A collection of user interface design patterns for workflow infor¬ma¬tion systems is presented that contains forty three resource patterns classified in seven categories. These categories and their corre¬sponding patterns have been logically identified from the task life cycle based on offering and allocation operations. Each Workflow User Interface Pattern (WUIP) is characterized by properties expressed in the PLML markup language for expressing patterns and augmented by additional attributes and models at¬tached to the pattern: the abstract user interface and the corresponding task model. These models are specified in a User Interface Description Langua¬ge. All WUIPs are stored in a library and can be retrieved within a workflow editor that links each workflow pattern to its corresponding WUIP, thus giving rise to a user interface for each workflow pattern.

1. Workflow User Interfaces Patterns
Dra. Josefina Guerrero García
Dr. Juan Manuel González Calleros
Dr. Jean Vanderdonckt *
Facultad de Ciencias de la Computación
Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla
*Université catholique de Louvain
Email: jguerrero@cs.buap.mx
juan.gonzalez@cs.buap.mx

2. Outline
• Introduction
• State of the art
• Developing user interface for a workflow
information system
• Workflow user interface patterns
• Case study and tool support
• Conclusion

3. 3
Business
Domain
IT
Domain
Workflow
Introduction (1/3)
The automation of a business
process, in whole or part, during
which documents, information or
tasks are passed from one
participant to another for action,
according to a set of procedural
rules.

4. Introduction (2/3)
• The challenges to have a method to support the
development of an IS from a workflow
specification are considerable.
• Considering just the specification of the required
user interfaces:
▫ Execution of work
▫ Resource allocation
▫ Control of the workflow
▫ Agendas and work lists

5. Introduction (3/3)
• A collection of workflow patterns has been
identified that provide the basis for an in-depth
comparison of commercially available workflow
systems:
▫ Control-flow patterns indicate basic routing
constructs of the process in a workflow.
▫ Workflow data patterns are aimed at capturing the
various ways in which data is represented.
▫ Workflow resource patterns correspond to the
manner in which tasks are allocated to resources.

6. State of the art
• The rationale to identifying workflow resource
patterns was the need to master the many way
according work can be distributed.
• There is not knowledge or guidance on how such
patterns could be implemented in an IS.
• We explore a systematic manner to develop UIs
for each workflow resource pattern following its
current definition
(http://www.workflowpatterns.com/patterns/resource/)

7. Developing user interface for a
workflow information system (1/4)
Why user interfaces to workflow information systems?
 Traditionally, workflow IS are designed to be used by different types of
users to accomplish a variety of tasks and in different situations.
 One important aspect to consider is the design of the user interfaces of the
systems.
 When planning a user interface, a designer should focus on the needs of end
users.
 The interaction of the users takes place on two different levels: the workflow
manager and the user.
 Workflow software rarely supports designers in developing user interfaces.

8. Method overview
Developing user interface for a
workflow information system (2/4)

9. Developing user interface for a
workflow information system (3/4)
Identifying workflow components:
What to do? Processes specification
How to do it? Tasks specification
Where to do it? Organizational units specification
Who will carry out it? Job and user specification
Whom? Applying workflow resource patterns

10. Developing user interface for a
workflow information system (3/4)
Identifying workflow components:
What to do? Processes specification
How to do it? Tasks specification
Where to do it? Organizational units specification
Who will carry out it? Job and user specification
Whom? Applying workflow resource patterns

11. Developing user interface for a workflow
information system (4/4)
UsiXML structure
Model-driven
engineering
method

12. Workflow user interface patterns (1/6)
• A pattern is referred to as the abstraction from
a concrete form which keeps recurring in
specific non-arbitrary contexts.
• Workflow patterns refer specifically to recurrent
problems and proven solutions related to the
development of workflow IS in particular, and
more broadly, of process-oriented applications.

13. Workflow resource patterns
To allocate tasks to resources [Russell, 2005]
Workflow user interface patterns (2/6)

14. March 23th, 2010 - LLN
Private Defense
Classification of workflow resource patterns

15. Methodology for defining the WUIPs:
1. Augmented UI pattern definition. A patterns is
characterized by: name, synopsis, solution and
its consequences (strengths, weakness,
opportunities).
2. Incorporation in the model-driven engineering
method.
3. Final WUIPs.
Workflow user interface patterns (4/6)

16. Name Direct allocation
Identifier R-DA
Synopsis The ability to specify at design time the identity of the resource
that will execute a task
Strengths To prevent the problem of non-suitable allocation
Weakness No opportunity to change the resource if he is not available to
perform the task
Opportunities To ensure task is routed to specific resource
Problem This pattern effectively defines a static binding of tasks to a
single resource
Solution Probably the use of deadline and escalation mechanisms
when the resource becomes overload and cannot deal with his
assigned workload in a reasonable timeframe
Example “Ask reviewers preferences” task must only be undertaken by
“Joshua Brown”
Describing workflow resource patterns
Workflow user interface patterns (5/6)

17. Authorization pattern
Each pattern can be selected
in a workflow model editor
so as to automatically
generate the specifications
for both the workflow model
and the user interface model.
Workflow user interface patterns (6/6)

18. Case study and tool support (1/3)
• TASKS AND JOBS IDENTIFICATION
Id
Task Organizer Reviewer
Author
1 Find the program committee x
2 Prepare the call for paper x
3 Distribute the call for paper x
4 Install conference tool x
5 Configure conference tool x

19. Case study and tool support (2/3)
• ASSIGNING TASKS TO RESOURCES
Task Job Resource Pattern
Find the program committee Organizer Chloé Lambin Direct allocation
Prepare the call for paper Organizer Jacques Khelil Capability based
Distribute the call for paper Organizer Jacques Khelil Retain familiar
Install conference tool Organizer Ellen Martin Capability based
Configure conference tool Organizer Ellen Martin Retain familiar

20. Case study and tool support (3/3)
• Workflow resource pattern in design phase of
workflow

21. Conclusion
• We introduced a library of user interface design
patterns that are particularly applicable to user
interfaces of workflow information systems.
• We have proposed an approach where a model-
based approach to develop user interface, is used in
the context of workflow systems to develop WUIPs.
• Each pattern (43) can be selected in a workflow
model editor so as to automatically generate the
specifications for both the workflow model and the
user interface model.

22. Join us
BUAP
http://www.facebook.com/UsiXML
@usixml

23. For more information and downloading,
http://www.lilab.eu
User Interface eXtensible Markup Language
http://www.usixml.org
http://www.usixml.eu
Register as a member of the UsiXML End-User Club at
http://www.usixml.eu/end_user_club

24. Contact
Dra. Josefina Guerrero-García jguerrero@cs.buap.mx
Dr. Juan Manuel González-Calleros juan.gonzalez@cs.buap.mx
@Juan__Gonzalez