Reijers has done a good job of presenting issues associated with workflow processes. Process management is a critical issue for business in general, and the service industry in particular. This book addresses the topic well. It is presented as a monograph, more specifically as a collection of computer science lecture notes, and it has been designed well.
”Workflow process” is a more generic term than “business process,” and the author clearly presents the line of demarcation between them. The text is based on both research and experience in the subject area, an approach that will be very useful to readers who are implementing the principles of “workflow.” The monograph covers the most basic aspects of business processes, addressing issues of correctness and efficiency throughout. Readers will find many practical hints for applying the principles.
The book presents the product-based workflow design method, a method related to the more basic principle of bill-of-material. The method allows the reader to use context-specific design targets, such as cost reduction or responsiveness improvement, to determine the final design.
The text includes chapters on workflow design and modeling, performance, resource allocation, and practical experience. Different terminologies are nicely described at appropriate places. For instance, the term “work,” and its different manifestations and classifications, are well presented. The components of the workflow—function perspective, operation perspective, behavior perspective, and organization perspective—are elucidated. The build time and run time models of the workflow are addressed. There is strong coverage of Petri nets, some of it suitable for research-level analysis.
Design tools and techniques are discussed in detail, and flowcharts are used to enhance the discussion. New techniques are also presented. Product-based workflow analysis is emphasized, and would be useful in specific implementations. Although the basic workflow model design sounds a bit complex initially, the information and analysis that are presented is laudable. Breadth-first and depth-first models are core issues in the modeling of workflow. The discussion of business process reengineering (BPR), evaluation of BPR and product-based workflow design (PBWD), and validation of the design are the highlights of the monograph.
A chapter that is quite representative of the book is “Performance Evaluation of Workflows.” The analytical methods and algorithms discussed here are exhaustive, and would be a valuable source of knowledge to those who want to pursue the topic seriously. Both methods assume an infinite amount of resources, specifically, a lack of available resources does not cause queueing. This assumption typically reflects the first stage of designing a workflow. Timed Petri nets are an additional valuable technique.
Reijers presents stochastic workflow nets (SWNs) in detail. Some of the mathematical notations are familiar. The net categories are meaningful for the analysis. According to the author, they come in three types for the workbench: pathological nets, big nets, and practical nets. An included discussion of experiments is useful for developing insight, rather than deriving strong theory.
The book includes an extensive collection of references. The text will be of use to those who are involved in research, and to software and product developers. The book, again, is a collection of lecture notes in computer science, and will be of value in academic and industrial applications. It is strongly recommended for those interested in research and analysis on this topic.
