1, it is worth investing in business process
Business process can be defined as a function of a variety of different activities linked to a group of interrelated tasks. Business processes are starting and finishing points, but they are repeatable. This definition does not reflect the business process to produce a useful necessary thinking, clarity, detail and time spent. Useful for the enterprise business processes to create and save money.
More importantly, to create business processes for enterprise value is represented by those intellectual assets process. Out of parts production value, which is beyond reproach; In addition, knowledge of how to make these accessories are also valuable. You can get in the business process knowledge, add new knowledge and improve it. The scope of parts production process is very important because the implementation of all these steps will ensure that qualified parts; more steps or less of or in connection with a different quality to make the cost increase or decrease, or even have two results.
Define business processes and to document their time and effort spent is totally worth it. Only to parts manufacturing director of knowledge about business accessory manufacturers, and then let him out of the factory door every night, which is in danger. As long as the definition of a parts manufacturing business processes, parts manufacturing workers can come and go at any time and any parts manufacturing workers can work at any time substitute another person, because all the parts manufacturing factory workers to understand and follow business processes. We can learn, change, assessment and then again to change the parts manufacturing business process, because the process is visible for everyone, not just the parts manufacturing director.
2, What is the workflow
Workflow software does not create a business process, but when you add design business process requirements definition and business rules definition, the workflow is applied to business processes, of course focused on the details of the process. Workflow business process can be seen as the Who? What? When? This is the realization of several answers.
2,1 Who?
Who is the business process flow of the participants involved? What is the role they? How they are organized? Grouping is flexible and dynamic? Or more fixed and static? Not only are human beings, more entities can be a workflow participant. Organizations, applications, employees, Web services and other workflow who can answer this question. Abstract for the role of the participants will make a more robust workflow. For example, you do not have braved the bottlenecks in the production workflow to specify the risk of staff A or B to do a task employees, or to endure every time someone transfers or promotions staff when they have to modify the list of specific maintenance headache You can allow anyone with an administrator (Supervisor) role of the person to perform the task, this will reduce the risk of bottlenecks, but also lower maintenance costs.
2,2 What?
What kind of work the participants do? How they do their work? What they have to approve it? Their implementation of the transaction it? They create a document? Tracking stock it? Inquiry to the supplier it? To carry out business activities? The information to other participants in it? Some of the work flow is completely automated, and some by the need by people to perform manual tasks. More often, the work flow is a combination of both types. For example, the supplier is a set of inquiry can be performed manually by a person to one of the tasks, but can also become an Web service programming call, the service providers and to provide according to the items of information back to the price.
2,3 When?
Participants how to know when to start work? Work be completed? Participants to perform their tasks in what order? They are serial or parallel mode work? If only sometimes work, then is under what circumstances? Each task should be how long? To determine whether the deadline? If the task has not completed successfully, whether to try again? When a business process includes the present day only by the person to complete the task, and test results of these tasks is to turn them into automatically, at any time to execute, so people were freed to complete other tasks can be, but Later, the task becomes automatically without waiting for someone to do it.
3, workflow language
Some of the common workflow terminology, see Table 1, most taken from the WfMC workflow reference model (Workflow Reference Model).
Table 1: Workflow terminology and definitions
Workflow
Very simple, it is the work of the process from start to finish. Workflow process logic and routing rules from the composition. Process logic defines the task order and must follow the line of rules, there are deadlines and achieve by the workflow engine and other business rules.
Process definition
Process definition or a graphic flow chart representing the logic elements of the workflow process and the relationship between the elements.
Process instance
A process instance, often referred to as work, is a running instance of process definition.
Workflow Management System
A software application that stored process definition and, through its workflow engine components to run under the definition of these processes work. Workflow engine is run-time implementation of the module.
Process Definition Tool
A process used to create and change the definition of software tools. The tool can be a business process management software component, a separate application or a workflow management system components. Process definition tools provide a re-work Flow Elements have been stored or even all Zailiuchengde capabilities, which enable the work flow application developers more productive, because they 构建 workflow and a workflow Jicheng other applications to avoid the Zaicifaming These wheels (application).
Participants
One of the following types: resource set, specific resources, organizational units, roles (a person's role within the organization), or the system (automatic agents). It can answer the business processes, "Who?" The problem.
Activity
Process definition composed of a logical step in the task. Can be automatic or manual. Automatic operation means the process defined in the script and trigger capabilities. Process definition in the specific activities as the task to run unattended, automated or human-driven in by hand to perform the task of business rules. Common type of automatic activity is the deadline management, if a work item in the book can not be completed before the deadline, the management can automatically send a reminder message, or trigger an extension program.
Activity owner
Activities of the owner is entitled to declare an end of the event, and then move forward to the next process in the activities of participants.
Job owner
The owner is entitled to control the work of the whole implementation process of the participant process instance.
Work item
Activities on behalf of the participants in the process instance will execute the work.