necessarily present in the minds of non-specialists. I prefer to avoid the tacit understanding of such aspects. This often results in undeterministic and conflicting views of BPM, BPMN, and of the process descriptions that you create with it. It is also fundamental to grasp the essence of the architecture of BP-based systems (what is the place of BPMS and of workflows, of BPEL, BPEL4People, User Interaction, and others in the equation).

I won’t cover everything here but the main issues that help you understand the reasons that I consider most important to understand how to tackle a BP-project using Intalio and other BPMSs:

• The designer must clearly specify two logical sets:
  • the portions of the workflow (set of tasks) that can be performed automatically, and
  • those portions of workflow that require human intervention.
• The BP designer will generate an orchestrator that will be executed on a BPMS server. An orchestrator:
  • is an entity that guarantees that the execution of the business process follows the specification;
  • is external to the systems that will actually execute many of the actions, but it is the orchestrator who will command them to do those actions;
  • is not the owner of most of the information that is required for future actions, so it should grab and store that information for future use.
• The designer will then obtain two kinds of BP-pools (representing the coarse roles that participate in the process):
  • non-executable: each of the IT systems that the orchestrator must talk to, as well as every user interaction (web-based in most of cases)
  • executable: the orchestrator itself.
• The BPMS server:
  • provides an environment where to execute the orchestrator. Such environment is a virtual machine for BPEL and BPEL4People
  • provides a portal for managing the User-Interactions in synchrony with the BP-description
  • talks to security components, in order to authenticate and authorize BP-consumers

I hope this will make it easier to understand the structure of the resulting specification. More details on this subject will be discussed later.

Tchau!

Before you start creating the BP model in Intalio…

Bon giorno,

Most people find it difficult to start a business process modeling project with Intalio but when reusing examples. Consequently, I thought it would be useful to give a few hints of what it really takes to start from scratch. Of course, I’ll be as generic as possible and attempt to remain consistent with xPD, and we should address specific needs at some point in the future.

As I said before, the PD or BA is responsible for mapping the BP description by using Intalio Designer. Here, we follow a top-down approach where the specification comes from the business side; it may however remain still applicable for orchestration efforts coming from the IT side.

In order to model a Business Process, the BA should first have a model process, even a draft one. If it is not the case, she/he should create it, but this is a different issue we will talk about in a future entry. I will assume the BA has a list of the tasks that make up the process, and that YOU are the BA. Please, choose a simple process that is mostly sequential; we can add complexity later but the goal now is to understand.

The original model process is just a description. It does not posses several properties that are required to make it executable. So, we must transform this description (“AS-IS”) into the one you will obtain at the end of the modeling project (“TO-BE”) . What is the difference?

• Semantics (symbols used and grammar) of the description language are ad hoc.
• Data is not mapped: there is no way to communicate the context to the different tasks explicitly.
• Actors are often specified but in a physical/real environment, where paper & thick walls isolate roles, and where several specific IT systems/applications must be used.

We will write a new specification with more rigorous semantics by using BPMN. BPMN is a description language produced by consensus of a large community; it is a public standard, so people should be able to understand the BP-model 10 years from now, even in a different geographical area. That’s the good thing of this approach: it does not only facilitate reuse and maintenance, but also makes it possible to integrate the Biz-people onto the initiative.

Finally, before starting translating the description, please check first these points out:

• What is the event that can trigger this process? what makes the organization to launch a process like this?
• What is obtained as result at the end of the process?
• How many (coarse) roles/organizational units participate in the process?

PS: Because you should learn BPMN first; I propose you to download & read the Introduction to BPMN and to refer to websites such as BPM Initiative, BPMN.org, BPM Institute, and BPM Research. I won’t teach BPMN here, @ least not for the basics.

I will just tell you that BPMN diagrams are like flowcharts and that you must recognize only four shapes. Each shape represents a main element in the flow: event (circle) that indicate that something happened, activity (rounded rectangle) that mean some work is done (internally or by an external actor), selector/gateway (diamond) for representing control flow (branch/join), and connection(arrow) that indicate control flow and communication. In addition, the roles are represented by swimlanes (pools and lanes).

Hasta la vista!

A mortal’s guide to initiation

Intalio is a wonderful, robust solution that is incredibly lightweight… but it also has a personnality, even a strong character sometimes.

One of the common difficulties is to convince people that something like Intalio exists, that it works, and that is Open Source. Then, they’re ready to try, but there is no guide to follow. I’m a strong believer of constructivism but I’m also aware of the lack of time (or of patience) of experienced people. Therefore, I’d like first to avoid the frustration of others with Intalio.

My goal is to decode bit by bit, in just several hundred blog entries how to find your way and become an Illuminati of Intalio.

First of all, download the Intalio plaftorm. This normally requires registering onto their website. Just do it, and keep your password somewhere. I propose you to send yourself an e-mail with your password, using the same e-mail address that you used for registration. Then, you’ll find all Intalio-related information in the same place. Intalio people won’t annoy you and fill your Inbox; they will instead warn you 2-3 times per year if something important happens (new releases, a new feature like a screencast repository in their website).

You should download the Intalio Designer and the Intalio BPMS server. I’ll explain this better soon in another entry. Install them locally. They’re Java applications (mainly), so it should be straightforward to set them up and make them run on your machine.

In order to learn how to use it, please try to go through the Screencasts and Tutorials (basic) in the Intalio website. On the other side, you can suffer with me and follow the series of entries I will write; they are tagged as “Initiation” and/or “Start”. Just click on the Tag Cloud for finding out those articles. There will also be series on Project planning, Roles in the design of Business Processes, BP-Patterns, etc.

If you can, attend one of the courses taught by Intalio experts; the documentation given to you and the sharing of their expertise deserve the effort and the money. Besides, I guess Intalio follows the Enterprise 2.0 model, with the advantage of reactivity and tight links with their customers. The Intalio guys are really cool.

Later, try the Samples and the non-basic Tutorials. The forums are there to ask for questions. On this blog, I’ll try to focus on my daily experience with Intalio and give some hints on several issues related to the “Dark Side”