Similarly, the Travel team had an agenda to document just how incompetent the Sales team was in completing the reports! They advocated for a multi-step process in their own swimlane, to demonstrate all the time and effort that was spent on finding the Sales team’s mistakes. To drive their point home, they insisted on capturing a multi-step process, to demonstrate just how complicated their task was. They had complaints about the report template being too time consuming to complete, and they felt the expectation to collect and submit physical receipts was cumbersome. The first step in their process was to complete an expense account, but it was clear that they did not find this activity value-added. When we all sat down to create our Process Flow Diagram, it became obvious that the sales team had an agenda. The participating teams present were:ġ) Sales, who submits the most expense accounts Ģ) Travel, the Finance team who processed the expense accounts andģ) Payroll, who handled the bank deposits. The scope of the activity was to capture the Corporate Expense Account Reimbursement process, which started when an employee incurred a reimbursable expense, and finished when the same amount had been deposited into the same employee’s bank account. To demonstrate, I once was involved in mapping what should have been a fairly straightforward end-to-end process but was fraught with conflict. These beliefs are based on previous interactions and the effectiveness or dysfunctionality of hand-offs and communication between their teams. ![]() Because they are human, each of them brings a set opinions and pre-conceived notions about the other groups. A leader or representative of each function is invited to participate. BPM practitioners often find themselves facilitating large groups of cross-functional assemblages with the goal of improving some end-to-end process. At its core, all work is meant to convert useful Inputs into valuable Outputs that customers are willing to pay for.īecause Process is the universal language, a Process Flow Diagram also serves as a very useful collaboration tool. Process is the universal language of business, whether converting raw materials into finished goods or providing services to end users. Practitioners who learn how to create Process Flow Diagrams typically discover very quickly that these diagrams serve a larger purpose than just as a documentation tool. However, the flexibility and ambiguity in the standard liberates the Modeler to use this shape in very creative ways and to accomplish some amazing things. Given this sparse, utilitarian description of the Text Annotation shape, Process Modelers might understandably be confused as to the shape’s purpose and use cases. As you can see, we are provided with some rules for the acceptable shape to use (the open rectangle that MUST be drawn with a single solid line.) Elsewhere in the standard, we are guided on how to draw the “Association” (the dotted line that connects the Annotation to another shape.) This is the most detailed description given in the standard of how to create a Text Annotation. ![]() We’re directed to page 71 for more information: Once again, the standard states that Annotations are “a mechanism for a modeler to provide additional text information for the reader” of a Process Flow Diagram. The standard defines what the Annotation shape is intended to accomplish:īPMN 2.0 Standard, page 28 Highlight added for emphasisīased on this description, we know that “Artifacts are used to provide additional information.” Let’s continue searching the standard to see if we can find more detail: The formal BPMN 2.0 standard is maintained and governed through the Object Management Group. Text Annotations as Described in the BPMN 2.0 Standard In the real-life examples that follow, we will explore uses for this simple shape, and discover how it has been used to elevate Process Flow Diagrams from a simple documentation tool into a true process improvement tool. Using this shape, a skilled Process Modeler can resolve conflict and inspire innovation from Process Owners, Executives, and front-line employees alike. The “Text Annotation” Element (or shape) within the BPMN 2.0 standard is the unsung hero of Process Mapping. A Practitioner’s Guide to BPMN 2.0 as a Process Improvement Tool
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