BPMN in Legislation on Example of Public Procurement Law – Case Study

Abstract

The subject of the study was the use of BPMN in the creations and implementations of legal regulations on examples of projects that concern the reforms of public procurement law and supporting them with IT tools. The most important observation that resulted from the study is that any legal regulations that concern the proceedings are basically (business) information systems and, as such, can be reflected in BPMN as pools (participant). The method of carrying out the procedure itself can be represented using a business-process model that is recorded in BPMN notation in the form of a Collaboration diagram; on this, the “regulation” exchanges information (data) with the other entities that carry out the procedure. Precise BPMN recording ensures the unambiguity of a regulation and allows for an assessment of the effects of the regulation before its implementation. The models that were used at the analysis stage can be transformed into executable models using IT tools that support supervision over the implementation of the procedure in accordance with a given regulation; this ensures the full coherence of the regulation and its subsequent implementation (supported by IT tools). BPMN models can be an annex to the regulation and, thus, contribute to its better understanding. On the other hand, the ability to read BPMN models is becoming a core competence – not only for consultants and programmers but also for lawyers and those officials who carry out such proceedings in accordance with a given regulation.