TUTORIAL

EPC 11.0

Tutorial
 EPC11 Tutorial 2

Table of Contents
Disclaimer .................................................................................................................................................. 26
Table of Contents ........................................................................................................................................ 2
EPC Tutorial ................................................................................................................................................. 3
Model Overview ......................................................................................................................................... 3
Access the EPC Web App ......................................................................................................................... 3
EPC Web App Content .............................................................................................................................. 4
EPC Navigation ......................................................................................................................................... 5
EPC Object Views ..................................................................................................................................... 5
Build a Business Process .......................................................................................................................... 6
Import a Process from Visio ...................................................................................................................... 6
Process Structure ...................................................................................................................................... 8
Map Sub-Process ...................................................................................................................................... 9
Input Procedures and Assign Responsibilities to a Task ........................................................................ 11
Edit BPMN Properties.............................................................................................................................. 12
Create Inter-Process Links....................................................................................................................... 13
IPL Navigation ......................................................................................................................................... 14
Create Inputs and Outputs ....................................................................................................................... 16
Add Materials to the Process .................................................................................................................. 16
Publish the Process .................................................................................................................................. 17
Import User & Assign Resource to Role................................................................................................. 18
Approval Cycle .......................................................................................................................................... 19
Assign Approvers to Processes .............................................................................................................. 19
Upload a Document and Assign to Process .......................................................................................... 20
Upload a Document ................................................................................................................................. 20
Assign Document to Process .................................................................................................................. 21
EPC Home Page ..................................................................................................................................... 23
Complete Approval Cycle ........................................................................................................................ 24
BPMN Flow Objects .................................................................................................................................. 25
RASCI-VS ......................................................................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.

Tutorial
 EPC Tutorial
The following tutorial will take you through the basic steps in creating a simple process model using
Interfacing’s Enterprise Process Center. The purpose of the tutorial is to illustrate some key modeling
concepts and to show you how to properly construct a process model on the EPC Web App.

NOTE: Your trial license is valid for 30 days

Model Overview
We will use the example of a Recruit-to-Hire value stream to serve as the basis for all the exercises. This
business process describes all the activities executed in the process of recruiting and hiring a new
employee.
Before the recruiting process can begin, the Human Resources department must verify that the job
description is properly updated. Once this has happened, the job is posted to employees within the
company as well as to the general public. Candidates are selected from the pool of applicants, and the
Human Resources manager determines which candidate to hire after conducting job interviews.

Access the EPC Web App

1. Navigate to the Web App using the URL provided to you
2. Enter your username and password provided to you in the window below

3. Select the button, or press enter to login

4. Upon logging in, you will be greeted in the Home Page of the EPC Web App

NOTE: Your Home Page is blank, since no content has been created in the environment

Tutorial
 EPC Tutorial 4

EPC Web App Content

Now you will set your profile’s “Displayed Content” to “Show Latest.” This will enable you to edit on the
Web App:

1. Navigate to the icon; a drop-down menu will be generated. Choose “My Profile”

2. You will be redirected to the “My Profile” section.

3. Click on the sign to upload your user profile picture

4. Navigate to the “Displayed Content” box, and select “Show Latest” from the drop-down menu.
You will now be able to edit on the WebApp

Tutorial
 EPC Tutorial 5

EPC Navigation
General navigation within the EPC Web App uses a Menu Navigation System. The Tree Navigation
System provides a simple navigation window allowing users to navigate to various Modules and within the
Modules themselves.

To access the EPC Menu, use the icon on the top left of the page. The 9 different EPC Modules are
the following:

EPC Object Views

The EPC provides the users with 3 different viewing options to better understand the EPC objects: List,
Graph, and Details.
1. List View: Provides a list of all objects you have access to within a specific module. Viewing objects
in a list allows users to have a quick view of a module various objects and its associated objects,
facilitating navigation. Using the icon allows you to filter the list with three main settings, list all,
drilldown list, and contextual list.
2. Graph View: Graphs are used as a visual representation of EPC objects. Graphs allow
organizations and users to map out their processes, and other objects to provide key stakeholders
with necessary information. There are four different graph views: map graph (only for the Process
module), impact graph, hierarchy graph, and risk profile graph (only for Risk module).
3. Details View: Users can see all information about EPC objects. It displays a description, the
associations and all additional details that have been uploaded regarding the EPC object.

