On Handling Process Information: Results from Case Studies and a Survey [original]

On Handling Process Information:

Results from Case Studies and a Survey?

Bernd Michelberger1, Bela Mutschler1, and Manfred Reichert2

1University of Applied Sciences Ravensburg-Weingarten, Germany

{bernd.michelberger,bela.mutschler}@hs-weingarten.de

2Institute of Databases and Information Systems, University of Ulm, Germany

manfred.reichert@uni-ulm.de

Abstract. An increasing data overload makes it difficult to provide the

needed information to knowledge-workers and decision-makers in today’s

process-oriented enterprises. The main problem is to identify the infor-

mation being relevant in a given process context. Moreover, there are

new ways of collaboration in the context of distributed processes (e.g.,

automotive engineering, patient treatment). The goal is to provide the

right process information, in the right format and granularity, at the

right place, at the right point in time to the right people. Picking up this

goal, enterprises crave for an intelligent and process-oriented information

logistics. In this paper we investigate fundamental issues enabling such

information logistics based on two exploratory case studies in the auto-

motive and the clinical domain. Additionally, we present results of an

online survey with 219 participants supporting our case study findings.

Our research does not only reveal different types of process information,

but also allows for the derivation of factors determining its relevance.

Understanding these factors, in turn, is a fundamental prerequisite to

realize effective process-oriented information logistics.

Key words: information logistics, process information, empirical study

1 Introduction

Market globalization has led to increasing competitive pressure for enterprises.

Products and services must be developed in ever-shorter cycles. New forms of col-

laboration within enterprises and between organizations are continuously emerg-

ing. As examples consider distributed engineering processes in the automotive

domain [1] or the treatment of patients in healthcare networks [2]. To cope with

these challenges, effective business process management (BPM) [3] becomes more

and more success-critical for enterprises.

So far, supporting business processes through information technology has

focused on modeling, analyzing, and executing processes (e.g., using BPM tech-

nology) [4]. What has been neglected so far is the support of knowledge-workers

?This research was performed in the niPRO project. This project is funded by the

German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) under grant number

17102X10. More information can be found at http://www.nipro-project.org.

2 B. Michelberger, B. Mutschler, and M. Reichert

and decision-makers with personalized and contextualized process information.

More attention to this challenge will become necessary, however, as an exten-

sive amount of process information is exchanged within enterprises and between

organizations using techniques and tools such as e-mail, Web 2.0 applications

or enterprise information systems (e.g., enterprise resource planning (ERP) sys-

tems, customer relationship management (CRM) systems) [5].

More specifically, we apply the definition of information by Bocij et. al [6] as

well as Rainer and Turban [7], and define the term process information as follows:

process information refers to data that have been processed to support process

users in the modeling, execution, monitoring, optimization, and design of pro-

cesses, so that data has a meaning and a value with respect to the process users’

activities. Examples of process information include textual process descriptions,

working guidelines, graphical processes models, operational instructions, forms,

checklists, lessons learned, and best practices (documented in text documents,

spreadsheets, or e-mails).

Note that the mere availability of process information is not sufficient to

adequately support knowledge-workers and decision-makers as requested above.

Only when considering a user’s process context it becomes possible to effec-

tively provide personalized and contextualized process information. In practice,

many problems arise in this context, e.g., revision control of process information,

archiving of process information, inter-departmental exchange of process infor-

mation, and handling of distributed process information. Further, inconsistencies

(schematic and semantic) occur and an increased communication overhead can

be observed due to the different structures of digital and paper-based process in-

formation. Process-oriented information logistics [8] can help to overcome these

issues and to effectively manage and distribute process information.

Following these considerations, we investigate the handling of process infor-

mation in enterprises based on three empirical studies. Thereby, our research

has been guided by the following three research questions:

– RQ1: In what different forms is process information specified?

– RQ2: How can a process context be determined?

– RQ3: How can the relevance of process information be determined?

RQ1 and RQ2 are addressed by means of two exploratory case studies. Based

on an online survey we answer RQ3 and further concretize RQ1.

The presented research is performed in the niPRO project. In this project we

apply semantic technology to integrate both unstructured and structured pro-

cess information within intelligent, user-adequate process information portals.

