Chapter 9. Integration into business processes 249
9.2 Modeling and designing business processes
Business process modeling is performed mainly by business analysts. These
subject matter experts usually do not have detailed IT knowledge. The challenge
for software development methodologies and project management is to enable
the business analysts to provide sufficient information to IT architects and
designers so that the design reflects the business requirements.
This chapter focuses on the methodology and tools that can ensure unbiased
flow of information from business analyst to IT architect and designer. It shows in
detail how you can model and design business processes using WebSphere
Business Integration Modeler, Rational XDE Developer, and WebSphere Studio
Application Developer Integration Edition.
9.2.1 Modeling the stock trade scenario
The stock trade scenario was described in detail in 3.1, “Scenario description
and requirements” on page 66. In summary, in the stock trade use case, a
customer intends to buy or sell stock using the Web channel of a trading firm.
The web-enabled stock trade application calls the stock trade business process
to process the customer request. The stock trade business process itself relies
on two other business processes that are run by the brokerage division of that
trading firm and by an external stock quote and analysis firm.
The three business processes that built up the end-to-end scenario have been
specified using WebSphere Business Integration Modeler. The modeling tool
was mainly used in the requirements capture phase of our project. For all three
business processes, activity flows have been created using the visual process
editor of WebSphere Business Integration Modeler. We have noticed that the
definition of a business use case is accelerated significantly, if the modeling tool
is used in a requirements capture workshop, even for our rather simple sample
scenario. In most cases, the reports and figures that can be easily generated
with the modeling tool provide a sufficient level of detail to completely describe
the functional requirements on a business level. Sharing these documents
across a team of business analysts improves collaboration and provides for more
effective and efficient discussions.
To facilitate the design of the business processes, more details have been added
to the process flows in the visual editor. Business items, such as trade details or
order details, have been specified using the business item editor of the tool. Input
and output of the activities and the overall process have been defined.
Furthermore, for all decisions in the process flow, expressions have been
specified to determine the branch to follow in the flow. By using the easy-to-use
editors and expression builders, business analysts are able to specify in detail
250 Managing Information Access to an EIS Using J2EE and Services Oriented Architecture
the data and process flow in the business process and to provide the design
team with the necessary information to start immediately with design activities.
IT architects and designers often prefer to use standard UML notation to capture
designs and development methodologies, and they often enforce the use of
UML-compliant architecture models. WebSphere Business Integration Modeler
includes a UML export feature to generate XMI-based descriptions of the
process model. The UML model can then be imported into modeling tools such
as Rational XDE Developer. Seamless integration of the modeling tools enables
IT-architects and designers to design interfaces and data models that are based
on UML-compliant analysis models that are generated by business analysts.
Because re-creation of the analysis models from text documents or free-form
drawings is not required, a common cause of discrepancies between business
requirements and design is eliminated.
9.2.2 Modeling the business process
The business process models have been developed using WebSphere Business
Integration Modeler Version 5.1. You can find detailed instructions about how to
install the product in the installation package.
Creating the business modeling project
When starting WebSphere Business Integration Modeler for the first time, the
Quickstart wizard opens to assist you in creating a modeling project and a
process model. At this screen, you can enter the names of a project, process
catalog, and process (see Figure 9-2 on page 251). In addition, you can use the
next screen of the wizard to create a business item catalog and a business item.
Deselect the Always show this wizard on startup check box if you do not want
the wizard to start when the modeler tool is started. You can open the wizard at
any time by selecting Modeling
→ Quickstart wizard → Model a process
from the menu bar.
Chapter 9. Integration into business processes 251
Figure 9-2 Creating the modeling project
Having completed the creation of the artifacts as defined in the wizard, the
Business Modeling perspective of the modeler tool opens. The perspective
contains four views:
???? Project Tree view
To view and create projects, catalogs, processes, and business items
???? Outline view
To visualize the components of a process model such as tasks and decisions
???? Editor panel
To view and edit process models, business items, and resources
???? Attributes view
To specify details of elements that are highlighted in the process editor
The Project Tree is the central feature of the tool, where you can create the
reusable materials that comprise process models, data (business item) models,
and organizational models, as well as creating projects and catalogs to contain
and organize your work. The Project Tree uses a default structure to organize the
artifacts that you create to represent your business. At the highest level, the
Project Tree requires that you create a project to contain the artifacts that you
252 Managing Information Access to an EIS Using J2EE and Services Oriented Architecture
create. Within the project, the Project Tree creates a library that contains folders
for organizing your model elements. To create a process model within the
Processes folder, for example, right-click the folder and select New
→ Process.
Within the folders, you can add your own specific catalogs, each of which holds a
related set of items. You can also create catalogs within catalogs, in case you
want to organize information hierarchically.
All items that you create in the Project Tree below the level of catalogs and
projects are reusable. When you create a business item, for example, you can
reuse it whenever you need to supply a data type. Similarly, a process that you
create in the Project Tree is reusable as a subprocess within other processes.
The Editor panel, Outline view, and Attributes view are used to visualize and
detail the process models and business items that you have created. The
following sections explain these views in more detail.
Stacked behind the Attributes view, two more views are available: the Control
Panel view and the Error view. The Control Panel view is used to configure and
start simulations, which is not covered in this book. In the Error view, error and
warning messages are displayed that the modeler tool creates when validating
modeling projects and process models.
Creating the process model
The process editor is the feature that you use to graphically compose the details
of a process model. If you have used the Quickstart wizard to create a modeling
project and process model, the process editor is already open in the editor panel.
You can open the process editor at any time by double-clicking the process in the
Project Tree.
The process diagram is accompanied by a palette that contains elements that
you can add to the process diagram. For the Stock Trade business process
models, we used the following elements:
???? Tasks: activities of a business process
???? Start and Stop nodes: indicate start and end of a business process
???? Decisions: allow to split process flow and to follow multiple branches
???? Merges: merge multiple branches into one
???? Connections: connect activities and nodes to define the process flow
You usually start modeling in the operational mode and use the Basic user
profile. The operational mode allows for unrestricted modeling, while the FDL
and the BPEL mode enable restrictions so that transformation to FDL- and
BPEL-based descriptions of the process model is facilitated. The Basic user
profile focuses on business modeling tasks. In contrast, the Intermediate profile
that you use later, allows for definition of input and output data for processes and
tasks and provides formal expressions for decisions. You can switch between
Chapter 9. Integration into business processes 253
modes and user profiles by selecting Modeling
→ Modes or Modeling → User
profile from the menu bar.
To define non-reusable elements, select the elements in the palette and drag
them onto the diagram. To add reusable processes and tasks, you first have to
create them in the Project Tree, and then you add the elements to a process
diagram by dragging them from the Project Tree. In the Stock Trade business
processes, we have used non-reusable tasks only. In a more complex scenario,
we recommend that you create a collection of reusable processes and tasks to
ensure reuse and consistency across process models that are created by
different business analysts.
Figure 9-3 on page 254 shows the process editor for the Stock Brokerage
business process. You can find the palette on the left side of the process editor.
Three tasks, a decision, and connections are shown in the process model
diagram.
To create connections between tasks you first have to click the Connections
button (the button with the arrow to the right) on the palette to enable the
connection creation mode. You leave this mode by clicking the Select button (the
button at the top) of the palette.
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