Process visualizations are typically used for managing business workflows, yet they have tremendous potential for assisting users of ERP systems. We have developed an approach that extracts usage and contextual information from logged data for providing dynamic, interactive visualizations of the processes supported by the system and performed by users. This approach has been implemented in an ERP prototype built upon our TIL model, which links higher-order tasks and processes to the history of system usage. Process visualizations communicate the composition of tasks into processes and provide visual and textual information on the flow of objects between tasks as well as the frequency with which users have followed particular task sequences. Process instance visualizations enable the discovery of detailed information on user-system interactions, including the actual business objects used as inputs to and created as outputs from each task. Together, these visualizations offer guidance and support for enabling more effective and efficient use of these complex systems.
Relevant publications and demos
- View a ProViz demo video
- Babaian, T., Xu, J., Lucas, W. ERP Prototype with built-in task and process support. EJIS, 27(2), 2018
- Babaian, T., Lucas,W. and Xu, J. Task and Process Support in ERP Systems, in Advancing the Impact of Design Science: Moving from Theory to Practice. Proceedings of DESRIST 2014 Lecture Notes in Computer Science 8463, pp. 443-448, Springer, 2014.
- Lucas, W., Xu, J., and Babaian, T. Visualizing ERP Usage Logs in Real Time. In Proceedings of the 14th International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems (ICEIS'13), pp. 83-90, July 2013.
- Lucas,W. and Babaian,T. Implementing Design Principles for Collaborative ERP Systems. In Proceedings of the 7th international conference on Design Science Research in Information Systems: advances in theory and practice (DESRIST'12), Lecture Notes in Computer Science, pp. 88-107, Springer-Verlag, 2012.