WORKFLOW AND PROCESS AUTOMATION: Concepts and Technology

WORKFLOW AND PROCESS AUTOMATION: Concepts and Technology

THE KLUWER INTERNATIONAL SERIES IN ENGINEERING AND COMPUTER SCIENCE

WORKFLOW AND PROCESS AUTOMATION: Concepts and Technology by Andrzej Cichocki Abdelsalam (Sumi) Belal Marek Rusinkiewicz Darrell Woelk Microelectronics and Computer Technology Corporation (MCC).., ~ SPRINGER SCIENCE+BUSINESS MEDIA, LLC

Llbrary of Congress Cataloglng-ln-PubHcation Data Workflow and process automation : concepts and technology I by Andrzej Cichocki... [et al.]. p. cm. -- (Kluwer international series in engineering and computer science ; SECS 432) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-4613-7599-9 ISBN 978-1-4615-5677-0 (ebook) DOI 10.1007/978-1-4615-5677-0 1. Production management--data processing. 2. Management information systems. 3. Manufacturing processes--automation. 4. Transaction systems (Computer systems) 1. Cichocki, Andrzej. II. Series. TSI55.6.W637 1998 658.5' l--dc21 97-43179 CIP Copyright <111998 by Springer Science+Business Media New York Originally published by Kluwer Academic Publishers in 1998 Softcover reprint ofthe hardcover lst edition 1998 AII rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.. Printed on acid-free paper.

CONTENTS PREFACE ix 1 INTRODUCTION 1 2 PROCESS TECHNOLOGY 5 2.1 Process Modeling 5 2.1.1 Communication-based Modeling 5 2.1.2 Artifact-based Modeling 8 2.1.3 Activity-based Modeling 8 2.2 Process Descriptive Views 9 2.3 Process Meta-Models 13 2.4 Process Model Analysis 13 3 WORKFLOW TECHNOLOGY 19 3.1 Workflow Enactment Paradigms 19 3.2 Workflow Execution System Guarantees 20 3.2.1 Correctness of execution of a single instance of a workflow 20 3.2.2 Transactional properties 21 3.2.3 Deadlines 22 3.2.4 Discussion 23 3.3 Description Languages 23 3.3.1 Expressiveness of the workflow specification languages 23 3.3.2 User Interfaces 24 3.3.3 Specification interoperability 25 3.3.4 Language processors 25 3.4 Software Architecture of the Workflow Enactment Service 26 v

vi WORKFLOW AND PROCESS AUTOMATION 3.4.1 Scalability and Performance 26 3.4.2 Reliability 27 3.4.3 Execution interoperability 28 3.4.4 Flexibility 28 3.5 Security Considerations 29 3.6 Implementation Issues 30 3.6.1 Software infrastructure: existing and emerging technologies 30 3.6.2 Task managers and application wrappers 32 3.6.3 Monitoring tools 33 3.6.4 Mobility of workflow servers and clients 34 4 TRANSACTIONAL ASPECTS OF WORKFLOWS 37 4.1 The need for a workflow transaction model 37 4.2 Traditional Transactions 38 4.3 Correct Execution of Traditional Transactions 40 4.4 Extended Transaction Models 41 4.4.1 Sagas 41 4.4.2 Nested Transactions 43 4.4.3 Open Nested Transactions 44 4.4.4 Multidatabase Transactions 45 4.4.5 Polytransactions 47 4.4.6 S-transaction Model 48 4.4.7 The Carnot Project 49 4.5 Meta-models for Extended Transactions 50 4.5.1 ACTA - A Transaction Meta-model 50 4.5.2 A Transaction Specification and Management Environment (TSME) 52 4.6 Towards Transactional Workflows 54 4.6.1 Specification of a Task in a Workflow 55 4.6.2 Task Coordination Requirements 58 4.6.3 Failure-Atomicity Requirements of a Workflow 59 4.6.4 Execution Atomicity Requirements of a Workflow 60

Contents vii 5 ONGOING RESEARCH IN WORKFLOW AND PROCESS AUTOMATION 63 5.1 Overview 63 5.2 Process Handbook Project 64 5.3 Process Interchange Format 67 5.4 METEOR Multiparadigm Transactional Workflow 67 5.5 APRICOTS 71 5.6 Exotica Project 73 5.7 MENTOR 74 5.8 MOBILE 76 5.9 Panta Rhei Project 77 5.10 Interaction Coordination Nets 78 5.11 VORTEL - Teleservice for Workflow Management 79 5.12 WIDE Consortium 80 5.13 The TriGSflow Model 81 5.14 COACT Model 82 5.15 Microsoft MAPI-WF 83 5.16 Database representation of workflows 83 5.17 OPERA 85 5.18 Migrating Workflows 86 6 STATE OF THE INDUSTRY 91 6.1 Overview of Current Products 91 6.1.1 Characterization of Workflow Products 92 6.1.2 Features of Workflow Products 96 6.1.3 Comparison of Workflow Products 99 6.2 Workflow Management Coalition 100 6.3 Shortcomings and Limitations of Current Products 102 6.4 Shortcomings in technology support for processes 105 6.4.1 Descriptions 105 6.4.2 Modeling and Analysis 106 6.4.3 Enactment 107 REFERENCES 109 INDEX 119

PREFACE The importance of workflow and process technologies is increasing today as we see a convergence of communications connectivity and software tools for collaboration among remote people and computer systems. While this convergence provides a partial framework for large scale collaboration, solutions for the coordination of the process of collaboration are missing. Advances in workflow and process technology will be needed in order to provide truly robust, scalable and dynamic collaboration environments. The Microelectronics and Computer Technology Corporation (MCC) and its member companies carried out a study in 1996 to investigate the state of the art of workflow and process technology. The study resulted in the creation of a report that documented the state of the art and identified technology shortcomings where further research is needed to meet present and future requirements. The report focused on the potential synergism attainable through a merger of process modeling, workflow, and advanced transaction management technologies. Based on the results of the study, MCC initiated the Collaboration Management Infrastructure (CMI) research project to develop innovative agent-based process technology that can support the process requirements of dynamically changing organizations and the requirements of nomadic computing. With a research focus on the flow of interaction among people and software agents representing people, the project deliverables will include a scalable, heterogeneous, ubiquitous and nomadic infrastructure for business processes. The resulting technology is being tested in applications that stress an intensive mobile collaboration among people as part of large, evolving business processes. The 1996 MCC study report on workflow and process technology has been used as the basis for this book. The authors would like to acknowledge the contributions of a number of people and organizations. We were fortunate to have the expert assistance of Amit Sheth, Baldev Singh, and Ivo Vondrak in organizing and carrying out the study. They also contributed to the writing of the study report and the book. Jerry West assisted in the editing and artwork ix

x WORKFLOW AND PROCESS AUTOMATION for the book. Contributions of ideas and requirements for the MCC study were made by a large cross section of the MCC member companies. People in each of these companies have daily first hand experience with the need for process improvement and the shortcomings of existing solutions in this area. Hopefully, the study and this book will help to establish a road map for improvements in these solutions. Andrzej Cichocki (andrzej@mcc.com) Abdelsalam (Sumi) Helal (helal@mcc.com) Marek Rusinkiewicz (marek@mcc.com) Darrell Woelk (woelk@mcc.com) Autin, Texas