An Empirical Review of the Connection Between Model Viewer Characteristics and the Comprehension of Conceptual Process Models

Understanding conceptual models of business domains is a key skill for practitioners tasked with systems analysis and design. Research in this field predominantly uses experiments with specific user proxy cohorts to examine factors that explain how well different types of conceptual models can be comprehended by model viewers. However, the results from these studies are difficult to compare. One key difficulty rests in the unsystematic and fluctuating consideration of model viewer characteristics (MVCs) to date. In this paper, we review MVCs used in prominent prior studies on conceptual model comprehension. We then design an empirical review of the influence of MVCS through a global, cross-sectional experimental study in which over 500 student and practitioner users were asked to answer comprehension questions about a prominent type of conceptual model - BPMN process models. As an experimental treatment, we used good versus bad layout in order to increase the variance of performance. Our results show MVC to be a multi-dimensional construct. Moreover, process model comprehension is related in different ways to different traits of the MVC construct. Based on these findings, we offer guidance for experimental designs in this area of research and provide implications for the study of MVCs

The Repercussions of Business Process Modeling Notations on Mental Load and Mental Effort

Over the last decade, plenty business process modeling notations emerged for the documentation of business processes in enterprises. During the learning of a modeling notation, an individual is confronted with a cognitive load that has an impact on the comprehension of a notation with its underlying formalisms and concepts. To address the cognitive load, this paper presents the results from an exploratory study, in which a sample of 94 participants, divided into novices, intermediates, and experts, needed to assess process models expressed in terms of eight different process modeling notations, i.e., BPMN 2.0, Declarative Process Modeling, eGantt Charts, EPCs, Flow Charts, IDEF3, Petri Nets, and UML Activity Diagrams. The study focus was set on the subjective comprehensibility and accessibility of process models reflecting participant's cognitive load (i.e., mental load and mental effort). Based on the cognitive load, a factor reflecting the mental difficulty for comprehending process models in different modeling notations was derived. The results indicate that established modeling notations from industry (e.g., BPMN) should be the first choice for enterprises when striving for process management. Moreover, study insights may be used to determine which modeling notations should be taught for an introduction in process modeling or which notation is useful to teach and train process modelers or analysts. \keywords{Business Process Modeling Notations, Cognitive Load, Mental Load, Mental Effort, Human-centered Desig

Work System Modeling Method with Different Levels of Specificity and Rigor for Different Stakeholder Purposes

This paper proposes a modeling method (the work system modeling method - WSMM) that addresses key issues related to enterprise and process modeling. Those issues lead to modeling method requirements that call for relaxing common assumptions about the nature of modeling methods and related modeling languages and metamodels. A summary of work system theory (WST)and the work system method (WSM) provides background for understanding WSMM. A design space for modeling positions most applications of WSM in relation to seven purposes of modeling that call for successively more formal approaches. WSMM is presented in relation to the seven purposes, thereby extending WSM in new directions. A final section summarizes how WSMM addresses the issues and requirements from the introduction, explains how coherence is maintained within WSMM, and identifies areas for future research

Applying Facets of Work as a Source of Knowledge and Insight for Requirements Determination

This conceptual contribution explains how the idea of “facets of work” can bring more knowledge and richer, more evocative ideas to the development of system requirements in organizational settings. Focusing on facets of work potentially provides useful guidance without requiring unnecessary details, precision, and notation. A background section summarizes how the current research emerged from partial overlaps between separate research efforts. Table 1 identifies 18 facets of work. Five other tables look at a subset of the facets to illustrate concepts associated with specific facets, common success factors and tradeoffs, sub-facets and other topics. Use of the same subset of the facets to classify quotations from a case study demonstrates the broad relevance of the approach

Business process modeling: A webibliominig perspective of architecture frameworks

In the perspective of organizational context, the present paper deals with the different types of architecture of BPM. As objectives, it is proposed to formulate a conceptual comparative view of the main architectures present in the scientific literature. As for the methodology, bibliographical and webibliomining research are employed in a qualitative and quantitative approach to the subject. As a result, the comparative view of the UML, BPMN, CIMOSA, IDEF, ARIS, IEM, GRAI, GERAM and EKD architectures is developed, in terms of temporal aspects, socio-technical characteristics, visualization and analysis, among other factors which offers substantial argument to decide what framework is better in each scenario

The Road to Success: Recommendations for the Design of Successful Business Process Modeling Initiatives

Process modeling is among the most important activities in the business process management lifecycle and enables enterprises to improve communication, coordination, and knowledge management. However, enterprises frequently face challenges when introducing process modeling to their organization. These range from a lack of strategic alignment to insufficient stakeholder participation leading to pitfalls, such as project failure or outcomes that do not meet predefined expectations. Hence, we present findings from eight successful process modeling initiatives and consolidate them to a decision-support framework. The contribution of this research is twofold. First, our study suggests that the success of process modeling depends on contextual parameters, including top management involvement, tool support, and employee education. Second, the design of process modeling initiatives fundamentally changes with organizational objectives. Based on a clear set of goals, enterprises can choose from at least three success strategies that require a unique configuration and structure

Learning to Read by Learning to Write: Evaluation of a Serious Game to Foster Business Process Model Comprehension

Background: The management and comprehension of business process models are of utmost importance for almost any enterprise. To foster the comprehension of such models, this paper has incorporated the idea of a serious game called Tales of Knightly Process. Objective: This study aimed to investigate whether the serious game has a positive, immediate, and follow-up impact on process model comprehension. Methods: A total of two studies with 81 and 64 participants each were conducted. Within the two studies, participants were assigned to a game group and a control group (ie, study 1), and a follow-up game group and a follow-up control group (ie, study 2). A total of four weeks separated study 1 and study 2. In both studies, participants had to answer ten comprehension questions on five different process models. Note that, in study 1, participants in the game group played the serious game before they answered the comprehension questions to evaluate the impact of the game on process model comprehension. Results: In study 1, inferential statistics (analysis of variance) revealed that participants in the game group showed a better immediate performance compared to control group participants (P<.001). A Hedges g of 0.77 also indicated a medium to large effect size. In study 2, follow-up game group participants showed a better performance compared to participants from the follow-up control group (P=.01); here, a Hedges g of 0.82 implied a large effect size. Finally, in both studies, analyses indicated that complex process models are more difficult to comprehend (study 1: P<.001; study 2: P<.001). Conclusions: Participants who played the serious game showed better performance in the comprehension of process models when comparing both studies