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PurposeThis research work aims to expose the detailed construction of a framework for translation between Business Process Modeling and Notation (BPMN) and a citizen process language, named GERAL, so that BPMN and modeling non-experts can publicize their procedural information in an understandable and quality manner. The artifact is built in detail through epistemological rigor derived from empirical evidence and best practices related to the topic of understanding business processes, both based on well-established literature on the subject.Design/methodology/approachIn the case of research involving the construction of an artifact, the design science research (DSR) methodology was used to conduct engineering with an emphasis on the scientific method; for evaluation, the authors used the case study methodology. Data collection is based on documentation analysis, questionnaire, interview and observation. The authors also use references associating DSR with case studies, for greater contextual rigor of the research.FindingsThis work presents findings and contributions, both new and also reinforcing others already present (1) use of the principles of Citizen/Plain Language improve instructional communication related to process modeling; (2) the citizen process language GERAL itself; (3) the BPMN pra GERAL guide for process translation; (4) qualitative findings from the observation of the use of the artifact in a real case, with non-experts and (5) a well-founded instance of building a notation with an emphasis on understanding, which can be replicated in other cases.Research limitations/implicationsFuture perspectives for conducting the research are presented. As a qualitative research instantiated involving a subjective construct, such as understanding, generalization is partially limited and should be interpreted as a transferability criterion. The evaluation involved participants with complete higher education and graduates, even though from areas not dedicated to process modeling or BPMN, being non-experts. The main indicator was understood with limitations in other aspects, such as formal semantics and precise executability.Practical implicationsThe formative research showed improvements to the base artifact, the framework first version, which will consequently be reflected in the guide. The GERAL and the guide were very well received, and all participants were able to translate the proposed model effectively, despite small slips in second notation. The guide improved the participants' perception of transparency and understanding of business processes, making them aware of the benefits of this topic.Social implicationsThe output of the built and researched artifact are understandable models by non-experts in technical languages of business processes. It is an alternative for BPMN models and dubious/long texts. Almost unexpectedly, the guide and its principles awaken an appreciation of understandable procedural communication, that is, it builds an intrinsic motivation in the user of the importance of publicizing his processes and assists in compliance with current data disclosure laws. It also builds informational democratic values of better participation and data absorption, from translators to the target audience.Originality/valueIt presents a qualitative approach to deal with business process modeling and understanding; substantiates in detail, using well-established bases in the literature, the construction of a solution aimed at understanding business processes; offers a translation guide for non-experts and experts interested in disclosing and instructing their procedural information modeled in BPMN.

Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to propose a method for identifying business process-relevant contextual information that is likely to impact on the process goal. The ORGANON method describes a semi-structured procedural guide alongside with a set of criteria and a matrix for analyzing ontological transactions, which can be used to identify which context information can be considered relevant to a business process.


Design/methodology/approach
– The authors report on an evaluation of the ORGANON method through a case study conducted in an organization that works in the social security domain.


Findings
– The results provide evidences of the feasibility of the method application in this scenario.


Originality/value
– Our research contributes to the literature on business processes flexibility, specifically through a proposal for context identification that can be extended to current techniques for business process modeling and in turn forms the basis for existing approaches for making business processes more flexible. The work has implications for the strategic management of organizations, by suggesting a method that provides informational support to decision makers about when, where and why business processes need to be adapted.

PurposeA literature review was conducted in order to establish a detailed definition of a knowledge-intensive process (KiP). Moreover, relevant theories from humanities – especially the fields of linguistics and philosophy – were thoroughly researched and adapted for establishing descriptive and analytical foundations for the phenomena involved. Finally, a cognitive business process management (BPM) theory was proposed in order to assess how sufficient are its respective explanatory and predictive powers. This study aims to discuss the aforementioned objective.Design/methodology/approachThis study proposes a novel theory for KiPs that describe the process flow based on the participants' interactions and their beliefs, desires and intentions as the main drivers of the process enactment and execution.FindingsThe proposal puts forth a comprehensive definition of a KiP, depicting knowledge intensity, participant interaction and decision-making. The inner dynamics of each of these two elements (as well as other associated elements) are described as an information systems (IS) theory that enables the study of KiPs in detail, going beyond the typical techniques of the BPM field and common obstacles.Originality/valueA theory proposal for KiP that applies concepts from speech act theory and intentional states as the main drivers for understanding the process dynamics are, to the best of the authors' knowledge, not present at the literature. Being an original proposal, the real-world scenario discussed brings up the explanatory and predictive powers of the theory as well as its innovative value for research in the field.

Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to propose a representation scheme based on the i* strategic actor model to represent the process owner information and show how to incorporate this approach into the event driven process chain and Business Process Modeling Notation-BPMN meta-models and also into the aspect-oriented business process modeling (BPM) context.


Design/methodology/approach
– The authors use a case study in a real setting to evaluate the proposal and a controlled experiment to get more evidence about its relevance.


Findings
– The authors presented evidence both from a case study in a real-world library showing the importance of representing – previously unavailable – process owner information, and from an experiment which involved participants analyzing the same models of the case study, confirming the preliminary evidences. It is important to stress the recognition that the proposed representation provided more transparency, in terms of ownership, than the usual BPM models. These benefits are due to the combination of the aspect-oriented approach and the strategic actor model, providing ownership information in a more transparent way.


Originality/value
– The authors not only argue the importance of clearly established process ownership, both of the core process and the aspectual process, but also the authors presented an approach to represent the actor involved in process and aspect ownership as an instantiation of the i* strategic actor. Using this approach, the process owner can be defined in terms of actors instead of the activities performed. It is also possible to define the aspect owner and to include the aspectual process concept in the business process model.