Em ambientes de negócios, a busca incessante pela competitividade tem demandado uma maior capacidade de lidar com as mudanças. Com o objetivo de atender à esta dinâmica, as empresas buscam soluções de integração dos seus processos com uso intensivo de tecnologia da informação, de modo a prover maior flexibilidade e agilidade nas suas operações. O termo Solução de Business Process Management, ou abreviadamente BPMS (Business Process Management System), diz respeito à plataforma tecnológica para a realização das iniciativas de integração e gestão dos processos de negócio neste contexto. Identifica-se como relevante a discussão sobre os requisitos organizacionais necessários para o uso de tais instrumentos e, especialmente, quanto à adequação das soluções de BPM existentes no mercado sob a ótica da estratégia de operações pela diversidade de alternativas existentes. Assim, esta pesquisa amplia os estudos relacionados com Gestão de Operações no que tange aos aspectos de avaliação de soluções de BPM na ótica do gestor de negócios. Foi desenvolvido um modelo de avaliação com o uso da técnica AHP (Analytic Hyerarchy Process), que permitiu identificar e relacionar as características funcionais de uma solução BPM com os objetivos de desempenho na visão do gestor do negócio. Tal modelo consubstancia-se em um questionário e uma matriz de priorização dos objetivos de desempenho, possibilitando a obtenção de uma nota de perfil competitivo para cada solução de BPM avaliada. Para a validação do modelo foram utilizados o método Delphi na definição do questionário e o método do estudo de caso na verificação da sua aplicabilidade. O modelo proposto mostrou-se adequado para o entendimento das soluções apresentadas e as diferenças entre as mesmas em termos de capacidades e vocações dentro da perspectiva do gestor do negócio. Além disso, o resultado do estudo de caso pemitiu a classificação das alternativas e a delimitação do universo a ser considerado à priori, o que contribui para uma seleção na visão do gestor do negócio e diminui a percepção de risco do investimento a ser feito. / In business-oriented environments, the incessant search for competitiveness has demanded a higher ability to deal with changes. In order to follow such dynamics, companies have been searching for solutions of integration of its processes with intensive use of information technology, in a way of providing better flexibility and speed to its operations. The term Business Process Management Solution, or Business Process Management System (BPMS) provides a technological platform for realizing such initiatives. It seems relevant a discussion about organizational requirements needed to apply such tools and, specially, on BPM solutions adequacy under operations strategy point-of-view. A model for evaluation based on the use of AHP (Analytic Hierarchy Process) was developed to identify the functional characteristics of a BPM solution and link to the performance objectives from the business manager point-of-view. Such model is composed of a questionnaire and a matrix of prioritization of the targeted performance objectives, making possible the attainment of one competitive profile grade for each evaluated solution. The model has been validated with the Delphi method for the questionnaire definition and the method of case study for its applicability. Its application proved to be adequate to better understand the presented solutions and the differences among them in terms of capacity and strengths from the manager view, and, it allows a logical selection delimiting the universe to be evaluated what might diminish the perception of risk of the investment to be made.

A promoção do business process managment (BPM) tem o potencial de trazer diversos benefícios para organizações de diferentes tamanhos, setores de atuação, regiões geográficas ou níveis de maturidade em gerenciamento de processos. Um dos fatores críticos de sucesso para a promoção de BPM é o seu alinhamento com o planejamento estratégico da organização. Este trabalho procura explorar o potencial de facilitação da promoção de BPM em uma unidade de pesquisa clínica (UPC) por meio do alinhamento com o planejamento estratégico. A pergunta de pesquisa que se pretende responder é: quais são os benefícios de um diagnóstico e planejamento estratégico prévios à promoção de um programa de BPM em uma unidade de pesquisa clínica (UPC)? Assim, o objetivo é definir as etapas e auxiliar na condução de um planejamento estratégico em uma unidade de pesquisa clínica, identificando posteriormente os benefícios decorrentes desta prática para a promoção de um programa de BPM. O método utilizado no trabalho foi a pesquisa-ação. Concluiu-se que a análise e estruturação inicial do processo de planejamento estratégico foi adequado como preparação para um primeiro ciclo de promoção de BPM na organização focal. Com base nas lições aprendidas durante o desenvolvimento foi proposto um modelo de planejamento estratégico orientado à promoção de BPM. / Business process management (BPM) has the potential to enhance performance for organizations of different sizes, industries, geographical locations or maturity levels of process management. One critical success factor for the promotion of BPM is its alignment with strategic planning. This research aims to explore the potential benefits of aligning the strategic planning process with a BPM program. Thus, the research question is defined as: what are the benefits of executing a diagnosis and strategic planning before a BPM program in a clinical research center (CRC)? The objective of the research is to define and execute steps of a strategic planning process in a clinical research center, identifying the benefits of these activities for a subsequent BPM program. Action-research was the method applied. The main findings were that the initial diagnosis of the organization in focus\' management practices and structuring of the strategic planning process ware adequate to prepare for the first cycle of a BPM program. Based on lessons learned along the research, a model was proposed for the strategic planning process oriented towards the promotion of BPM.

