A Mobile Agent Based Approach for Business Processes Automation

The paper addresses specification and development of large and complex management systems for business process based on a multi agent systems approach. A methodology for obtaining workflow specifications is presented; it is based on conceiving the management system as a mobile agent system in which mobile agents guide the workflow processes within the organization. The specification includes the work environment, the agent behavior, the process plans, the tasks, the resources, and the interaction protocols. The obtained descriptions are modular and hierarchal leading to clear and compact structuring of the distributed software. The design methodology includes a guideline for Java based coding. Finally, key issues for extending the agent based method to address inter-organizational workflow management are overviewed. A Mobile Agent Based Approach for Business Processes Automation