A Decision Model for Business Process Modeling Language Selection

Context: Business process modeling can be used for modeling processes in various domains, such as Business Process Management and Software Engineering. A broad list of Business Process Modeling (BPM) languages is available in the market with an exhaustive set of decision criteria, such as their popularity and tool support. So, selecting the best-fit BPM language is challenging for process modelers. A decision model is needed to systematically capture scattered knowledge regarding BPM languages and make them available and reusable for process modelers and academics.

Method: This study presents a decision model for the BPM language selection problem in research projects. The decision model contains 72 BPM features and represents their mappings to 23 BPM languages.

Results: We evaluate the efficiency, validity, and generality of the decision model by conducting three academic case studies. The results confirm that the decision model supports process modelers with the selection problem by providing more insights into the decision process.

Conclusion: With the empirical evidence from the case studies and domain expert feedback, we realized that having the knowledge readily available in the decision model supports academics in making more informed decisions that meet their preferences and prioritized requirements. Moreover, the captured knowledge provides a comprehensive overview of the BPM languages, their features, and quality characteristics, which other researchers for future challenges can employ.