=Paper=
{{Paper
|id=Vol-1295/paper1
|storemode=property
|title=Changing In-Flight Business Processes using PNMsoft's HotChange Technology
|pdfUrl=https://ceur-ws.org/Vol-1295/paper1.pdf
|volume=Vol-1295
|dblpUrl=https://dblp.org/rec/conf/bpm/StutzLH14
}}
==Changing In-Flight Business Processes using PNMsoft's HotChange Technology==
https://ceur-ws.org/Vol-1295/paper1.pdf
Changing In-Flight Business Processes Using
PNMsoft’s HotChange® Technology
Eli Stutz, Head of Knowledge and Collaboration, PNMsoft
James Luxford, CTO, PNMsoft
PNMsoft Ltd.
elis@pnmsoft.com,
jamesl@pnmsoft.com
Abstract. PNMsoft Sequence is an iBPMS (Intelligent Business Process Management Suite).
This demonstration will show how PNMsoft Sequence’s HotChange® technology enables
BPM customers to change processes which are already being run in the production envi-
ronment. HotChange® enables modifications to all aspects of a process including: flow,
business rules, form fields, new activities, permissions, devices, and integration with exter-
nal systems. Customers using HotChange® are better able to compete, as they can more
quickly adapt their business critical processes to real world conditions and a changing mar-
ketplace. This demo will be of major interest to attendees interested in Process Improve-
ment, Change Management and Intelligent Business Operations.
1 Maturity
PNMsoft is the leading provider of BPM and Workflow software solutions for companies using
Microsoft infrastructure. Established in 1996, PNMsoft is a multinational company with head-
quarters in the UK, and offices in the US, Portugal and Israel. PNMsoft’s client base includes
mid-sized to enterprise companies worldwide, in a wide range of industries. PNMsoft has at-
tained Microsoft Gold Application Development competency and is on Gartner’s iBPMS Magic
Quadrant (2012, 2014)1. PNMsoft has consistently placed its focus on BPM and Workflow tech-
nology and solutions.2 Global companies use PNMsoft solutions and services to support mission
critical applications demonstrating high usage and large volume of data transactions. Amongst
our client base are organisations such as ATOS, AON, Atkins, HRG, Amdocs, as well as European
Governments, Ministries, Departments and Agencies. Processes include Customer Onboarding,
Customer Service, HR Processes, Financial Processes, Quality Assurance and Tax Compliance.
PNMsoft’s Sequence Kinetics is an Intelligent Business Process Management Suite (iBPMS),
which enables organisations to automate and optimise their business workflows. Sequence Ki-
netics includes an App Studio which enables business users and developers to model (using pro-
priety notation) and design workflows on an intuitive visual canvas, and rapidly create workflow
1 https://www.gartner.com/doc/2179715/magic-quadrant-intelligent-business-
process
https://www.gartner.com/doc/2684315?ref=SiteSearch&sthkw=magic%20quadrant%
20intelligent%20business%20process%20management&fnl=search
2 http://www.pnmsoft.com/about
Copyright © 2014 for this paper by its authors. Copying permitted for private and academic purposes.
Changing In-Flight Processes
elements such as webforms, messages and integration activities. A UX Studio enables rapid cre-
ation of web forms which are used in Sequence Kinetics workflows. End users operate processes
in Flowtime, Sequence Kinetics’s SharePoint Runtime interface. Employees and managers can
also operate and monitor processes in ProcessTO GO, Sequence’s mobile BPM environment.
2 Significance to the BPM Field
Sequence Kinetics® is built on PNMsoft’s unique HotChange® technology. Like the concept of
HotSwap for controlled change of hardware components of high-end servers without any down-
time, so too is HotChange ® for BPM Software. Super users can reconfigure instances of busi-
ness processes and introduce changes. New instances will be initiated without causing major
disruption to the business. Sequence Kinetics HotChange ® technology permeates all levels of
our platform providing the ability to modify, integrate and distribute their business process ap-
plications without having to halt these processes as they continue to run in production, yet
maintain full governance and control of the change deployment. Once a change to a process has
been made, the super user has the option to either apply to inflight processes, or leave running
processes with their previous version (multiple active versions in runtime).3 We will demon-
strate the following features and aspects of HotChange ® in our demo.
