1 Conceptual Modeling of User Interfaces to Workflow Information Systems Conceptual Modeling of User...

1 Conceptual Modeling of User Interfaces to Workflow Information Systems

Conceptual Modeling of User Interfaces to

Workflow Information Systems

By: Josefina Guerrero García

Advisor: Prof. Jean Vanderdonckt


Outline

1. Introduction2. State of the Art3. Conceptual modeling of workflow4. Methodology for developing the UI of a

workflow system 5. Case study 6. Conclusion


Outline




Introduction (1-6)

Organizations

Organizational connection requirements

Technological connection

Hybrid connection

Information Systems

development


Introduction (2-6)

• Workflow management technology as a possible solution

• Currently, widely used to handle business process using Information Systems


Introduction (3-6)

• The development of workflow systems represents major new challenges today for several important reasons:Lack of integration of individual interactive

systems in the global workflow (email communication is not enough).

Lack of system integration both at a local and at a global scale (the problem is not the definition of the tasks but the integration in a complete workflow which could be reinforced by a system).


Workflow challenges Cont… (4-6)

Activities changes induced by inappropriate technological integration (user activities change with the introduction of new technologies).

Difficulty of obtaining a workflow system evolving with the organization (changes in the organizational model do not consider automatic changes in the workflow and vice versa).

Absence of considering real group requirements in workflows (it is necessary to consider the task performed by the groups).


Research Question (5-6)

• Would it be possible to generate the user interface of a workflow information systems from its specifications (provided that they address the relevant aspects) and the different constructs that link the tasks and the users together?


Thesis statement (6-6)

• In order to bring together the advance of the Information System and the workflow modeling in a co-evolutionary way, it is possible to introduce a conceptual model of the workflow information system so as to derive a potential user interface as systematically as possible.


Outline




Workflow definition (1-7)

• Workflow is the automation of a business process in whole or part, during which documents, information or tasks are passed from one participant to another for action, according to a set of procedural rules (WfMC).


Workflow characteristics (2-7)

• Tasks/activities to be performed by (role-playing) persons using supporting tools that give access to various shared information resources.

Marshak


Workflow notations-Petri Nets (3-7)

Notation Graphical representation

Transition

Arc

Token

Place


Workflow notations- Statechart (4-7)

Notation Graphical representation

State

Transition

Initial State

Final State


Workflow Tools (5-7)

The Progression Model incorporates some of the managing concepts of workflow to increase the flexibility in information systems.



• Microsoft Windows Workflow Foundation (WWF) is an extensible framework for developing workflow solutions on the Windows platform.



• Flexo Engine interprets the workflow description, controls the instantiation of processes, sequences activities, adds work items to the user work lists and invokes application tools when necessary.


Outline




Requirements for the conceptual modeling of workflow (1-9)

• A workflow model

• Organizational components

• The process model

• The task model


decompositiontemporal

precondition : event

unaryRelationshipbinaryRelationship

independentConcurrencyconcurrencyWithInformationPassing

orderIndependencedisabling suspendResumeenabling

enablingWithInformationPassing

iterationfiniteIteration

iterationNumber : integeroptional

deterministicChoice undeterministicChoice

1..n

1..n

1..n 1..n

0..n

0..n

1..n

0..n 0..n

software servicesmachine

meansMaterials

hardwareM

immaterial

1..n

1..n

disablingWithInformationPassinginclusiveChoice

uiModel

creationDate : stringschemaVersion : string...

1

1..n

1..n

2..n

1..n

1..n

11

0..n 11..n

11..n

sequential parallelSplit exclusiveChoice simpleMerge multiChoicesynchronization

0..n

0..1

cooperation

1

0..n

0..n

1

1

1

target

targetId : string

source

sourceId : string

userStereotype

id : stringstereotypeName : stringtaskExperience : stringsystemExperience : stringdeviceExperience : stringtaskMotivation : string

targetProcess

targetProcessId : String...

sourceProcess

sourceProcessId : String...

