Comparative overview of BPM systems

The introduction of any IT-system requires a lot of time, effort and money. And when it comes to such a global solution as a BPM system, attention has to be paid even more.

You cannot start a project, relying on the capabilities of a hastily chosen product and the vendor's promise, there are a lot of aspects that need to be thought out and weighed. And the consequences of a wrong choice and the realization of one’s own mistake already during work, “half way” can be expensive.

When choosing a BPM system, you need to rely on the requirements of your processes and consider the possibilities for their further development and improvement. I hope that this review will help you quickly navigate which system is right for you and make your choice based on its functional features.

BPM Solution Overview

Considered BPM solutions: ELMA BPM Suite , Bizagi BPM Suite and Bonita Open Solution . All of them are popular and in demand. In addition, these solutions are very similar in function.

Consider their main components:

designer for modeling business processes;
execution mechanism;
controls and monitoring of business processes;
the ability to quickly change business processes.

In the article we will look at the implementation of these features, as well as:

user interface;
systems cost;
availability of a mobile version;
other criteria.

Business process modeling

ELMA BPM

ELMA BPM - the development of the Russian company ELMA, designed to manage business processes.

Business process modeling in the ELMA system is carried out in a special graphic editor “ELMA Designer” in the BPMN 2.0 notation, which, by the way, was entirely translated into Russian by the specialists of this company and is available for free download on the ELMA website.

After creating a graphical model, selecting process parameters and determining the data with which the business process works, it is published on the server of the system and becomes executable in the web interface. Each running instance of a business process creates task cards for users of the system in which they must report on their activities. Cards, by the way, are flexible, so it’s convenient to work with them.

Almost all actions to automate the execution of business processes can be done with a mouse, but sometimes you have to resort to scripts. To implement the most complex things you can use scripts, that is, programming. Plus, the scripts are created in the popular C # language, so it’s easy to figure out how to write with the ELMA script. And the experts who know this language abound in the market.

Unfortunately, vendors very often insert their own languages into their software, guided by the erroneous view that it’s easier to work there. The result is a system under which to find a developer is simply impossible. They may not be on the market at all, so there are two options left - either to go to the same vendor for help (that's what he probably expects), or to try to grow his specialist (which, again, without the involvement of a vendor, is almost unreal).

Therefore, the use of a popular language can be called a big plus of the system.
In ELMA, import and export to XPDL format is supported - it is a universal format that allows you to upload and download business process models.

Having tried as an experiment to load into ELMA the process previously drawn in Business Studio, I am convinced (after a little refinement) that everything works without any problems.

I will add that in the ELMA system, debugging of processes and tools for their testing (verification) are implemented. When publishing a process model, syntax verification is performed automatically - checking the correctness of the model and checking scripts for errors.

In addition, unlike other solutions, in ELMA step-by-step debugging of processes, scripts and user forms is possible, which saves a lot of time.

Fig. 1. Graphic editor interface "ELMA Designer"

Fig. 2. Application form (in debug mode) in the ELMA system

Processes in ELMA can be continuously improved, and right “on the go,” without stopping the execution. So it is possible to take into account all the features of the organization.

If “problematic” processes are found in the system or there is a breakdown of indicators, then there are two options for eliminating the problem:
improvement of the current process (continuous improvements) with the subsequent assessment of the indicator, or a change in the process indicator itself.

It is possible that the planned value was initially set incorrectly, and it is worth correcting it, just like the process itself.

Also, you can always go back to earlier versions and view the history of improvements in the business process - the system stores all versions. You can make changes to the processes even after the implementation of these processes in the work. You quickly make adjustments to the structure of the process and immediately check the effectiveness of changes in practice.

The next participant in the review, Bizagi, is also notable for its process execution mechanisms.

Bizagi BPM Suite

The system is very famous and popular. Bizagi BPM Suite consists of components that perform separate functions:

Bizagi Process Modeler - process designer;
Bizagi Studio - process automation;
Bizagi BPM Server - process execution.

Business process modeling is carried out in BPMN notation. Supports the most comprehensive level of BPMN specification compliance. But the strongest side of the product is a colorful graphic editor.

It is convenient to “draw” simple schemes, but as soon as their complexity increases, difficulties arise, for example, descriptions of events and streams can be lost, or when copying, objects are “stuck” to each other, and in this case only loading of the previous version of the scheme helps.

There is the possibility of collective design. The finished process model is loaded into Bizagi Studio, where you can determine all the information needed to automate the process. The same module allows you to integrate the system with other corporate applications. Automation of processes is carried out in graphical interfaces, the need for programming is only with the specification of script tasks.

Next, the automated process is uploaded to the server, where its further execution takes place. This procedure is simple if you are well acquainted with the documentation. Immediately guess about the many nuances is not easy.

In the web interface, user tasks are performed and the process execution is monitored. The system creates detailed reports on the process as a whole and separately for each task. Reports are available in the web interface.

Changes made to the process in the Studio module are immediately reflected on the server, and all running instances of the process begin to work according to a new model, without interruption.

Bizagi enables the exchange of models between applications, supports the import and export formats XPDL and MS Visio.

Fig. 3. Modeling processes in Bizagi BPM Suite

Complicating the work is the need to constantly switch between the editors' windows, with so many windows a constant change of focus is required. This is all very difficult, especially for the person who first discovered the system.

It is important to note that the Bizagi BPM Suite is a Spanish development, and the company has no official representative office in Russia. This is a rather serious drawback, because when a vendor is located in another state, it is difficult to implement its product.

Bonita Open Solution

Bonita Open Solution - French vendor. Representation in the Russian Federation, like the previous decision, no. Not so long ago, according to some sources, only the user part of the system was translated, in general, there is no Russian localization.

In the opensource version of the system there are no process monitoring tools. In turn, in the commercial version of the system they are. The solution consists of three main components, divided by purpose:

Studio - modeling and automation of business processes;
Execution Engine - execution of business processes;
User Experience - an interface for the user to work with his processes.

The process simulation of Bonita Open Solution takes place in BPMN notation. Notation support is pretty complete. The solution supports importing diagrams from XPDL format, but without the possibility of exporting to it. There is also no support for BPEL.

Modeling and automation of the process in Bonita Studio is done in one window, which is very convenient. The selection of data and participants, the generation of interfaces to the stages of the process is carried out in the same window as the creation of the graphical model. There is no need to constantly switch between windows editors, it speeds up the development process.

Fig. 4. Modeling business processes in Bonita Studio