OPAL is a great method to start with when modelling in a chaotic situation where you’re unsure what you’re going to find, but want to capture an end 2 end process at level 1 or 2 detail wise.

Capture the activities using a single verb and noun like “capture client details”/ “update client dbase record” one after the other describing the whole process in 5 to 7 steps, (for level 1, or 12 to 15 steps for level 2) if necessary. Spread them evenly across your screen.

Next step is to ask who performs this step, and how. Out of these questions will fall the human, system and/ or business rule participants in the activity which will sit beneath the activity connected to it via a plain straight line. Continue with this approach for each activity for the process.

In the next post I’ll cover how you validate your process model in real-time live in the process workshop. Thanks for reading this. – Mike