WORKFLOW ANALYSIS

QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS
Qualitative analysis

concerned with the logical correctness of the defined process;

• the absence of anomalies such as deadlocks (i.e., a case is blocked and no longer proceeds
through the process)
• livelocks (i.e., a case becomes stuck in a never-ending loop).

The main objective of qualitative analysis is to prove that the model is valid
and to find answers for questions such as the following:
• Does each process end improperly?
• Is the sequence of the states correct?
• Are there any nonsolvable conflicts for allocating resources to different tasks
qualitative analysis as a structural analysis

generally found in two aspects: validation and verification.

Validation
• means testing for semantic completeness to ensure that the workflow behaves as it was intended to
do. An approach based on integer programming was proposed to check whether the modeled
behavior through PNs and the observed behavior in the frequency profile could match each other

Verification
• requires checking the syntactic soundness of a workflow and eliminating redundancies. By doing
this, some typical problems in workflow specifications can be identified, and their complexity can be
addressed. Among these are initiation problems, termination problems, and equivalence problems
QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS
Quantitative analysis

It focuses on calculating the performance indices such as average completion, level

of service, and resource utilization.

The technique mainly used is simulation through experimenting with the specified
workflow under the assumption of a specific behavior of the environment

It also proves to be a good way of validating the initial measurements. A

place/transition model was proposed for studying the performance of the process
FUTURE DIRECTIONS
TECHNICAL ASPECTS
Improvement in modeling technique

Results of the evaluations of some widely used types of modeling techniques show
that each has strengths as well as weaknesses

Traditional methods for improving business process modeling such as workflow

mining and process retrieval still require much manual work. To address this, based
on the structure of a business process, a method called workflow recommendation
technique was proposed to provide process designers with support for automatically
constructing the new business process that is under consideration
Multiple perspectives/dimensions in modeling
efforts
Most workflow models are developed based on different perspectives
such as the control flow perspective, the data/information
perspective, the resource perspective, and the operational
perspective.

The existing workflow models are typically control flow oriented,

while real-world workflows tend to be multiple perspective oriented.
Survey research also indicates that businesses choose to combine one
or more perspectives for their modeling, analysis, and design efforts
WfMS as a vehicle for enterprise integration

As one of the components of complex enterprise

systems, interorganizational WfMS systems offer
the tools for enterprise integration, such as the
facilitation of the activities of multiple enterprises
to be streamlined, controlled, and monitored in
order to prepare for integration
Resilient WfMS for exceptional handling:

Resilience is a concept that is rooted in socioecological systems

and systems science. It has been applied in different areas and
called engineering resilience, ecological resilience, etc

Due to the distribution of individual WfMSs, more unforeseen

exceptions could possibly occur (e.g., nonrecoverable damage to
one partner due to a natural disaster).
Batch processing function and passing value
indeterminacy
Many existing methods are unable to describe the batch processing function of
cooperative systems or model passing value indeterminacy

Batch processing function means that a batch of data of the same type from different
organizations needs to be processed before a specified deadline.

Passing value indeterminacy means that all arrival data be processed at the same time,
and late arrival be processed in the next workflow cycle; meanwhile, the efficiency of
the workflow must be optimized.
Modeling and analysis of workflow linked to
SCM

In order to promote the competitive advantage of SCM, features such as

leanness and agility are considered important.

the majority of workflow systems are developed from the perspective of

information modeling without considering the actual requirements of SCM.

The gap between the modeling of workflows and supply chain

characteristics is substantial.
System complexity

As executing complex processes in

heterogeneous computing environments is a
major characteristic of SCM, we recognize that
the size and the complexity of workflow systems
will be escalating as more supply chain–wide
interorganizational workflows are implemented
New technology
Although workflow technology has been in use since its development in the 1990s,
recently, there has been an increasing momentum for the research and development
of WfMS and their applications, due to the increasing demand fueled by the
underlying advances in computing technologies, notably cloud computing, grid
computing, and service computing.

Grid computing involves coordinating and sharing computing resources across the
web globally
Discrepancies between the actual workflow
and the design workflow

As a component of enterprise systems, WfMS are

configured on the basis of workflow models.

There are discrepancies between the workflows that

were designed and included in the systems and the
workflows perceived in practice
Scientific workflow management
scientific workflows have emerged as a new tool for scientific researchers to use
to study complex scientific processes for enabling and accelerating many scientific
discoveries.

Similar to the workflow is the computerized facilitation of business or industrial

processes, a scientific workflow is the computerized facilitation or automation of
a scientific process.

A scientific workflow management system defines, executes, monitors, and

manages scientific workflows in which the execution order is driven by a logical
representation of a scientific workflow in a particular domain
MANAGERIAL ASPECTS
WfMS as a platform for knowledge sharing
and learning

The knowledge workers in each organization are

encouraged to perform creative intellectual activities,
which allow for dynamic changes to be captured and
stored in a WfMS. As such, the WfMS can be
considered as a repository of valuable process
knowledge and can act as a vehicle for the collection
and distribution of that knowledge
Performance analysis

In contrast to qualitative analysis, quantitative analysis

has received limited attention even though
performance analysis results have proven to be vital in
determining the efficiency of the constructed
workflow. The systems methods related to the
process based on a systems approach can be
developed.
Social and organizational environment

We recognize that the ultimate success

of a workflow system is highly
dependent upon the social and
organizational environment in which the
WfMS is being implemented.
Factors leading to the adoption of WfMS

Installing a WfMS inevitably changes the

business process and work activities;
therefore, it can have a major impact on
the organization’s people and
organizational culture.
Incentive mechanism for participating partners

In an interorganizational workflow, each

partner is expected to complete its workflow
requirements well. In addition, to elevate the
efficiency of the overall workflow, participants
are required to cooperate more actively.