A Comparison of Flexible BPMN and CMMN in Practice: A Case Study on Component Release Processes

The Object Management Group maintains two notations to model business processes, BPMN and CMMN. While the two follow different approaches, both offer structures to model flexible processes or parts thereof. This gives rise to the question which standard should be chosen to adequately model such processes. We compare BPMN with a focus on its ad-hoc subprocess with elements of CMMN case models along a practical case study. While BPMN offers a certain degree of flexibility, CMMN has several benefits but also drawbacks. We discuss advantages and disadvantages of both notations. To answer the question of which notation to use for modeling flexible processes, we derive simple guidelines to help in making an informed choice.