Orientador: José de Souza Rodrigues / Resumo: A partir da percepção da necessidade de mudanças na gestão do IFRR, esta dissertação tem como objetivo verificar como os conhecimentos de gestão por processos de negócios, por meio de técnicas de mineração, modelagem e mapeamento de processos podem contribuir para melhoria dos processos institucionais. O BPM é considerado como um dos temas mais atuais na era da informação, de um lado, ele aborda a interação de pessoas e organizações e, de outro, softwares de reconhecimento, técnicas de modelagem e simulação e mineração de processos. Acredita-se, portanto, que a presente pesquisa é capaz de incentivar uma cultura voltada para melhoria contínua por meio do gerenciamento dos processos internos, proporcionando melhores resultados para a instituição. Por tanto, a pesquisa foi desenvolvida, primeiramente, por meio do procedimento de mineração de processos no sistema de informações institucional, posteriormente com as modelagens “as is” e “to be” de um processo institucional, onde foi adaptado e aplicado o ciclo de vida de gerenciamento de processos desenvolvendo as etapas de planejamento, análise e modelagem do processo. Como resultados da aplicação do ciclo de vida de BPM foi selecionado o processo de aquisição de bens e serviços e foram desenvolvidas as modelagens as is e to be do referido processo. / Abstract: Based on the perception of the need for changes in IFRR management, this paper aims to verify how BPM knowledge, through mining, modeling and mapping technics can contribute to the improvement of institutional processes. BPM is considered to be one of the most current issues in the information age. On the one hand, it addresses the interaction of people and organizations and, on the other hand, recognition software, modeling and simulation techniques, and process mining. It is believed, therefore, that the present research is able to encourage a culture focused on continuous improvement through the management of internal processes, providing better results for the institution. Therefore, the research was developed, first, through the procedure of mining process in the institutional information system, later with the "as is" and "to be" modeling of an institutional process, where the life of process management was adapted and applied by developing the process planning, analysis and modeling steps. As a result of the application of the BPM lifecycle, the process of acquiring goods and services was selected and the modeling of the process was developed. / Mestre

I en komplex informationsteknologisk värld behöver företag och organisationer flexibla affärssystem som följer den tekniska utvecklingen. Av denna anledning har kommersiella BPMS-verktyg (Business Process Management System) blivit populära på grund av sin höga förmåga att snabbt integreras med affärssystemen i nya arbetsmiljöer. Ett alternativ till kommersiella BPMS-verktyg är de OSS-baserade (Open Source Software) BPMS-verktygen med öppen källkod som är tillgänglig för allmänheten att vidareutveckla.  På grund av att de OSS-baserade BPMS-verktygen ofta är unga på marknaden och behöver vidareutvecklas blev syftet med denna uppsats att genomföra en granskning av de open source-baserade BPMS-verktygen vad gäller deras skilda egenskaper. En sådan granskning ökar förståelsen för hur verktygen fungerar och underlättar därför vidareutvecklingen av dem. Genom att utgå från en etablerad analysmodell av Delgado et al. (2015) genomfördes en tematisk innehållsanalys för att jämföra egenskaperna i dessa verktyg. Närmare bestämt analyserades insamlade dokument som beskriver BPMS-verktygens egenskaper. Den vägen jämfördes 6 olika BPMS-verktyg utifrån 13 egenskaper. Analysresultatet visade att Bonitasoft, jBPM och JMPM5 var de mest välutvecklade BPMS-verktygen som gav stöd för flest egenskaper. Resultatet visade även att verktyg med färre egenskaper ändå kunde vara ett bra alternativ för vissa företag, beroende på vilka egenskaper och funktionaliteter som prioriteras inom företaget. / In a world of developing complex information technologies, companies and organizations need flexible and updated business systems that and match these technological developments. For this reason, commercial BPMS (Business Process Management System) tools have become popular because of their high ability to quickly integrate with business systems in new work environments. An alternative to commercial BPMS tools are the OSS-based (Open Source Software) open source BPMS tools that are available for the public to develop. Since the OSS-based BPMS tools are often new on the market and need further development, the purpose of this paper was to conduct an analysis of open source-based BPMS tools with respect to their various features. Such an analysis increases the understanding of the tools’ functionality and therefore facilitates further development of them. Based on an established analysis model by Delgado et al. (2015), a thematic option for some companies, depending on the characteristics and functionalities that are prioritized within the company. Content analysis was conducted to compare the characteristics of these tools. More specifically, collected documents were analyzed describing the properties of BPMS tools. That way, 6 different BPMS tools were compared based on 13 properties. The analysis showed that Bonitasoft, jBPM and JBPM5 were the most well-developed BPMS tools that supported most of the features. In addition, the analysis demonstrated that tools with fewer features could still be a good option for some companies, depending on the characteristics and functionalities that are prioritized within the company.

Submitted by Haroudo Xavier Filho (haroudo.xavierfo@ufpe.br) on 2016-04-01T17:10:04Z No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 1232 bytes, checksum: 66e71c371cc565284e70f40736c94386 (MD5) Dissertacao_Carolina_Nunes_Gouveia_CinUFPE.pdf: 2466935 bytes, checksum: 5f06f529909528db6e5c56728fc2fb45 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-01T17:10:04Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 1232 bytes, checksum: 66e71c371cc565284e70f40736c94386 (MD5) Dissertacao_Carolina_Nunes_Gouveia_CinUFPE.pdf: 2466935 bytes, checksum: 5f06f529909528db6e5c56728fc2fb45 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009-04-30 / No intuito de assegurar a transparência na gestão das empresas, novas regulamentações recomendam a adoção de modelos de referência, que facilitam a adaptação dos processos de negócio às novas exigências. Com a responsabilidade de encarar esses novos desafios, a auditoria encontra na área de TI uma aliada acostumada a lidar com ambientes adversos, e interessada em envidar esforços para construir soluções aderentes, com criatividade e inovação. Neste trabalho, inicialmente, são apresentados os alicerces metodológicos que fundamentaram a estruturação da área de TI da Chesf e prepararam o corpo técnico para lidar com o desafio da certificação na lei Sarbanes-Oxley. Em seguida, são apresentadas as abordagens de Business Process Management – BPM, utilizadas na construção de ferramentas de gestão dos processos de negócio da área de TI, a serem auditados na certificação. Três abordagens foram experimentadas e suas conclusões são comparadas e analisadas, a fim de justificar a escolha da abordagem efetivamente implantada. Este trabalho propõe apresentar a evolução do investimento da área de TI da Chesf em melhores práticas e demostrar como esse investimento vem contribuindo para o alcance dos objetivos de negócio da Empresa. / In order to ensure transparency in corporate management, new regulations used to recommend the adoption of reference models, which will allow users to adapt enterprise business processes to new demands. With the responsibility to face these new challenges, the Audit’s area find in IT area an ally used to dealing with adverse environments and interested in efforts to build solutions with both creativity and innovation. In this paper, initially, we present the methodological foundation that underlie the structuring of the CHESF’s IT area and prepared the staff to deal with the challenge of certification in Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Then, we present the approaches to Business Process Management - BPM used in the construction of tools for managing business processes in the IT area to be audited in the certification process. Three approaches have been tried and its findings are compared and analyzed in order to justify the choice of approach effectively deployed. This paper proposes to present the performance of CHESF’s IT area in best practices and demonstrate how it has been contributing to the achievement of the Company’s business objectives.

