Case Management Model and Notation (CMMN)

BPMN™ (Business Process Model and Notation), DMN™ (Decision Model and Notation™), and CMMN notation are all OMG visual modeling standards that can each be used independently yet were designed to be complementary. BPMN workflows can be embedded directly as process tasks in CMMN models and CMMN can also invoke DMN models to automate business decisions and create or change case file item values.

The CMMN standard utilizes visual models which are standardized, verifiable, and where the model can serve as both the documentation and as the executable source for case management automation engines. A CMMN case can be automated directly from the visual model into case management engines without any translation from IT. CMMN diagrams can be programmatically validated and can be created and maintained by subject matter experts (SMEs) and IT professionals thus eliminating business-to-technical specification handoff issues and errors.

When comparing structured processes versus unstructured processes, we are in fact describing the difference between BPMN and CMMN. Unlike BPMN process management models, adaptive processes are unstructured, so CMMN does not use sequential control flows to describe case activities. A case contains a Case File that holds Case File Items (the case data and information) and is described by a Case Plan, the CMMN model. In CMMN, a model (diagram) could have multiple cases with each case described by a Case Plan. CMMN Case Plan models use a descriptive event-condition-action (ECA) paradigm. That is, when an event occurs, if the condition(s) for the task are fulfilled, the task action is carried out.

The Case Plan is visually captured as a collection of activities (Tasks) that may occur in an unpredictable order where events or workers determine how the case work progresses. Due to how cases are typically managed, not all work that happens during a case is actually modeled in the Case Plan. For example, the interaction of case workers with the Case Plan and Case File Items may not be modeled or be only partially modeled. Typically, how the Case File Items actually get into the Case Plan isn’t modeled. Case data can be added, removed, modified or simply viewed by the case workers at any time during the processing of a case without the need for these data interaction to be modeled specifically.

Adaptive case management uses documents and contextual information to determine the flow of the case at runtime reacting to events and directed by knowledge workers. To facilitate this dynamic case management, the Case Plan can also contain discretionary items modeled to be used only when the case worker decides they are appropriate and needed. Additionally, manually activated Tasks and Stages in a case may have all the conditions met for execution but still will only be executed if the case worker chooses to do so.

A Case File Item can represent information of any kind, both unstructured or structured, and from simple items to complex data structures. Typically, Case File Items represent documents, because organizations usually interact via documents like PDFs and word processor documents, spreadsheets, presentations, images, videos, and other recordings. Usually, these are kept in common file types that are supported by most operating systems and browsers (think PDF, PowerPoint, Word, .png, .jpeg, .gif, .MP3, etc.) The ability to view, add, change, or delete data (Case File Items) from a case at any time while the case instance is active is a main feature of CMMN and causes many of the events that trigger actions like additional Tasks becoming active (the ECA paradigm.)

CMMN gives case workers access to all the relevant case information associated with a case and gives them empowering control to decide how a case evolves while still providing a reusable organizational frame of reference via a non-proprietary international standard modeling notation.

Who Uses CMMN?

Since CMMN is a non-proprietary and software vendor neutral language, it lends itself to solutions in every type of organization. A CMMN Case Plan can provide a reusable organizational frame of reference for resolving cases in a wide range of business situations. CMMN examples include, government services, loan applications, insurance claims, customer complaints, and patient cases in healthcare. CMMN is also being used to manage legal cases, investigate fraudulent activities, administer social programs and other non-profit case activities like charities. CMMN models are also used for specific problem solving that requires human decision making in addition to automation such as automobile roadside assistance, financial planning, compliance tracking, facilities management, and contract management.

Because CMMN supports defining case diagrams at different levels of abstraction, it can be used in different ways to meet varying organizational needs. CMMN can be used to create only a graphical depiction that visualizes and documents case activities. Adding more details to models enable their use as the source code of an automation engine to create case applications. Using the Trisotech case management system, models can be created by non-IT personnel and enriched for execution by subject matter experts, power users, or IT.

According to OMG, Applications of Case management include licensing and permitting in government, application and claim processing in insurance, patient care and medical diagnosis in healthcare, mortgage processing in banking, problem resolution in call centers, sales and operations planning, invoice discrepancy handling, maintenance and repair of machines and equipment, and engineering of made-to-order products.

Not many tool vendors fully support the CMMN standard, known as “Complete Conformance.” For example, most tools do not support the full compliance infrastructure required to automate cases or interact with BPMN and DMN.

Process agility and continuous improvement are required to stay competitive so nearly every financial services business uses various forms of process automation. More and more of these organizations are turning to case management to improve activities where human decision making must often supplement or replace procedural workflows. This is especially true with customer-facing activities where a customer-centric human touch adds value. Using CMMN modeling software and automation engine, one can document, track, and orchestrate the activities of administrators, users, systems, and customers while allowing human judgement to control the pace and path of interactions.

Standards play a big part in the financial services world. Using an international standard like CMMN is supported through multiple CMMN modeling tools and makes finding modeling and automation workers easier as the talent pool of trained and certified staff is globally available.

CMMN is being used to document and automate the management of hundreds of financial case types including: