Workflow Sample: Episode 539: A Step to be Considered as "Received" when the Time Comes

Passive Step of "Receiving acceptance report"

Illustration production, Website production, Interior construction... "Acceptance inspection" is accompaniment to these outsourced businesses.

Issues based on contract is, not simply 1)"to deliver" the deliverable, but through 2) the step of "Receiving an acceptance report" from the client, and finally you can 3)"Claim the commission fee".

(Although there are cases in special business relationship where "Acceptance inspection step' is omitted and "immediate billing on delivery" is allowed...)

Pathetically sincere efforts and ingenuity have been performed all over the world, such as

attaching a sample of "Acceptance report" for clients, or
titling the slip as "Acceptance report request (cum-Deliverly note)" instead of "Delivery note".

Not yet decided what the Step is for to do?

However, "Receiving of Acceptance report" in the reality, there are not only cases that

A) They give "Acceptance report" on the delivery day.

There occurs various cases such as

B) they will send "Acceptance report" to the inspection deadline limit, or
C) the client presupposes the application of the "provision on deemed inspection passed" without submitting the acceptance report.

Moreover, there could be

D) cases where it is judged that "the deliverable do not meet the specifications" and forced to extend the acceptance period, or
E) cases where it is judged that "the deliverable do not meet the specifications" and forced to re-deliver.

So what kind of Business Process diagram should you draw for such cases? In particular, for cases of C) which is "doing nothing until the deadline, then ends", it is difficult how to express it.

[Acceptance inspection corresponding flow]

Express all patterns in one business flow diagram

The above is a business flow diagram covering all assumed correspondence patterns.

From the human Step of "Correspond Acceptance / Receiving Acceptance report", which is the key point, there comes out paths (≒ handling), such as

a, b) Received an acceptance report
c) (Automatically became "deemed inspection passed")
d) Extend acceptance deadline
e) Give up delivery acceptance

Of particular note is the route corresponding to case of c) and d).

Automatic completion of Step, and changing completion time

In BPMN-based workflow modeling, by setting the deadline time of the human Step to the "Acceptance deadline", it is possible to express the business rule which is to"automatically flow to the next Step at that time." (Timer Boundary Event)

It is significantly different on the point, that

"it does not necessarily stay stagnant until that time, meaning that the person in charge can proceed to any Step at any time",

while

a stagnating event (Timer Intermediate Event) placed in the middle of the flow is for

"definitely keep staying until that time. (No one can proceed to the next Step)".

Incidentally, since the deadline time of the human Step is set upon the Issue reaches there, it can not basically be changed. However, if you add a flow to step out from the human Step and then "come back" to yourself, you can change (in a pseudo) the deadline by yourself.

If you set up such a workflow definition, the person who is in charge of billing on the most downstream will be able to recognize "what kind of processing has it been flowing through" at the first glance. Also, the management and the directors will be able to monitor "in what situation it is now".

[Acceptance inspection corresponding flow:"2. Correspond Acceptance / Receiving Acceptance report" screen]