From Routine to Diagram: How to Learn BPMN by Drawing Your Everyday Tasks

I am sure you have heard of the trend where people in IT model daily tasks in UML or BPMN. The other day, I found a Medium article by Zsofia Herendi where she depicts in UML her choice of coffee ☕️ depending on what day it is (click on the image to read her full article).

When I saw her diagram, I immediately thought, "What else could be modeled in a flow chart?"

As summer has finally arrived in Geneva, Switzerland (or at least it seems like it), more and more people are organizing dinner parties to watch the Euro Cup matches or just to catch up with friends. The other day, I was thinking about what the BPMN graph of preparing for a dinner party would look like.

Setting Up Your BPMN Diagram: Defining Parties, Events, and Tasks

Whenever I draw a BPMN graph, I start by understanding who the parties involved in the process are. In this case, it is the Dinner Host, my fiancé, and myself. Once the parties involved are determined, I assign each one a swim lane in the pool to clearly show their respective tasks.

Once the pool is established, I outline the main Events and Tasks. The Events I choose are:

Start Event – Used to indicate the start of the process. In this case, it is ‘Receive Invitation from Dinner Party Host’, which is why there is an image of an envelope in the circle.

Intermediate Event – Indicates events that occur between the Start Events and End Events. The Intermediate Event in this case was ‘On the Day of the Dinner Party’.

End Event – Used to show the end of the process. In the graph, there are several End Events; two are related to the dinner, and two are ‘Leave Home’.

For the main Tasks, I included all the tasks one completes before leaving the house, from ‘Checking the Weather Forecast’ to ‘Deciding What to Wear’, ‘Getting Dressed’, and all the way to ‘Waiting for the Taxi’.

Refining the Workflow: Adding Gateways, Sequence Flows, and Message Flows

Once the main parties and the outline of major Tasks and Events were decided, I started to add gateways and see what the sequence and message flows would be like.

Event-Based Gateway – Used when the process must wait for a response, such as a user action or an external system's message. In my case, to move to my next task, I had to wait for the Availability Confirmation from my fiancé.

Exclusive Gateway – Used to create alternative paths in a process, with only one outgoing path taken based on a condition. The condition was for my fiancé to ‘Confirm Availability’.

Parallel Gateway – Used to represent concurrent tasks in a business flow. In my case, the concurrent tasks were related to getting ready to leave for the dinner party. This gateway needs to be closed by another symbol to show the end of the tasks being done in parallel.

Sequence Flows – Used to depict the order in which activities are performed.

Message Flows – Used to depict messages from one process participant to another. In this case, I communicate with the Dinner Host to RSVP to his invitation.

The Final Result

See the Process from Different Perspectives and Iterate

Drawing BPMN graphs allows you to see the process from different perspectives, which can be incredibly insightful. By breaking down each step and assigning tasks to different parties, you can identify bottlenecks, inefficiencies, or areas for improvement that might not be obvious otherwise. It's important to iterate on your diagrams; as you gain more understanding or receive feedback, you can refine the process further. This iterative approach ensures that your workflow becomes more streamlined and effective over time.

Why Should You Consider Drawing Workflow Diagrams?

Workflow diagrams, like BPMN graphs, offer numerous benefits for both individuals and organisations. They provide a clear, visual representation of processes, making it easier to understand complex workflows. This can enhance communication and collaboration among team members, as everyone can see their roles and responsibilities at a glance. Additionally, these diagrams can help in identifying redundancies and opportunities for automation, leading to increased efficiency and productivity. Overall, drawing workflow diagrams is a valuable practice for improving clarity and efficiency, and can be learned by drawing one for your daily routines or any task.

P.S. My fiancé's feelings didn't get hurt while drawing the the BPMN Diagram 😉