Tutorial
 Build a Business Process 6

Build a Business Process

These exercises will walk you through the steps needed to create a functional process map on the EPC
Web App. You can directly map a process using BPMN shapes on the Web App, and you can also import
a process created on Visio. Mapping processes will provide you with the flexibility needed to create
process charts that accurately reflect the flow of work within your organization.
Before a process can be modeled in EPC, you must understand the main tasks, decision points and
information flows in your process. Once established, the tasks, decision points and information flows will
be represented by BPMN shapes.

Import a Process from Visio

Let’s start importing a process mapped on Visio. Download this file “Visio Process – EPC 11 Tutorial”
created by Interfacing Technologies for this product trial. This process is named “Recruit to Hire” and
includes two sub-processes: “Develop Job Description” and “Select Candidates”
Note: By clicking on the link to download the Visio file, the file is saved in your drive folder “Downloads.” If the file is
not there, click and open the Visio file, and then “Save As” on your desktop.

1. Navigate to the icon; a drop-down menu will be generated. Choose “Import”

2. A window will be generated, where you will select the type of content you want to import. Select
“Visio (.vsdx)”

3. Navigate to the box, go to your “Downloads” folder, and select the file “Visio Process –
EPC 11 Tutorial”. Check the “Publish” box, allowing the objects to be published upon import. Click on
the button to complete the import.

Tutorial
 Build a Business Process 7

4. You will receive a notification when the import was successfully completed. Select the button to
navigate to the Process module to view the imported process. The process tree should look like this:

5. Navigate to Details View of the “Imported Process Set;” click on the button. You will be
redirected to the Edit Details window; change the name of the process set to “People Caring.”
The process tree should now look like this:

6. Select the button to navigate to the Organization module and view the imported organization
objects. The organization tree should look like this:

7. Repeat step 5 to change the name of the “Imported Org Unit Set” to “Big Business Enterprise”
and the name of the “Imported Org Unit” to “Human Resources.” The organization hierarchy
should now look like this:

8. Once you finished updating the names for these objects, use the button available under the
Details View of the object.

Tutorial
 Build a Business Process 8

Process Structure
Processes are stored within Process Sets. Process sets are the top-level folders that help to
organize related processes by business area, ownership, or any other relevant criteria. Processes
can also be under another process as a sub-process; these are arranged in a hierarchical
structure to simplify navigation and organization.
From the previous exercise, we imported a Process Set “People Caring,” a Process “Recruit to
Hire,” and two sub-processes “Develop Job Description” and “Select Candidates” with its
respective responsible roles.
On the software Visio, the processes look like this:

The import Visio function imports the BPMN shapes, the process and its sub-processes, as well
as the roles responsible. The imported processes look like this on the EPC:

Tutorial
 Build a Business Process 9

Note: The name of the gateways is displayed when viewing the process in Details or List view.
Note: To view the process in a Swimlane View, navigate to the Process Module, to the Graph

View of the process, and then click on the Options button . A window with the Map Options
will be generated. Make sure “Swimlanes” is set as “Display,” and “Roles” are set as “Swimlanes
Matrix Y.”

Map Sub-Process
Let’s now map the process “Select Candidates.”

It is important to mention to constantly save your process map using the button available on the
toolbar. This enables you to limit the risks of losing your work

1. Select the sub-process “Select Candidates;” navigate to the Graph View, and click on the
button to navigate to the mapping canvas.

2. Select the Start Event shape from the BPMN toolbar, and drag it to the mapping canvas using
the left-click on your mouse.

Tutorial
 Build a Business Process 10

3. Select the Task shape from the BPMN toolbar, and drag it to the mapping canvas
using the left-click on your mouse.

4. Let’s now name the task. Double-click on the task shape, and a box will be generated
where you can type the name of the task. Type “Review Posting.”

5. Let’s now connect the two shapes. Hover over the source shape, the start event, and
drag out the flow (left-click hold) to the target shape, the task. The target shape will
have port points (green squares); release the flow in the desired port.

6. Repeat steps 3 to 5 recreate this process. Remember to constantly save your

process map using the button.

Note: Use the Auto Layout button on the graph toolbar to optimize the layout of the
process

Tutorial
 Build a Business Process 11

Input Procedures and Assign Responsibilities to a Task

The EPC uses the RASCI-VS Grid System to assign roles, assets, or organization units responsible for
an object. Let’s assign a role to a task.
1. Navigate to the task “Review Posting,” right-click on the task and select the “Edit
Details” box.

