Business Process Modeling
Most businesses choose the best application or environment for processing each component of their core business. In a typical enterprise, the flow of information and processing between each application is what drives the day-to-day operations of the business. For example, the order-entry application receives and processes orders based on availability information taken from the inventory system. The tracking system relies on order information and shipping information. Also, accurate and up-to-date reporting information is required from all systems.
The following figure illustrates an example enterprise computing environment with various systems running in different environments.
An example enterprise computing environment
Many companies implement the business rules that tie the systems together using custom-written code or by manual processes. Tying together different systems from different vendors that run in different environments is a labor-intensive and error-prone process that usually takes months of planning and implementation. Also, because the task of creating the custom business logic is so complex, businesses often rely on manual, paper-based processes instead of automating the process for greater efficiency.
The following figure illustrates a business process flow, sometimes known as a workflow, that describes the business rules between the various systems in an enterprise.
A business process flow of an example enterprise
The business process flow describes an integrated enterprise that contains order-entry, inventory, shipping, tracking, and reporting systems. Each of these systems have rules for processing incoming data and more rules for passing data between the systems. These rules are characterized by business processes, such as the REPORT SHIPPED ORDER STATUS process in the shipping system.
These business rules in themselves can involve complex processing and automating these processes is crucial to lowering the total cost of operating the complete enterprise environment.