Enterprise Process Modeling

Enterprise Process Modeling is a core vehicle to analyze, design, implement, and deploy ERP-related business process suites and the ERP information systems supporting them. However, the modeling process often requires extensive resources and is often incomplete. As a way to cope with these hurdles and to improve the quality of enterprise-specific models, the idea of reference modeling has become the accepted methodology to develop an enterprise-specific application. While an application model represents a particular enterprise system, a generic model represents a class of similar enterprise systems. It is a conceptual framework that can be used as a blueprint and progressively adapted to the requirements of a particular enterprise. The ultimate aim of enterprise modeling is to enable the designer to obtain a definitive picture of the business functionalities of the organization and the suite of business processes required. (For more information on the idea of business process reference models readers are referred to Kindler and Nuttgens (2005).) He/she can then proceed with the design of the business processes required, planning of the corresponding IT support as exemplified by ERP systems, and elaboration of a program for business process management. These topics are discussed in this and other chapters in the book.