1 | Page

Assignment 2

Course Title:
Software Design & Architecture
Course Code:
SE-226
Submitted To:
Sir Touseef Bhutta
Submitted By:
Moeez Ahmad
Roll number:
21011598-155

SE-5th-C
2 | Page

Explain the business process model and also explain all

symbols in detail.

A business process model is a visual representation of a sequence of activities or tasks required

to accomplish a specific business goal or objective. It provides a clear and structured way to
analyze, document, and communicate the flow of work within an organization. Business process
modeling is a critical component of business analysis, as it enables stakeholders to understand,
improve, and optimize operational processes.

Key Components of Business Process Model:

1. Activities: Activities or tasks represent the individual steps involved in a business process.
They can be simple tasks, such as data entry, or more complex tasks involving multiple
sub-steps. Each activity is typically labeled with a verb to describe the action being performed.

2. Sequence Flow: Sequence flow defines the order in which activities are performed within a
process. It shows the logical flow of work from one task to another, typically represented by
arrows connecting the activities.

3. Decision Points: Decision points or gateways represent points in the process where the flow
may branch or converge based on certain conditions. This allows for the representation of
decision-making and conditional branching within the process flow.

4. Events: Events depict occurrences that trigger or result from activities within the process.
They can include start events (representing the initiation of a process), intermediate events
(such as receiving a notification), and end events (indicating the completion of a process or a
specific phase within a process).

5. Data Objects: Data objects represent the information or data utilized or produced within a
process. They can include inputs, outputs, or temporary data used by activities within the
process.
3 | Page

Benefits of Business Process Modeling:

1. Clarity and Understanding: By visually representing the flow of work, business process
models provide a clear and comprehensible overview of how tasks and activities are
interconnected within an organization.

2. Process Optimization: Analyzing and optimizing business processes becomes more accessible
when modeled, allowing stakeholders to identify areas for improvement, reduce inefficiencies,
and enhance productivity.

3. Communication and Alignment: Business process models serve as a communication tool,

allowing stakeholders to align their understanding of processes and collaborate on
improvements.

4. Standardization: Models, such as BPMN (Business Process Model and Notation), provide a
standardized way to represent business processes, promoting consistency and interoperability
across different stakeholders and systems.

5. Regulatory Compliance and Risk Management: Documenting business processes facilitates

compliance with regulations and standards and supports risk identification and mitigation
efforts.

Overall, business process modeling plays a crucial role in understanding, optimizing, and
managing business processes within an organization. It serves as a foundation for process
improvement initiatives, business transformation projects, and technology implementations,
ultimately contributing to the overall effectiveness and efficiency of an organization.
4 | Page

BPMN event types

Events represent an event in a business process.

Start event symbol - Signals the first step of a process.

Intermediate event symbol - Represents any event that occurs between a start and end event.

End event symbol - Signals the final step in a process.

BPMN event symbols

Each of these BPMN event symbols can be styled to represent the specific details of their
process. The examples below are contained within start event symbols, but they can be
combined with any event type. Common event symbols represent the following circumstances:

Message symbol - Triggers the process, facilitates intermediate processes, or finishes the
process.

Timer symbol - A time, date, or recurring time and date triggers the process, aids
intermediates processes, or completes the process.

Escalation symbol - A step reacts to an escalation and flows to another role in the
organization. This event is only used within an event sub-process. An escalation occurs when
someone at a higher level of responsibility within the organization becomes involved in a
process.
5 | Page

Conditional symbol - A process begins or continues when a business condition or business

rule is met.

Link symbol - A sub-process that is part of a larger process.

Error symbol - A caught error at the start, middle, or end of a process. An event sub-process
with an error, the trigger will always interrupt its containing process.

Cancel symbol - Reacts on a transaction that was canceled within a sub-process. In an end
event, the cancel symbol represents the triggered cancellation of a process.

Compensation symbol - A refund that’s triggered when operations partially fail.

Signal symbol - A signal that communicates across different processes. A signal symbol can
begin a process, facilitate it, or complete it.

Multiple symbols - Multiple triggers initiating a process.

Parallel multiple symbol - A process instance that doesn't start, continue, or end until all
possible events have occurred.

Terminate symbol - Triggers the immediate termination of a process step. All related
instances are terminated at the same time.

BPMN activity symbols

Activities describe the kind of work being done in a particular process instance. There are
four BPMN activity types: tasks, sub-processes, transactions, and call activities.

Task symbol - The most basic level of an activity and cannot be broken down further.
For example, a morning routine process might involve the task of turning on your
computer.
6 | Page

Sub-process symbol - A group of tasks that fit together particularly well. There are
two different views of the sub-process. One is the collapsed view, which has an
expandable plus sign to show more details. The other view is an expanded sub-process
view, which is large enough to house all the tasks that fully describe the sub-process.

Transaction symbol - This is a specialized sub-process that involves payment.

The call symbol - Is a global sub-process that is reused at various points in the
business flow.

Diagramming is quick and easy with Lucidchart. Start a free trial today to start creating and
collaborating.

BPMN gateway symbols

In a BPMN diagram, gateway symbols separate and recombine flows. There are several types of
gateways:

Exclusive symbol - Evaluates the state of the business process and, based on the condition,
breaks the flow into one or more mutually exclusive paths. For example, one report will be
written if a supervisor approves; no report will be generated if the supervisor withholds
approval.
Event-based symbol - An event-based gateway is similar to an exclusive gateway—both
involve one path in the flow. In the case of an event-based gateway, however, you are
evaluating which event has occurred, not which condition is being met. For example, you
might wait to send an email until the CEO has arrived at the office. If the CEO doesn’t arrive,
the email will remain unsent.
Parallel symbol - Differs from other gateways because it’s not dependent on conditions or
events. Instead, parallel gateways are used to represent two concurrent tasks in a business
7 | Page

flow. An example is a marketing department generating new sales leads and contacting
existing leads at the same time.
Inclusive symbol - Breaks the process flow into one or more flows. For example, an inclusive
gateway could involve business actions taken based on survey results. One process may be
triggered if the consumer is satisfied with Product A. Another flow is triggered when the
consumer indicates that they are satisfied with product B, and a third process is triggered if
they aren't satisfied with A.

Exclusive event-based symbol - Starts a new process instance with each occurrence of a
subsequent event.

Complex symbol - These gateways are only used for the most complex flows in a business
process. An ideal use case for the complex gateway is when you need multiple gateways to
describe the business flow.
Parallel event-based symbol - As the name suggests, this gateway is similar to a parallel
gateway. It allows for multiple processes to happen at the same time, but unlike the parallel
gateway, processes are event-dependent.

Connecting objects in a BPMN diagram

Connecting objects are lines that connect BPMN flow objects. There are three different types:
sequence flows, message flows, and associations.

Sequence flow symbol - Connects flow objects in proper sequential order.

Message flow symbol - Represents messages from one process participant to another.

Association symbol - Shows relationships between artifacts and flow objects.