logEntry

id : Stringname : StringtimeStamp : Datedescription : StringlogType : String

taskRelationship

id : stringname : string

1..n

1

1..n

1

1..n1 1..n1

organizationalUnit

id : Stringname : StringorganizationObjectives : StringgroupType : StringphisicalLocation : StringhierarchyLevel : Stringrelationship : StringorganizationRules : String

agenda


processOperator

id : Stringname : String

taskResource

id : Stringname : Stringcapability : Stringfeatures : Stringcost : Stringtaskload : Stringavailability : String

taskModel

0..n

1

0..n

1

job

id : Stringname : StringjobSpecifications : StringjobFamily : StringjobGrade : StringjobPrivileges : String

agendaItem

idWorkflow : stringidProcess : stringidTask : stringidUserStereotype : stringidOrganizationalUnit : stringstatus : stringdateBegan : datedateDue : datedateDelegation : datedateFinished : datereminder : datecompleted : integerdelegation : stringdateAllocation : date

workflow

id : Stringname : String

processModel

task

id : stringname : stringtype : stringfrequency : integerimportance : integerstructurationLevel : integercomplexityLevel : integercriticity : integercentrality : integerterminationValue : stringuserAction : stringtaskItem : stringpreCondition : StringpostCondition : String

1..n1

1..n1

process

id : Stringname : Stringfrequency : Integerimportance : Integercategory : Integer

workItem

idWorkflow : stringidProcess : stringidTask : stringidTaskResource : stringidOrganizationalUnit : stringstatus : stringdateBegan : datedateDue : datedateAllocation : datedateDelegation : datedateFinished : date

workList

id : stringname : string0..n 1

1

0..n

FlowiXML (2-9)


FlowiXML- Process Model (3-9)


FlowiXML- workList (4-9)


FlowiXML- workList (5-9)


FlowiXML (6-9)task


1..n1..n11 taskModel

1

0..n0..n

1 target

targetId : string1..n1..n

11taskRelationship

id : stringname : string 1 1..n1..n1

source

sourceId : string

temporal

precondition : eventdecomposition

binaryRelationshipunaryRelationship

optional iteration finiteIteration

iterationNumber : integer

enablingWithInformationPassing

disablingWithInformationPassing

orderIndependence

undeterministicChoice

independentConcurrency

deterministicChoice

concurrencyWithInformationPassing

suspendResume

inclusiveChoicecooperation

enabling disabling

Task

Task Relationships


FlowiXML (7-9)0..n

0..n

organizationalUnit

id : Stringname : StringorganizationObjectives : StringgroupType : StringphisicalLocation : StringhierarchyLevel : Stringrelationship : StringorganizationRules : String

1..n 1..n

job

id : Stringname : StringjobSpecifications : StringjobFamily : StringjobGrade : StringjobPrivileges : String

1..n

logEntry

id : Stringname : StringtimeStamp : Datedescription : StringlogType : String

0..n 0..n

1..n

1..n

task


1..n

1..n

taskResource

id : Stringname : Stringcapability : Stringfeatures : Stringcost : Stringtaskload : String

1..n

0..1

0..n

userStereotype

id : stringstereotypeName : stringtaskExperience : stringsystemExperience : stringdeviceExperience : stringtaskMotivation : string

1

meansMaterials immaterial

1

0..nagendaItem

idWorkflow : stringidProcess : stringidTask : stringidUserStereotype : stringidOrganizationalUnit : stringstatus : stringdateBegan : datedateDue : datedateDelegation : datedateFinished : datereminder : datecompleted : integerdelegation : stringdateAllocation : date

0..n

1

agenda


1

servicessoftwarehardwareMmachine

Organizational Concepts

Resources type


FlowiXML- agenda (8-9)


Mapping model (9-9)


Outline

1. Introduction2. State of the Art3. Conceptual modeling of workflow4. Methodology for developing the UI of

a workflow system 5. Case study 6. Conclusion


Workflow users (1-12)

1. Workflow designer

2. Workflow manager

3. Process manager

4. End user (internal, external)


Expanded task life cycle (2-12)

Created

Allocated

Offered

Started

Delegated

Suspended

Finished

Failed

Completed

Cancel

Re

-allo

cate

De

fine

Start

Offe

r

Start

Star

t

Su

sp

end

Ca

nce

l

Res

um

e

Redo

Undo

Review

Finish

Start

Running

Allocate

Fai

l

In course

Running

Repeat


UsiXML method to develop UI (3-12)