The overall goal is to support knowledge-workers and decision-makers with the

needed process information depending on their preferences and current process

context. So far, both research and practice have not addressed how processes

and related process information can be effectively merged. Currently, conven-

tional methods of information retrieval or enterprise search engines are mainly

used for this purpose. The niPRO process information portal, by contrast, aims

at determining required information for knowledge-workers and decision-makers

On Handling Process Information: Results from Case Studies and a Survey 3

dynamically and automatically. Key challenges include the role-oriented provi-

sion of process information, a flexible visualization of process information, and

the design of innovative approaches for different levels of information granularity.

This paper is organized as follows. Section 2 presents the results of our em-

pirical studies. Section 3 discusses related work. Section 4 concludes the paper

with a summary and an outlook.

2 Empirical Studies

Our empirical studies comprise two parts (cf. Figure 1). First, we performed

two qualitative exploratory case studies based on face-to-face interviews and

questionnaires. Second, we conducted an online survey to collect further data.

Research Design (Section 2.1)

Part 1

Part 2

Case Study 1:

Automotive Domain

(Section 2.2)

Case Study 2:

Clinical Domain

(Section 2.3)

Online Survey

(Section 2.4)

Conclusions (Section 2.5)

Fig. 1. Our empirical studies.

2.1 Research Design

Our case study research is of explorative nature. According to Yin [9] case studies

are a research method to answer why and how research questions. Kitchenham

et. al [10] add to this statement that case studies usually investigate what is hap-

pening in ”typical” project settings, so it is research-in-the-typical. For research-

in-the-large, i.e., to capture what is happening broadly over large groups, surveys

are used. We therefore additionally conduct an online survey to collect further

data that helps us to generalize our case study results.

Part 1: Case Studies Two organizations are involved: one from the automotive

domain (cf. Section 2.2) and one from the clinical sector (cf. Section 2.3).

In the first case study eight persons have been interviewed, nine in the second

one. The interviewees work in different areas of their respective organizations.

Both knowledge-workers and decision-makers are involved. Participants were

selected in consultation with contact persons from each organization. None of

the participants was a member of the research team.

4 B. Michelberger, B. Mutschler, and M. Reichert

The interviews addressed three major topics: (a) the processes in which the

interviewees participate, (b) the types of process information (RQ1) needed,

and (c) the factors determining a process context (RQ2). The interviews were

conducted in November 2010. Each of them lasted about 90 minutes.

In both case studies, data was gathered through face-to-face interviews fol-

lowing a semi-structured interview guideline. After each interview, an additional

questionnaire had to be filled out by each interviewee to collect further data.

Part 2: Online Survey The online survey was conducted via a web question-

naire (cf. Section 2.4). The survey was accessible from mid-December 2010 to

late January 2011. 219 users from different enterprises participated. The online

survey was advertised via private contacts, business contacts, mailing lists, and

groups in social platforms (e.g., LinkedIn). The questionnaire comprised 23 ques-

tions on (a) demographic issues, (b) business process management in general, and

2.2 Case Study 1: Automotive Domain

Our first case study was conducted in the automotive industry. The participants

mainly stem from electric/electronic engineering departments, but also from the

departments responsible for project management and safety planning. These

departments were selected because of the knowledge-intense business processes

they are involved in.

RQ1 Yin [9] states that research questions in case studies are usually too ab-

stract and broad. Therefore, we divide our first research question ”In what dif-

ferent forms is process information specified?” into three sub-research questions:

– SRQ1: Where is process information located?

– SRQ2: What are important file formats/systems during daily work?

– SRQ3: How is the quality of the available process information?

To answer the first sub-research question we consider the Information Tech-

nology (IT) application landscape of the involved departments. The IT appli-

cation landscape in the automotive industry is extremely complex. There are

numerous applications in use providing needed process information. In addition

to standard software (e.g., Lotus Notes, RPlan, DOORS) there exists a large

number of individual applications (e.g., process portals, Visual Basic for Appli-

cations macros etc.). Process information is also available on shared drives, local

drives, and in the Internet. Finally, not all process information is available in

digital form. Some information is only available in paper form (e.g., technical

drawings or circuit diagrams).

Participants confirmed that most process information is available in databases,

in applications, in the Internet, and on shared drives. Due to the extensive use

of shared drives, a revision control system not officially supported (so far: Sub-

version, in future: MKS Integrity) is used. The file explorer and the Intranet are

On Handling Process Information: Results from Case Studies and a Survey 5

the most common ways to access process information. Information access via

applications is not always possible since not all employees typically have needed

licenses. Hence, system discontinuities occur, as information is often printed,

manually processed, re-entered in enterprise information systems, and further

processed.

