A new book on decision modeling and process modeling with BPMN/DMN

Tom Debevoise and I have just published The MicroGuide to Process and Decision Modeling in BPMN/DMN: Building More Effective Processes by Integrating Process Modeling with Decision Modeling and it’s now available on Amazon.

A little bit about the book: the landscape of process modeling has evolved as have the best practices. The smartest companies are using decision modeling in combination with process modeling. The principle reason is that decisions and processes are discovered and managed in separate, yet, interrelated ways. Decision Model and Notation (DMN) is an evolution of Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN) 2.0 into an even more powerful and capable tool set and the Microguide book covers both specifications. It also focuses on the best practices in decision and process modeling to create simpler, smarter, and more agile processes.

A simple decision and gateway control of an execution path to respond to a purchasing decision – the proper use of decision modeling simplifies the process while revealing and modeling critical issues with the decision. The combination of process and decision modeling is a powerful one. Straight-through processing and automated decision making, not just automated processes, is emphasizing the importance of decisions in processes. Developing a decision model in DMN provides a detailed, standardized approach that precisely directs the process and creates a new level of traceability.

Decision modeling can therefore be considered an organizing principle for designing many business processes. Most process modeling in BPMN is accomplished by matching a use case, written or otherwise, with workflow patterns. Process modeling is critical to the creation of a robust and sustainable solution. Without decision modeling, however, such an approach can result in decision logic becoming a sequence of gateways and conditions such that the decision remains hidden and scattered among the process steps. Without decision modeling, critical decisions, such as how to source a requisition when financial or counter-party risk is unacceptable, or what to offer a customer, are lost to the details of the process. When the time comes to change or improve a decision, a process model in BPMN alone might not meet the need. DMN provides a notation for modeling decisions separately from processes to drive this next level of process innovation.

Buy the book here. Kindle version to come…