ProductsUModelBusiness Process Modeling

Whether you need standalone documentation for enterprise business processes, or business process diagrams to support a software development project, you’ll find UModel® 2011 Enterprise Edition is an outstanding tool to draw Business Process Modeling Notation (BPMN) diagrams.

Business Process Modeling Notation is a graphical standard for creating flow chart-like diagrams that are readily understandable by all business stakeholders including business analysts, technical developers, and business managers. The BPMN standard is maintained by the OMG, the same organization that administers UML.

The elements and rules for BPMN diagrams are very similar to UML activity diagrams, providing a natural transition of the easy to use and highly acclaimed drawing tools of UModel® 2011 from UML to Business Process Modeling Notation. You can begin a new diagram by selecting the right-click context menu in the diagram tree:

UModel® 2011 Enterprise Edition displays the Business Process Diagram toolbar, providing convenient access to all the BPMN diagram elements:

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To keep the toolbar configuration manageable, less frequently used variations of the BPMN start event, intermediate event, and end event elements are all accessed via pull-down selection menus:

UModel® 2011 Enterprise Edition gives you freedom to create your BPMN diagram in any style you like. Some business process modelers like to draw all their tasks and processes first, then move them around the design window, experimenting with various configurations.

Others work in a more linear fashion, creating each element in order, as dictated by the process logic.

UModel® 2011 Enterprise Edition supports your diagramming style with intuitive tools for each diagramming task. For instance, you can:

• Add new elements by selection from the toolbar
• Add new elements within the drawing pane via the right-click context menu
• Type element names directly in the drawing pane
• Edit element names in the properties helper window
• Draw a sequence flow or association arrow for each element immediately as it is created
• Create and arrange all the diagram elements first, then connect them as sequences and associations
• Create pool elements to indicate interactions between parties in either horizontal of vertical formats

Regardless which drawing style you prefer, your completed UModel business process diagram will be attractive and engaging.

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Organizing Elements with Layers

UModel® 2011 Enterprise Edition allows you to create new layers for your diagram and give each layer an appropriate name to suit its purpose.

For instance if your diagram will go through a peer review cycle, you might want to create a comments layer to store reviewer annotations. It’s easy to assign elements to a layer by using the right-click context menu.

Later on you can choose to hide the comments layer from view, while retaining the layer contents to preserve a historical record of the reviewer comments within your diagram.

You can assign any element in your BPMN diagram to a layer. For instance, you might want to use layers to create a series of simplified views into a complex process. If you’re diagramming an interaction between independent enterprises, you can create separate layers for each participant.

When your diagram is complete, you can make a single layer visible to focus on the responsibilities of one enterprise.

To depict the entire process, simply make all layers visible.

Find out for yourself how intuitively you can create your own BPMN diagrams with UModel® 2011 Enterprise Edition – download a free trial today!