I dagens konkurrensutsatta marknad är det en nödvändighet för organisationer att kontinuerligt effektivisera sina affärsprocesser med avgörande betydelse för tillväxt. Eftersom dessa processer är essentiella byggstenar för en organisations framgång har systemstöd avseende processmanagement blivit en viktig faktor i strävan efter att uppfylla organisationens mål och förbättra sin konkurrenskraft. Med detta i åtanke är det intressant att studera i vilken grad workflowsystem kan bidra till att förbättra organisationers affärsprocesser. Mot bakgrund av dessa snabbskiftande marknadsförutsättningar kommer studien behandla processrelaterade systemstöd med syftet att undersöka situationen för samtidens workflowbaserade optimeringar och utröna framtida visioner gällande automatisk processmanagement. Undersökningen har utförts genom en kvalitativ kund- och marknadsanalys avseende IT-företaget Medius AB där intervjuer, deltagande observationer och dokumentstudier legat till grund för en abduktiv analys. Företaget är en leverantör av processrelaterat IT-stöd och den övergripande affärsidén är att med hjälp av system förenkla och automatisera organisationers skilda processer. Studien visar bland annat att leverantörserbjudanden och definitioner gällande processmanagement skiljer sig åt globalt och nationellt och att det i dagens konkurrensutsatta marknad är svårt att motivera processer utöver sådana som genererar en direkt organisationsnytta. Vidare framkommer trender inom processmanagementområdet, bland annat Case Management, Business Process Management och outsourcing av organisationsprocesser. Studien visar också att den framtida workflowmarknaden förutspås innehålla produkter som stödjer hela organisationer involverandes partner, leverantörer och kunder och inte endast interna processer. / In today's competitive market it is a necessity for organizations to continuously improve their business processes which are critical to growth. Since these processes are essential for organizational success it has become important to support them via information systems in order to meet organizational goals and to improve competitiveness. Thus it is interesting to study to what extent workflow systems can help improve organizations' business processes. In light of these rapidly changing market conditions, this study will examine process-related system support with the aim to investigate the situation of today's workflow-based optimizations, and explore future visions regarding automatic process management. The study was conducted through a qualitative customer and market analysis for the IT company Medius AB, where interviews, participant observations and document studies formed the basis of an abductive analysis. The company is a supplier of process-related IT support and its overall business concept is to offer systems to simplify and automate organizations' separate processes. The result of this study shows, for example, that the definitions and offerings from the vendors differ globally and nationally, and that it is difficult in today's competitive market to justify processes other than those that generate direct organizational benefits. Furthermore, different trends in the field of business process management have been identified, a few examples being Case Management, Business Process Management and outsourcing of organizational processes. The study also shows that the future workflow market is predicted to contain products that support the entire organization and not only specific processes, including partners, suppliers and customers.

Submitted by Fabio Sobreira Campos da Costa (fabio.sobreira@ufpe.br) on 2017-07-27T12:57:10Z No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 811 bytes, checksum: e39d27027a6cc9cb039ad269a5db8e34 (MD5) Dissertacao_FabioFerreira_Digital.pdf: 2972458 bytes, checksum: f0d2fa1803fb21110efdc841f63933b1 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-07-27T12:57:10Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 811 bytes, checksum: e39d27027a6cc9cb039ad269a5db8e34 (MD5) Dissertacao_FabioFerreira_Digital.pdf: 2972458 bytes, checksum: f0d2fa1803fb21110efdc841f63933b1 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-07-01 / Na busca por agilidade, economia e qualidade em seus processos, um número crescente de empresas tem adotado técnicas de Gerenciamento de Processos de Negócios (do original em inglês: Business Process Management - BPM), já que esta permite que a organização torne seus processos mais eficientes, com maior precisão, rapidez, flexibilidade e qualidade. No entanto, mesmo gerenciados, os processos podem enfrentar riscos que podem causar forte impacto sobre os objetivos da organização se estes riscos não forem gerenciados de forma apropriada. Como o gerenciamento de riscos demanda recursos e a execução de várias atividades (entrevistas, análises, reuniões etc.) que também são demandados pelo BPM, a integração destes dois campos tem sido tema de pesquisa frequente nos últimos anos. Um problema com os trabalhos existentes, no entanto, é que as atividades de gerenciamento de riscos propostas são aplicadas apenas a algumas fases do ciclo de vida BPM. Esta dissertação teve como objetivo construir e avaliar uma metodologia para realizar o gerenciamento de riscos em processos de negócios de forma integrada com o ciclo de vida BPM. A metodologia, chamada R-BPM, é composta por um conjunto de fases e uma ferramenta de apoio. Ela é inspirada na estrutura de gerenciamento de riscos do COSO (Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission) e foi construída através da abordagem de Design Science Research, que envolve um ciclo iterativo de construção e avaliação. Para avaliar a metodologia e a ferramenta de software construída para apoiá-la, foi realizado um estudo de caso em uma organização pública. Os artefatos foram avaliados através de grupos focais e surveys com especialistas da organização. Os resultados mostraram que a metodologia R-BPM, além de permitir que as atividades relacionadas à gestão de riscos sejam executadas em conjunto com o ciclo de vida BPM, permite também compartilhar a responsabilidade pelos riscos e fornecer melhores condições para os analistas e donos dos processos avaliá-los. Como a metodologia foi utilizada para resolver um problema do mundo real na organização estudada, esta pesquisa também contribuiu para a disseminação de conhecimento acadêmico para o mercado. / In search for agility, economy and quality in their processes, an increasing number of companies have adopted techniques of Business Process Management (BPM), as this allows the organization make its processes more efficient with greater precision, speed, flexibility and quality. However, even when managed, processes may face risks that can cause strong impact on the organization's goals if these risks are not managed appropriately. As risk management requires resources and the execution of many activities (interviews, analysis, meetings and so on) which are also demanded by BPM, the integration of these two fields has been a research theme frequent in recent years. A problem with existing works, however, is that the risk management activities proposed are applied only to some phases of the BPM lifecycle. This work aimed to construct and evaluate a methodology to manage risks of business processes integrated with the BPM lifecycle. The methodology, called R-BPM, is composed of a set of phases and a supporting tool. It is inspired by the COSO (Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission) risk management structure and was built by Design Science Research strategy, which involves an iterative cycle of construction and evaluation. To evaluate the methodology and the software tool built to support it, we conducted a case study in a public organization. The artifacts were assessed through focus groups and surveys with the organization's experts. The results showed that the R-BPM allows the activities related to risk management can now be implemented together with the BPM lifecycle, as well as shares responsibility for the risks and provides better conditions for process owners evaluate them. As the methodology was used to solve a real-world problem in the organization studied, this research also contributed to the dissemination of academic knowledge to market.