Note: Use the button on the graph toolbar or your mouse wheel to zoom in
2. You will be redirected to the Edit Task window. Copy the following procedure and paste
it in the “What is this Task?” section under the “Procedure” sub-section for task:
1. Verify the document is maximum 500 words
2. Ensure the document is in a .pdf form

3. Ensure company logo is part of the document

Note: The rich text format allows for text formatting, images, URLs, tables, etc.
Note: You will be able to see the procedure for this task under the Details View.

Tutorial
 Build a Business Process 12

3. In the “What are the Responsibilities?” section, type the role “Hiring Manager” and
click on it to select it.

4. Navigate to the drop-down box under the name of the role to choose the level of
responsibility RASCI-VS. The Hiring Manager is “Responsible” for the task.

5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 to assign the “Secretary” as “Support.” Click on to save

the changes made on the task.

Note: To see the names of the roles, click on the icon.

Edit BPMN Properties

BPMN Properties can be assigned to sub-processes, tasks, gateways, events, and transitions to define
business process behaviors. Let’s edit the BPMN Property of a gateway.
1. Navigate to the first gateway, right-click on the gateway and select the “Edit Details”
box.

Tutorial
 Create Inter-Process Links 13

2. A window will be generated where you can edit the BPMN Properties. Set the Gateway
Type to “Exclusive” from the drop-down menu. Click on .

3. Click on the button to save the changes and exit the edit mode.

Create Inter-Process Links

Inter-process links, or IPLs, are created when users must link a BPMN Shape from one process to a
BPMN Shape in another. IPLs originate from the Source of the link (End Events) and are connected to
the Target of the link (Start Events).

1. Identify the processes and shapes you want to link. In this exercise, we want to link the
end event of the process “Develop Job Description” to the start event of the process
“Select Candidates.”

2. Select the sub-process “Develop Job Description;” navigate to the Graph View, and click on
the button to navigate to the mapping canvas.

3. Right-click on the end event shape, and choose the Edit IPL box from the drop-down
menu.

4. A window will be generated where you will type the name of the target process “Select
Candidates.”

Tutorial
 Create Inter-Process Links 14

5. Select the target flow object “start”, and click on the button to finish the creation of the
IPL.

6. An IPL annotation is now displayed on the relevant start and end event. The annotation
contains a hyperlink with the name of the linked process.  

NOTE: IPLs may also be used to link shapes within a single process; used mainly to reduce clusters of
connectors. Intra-Process Links are set up the same way as Inter-Process Links.

7. Click on the button to save the changes and exit the edit mode.

IPL Navigation
Let’s start by enabling IPL expansion. To do so, navigate to the Graph View of the “Develop Job

Description” process, and click on the Options button . A window with the Map Options will be
generated. Make sure “Enabled” is set for “Expand IPL.”

Tutorial
 Create Inter-Process Links 15

1. Now navigate to the icon, once you click on it, the name of the linked process appears
inside of an annotation.

2. Click on the annotation to expand the IPL.

Tutorial
 Create Inputs and Outputs 16

Create Inputs and Outputs

Now that your BPMN objects are linked together, you need to add Inputs and Outputs. Inputs and
Outputs define the flow of work between the shapes within a process. They represent the inputs
required to start an activity and the outputs produced once the activity is completed.

Add Materials to the Process

1. Select the sub-process “1.1 Develop Job Description;” navigate to the Graph View, and click
on the button to navigate to the mapping canvas.
2. Navigate to a flow in the process map, and right-click on it. A drop-down menu will be
generated where you will choose the Inputs/Outputs box.

3. A window will be generated where you will type the name of the Input/Output: “Job
Description,” and select it.

4. The Input/Output will now be on a table. Click on the icon to type the state of this
Input/Output, which is “Exists,” and then click on the button to finish creating the
Input/Output.

5. Click on to save the changes made. The Input/output will now be displayed on top of the
flow in the process map with the icon ; click on the icon to see the name.

6. Click on to save the changes made, and exit the Edit Mode.

Tutorial
 Publish the Process 17

Publish the Process

Now the process “Recruit to Hire” is populated with two sub-processes. We imported a Visio file,
we mapped the sub-process “Select Candidates,” assigned a responsible role to a task, we edited
the BPMN Properties, we created an IPL between the two sub-processes, and we assigned an
Input/Output to a flow. The process is now ready to be published.
Every time we saved the process, it was saved as a draft, and could only be viewed by the Web
Modeler. Now that the process is ready, it enables all EPC users within the environment with
permissions to view the process.

1. Navigate to the “Develop Job Description” Process. This box appears next to the
process name, identifying it as a draft.

