Title: Toward an aspect-oriented framework for business process improvement

Authors: Alireza Pourshahid, Gunter Mussbacher, Daniel Amyot, Michael Weiss

Addresses: School of Information Technology and Engineering (SITE), University of Ottawa, 800 King Edward Avenue, Ottawa, ON, Canada K1N 6N5. ' School of Information Technology and Engineering (SITE), University of Ottawa, 800 King Edward Avenue, Ottawa, ON, Canada K1N 6N5. ' School of Information Technology and Engineering (SITE), University of Ottawa, 800 King Edward Avenue, Ottawa, ON, Canada K1N 6N5. ' Department of Systems and Computer Engineering, Carleton University, 1125 Colonel By Drive, Ottawa, ON, K1S 5B6, Canada

Abstract: Many organisations have invested in Business Process Management Systems (BPMSs) and methodologies in order to monitor and improve their processes, with limited practicality when evaluating potential improvements. This paper tackles this issue by proposing an aspect-oriented framework based on a set of process redesign patterns. This framework allows the selection of the best applicable patterns according to their impact on the process models and on contextual views such as goals, performance, and validation. This promotes informed decision making while keeping these views aligned. A healthcare case study presented as a proof of concept supports the feasibility of this novel approach.

Keywords: BPM; business process management; aspect-oriented modelling; URN; user requirements notation; electronic commerce; e-commerce; process improvement; business process redesign; redesign patterns; contextual views; goals; performance; validation; electronic business; e-business; electronic healthcare; e-healthcare; innovation; open world.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEB.2010.034170

International Journal of Electronic Business, 2010 Vol.8 No.3, pp.233 - 259

Published online: 16 Jul 2010 *

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