To answer the second sub-research question we examined file formats and

existing information systems. All participants stated that they use Excel files,

PowerPoint files, and PDF files. 7 out of 9 participants said that diagrams (e.g.,

circuit diagrams, technical drawings) are relevant as well. To establish an order

of priority, we asked for the three most important file formats during daily work.

The result: Excel files, PDF files, and PowerPoint files are most important.

To answer the last sub-research question we take a closer look at the quality

of process information. Because the structure and quantity of process informa-

tion affect its quality [11], we also want to investigate these factors. Most process

information is available in unstructured form. However, as unstructured process

information is difficult to handle, employees often try to store process informa-

tion in a structured way (e.g., via templates, databases, applications). In seven

of our interviews it was said that the existence of process information is more

important than its quality in daily work. However, the interviews also showed

that employees often have no overview on available process information due to its

large amount; i.e., they often cannot say whether they have all necessary process

information. This, in turn, leads to decreased process quality. Not surprisingly,

the amount of process information is classified by most participants as too much

(cf. Figure 2A). By contrast, the quality of process information was rated differ-

ently (cf. Figure 2B). Some process information is rated as being very good (e.g.,

databases, own documents, information about own tasks). Other information is

rated as being very poor (e.g., process documentation, information on tasks).

Databases/applications 89%

lower quartile

Databases/applications

Shared drives 100% minimum 2 Shared drives

Local drives 56% median 2 Local drives

Optical storage media 22% maximum 5

Optical storage media

Internet 78%

upper quartile

3 Internet

Digital archives 44%

Digital archives

In non-electronic form 56%

lower quartile

In non-electronic form

Others 11% minimum 3 Others

median 5

XLS 25 maximum 5 Paper form

PDF 22

upper quartile

5DOC

PPT 16 SAP

DOORS 5 PDF

DOC 5 DIACOS

OP-DOC

RTF

89%

100%

56%

22%

78%

44%

56%

11%

0% 50% 100%

Databases/applications

Shared drives

Local drives

Optical storage media

Internet

Digital archives

In non-electronic form

Others

Question: Where is process

information located?

014 28

XLS

PDF

PPT

DOORS

DOC

Question: What are the most three

important file formats/systems during

daily work?

Question: How is the quality of the

available process information?

1: excellent, 2: good, 3: average,

4: below average, 5: unsatisfactory

lower

quartile

minimum

median

maximum

upper

quartile

Question: How big is the amount of

process information?

1: far too few, 2: too few, 3: the right amount,

4: too much, 5: far too much

lower

quartile

minimum

median

maximum

upper

quartile

Fig. 2. A) Quality and B) amount of process information.

6 B. Michelberger, B. Mutschler, and M. Reichert

RQ2 To investigate the employees’ process context we ask for factors that can

be used to identify a specific process context.

The participants confirmed that the process context is determined based on

the progress of a process; specifically by milestones or quality gates (specific mile-

stones) for instance. Some interviewees said that some documents have metadata

in which the relation to process steps is noted. Another possibility, also used,

is the information progress (e.g., customer data available to 80%). A context,

for example, can be determined by folder names because they are often labeled

with the name of a respective milestone. Other useful information to determine

a specific context is, for example, user names, roles, departments, project mem-

berships, and the time. In summary, there exist various options to determine a

context. The more factors are considered, the more accurately a context can be

determined.

2.3 Case Study 2: Clinical Domain

In our second case study we considered a process of an unplanned, stationary

hospitalization in a surgical clinic. It includes the patient admission, the medical

indication in the anesthesia, the surgical intervention, the post-surgery stay on

the ward, patient discharge and the financial accounting and management.

RQ1 Like in Case Study 1, we investigate our first research question based on

the sub-research questions introduced in Section 2.2.

In the clinical sector, both standard software (e.g., SAP ERP) and individual

applications are in use. Clinical staff interacts with them using fat-clients (e.g.,

DIACOS) and thin-clients (e.g., iMED, CIRS). Process information is available

in shared drives, in local drives, in the Internet, in digital archives, and in paper

form (e.g., patient files, medical reports, and patient checklists). Our study has

revealed that a large amount of process information is not available in electronic

form at all. Therefore, exchange of process information between departments

is often done manually and only automated to a limited degree. In addition,

much process information is available on the Internet, in the Intranet, and in

clinical databases or applications (e.g., CIRS). Typically, the processes are not

implemented but scattered over multiple more or less integrated systems (e.g.,

after computer-aided enrollment of patient data via SAP the data is printed and

further processed manually by different departments).

To answer sub-research question SRQ2 we analyzed file formats and infor-

mation systems. 6 out of 8 interviewees confirmed that they mainly use PDF

files and Word files. None of the participants uses audio files and only one of

them uses video files (medical tutorials). Like in Case Study 1 we asked for the

three most important file formats the participants need during daily work. The

formats most frequently used are paper-based documents, Word files, and SAP

data records.

To answer sub-research question SRQ3, we address quality issues of process

information. Like in Case Study 1 we also consider the structure and quantity

On Handling Process Information: Results from Case Studies and a Survey 7

of process information. Analogous to Case Study 1 most process information

is only available in unstructured form. Further Case Study 2 shows that daily

problems are the poor quality (e.g., poorly maintained data about utilization

of hospital beds) and the incompleteness (e.g., not all necessary information

is available on the emergency protocol) of process information. Besides, process

information is often outdated mostly due to the lack of responsibilities concerning

information maintenance. The amount of process information is classified by

most interviewees as too low (cf. Figure 3A). Reason is that process information

is typically paper-based and only one person at a certain point in time can access

this information (e.g., the patient file is needed for preliminary investigations,

medical reporting, patient care, medical surgery, accounting, etc.). Quality of

process information is rated different (cf. Figure 3B). Finally, self-made process

information is ranked higher than third-party process information.

75%

lower quartile

Databases/applications

71%

100% minimum Shared drives 86%

50% median Local drives 58%

0% maximum

Optical storage media

15%

88%

upper quartile

Internet 66%

38%

Digital archives

32%

100%

lower quartile

In non-electronic form

34%

0% minimum Others 12%

median

maximum PDF 174

upper quartile

XLS 152

PPT 137

DOC 134

Paper form 24

75%

100%

50%

88%

38%

100%

0% 50% 100%

Databases/applications

Shared drives

Local drives

Optical storage media

Internet

Digital archives

In non-electronic form

Others

Question: Where is the process

information located?

010 20

Paper form

DOC

SAP

PDF

DIACOS

OP-DOC

RTF

Question: What are the most three

important file formats/systems during

daily work?

Question: How is the quality of the

available process information?

1: excellent, 2: good, 3: average,

4: below average, 5: unsatisfactory

lower

quartile

minimum

median

maximum

upper

quartile

Question: How big is the amount of

process information?

1: far too few, 2: too few, 3: the right amount,

4: too much, 5: far too much

lower

quartile

minimum

median

maximum

upper

quartile

Fig. 3. A) Quality and B) amount of process information.

RQ2 Useful information to determine a context can be time, users or individ-

ual computers (because some computers are only used for certain tasks). Also,

user location can be helpful, e.g., with the help of mobile devices. Based on the

GPS-location of a user, it can be determined, for example, whether a doctor

is currently on ward or in the operating theatre. However, 4 out of 8 intervie-

wees believe that is very difficult to determine a process context in healthcare

processes. In particular there are no fully pre-specified processes, instead they

dynamically evolve and many tasks are performed manually without any IT sup-

port. Concerning tasks supported by information systems, the process context

can be determined based on information progress (e.g., is a patient ready for

accounting or is the patient already settled). Information state changes (e.g.,

State 1: ”patient is in the operating room” or State 2: ”patient is on ward”)

8 B. Michelberger, B. Mutschler, and M. Reichert

in information systems also occur and can be used to determine the process

context.

2.4 Online Survey

In our online survey, 219 employees from more than 100 enterprises participated.

26% of the participants were decision-makers and 57% were knowledge-workers.

In the first part of the online survey (cf. Section 2.1), we wanted to know

whether or not business processes are documented. Obviously, most business

processes are fully or partially documented (cf. Figure 4A). Only a small group

of participants reported that their work does not take into account business

processes or that business processes do only exist in their mind. No one from

the production industry reported that processes are undocumented.

