Conceptual Modeling of a Procurement Process: Case study of RFP for Public Key Infrastructure
This work addresses the issue of unclear procurement requirements for organizations using RFPs, but it is incremental as it applies existing modeling techniques to a specific domain.
The paper tackled the problem of imprecise requirements in procurement processes, specifically in Request For Proposals (RFPs), by proposing the use of BPMN diagrams to clarify specifications, resulting in a conceptual model for a Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) RFP as a case study.
Procurement refers to a process resulting in delivery of goods or services within a set time period. The process includes aspects of purchasing, specifications to be met, and solicitation notifications as in the case of Request For Proposals (RFPs). Typically such an RFP is described in a verbal ad hoc fashion, in English, with tables and graphs, resulting in imprecise specifications of requirements. It has been proposed that BPMN diagrams be used to specify requirements to be included in RFP. This paper is a merger of three topics: (i) Procurement development with a focus on operational specification of RFP, (ii) Public key infrastructure (PKI) as an RFP subject, and (iii) Conceptual modeling that produces a diagram as a supplement to an RFP to clarify requirements more precisely than traditional tools such as natural language, tables, and ad hoc graphs.