Business process models

This task describes how to specify business process models in ALM.

In this topic:

Business process models overview

The ALM Business Models module addresses the need for a stronger connection between business process modeling, quality assurance management, and requirement definitions. This module integrates business process models into the application lifecycle.

This integration fosters collaboration between the various roles involved in the business process modeling and testing lifecycles, thereby facilitating communication between business users and people in more technical departments. This collaboration facilitates better business outcomes by identifying high level activities, thus guiding the QA manager in determining the high level test requirements.

Integrating business process models into ALM involves the following:

• Importing business process models into ALM

• Linking requirements and tests to models, activities, and end-to-end business flows.

• After executing tests, you can display quality status views on the business process model level.

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Create models

To work with business process models in ALM, you must first create models in standard BPMN or EPC modeling tools, export the models to files, and import the files to ALM.

ALM supports the following model and file formats:

Model	Exported to files
BPMN 1.1	XPDL 2.0/2.1 files
BPMN 2.0	XPDL 2.2 files
EPC 7.1	AML files (.xml extension)
EPC 9.8	AML files (.xml extension)

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Import models

Before you import models

Consider the following before you import models:

Business process models

For each model that you import to ALM, business process models are created under the selected folder in the Requirements > Business Models module: a business process model for the model as a whole, and a business process model for each of the model's activities.

Representative requirements

In addition, representative requirements are created automatically for the model and for each of its activities in the Requirements module. Representative requirements for models are created under the Business Models requirement folder. Representative requirements for activities are created under the Activities sub-folder. If the same activity is included in several models, the same requirement is used to represent the activity. Representative requirements are assigned the Business Model requirement type. To view business process model entities represented by a requirement, in the Requirements module, open the Requirement Details view, select a Business Model requirement, and click the Represented Items tab.

Prerequisite:

During the import process, you can map model and activity attributes to ALM memo or string fields. This enables you to edit attribute values in ALM. To enable the mapping, add string or memo fields to the following entities:

• Business Process Models

• Business Process Model Elements

For more details on adding user-defined fields, see Add user-defined fields.

To import models:

1. On the ALM sidebar, under Requirements, select Business Models. In the View menu, select Model Tree.

2. Right-click the Models root folder and select New Folder. To create a sub-folder, right-click a folder and select New Folder.

3. Right-click a folder and select Import Model.

   Note: Characters in names of imported models and activities that are illegal in ALM (for example, \ ^ *), are replaced with underscores.

   UI Element	Description
   From file	The source file from which business process models are imported. Click the browse button to locate a file in a folder.
   Analyze	Scans the source file for business process models. The models in the file are displayed in the file content area.
   Map Attribute	Opens the Map Imported Attributes to User Fields dialog box, enabling you to map model and activity attributes to ALM fields. Model attribute mappings. Displays the imported model attributes, and the ALM fields to which they are mapped. Activity attribute mappings. Displays the imported activity attributes, and the ALM fields to which they are mapped. Imported Attribute. Lists the model or activity attributes imported from the source file. User Field. Lists the user-defined fields that are mapped to the corresponding attributes. Note: The drop-down list includes only user fields that are not already mapped to attributes in the selected models. If user fields are mapped to attributes in imported models, you can reassign them to other attributes in the selected models. This will override the previous mapping. Show non-mapped attributes only. Enables you to hide attributes that are already mapped to ALM fields.
   Select models to import	Displays the business process models contained in the source file. If you selected a file with ARIS notation, structured models are displayed hierarchically.
   Destination	The folder in the business models tree under which the imported model will be added. Click the drop-down button to select a folder in the business models tree.   You cannot import models under the root Models folder. Re-imported models remain in the original folder.
   Details	Shows/hides options for defining representative requirements.
   Import	Imports the models selected in the Select models to import pane. The Importing Models dialog box opens, displaying the progress and status of the file import.
   Rename requirements	Instructs ALM to rename representative requirements of re-imported models. The requirements are renamed according to the new names given to the business process model and its activities. Available if the Details pane is expanded.
   Requirement Destination	Available if the Details pane is expanded. The folder in the requirements tree under which representative requirements of the imported business process model are added. Click the drop-down button to select a folder in the requirements tree.   You cannot select the Requirements root folder. Representative requirements of re-imported models remain in the original folder.

Models details

To view the details of a model, an activity or a path, select the entity from the models tree, and open the Details tab.

Field	Description
Activity ID/Folder ID/Path ID/Model ID	A unique numeric ID for the entity that is assigned automatically. The ID field cannot be modified.
Created By	Models/Activities: The user who first imported the entity. Paths: The user who created the path.
Creation Date	Models/Activities: The date and time on which the entity was first imported. Paths: The date and time on which the path was created.
Guid	A unique code identifying the model. The code helps identify the model in case of re-import.
Guid of referenced element	If an activity references a business process model, the unique code identifying the model.
Import Date	The date and time on which the entity was last imported.
Imported By	The user who last imported the entity.
Imported File Name	The name of the source file from which the model was last imported.
Lane	The location of an activity within a model.
Model Author	The user who created the model in the model authoring tool.
Name	The entity name.
Notation	The notation that is used to implement the model in the source file. Possible values are EPC or BPMN.
Notation Version	The version of the notation (EPC or BPMN) that is used to implement the model in the source file.
Path Description	Lists the activities included in the path.
Pool	The location of an activity within a model.
Priority	The priority of the entity.
Prototype	Possible values are As-Is or To-Be.
Status	The status of the entity.
Text	Text displayed in the activity diagram, as defined in the modeling tool.
Type	The activity type.
Vendor	The modeling tool used to create the business process model.

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Create paths

A business process model that you create with standard modeling tools does not include path definitions. ALM enables you to define paths in your imported models.