2.1 The HotChange® Sweet Spot
Organizations will a high frequency of business process change, and a high level of Human col-
laboration on processes will benefit most from HotChange ®.
Fig. 1. - HotChange Sweet Spot
3 http://www.pnmsoft.com/technology/hotchange/
Copyright © 2014 for this paper by its authors. Copying permitted for private and academic purposes.
Eli Stutz and James Luxford
2.2 Trend of Business Change
We observe a higher frequency of process change among our clients (10% - 15% increase in
number of process changes per year). There is also an increasing need for control over business
processes, to comply with regulation and other control mechanisms. In 2013 and 2014, 15% -
20% of our clients’ processes were related to compliance as compared to 10% in past years.
Fig. 2. - Frequency of Change Trends
To answer the need for both change and control, HotChange® includes Change and Control lay-
ers:
Fig. 3. – HotChange Layers (Change and Control)
2.3 Ability to “Rewind” Workflows
A workflow can be rewound to a predetermined time without rewinding content and history.
Each user activity can be defined as having rollback enabled, or disabled, with customisable roll-
back notifications and recipients. This feature can help users correct procedural mistakes.
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Changing In-Flight Processes
2.4 Versioning
HotChange ® technology and in memory execution promotes ease of change. Admins can man-
age as many versions of a process as they require and maintain control of these versions. Ad-
mins can control which version is live at any point in time without halting or interfering with ex-
isting instances of the process. Sequence Kinetics provides a wizard-based tool to transfer ver-
sion between environments. Using HotChange ®, organizations can significantly cut down on
the overhead due to process changes, especially as the number of processes and changes in-
crease.
Fig. 4. – Benefit of HotChange® as Number of Process Changes Increases
2.5 Use Case: Utilities Provisioning Process
A client in the Utilities industry has an existing service delivery process which enables a service
agent to reach a client location, assess his utility requirements, and complete an online form
which starts a provisioning sub-process to provide the service. Some of the problems with this
process include difficulty in finding the location, completion of the provisioning form on mobile
device, and also changing government regulation regarding safety issues. We will demonstrate
how HotChange® enables the company to adapt to these conditions without removing the pro-
cess from production, creating a mobile enabled process that uses Google Maps, and can be
modified to fit government regulations.
Specifically, the demo will show how mobile forms can be created using the same data source in
one click, and how integration with rich media such as Maps can be quickly added to forms with
very little client side coding. We will show examples of how changes to the process rules due to
new regulation can be made without “derailing” the process. The demo will also show how a
standard BPM suite without HotChange® technology would take several times as much time to
cope with the number of changes to the process, integration and devices, which a comparison
of resolution times between both solutions.
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Eli Stutz and James Luxford
2.6 Business Benefits
HotChange® provides the following benefits for organizations with high frequency of change:
Rapid, cost-effective automation of mission critical processes.
Accurate and rapid migration of existing processes.
High flexibly to meet changing business needs.
Better visibility for management with visual dashboards and reports.
Ability to integrate key processes with other business systems.
Ability to optimise and improve processes over time.
3 Screencasts
The following videos demonstrate Sequence Kinetics and several of its capabilities:
Creating Business Applications (Power Users): http://youtu.be/4r8R1-Rbr2k
Rapid Build and Change of Advanced Business Process Applications:
http://youtu.be/jHxGOIPvQes
Superior Control Over Process Change:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRt2PS1jnUU
IT as an Enabler for Business Change: http://youtu.be/mC42RjmRFIs?t=13m
Copyright © 2014 for this paper by its authors. Copying permitted for private and academic purposes.