I finally shipped the book off to the printer yesterday! Wow, why does the last 5% take 50% of the time? Not certain how long before it ships, but June almost for sure.
I've been using the new levels-based method and style approach in private classroom training for the past couple months. I think it makes learning BPMN much easier, especially for business people. On July 1-2, I'll be doing a public two-day class in San Francisco, hosted at the Parc 55 Hotel in Union Square by the BPM Institute. Get out of the heat and come to our beautiful city by the bay... and learn some BPMN while you're at it!
The course info page on the BPMInstitute site still has the old version, so until they update it, this is the info on the new course:
Traditionally, process modeling has relied on proprietary tools and methodologies, raising the cost and limiting shared understanding. Today we have a widely accepted standard for process modeling, the Business Process Modeling Notation (BPMN) from OMG, with near-universal adoption by modeling tools. BPMN looks a lot like traditional swimlane diagrams, but adds powerful new features that allow exception handling - the hidden cost of real-world business processes - to be modeled explicitly in the diagram.
This course shows process modelers how to use BPMN correctly and effectively - to document existing processes, to analyze and improve processes, and even to collaborate with IT in executable process design. Creating "effective" models - those that stand on their own, clear and complete from the diagram alone, without accompanying explanation - depends on more than knowing the catalog of BPMN shapes and symbols. It requires understanding BPMN's hidden assumptions about basic concepts - What exactly is a process? What do sequence flows and message flows really mean? What does BPMN mean by starting, completing, sending, and receiving? You won't find the answers in the BPMN spec, but they are critical to using BPMN effectively.
But that alone is not enough. Effective modeling also requires a methodology, starting from a blank page and progressing to a complete diagram. And it requires a style guide, a set of rules and best practices for making diagrams clear from inspection. This course provides those as well.
This course, based on Bruce Silver's new book BPMN Method and Style, will show you how to use BPMN at two different levels, with a method and style applicable to each level. Level 1, or descriptive BPMN, is intended for business users. It relies on a basic working set of shapes and symbols, familiar from traditional flowcharting, but aligned with the basic structure and meaning of Level 2. Level 2, or analytical BPMN, is intended for business process analysts and architects, as well as developers planning to collaborate with business on process design. Level 2 BPMN represents a common process language shared by business and IT, but achieving that common language demands attention to method and style. Level 2 refines Level 1 models with an emphasis on events and exception handling, the source of problems in most existing processes. We teach specific diagram patterns that signify a particular type of exception and its effect on the process, so that exception behavior is captured explicitly and clearly in the diagram itself.
You can't learn BPMN from lectures. You need to be hands on. That's why the training uses a BPMN tool, an add-on to Microsoft Visio. Each student is expected to bring a laptop to the class and will use it to complete exercises, both in class and afterwards. The post-class exercises are optional, but give students the opportunity for individualized feedback and instruction. The price of the training includes 60-day use of the tool, Process Modeler for Visio from ITP Commerce. In addition to certification through BPM Institute, students who satisfactorily complete the post-class exercises are eligible for certification of proficiency in BPMN modeling from BPMessentials.com.
Course Outline: Day 1 1. Why BPMN? 2. Getting Started: BPMN Level 1 3. The Level 1 Palette 4. Level 1 Method 5. Level 1 Style Day 2 6. Deeper Meaning: BPMN Level 2 7. Events 8. Branching and Merging Patterns 9. Exception Handling Patterns 10.Repeating Activities and Pools 11.Level 2 Method 12.Level 2 Style 13.Gaining Proficiency
Course Objectives: · Understand where BPMN fits in the overall framework of business modeling and its role in business-IT alignment · Learn a "cookbook" methodology for creating business-oriented Level 1 models · Learn elements of Level 1 style essential to clear and effective models · Understand the hidden technical meaning behind BPMN's shapes and symbols · Learn a methodology for refining Level 1 models to show the exceptions and variations important to key performance indicators · Learn the "art" of process modeling, diagram patterns and best practices that allow your diagrams to stand on their own If you are interested in BPM Suites, I'll be doing a session on BPMS vendor selection and a vendor panel at the Brainstorm BPM Conference at the same site on the preceding day, June 30. Brainstorm is offering BPMS Watch readers a limited number of Complimentary 1-Day Passes* (a $795 value) to the Conference for that day. Register with Priority Code SILVER when requesting a Complimentary Conference Pass.
To sweeten the deal, if you sign up for the class I'll also give you an autographed copy of the book. Now how can you resist that?