Business Process Technology (BPT) naming conventions

• Business Process Technology (BPT) naming conventions
  • Process
  • SubProcess
  • Activity
  • Conditional Start
  • Wait
  • Decision
  • User Groups

Adapted from Fundamentals of Business Process Management, Chapter 3 Essential Process Modeling. book web site archive

Naming conventions for bpmn diagrams

Process

To name a bpt process we should use a noun, potentially preceded by an adjective, e.g. OrderFulfillment or ClaimHandling. Nouns in sequence form like OrderToCash and ProcureToPay indicating a sequence of main actions, are also possible.

SubProcess

A subprocess is a compound activity and should be named like an activity e.g. ApproveCustomerRequest

Activity

• Label activities VERB-NOUN

For human or automatic activities the name should begin with a verb in the imperative form followed by a noun, typically referring to a business object, e.g. ApproveOrder. The noun may be preceded by an adjective, e.g. IssueDriverLicense, and the verb may be followed by a complement to explain how the action is being done, e.g. RenewDriverLicenseViaOfflineAgencies.

Conditional Start

For Conditional Start events the label should begin with a noun (this would typically be a business object) and should en with a verb in past principle form, e.g. InvoiceEmitted, the verb is a past principle to indicate something has just happened. The name may be prefixed by an adjective, e.g. UrgentOrderSent.

General verbs like “to make”, “to do”, “to perform” or “to conduct” should be replaced with meaningful verbs that capture the specifics of the activity or event being performed.

Wait

Describe what you are waiting for e.g. SLABreach50percent or ReviewsCompleted

Decision

Decisions should be named with an interrogative phrase. The name should be composed of Is object, verb to identify what is being evaluated, e.g.IsExpenseReportApproved . You can even use questions to clarify the decision involved. Using the question format helps to limit the amount of text you have to put in the diagram, as all conditions on the outgoing sequence flows read as a simple answer to the question of the decision.

User Groups

User groups should be named using a noun or noun phrase. They are often used for such things as internal roles (e.g., Manager, Associate), systems (e.g., an enterprise application), or internal departments (e.g., shipping, finance).