Integrating Information Systems Methodologies into an Engineering Discipline: Methodological Issues, And the Rise of Business Process Engineering

摘要

Making a business process with information systems is the target of information systemsmethodologies. A business process is intangible system that human beings make artifically tosatisfy some goals. It is a human activity system [1]. It consists of human activities, contains formalcomponents such as datamodel and information systems, and is subject to achievement of its goal.Since a business process is artificail and contains human activities, the natural science cannot bedirectly applied to. The aim of business process engineering is to analyse and synthesize suchbusiness processes with information systems, though the current status of its development does nothave engineering precision yet. This paper gives fundamental examination of the nature of businessprocess, and then proposes a model of business process for integration of related issues such asinformation systems, operations management, and human organizations.This paper is threefold. First, the nature of research of social systems as artificail systems willbe clarified based on general systems research. Referring Simon[2] and Yoshida[3], huge differencebetween natural and social sciences will be reconsidered, and then an epistemological basis forresearch of intangible and artificial systems is set. Secondly, a methodology for integration ofresearches will be formulated based on Yoshikawa et.al [4] and Gibbons [5]. The role and power ofgeneral systems research for integration is also examined. Thirdly, the on-going development ofbusiness process engineering is shown as sample application of integration-oriented methodology.A model of business process with information systems is formualted. Also, the function ofinformation system is shown to be both state transition and organizational coordination.