Last summer I posted on the challenge of achieving process model interchange via the BPMN 2.0 standard. In the half year since then, vendor progress toward that goal has been about zero. It seems that vendors, in particular the ones that drove the standard, don't really care about this most fundamental user expectation of any standard. Ah well, no surprise there... But in the past couple weeks, some encouraging developments. Activiti and BonitaSoft - both are open source startups with a BPMN 2.0-based BPMS - have begun to tout BPMN 2.0 import and export. Neither one supports even the Descriptive subclass of the spec (what I call Level 1 in the training), but both vendors are full speed ahead at expanding the capabilities of their process engine. I have downloaded and installed both - an adventure unto itself - and I'll be reporting on both in the days and weeks ahead, along with a fresh look at the latest Oracle BPM11gR1. Oracle is much further along in the engine capabilities, but so far has shown no interest in adopting the final BPMN 2.0 xsd or importing conformant .bpmn files. They had a lead of a year over IBM in terms of BPMN 2.0 support, but they have not made good use of that lever so far. Of the three, Activiti is the most limited right now - no messages or intermediate events, for example - but the part they do is based on the real BPMN 2.0 xsd. BonitaSoft is more functional all around and more "business-oriented" today than Activiti, but I would say they are both aiming at the same target. It will be interesting to see if IBM takes Lombardi Edition in a BPMN 2.0 direction; I'm not sure Phil Gilbert is a believer in its value. If not, when Activiti and BonitaSoft finish the Common Executable subclass of BPMN 2.0, the BPMS marketplace could get very interesting.
By: Bruce Silver December 29, 2016 bpmn , bpms
Recent Posts
Jump-Start Your Digital Transformation
The combination of BPMN and DMN enables Business Automation based on Low-Code - diagrams and tables, not programming. We provide training, consulting and mentoring to jump-start your digital transformation efforts.
Professionalize Your Business Modeling
Companies waste enormous resources on creating models that cannot be understood by all stakeholders in business and IT. It doesn’t have to be that way. Methodandstyle.com helps you professionalize your business modeling with training, learning resources, news and commentary.
What is BPMN?
BPMN 2.0 is the industry standard for business process modeling, defining the flow of activities comprising an end-to-end business process. It is a common language shared by business and IT users, in uses ranging from documentation to process analysis and improvement to execution on an automation engine.
What is DMN?
DMN is the industry standard for business decision modeling and execution without programming. A DMN model defines the structure of a business decision end-to-end and details the decision logic entirely in diagrams and tables… no programming required
What Is Low-Code Business Automation?
By combining BPMN and DMN, you can create executable processes and pageflow apps without programming… entirely based on standards.
What Is Method and Style?
While the various business modeling standards provide the foundational vocabulary and structures used for documenting and analyzing process diagrams (BPMN), decision models (DMN), and case management frameworks (CMMN), they do not offer specific methodologies for effective use. Method and Style fills this gap by introducing standardized techniques and rules that help practitioners present complex logic and flows in a way that is easy to understand and implement, enhancing both communication and precision in business analysis.