2. Publish the process using the button available under the Details View of the process.
Note: The Publish button is also available under the Graph View of the process.
3. The Publish Confirmation window for the object will be generated. You can input a
comment and view/update the version number. The version number can only be higher than
the previous version number. To publish, click on .

4. Once the process is published, you will receive a notification. “Published Version” will now
be written on top of the object’s Details View.

5. Repeat the steps 1-4 to publish the sub-process “Select Candidates.”

Tutorial
 Import User & Assign Resource to Role 18

Import User & Assign Resource to Role

Resources represent the specific employees who work for a business organization. They are also
associated to specific EPC users and roles within the organization.
Let’s now import your EPC user, and assign it to the “HR Manager” role.
1. Navigate to the Organization Module, and navigate to the Details View of the “Human
Resources” organization unit.

2. Navigate to the box on the toolbar, and select Import Users from the drop-down menu.

3. A window will be generated explaining you that all users that have been granted access to the

environment will be imported as resources. Click on button to import your user to the
Human Resources unit.

4. The next window generated will display the number of EPC users that were successfully imported
to the organization unit as resources. In this case, only your user was imported. Click on the
button.

5. Now that your EPC user was successfully imported as a resource, let’s assign your resource to a
role. Navigate to the List View of the “Human Resource” organization unit, and select your
name, in this example, “Maria Rivera.”

Tutorial
 Approval Cycle 19

Note: You can sort list results in ascending or descending order when clicking on the column titles in
blue. You can also add filters for each column; you can type what you’re looking for, select a filter from
a drop-down menu, or define date ranges.
6. When clicking on your resource’s name, you will be redirected to the Role’s Details View page.

Click on the button to associate a role.

7. Under the “Which Roles does this Resource have?” type “HR Manager” and select it from the
list. The role will now be on a table. Click on to save the changes made on the resource.

Note: A resource can have multiple roles.

Approval Cycle
Approval cycles often involve multiple individuals before changes can be implemented. This is often the
case as business activities that are subject to change may affect multiple different roles and resources,
requiring their consent prior to change. These approval cycles can vary dependent on the organization,
and the importance of the request being made. As such, the EPC supports both parallel and serial
approval cycles.

Assign Approvers to Processes

Before a change is applied to a process, it first needs to be approved. In this scenario the “HR Manager”
will review the changes made to the process, and then approve or reject the changes. The “Hiring
Manager” will then review the changes as well made to the process, and then approve or reject the
changes. Both roles receive automatic emails and notifications notifying them they need to approve a
process.

Tutorial
 Upload a Document and Assign to Process 20

1. Navigate to the Details View of the process “Develop Job Description.”

2. Click on the box; choose the “Approval” box from the drop-down menu generated.
3. A window will be generated allowing you to assign the process’ approval cycle. Select the
“Serial” approval cycle type.

4. Now you will select the approvers. Type the name of the role in the “Select Approvers” field,
and select the role as approver. Start with the HR Manager followed by the Hiring Manager.

5. The two approvers will now be displayed in a numbered list. The numbers indicate the order of
the approval cycle. Click on the button to save the approval cycle for the process.

Upload a Document and Assign to Process

Documents are uploaded from your local system to the EPC document repository. For this reason, any
kind of file, file link, or URL can be added to the document repository. Files are saved in the EPC
database; file links point to files in a file server, and URL links point to a web address.
NOTE: For this exercise, download this Word document “Job Description Guide” on your desktop. By
clicking on the link to download the Word file, the file is saved in your drive folder “Downloads.” If the file
is not there, click and open the Word file, and then “Save As” on your desktop.

Upload a Document
1. Navigate to the Documents Module, and then to the button on the top-right of the
EPC Web App page. A drop-down menu will be generated and choose Document Set.

Tutorial
 Upload a Document and Assign to Process 21

2. A window will be generated, name the set “Big Business Enterprise.” Click on the
button.

3. Navigate to the box found in the Details View of the set. A drop-down will be generated,
choose “Document Folder.”

4. A window will be generated, name the folder “Human Resources.” Click on the button.

5. Now we will upload the document you downloaded. Navigate to the box found in the
Details View of the folder. A drop-down will be generated, and choose “Document.”
6. A window will be generated to create a new document, name it “Job Description Guide.”

7. Let’s choose the document type. Select “File.”

8. Click on the box. A window will be generated, go to your Downloads folder, and
choose the “Job Description Guide” document you previously downloaded.
9. Once you uploaded the Word document, it will be displayed under the sub-section “Type.”