46.3%

35.3%

72.0%

51.9%

59.4%

36.6%

52.9%

17.8%

31.5%

27.4%

17.1%

11.8%

10.3%

16.7%

13.2%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

Education

Trading

Production

Service

Overall

Question: Is your daily work guided by documented business processes?

Yes, I orient myself towards predefined processes Yes, I orient myself towards self-defined processes

No, I don’t orient myself towards processes

40%

46%

10% 3% 1%

Statement: A web portal as a

central access point for all

important information (e.g.

documents) would help me with

respect to my daily work.

I totally agree

I somewhat agree

I somewhat disagree

I totally disagree

No statement

Statement: In my enterprise, a

large number of diverse

information sources exist, from

which I get my information.

29.3%

29.4%

38.3%

14.8%

30.1%

51.2%

52.9%

61.7%

74.1%

62.1%

17.1%

11.8%

9.3%

6.4%

2.4%

5.9%

1.9%

1.4%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

Education

Trading

Production

Service

Overall

Question: Are business processes documented in your enterprise?

Yes, all business processes are documented Yes, business processes are partially documented

No, business processes only exist in the mind No, work isn’t oriented towards business processes

51.6%

39.7%

36.5%

46.1%

11.4%

10.0%

0.5%

3.2%

0.9%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

Statement A: A web portal as a central access point for all important

information (e.g. documents) would help me with respect to my daily work.

Statement B: In my enterprise, a large number of diverse information sources

exists, from which I get my inform

I totally agree I somewhat agree I somewhat disagree I totally disagree No statement

Fig. 4. Documentation of business processes.

We also wanted to know whether the employees’ daily work is guided by doc-

umented business processes (cf. Figure 4B). More than a half of the respondents

stated that they follow predefined business processes. 27.4% of the respondents

On Handling Process Information: Results from Case Studies and a Survey 9

follow at least self-defined processes. Only 13.2% of respondents said that they

perform their work without considering pre-specified business processes.

Interesting results were also given by means of individual statements of survey

participants. Several participants confirmed that people are the most important

information source since they can deal with difficult questions or explain other

people’s work processes. Participants also pointed out that inexperienced staff

will benefit most from process information portals. Another participant said

that if processes are undocumented, the identification of a process context gains

importance.

The first questionnaire block concludes with the question whether an informa-

tion portal providing needed information could help employees during daily work

(cf. Figure 5A). Most of the respondents (85.8%) somewhat or totally agreed.

Respondents also agreed that there exists a large number of diverse information

sources from which they obtain their information (cf. Figure 5B).

46,3%

35,3%

72,0%

51,9%

59,4%

36,6%

52,9%

17,8%

31,5%

27,4%

17,1%

11,8%

10,3%

16,7%

13,2%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

Education

Trading

Production

Service

Overall

Question: Is your daily work guided by documented business processes?

Yes, I orient myself towards predefined processes Yes, I orient myself towards self-defined processes

No, I don’t orient myself towards processes

40%

46%

10% 3% 1%

Statement: A web portal as a

central access point for all

important information (e.g.

documents) would help me with

respect to my daily work.

I totally agree

I somewhat agree

I somewhat disagree

I totally disagree

No statement

Statement: In my enterprise, a

large number of diverse

information sources exist, from

which I get my information.

29,3%

29,4%

38,3%

14,8%

30,1%

51,2%

52,9%

61,7%

74,1%

62,1%

17,1%

11,8%

9,3%

6,4%

2,4%

5,9%

1,9%

1,4%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

Education

Trading

Production

Service

Overall

Question: Are business processes documented in your enterprise?

Yes, all business processes are documented Yes, business processes are partially documented

No, business processes only exist in the mind No, work isn’t oriented towards business processes

51,6%

39,7%

36,5%

46,1%

11,4%

10,0%

0,5%

3,2%

0,9%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

Statement A: A web portal as a central access point for all important

information (e.g. documents) would help me with respect to my daily work.

Statement B: In my enterprise, a large number of diverse information sources

exists from which I obtain my information.

I totally agree I somewhat agree I somewhat disagree I totally disagree No statement

Fig. 5. Information portal and information sources.

RQ1 We asked where needed process information is located. Most participants

referred to databases, applications, shared and local drives, and the Internet as

the most important sources of process information. When comparing shared and

local drives it becomes evident that the majority of process information is stored

on shared drives (86%). Furthermore, several participants pointed out that peo-

ple represent an important source of information as well (e.g., experts, colleagues

or hotlines). The most important file formats are PDF, Excel, PowerPoint, and

Word.