Overview of paths

The quality of a business process model is determined not only by its activities, but also by the business flows within the model, or paths. A path is an end-to-end sequence of transitions between activities in a model.

Paths are created in the business models tree as a sub-entities of the business process model. Recursive paths that repeat the same activity are not supported.

ALM automatically analyzes all possible end-to-end paths in a model, and allows you to select those paths that are important to test.

For each path you create, a representative requirement is created automatically under the Paths group requirement, a child of the model representative requirement.

To create paths in ALM:

1. In the Business Models module, select View > Model Tree.

2. Right-click a business process model and select New Path.

3. From the Path drop-down list of possible end-to-end paths in the business process model, select a path that is important to test.

   The activities along the path are highlighted in the model diagram, and a description of the path is displayed in the Path Description tab.

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Re-import models

If changes are made to a model in the model authoring tool, you can apply the changes to the model in ALM by re-importing the model. ALM automatically updates the model entities, as follows:

• Activities added or deleted in the re-imported model are added or deleted in the model in ALM.

  Note: Activities are identified by the GUID assigned to them by the authoring tool. A re-imported activity with a different GUID than the original activity is re-imported as a separate activity.

• If alternative paths are found, paths are automatically updated in ALM. If alternative paths cannot be found, you must assign a new path to the path entity, or delete the path entity.

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Develop requirements for models

To determine the quality of business process models in ALM, you must develop requirements and tests that cover all the critical aspects of the model.

To develop requirements for your business process models, you can use one of the following methods:

Use representative requirements

ALM automatically creates a structure of business model requirements (that is, representative requirements) that represent the models and activities that you import, and the paths that you create. You can use the representative requirements as a basis for developing a detailed requirements tree and adding test coverage.

If you develop your requirements under the representative requirements, the requirements and their covering tests are automatically linked to their respective model entities.

Link existing requirements to models

If you have existing requirements, not related to the representative requirements, you can continue developing them. Later, link them manually to the relevant model entities.

To link requirements directly to models:

1. In the Business Models module, select View > Model Tree.

2. Select a model, and click the Linkage tab.

3. In the Requirements tab, click Select Requirements.

4. In the Requirements Tree pane. right-click requirements and select Add to Linkage.

   Alternatively, create linkage to a model by dragging requirements to the model in the model diagram.

To link models to requirements:

1. In Requirements > Requirement Details view, select a requirement and click the Business Models Linkage tab.

2. Click Add to Linkage to display the business models tree in the right pane.

3. Select the target models and click Add to Linkage .

   You can also link a model by double-clicking it, or by dragging it from the business models tree to the linkage grid.

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Develop tests for models

To determine the quality of business process models in ALM, you must develop requirements and tests that cover all the critical aspects of the model.

To create test coverage for representative or linked requirements:

Depending on your testing strategy, you can create test coverage for the representative requirements of your models or the requirements that are linked to your models.

Tests that cover linked requirements are automatically linked to the same models. You can also manually link other tests directly to models.

To link tests directly to models:

1. In the Business Models module, select View > Model Tree.

2. Select a model, and click the Linkage tab.

3. In the Tests tab, click Select Tests.

4. In the Test Plan Tree pane, right-click tests and select Add to Linkage.

   Alternatively, create linkage to a model by dragging tests to the model in the model diagram.

5. To create a test set containing the tests in the linkage grid, click Generate Test Set. In the Select Test Set Folder dialog box, select the folder in the test sets tree under which the test set is created.

After creating linkage, you can select the type of linked tests displayed in the grid.

• Direct Coverage. Displays tests linked directly to the model entity, or to the representative requirement. This option is always selected.

• Linked Requirement Coverage. Displays tests linked to requirements that are linked to the model entity.

• Children Requirement Coverage. Displays tests that are linked to child requirements of requirements that are linked to the model entity.

To link models to tests:

1. In Test Plan > Test Plan Tree view, select a test and click the Business Models Linkage tab.

2. Click Add to Linkage to display the business models tree in the right pane.

3. Select the target models and click Add to Linkage .

   You can also link a model by double-clicking it, or by dragging it from the business models tree to the linkage grid.

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Analyze the quality of business process models

After you run tests on your models, generate graphs that analyze the quality of a model.

To analyze the quality of a business process model:

1. In the Business Models module, select View > Model Analysis.

2. To select a model for the root of the analysis, use one of the following:

• In the Models Map tab, select a model. The corresponding model node is highlighted in the business models tree.

  This tab displays all the business process models imported to ALM, and the hierarchical connections between the models.

  UI Element	Description
  	Indicates that the model at the tip of the arrow is a sub-process of the model at the tail of the arrow.
  	A bi-directional link, indicating that the model at one end of the line is a continuation of the model at the other end of the line.

• In the business models tree, select a model.

3. Click the Quality Analysis tab.

4. From the Depth drop-down list, select the number of levels to include in the analysis.

   • Standalone Entity. Displays the root entity alone.

   • One Nested Level. Displays the root entity, and entities one level down from the current entity.

   • All Nested Levels. Displays and analyzes the root entity, and all entities leading off from the root entity on all levels.

   The entities pane displays the model, activities, and paths that are analyzed in the graphs pane, and hierarchical connections between them. An activity that is included in more than one model or path is displayed in the entities pane once.

5. To include in the analysis all child requirements of the requirements linked to the model entities in the entities pane, select the Include requirement children option.

6. To include in the analysis the representative requirements linked to the model entities in the entities pane, select the Include representative requirements option.

7. Click on graph bars to drill down to records represented by the bars.

   To refresh the analysis graphs to include the most up-to-date information, click Generate.

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Generate a report of business process models

Include business process model entities in project reports. For task details, see Create and configure project reports.

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