10. Under the “What are the Responsibilities?” assign your role “HR Manager” as Responsible [R].

11. Click on the button to finish the creation of the new Document.

Assign Document to Process

1. Navigate to the Details View of the “Develop Job Description” process, and click on the
button to navigate to the Edit Process window.
2. Navigate to the “Which Documents are used?” section, type the name of the document you
want to add, and select it to assign it to the process. Click on the button to save the
changes made to the process.

Tutorial
 Upload a Document and Assign to Process 22

3. The document will now be displayed in the Details View of the process “Develop Job
Description” under the section “Documents.” Click on the icon to see the documents
associated to the process.
Note: The name of the document is in blue because it is a link; when users click on it, they can navigate
to the document directly from the process Details View. The icons are available next to the
document, allowing users to download the document and preview it.

4. The button is now available on the toolbar for the “Develop Job Description”
process. This button appeared because this process has an Approval Cycle that we previously
set on the process. Click on the button, and send the process for approval. A window will be
generated requesting your confirmation to send this process for approval, click on the button

5. Since your user is the “HR Manager,” and we previously set the “HR Manager” as the approver,
you now automatically received a notification letting you know you need to approve or reject
the changes made to the process. The notification appears on the top-right of your EPC page

with this icon . Click on the icon to see your notifications.

Tutorial
 Upload a Document and Assign to Process 23

EPC Home Page

The process “Develop Job Description” was sent for an Approval Cycle when you edited it and
associated a Document. You received a notification letting you know you have a process to review.
Let’s now see how this approval impacted your Home Page Widgets. You will also be able to view the
document we uploaded and the processes and roles assigned to your role.

1. Click on the icon to navigate to your Home Page. Your Home Page should look similar to
this. Under the Widget “My Actions,” you will find the process you need to approve, under “My
Documents” the document we imported and we assigned “HR Manager” as responsible, under
“My Actions Pending” the number of approvals you need to review and under “My Processes &
Tasks” the processes and tasks assigned to your role.

2. To see the same exact content you need to have the same Widgets as the previous picture. To

add new Widgets, navigate to the drop-down and choose the “Dashboard
Manager” box. A new window will be generated where you can choose the Widgets you would
like to add to your Home Page, and click on to add them.

Note: The Widgets are fully customizable to your personal needs.

3. Let’s customize a Widget. Navigate to the button of the “My Actions Pending” Widget, and
choose “Settings” from the drop-down menu. A window will be generated where you can
customize the Widget.

Tutorial
 Upload a Document and Assign to Process 24

4. Change the name to “My Approvals to Review,” and navigate to the “Select Actions” drop-
down, choose “Approval,” and click on .

5. Your “My Actions Pending” Widget should now look like this.

Complete Approval Cycle

Let’s now approve or reject the approval cycle made on the “Develop Job Description.”
1. Under the “My Actions” Widget, click on the name of the process. This is a hyperlink, and you
will be automatically redirected to the Details View of the process.

2. Under the Details View of the “Develop Job Description” process, you will see a box saying

“Pending Approval.” Click on to expand the box.

Tutorial
 Upload a Document and Assign to Process 25

3. In this box, you can or the changes made to the process. You can review the
changes made to process before making a decision.

4. Click on the box to review the changes made to the process. The new items added
to the process will be highlighted in green, and the items removed from the process will be in red.
The new document we associated to the process is highlighted in green.

5. Let’s scroll up, and go back to the “Pending Approvals” box, and click on to approve
the changes made to the process. Since you approved it, this process can now be published

using the button available under the Details View and Graph View, refer to the section
“Publish the Process.”

Tutorial
 Disclaimer 26

Disclaimer
Copyright (c) 2018 Interfacing Technologies Corporation. All rights reserved.
This document, as well as the software described in it, is furnished under license and may be used or copied only in
accordance with the terms of such license. The content of this document is furnished for informational use only, and
due to product development, this information is subject to change without notice, and should not be construed as a
commitment by Interfacing Technologies Corporation. Interfacing Technologies Corporation assumes no
responsibility or liability for any errors or inaccuracies that may appear in this documentation. Except as permitted by
such license, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or
by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of Interfacing
Technologies Corporation.
The Interfacing Technologies logo, Enterprise Process Center logo and the FirstSTEP logo are trademarks of
Interfacing Technologies Corporation. FirstSTEP is a registered trademark name.
Many of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as trademarks.
Interfacing Technologies has made every effort to supply trademark information about manufacturers and their
products mentioned in this publication. For the most up to date list, please refer to the Enterprise Process Center
Online Help.

Tutorial