Workflow Model Process Model

Resource Model

Task Model

User Stereotypes

Organizational Unit

Jobs

Agenda

Transformation Engine

Agenda UI

Task UI

Resource UI

Process UI

Users UI

Task model

Enriched taskmodel

FlowiXML


Definition of user stereotypes

User stereotypes

For eachstereotype

Task modeling Job definition Resources andagenda definition

Task model Job description Job and agenda

End of stereotype handling

Organization modeling Consolidation of resources model

Organization model Resources model

End of individual modeling

Consolidation in process and workflow models

Workflow model

For eachworkflow resource pattern

User Interface pattern matching

User interface pattern matching the resource pattern

End of pattern matching

Consolidation of user interface patternsWorkflow finaluser interface

Definition of user stereotypes

User stereotypes

For eachstereotype

Task modeling Job definition Resources andagenda definition

Task model Job description Job and agenda

End of stereotype handling

Organization modeling Consolidation of resources model

Organization model Resources model

End of individual modeling

Consolidation in process and workflow models

Workflow model

For eachworkflow resource pattern

User Interface pattern matching

User interface pattern matching the resource pattern

End of pattern matching

Consolidation of user interface patternsWorkflow finaluser interface

With FlowiXML we define:

Who?

Where?

How?

What?

(4-12)


Workflow patterns (5-12)

• Control flow patterns identify useful routings construct. (20)

• Workflow data patterns aim to capture the various ways in which data is represented and utilized in workflows. (40)

• Resources patterns indicate the way in which tasks are assigned to human resources. (43)


Petri net representation of mapping model (6-12)

• Offer multiple-resources - Offer a task to a group of selected resources (e.g. the sell portfolio task is offered to multiple stockbrokers).


(7-12)


Abstract UI description (8-12)

• Is Delegated To. A resource who is assigned to a task allocates it to another resource (e.g. the Chemist passed all of the items allocated to him onto the Chemist Assistant).


Abstract user interface

(9-12)


Concrete user interface (10-12)


Final user interface(11-12)


In short… (12-12)

• We need to develop different UIs – Individual UI for each task (exist)

– Individual UI for workflow manager [managing director ]

– Individual UI for process manager [supervisor]

– Individual UI for group task [planning group]

– Individual UI for end users [architect]

• We need to make a connection between the different UIs


Outline




Bank operational line (1-6)

• A bank has lot of processes, as:

– Opening a savings or check account – Arrange of complaints– Inter-banking transfers – Hire personnel– Advise to clients – Money exchange – Arrange loans


The process "Credit Card Request“ (2-6)

13 userStereotype (Human Resources)WHO?

36 TasksHOW?

10 Organizational unitsWHERE?

3 types Relationships of mapping model

22 Relationships


The process "Credit Card Request“ (3-6)


Task: verify client address (4-6)

• Task 15. The investigation department investigates the personal information of the client going to check his address. This task is optional; it is performed in a random decision. If nobody is in the client’s address the employee leaves a message to the client, in order to make an appointment with him for a next visit.

• Resources: Employee of the investigation department.

• Organizational unit: investigation department.

• Delegation Relation: yes


Task model: verify client address (5-6)


User Interface: verify client address (6-6)


Outline




Conclusions (1-2)

• A conceptual modeling approach has been proposed that integrates the following notions: task, process, workflow, job definition, organizational structure, agenda (to do) list, workflow list, and resources.

• These concepts along with their attributes have been integrated in the syntax of UsiXML, a User Interface Description Language

• One real-life case study has been reported and summarized


Conclusion: Future Work (2-2)

• Conceptual and methodology– Graphical editor of the workflow notation

– Formal definition

– Redefine the steps of the methodology

– Modeling the connections between the different UIs



• Incorporation of concepts in software tool– Collaboration with Defimedia in AToms



• Validation– Apply the methodology to the Bank operational

line

– Apply the methodology to the Spécification Système du site portail de l’IFMP (Defimedia)


Thank you very much for your attention

[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

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