RQ3 We also investigated the relevance of process information. Many partici-

pants stated that self-made process information (e.g., own documents, e-mails)

have a greater relevance than third-party information. Our survey results also

show a direct relationship between the frequency a particularly information is

10 B. Michelberger, B. Mutschler, and M. Reichert

accessed and its relevance. The more frequent a particular process information is

accessed the higher is its relevance. Hence, participants confirmed that standard-

ized process information (e.g., forms) is more relevant than non-standardized

one. In this context participants confirmed that the relevance of process infor-

mation is significantly influenced by the reliability of the information source.

Additionally relevance factors mentioned include the number of changes of an

information, the date of the last access, the amount of metadata assigned to a

process information, and the file size. As far as temporal consideration is con-

cerned, recurring information and timeliness of process information influences its

relevance as well. Most participants stated that only up-to-date and complete

process information can be relevant. The accessibility to process information is

denoted as a basic requirement.

We also analyzed the available amount of process information (cf. Figure 6).

Obviously, decision-makers are confronted with too much information. 45.1% of

the decision-makers confirm that they have too much or far too much process

information (knowledge-workers: 24%). Knowledge-workers, by contrast, have

the problem of being confronted with insufficient information. 48.1% of the

knowledge-workers mentioned that they have too little or far too little process

information (decision-makers: 27.5%).

2,0% 4,8%

25,5%

43,3%

27,5% 27,9%

33,3% 20,2%

11,8% 3,8%

0,0%

25,0%

50,0%

decision-makers knowledge-workers

Statement: The amount of relevant information for my daily work is ...

far too little too little the right amount too much far too much

Fig. 6. Amount of process information.

2.5 Conclusions

Regarding research questions RQ1-RQ3 we can draw the following conclusions:

RQ1 ”In what different forms is process information specified?” The major-

ity of process information in enterprises is available in Word files, Excel files,

PowerPoint files, PDF files, and in paper form. In addition, there are many

enterprise-specific file formats. The most common information sources are the

Internet, shared and local drives, and non-electronic information sources (e.g.,

documents in paper form). Significant problems in enterprises are the poor qual-

ity and timeliness of process information. Finally, access problems (e.g., lack of

licenses) to process information sources are reported.

On Handling Process Information: Results from Case Studies and a Survey 11

RQ2 ”How can a process context be determined?” Our results show that a

process context can be determined through various factors, e.g., by considering

the progress of processes, information progress, data associated with processes

(e.g., folder names, metadata), and specific computers for certain tasks. Other

useful information to determine a specific context includes, for example, the user

name, the role, the department, the project membership, and the time.

RQ3 ”How can the relevance of process information be determined?” The results

show that self-made process information has a much greater relevance than third-

party process information. This relevance is affected by many factors: access

frequency, standardization, reliability of information sources, number of changes,

date of last access, available metadata, and size. Another important factor is the

quality of process information, which can be determined based on characteristics

such as periodicity, precision, and granularity. Process information must be up-

to-date and complete to increase its relevance for employees’ daily work.

3 Related Work

There are studies dealing with process-oriented information logistics in enter-

prises. Dinter and Winter [12] analyze current information logistics strategy prac-

tices by means of a survey. Their findings show that information logistics strategy

is linked to company size and governance type. Bucher and Dinter [13] provide

another empirical analysis to assess benefits, design factors, and realization ap-

proaches for process-oriented information logistics. The study of Lahrmann and

Stroh [14] identifies typical scenario patterns in information logistics. A case

study in a tourism setting is performed by Landqvist and Stenmark [15]. They

investigate portal information integration and ownership misfits. Hristidis et. al.

[16] conduct a survey about data management and analysis. They achieved the

same results as in our study: Data are available in many different formats, have

varying characteristics, and stem from different sources.

All these studies analyze process-oriented information logistics with differ-

ent emphasis (e.g., strategy, design factors, scenarios, and misfits). However,

the combination of different types of process information, process context, and

process information relevance is addressed by none of them.

4 Summary and Outlook

This paper summarizes the results of two case studies and one online survey.

We investigate different types of process information and factors determining

the relevance of process information and process context. We further identify

the most important characteristics of process information like source, location,

and quality of the process information. In addition, we investigate how a specific

process context can be determined.