News

Serena Offers Vision to Companies

• By Kathleen Ohlson
• May 31, 2005

Serena ProcessView Composer is a framework that models business processes, user interfaces, system connections and application data in an integrated environment designed specifically for business users.

Businesses have been using word processors, whiteboards, post-its and static screen shots to define and organize applications, causing lots of headaches for IT. Developers have had to gather these disparate documents and information only to guess what their business users wanted and expected. As a result, projects have failed, millions of dollars have been wasted and business opportunities have been missed.

Targeting process designers, application consultants, business analysts and other users, ProcessView has a Microsoft Office-like interface to make it business user-friendly. ProcessView’s graphical approach allows businesses to describe the application they want and give IT an understanding of the full requirements before coding begins.

The software, which will be available in June, offers an XML-based, shared visual taxonomy for defining application requirements and prototypes. Its purpose is to streamline business processes by modeling existing and proposed business processes, activity flows and interaction scenarios, as well as modeling connections to existing business systems, the applications and infrastructure that enterprises have.

Other features include:

• Constructing detailed application data models to optimize data collection and storage
• Defining business, system and functional requirements for visual models
• Modeling key activity flows and test cases before and during application development
• Automating detailed business documents, including requirements and specifications
• Publishing full-feature application prototypes so business users see exactly what they are getting
• Capturing and importing existing Web applications

The visual application models and prototypes in ProcessView may help offshore developers who normally rely on written requirements. ProcessView builds an integrated business and IT architecture to enable executive sponsors to visualize applications that will run on service-oriented architecture platforms. Businesses would also be able to model corporate compliance processes and activities, ensuring they can prove, achieve and sustain compliance.