Inom flera svenska statliga myndigheter har det processbaserade arbetssättet blivit en metod för att öka effektiviteten inom organisationer. Migrationsverket, en myndighet som under mitten av 2010-talet tog emot ett rekordstort antal skyddssökande under den stora flyktingkrisen, har på senare tid börjat att implementera ett nytt processbaserat arbetssätt inom asylprövningen kallat ”Asyl 360”. Denna fallstudie undersöker hur medarbetarna på en av de asylprövningsenheter som implementerat Asyl 360 upplever att det nya processbaserade arbetssättet påverkat dem. Den ämnar också att, med hjälp av en egenutvecklad kontextanpassad processmognadsmodell, undersöka vilken processmognadsnivå den undersökta asylprövningsenheten befinner sig på. Den metodologiska inriktningen av studien är en kvalitativ fallstudie där den insamlade datan har inhämtats genom intervjuer med medarbetare på den undersökta organisationen. Resultatet och analysen av studien visar dels vilken processmognadsnivå organisationen befinner sig på, men även en utvärdering av den egenutvecklade kontextanpassade processmognadsmodellens funktionalitet / Within several Swedish government agencies, the process-based approach has become a method for increasing efficiency within the organizations. The Swedish Migration Agency, an agency that received a record number of refugee applicants during the great refugee crisis in the mid-2010s, has recently begun to implement a new process-based approach in the asylum field called "Asyl 360". This case study examines how the employees at one of the units that implemented Asylum 360 feels that the new process-based working method has affected them. It also intends to investigate what process maturity level the investigated asylum review unit is at, with the help of a self-developed, context-adapted process maturity model. The methodological focus of the study is a qualitative case study where the collected data has been collected through interviews with employees of the researched organization. The result and analysis of the study shows what level of process maturity the studied organization is currently on. It also evaluates the functionality of the self-developed, context-adapted process maturity model / <p>2020-06-26</p>

The constant changes in governmental and customer requirements are forcing organizations to adapt in today’s dynamic market. Challenges such as international competition, increased cost pressure and efficient resource allocation are just a few examples of what organizations currently are facing. The need of managing business processes has become evident, as processes describes how well the organization is operating. Processes are no longer seen as just a tool, but as a way to visualize and standardize the organization in order to decrease variation and waste. With limited resources, ABB HVC has been working with business processes for over 20 years without any major influence since the competition has not required it. During the last three years the focus has shifted and business processes are now a hot topic. A stance has been taken and ABB HVC is now aiming to become a process-oriented organization. To become a process-oriented organization, ABB HVC needs a solid foundation built around processes. This project aims to satisfy a part of that foundation by designing a process for the technology department. As the technology department currently lacks a defined process, they cannot in a clear and visual way describe how they operate. Most of the time spent during this project, was focused on designing a functional process and to identify options for development. The research type of this project is a change focused research with an action research strategy. The selected approach is a design research methodology with qualitative data collection. In order to gather all the required information to complete the task, a literature review and an empirical analysis of ABB HVC were conducted. The result of this project was a process map describing the workflow and interactions of the technology department. An implementation plan, tools and suggested improvements have also been included in the report to provide the technology department with a strategy in how to continue the process work. / Ständiga förändringar och krav från myndigheter och kunder tvingar organisationer att anpassa sig till dagens dynamiska marknad. Utmaningar som internationell konkurrens, ökat kostnadstryckt och en effektiv resursfördelning är bara några exempel på vad organisationer för närvarande står inför. Behovet av att hantera affärsprocesser har blivit uppenbart eftersom processerna beskriver hur väl organisationen fungerar. Processer ses inte längre som bara ett verktyg, utan som ett sätt att visualisera och standardisera organisationen för att minska variation och slöseri. Med begränsade resurser har ABB HVC arbetat med affärsprocesser i över 20 år utan någon större påverkan för att konkurrensen inte har krävt det. Under de senaste tre åren har fokus skiftat och affärsprocesser är nu ett hett samtalsämne. En ställning har tagits och ABB HVC siktar nu på att bli en processorienterad organisation. För att bli en processorienterad organisation behöver ABB HVC en stabil grund uppbyggd kring processer. Detta projekt syftar till att tillfredsställa en del av denna grund genom att utforma en process för teknikavdelningen. Eftersom teknikavdelningen idag saknar en definierad process kan de inte tydligt beskriva hur de arbetar. Merparten av tiden spenderat under detta projekt var inriktad på att utforma en fungerande process och att identifiera alternativ för utveckling. Forskningstypen för detta projekt är en förändringsfokuserad forskning med en aktionsforskningsstrategi. Det valda tillvägagångssättet är att använda design research metodiken med kvalitativ datainsamling. För att samla in all den information som krävts för att slutföra uppgiften, har en litteraturstudie och en empirisk analys av ABB HVC utförts. Resultatet av detta projekt var en processkarta som beskriver arbetsflödet och interaktionerna för teknikavdelningen. En genomförandeplan, verktyg och förslag på förbättringar har också tagits med i rapporten för att ge teknikavdelningen en strategi för hur man ska fortsätta processarbetet.

For large organizations, updating instructional programs presents a challenge to keep abreast of constantly changing business processes and policies. Each time a process or policy changes, significant resources are required to locate and modify the training materials that convey the new content. Moreover, without the ability to track learning objects to processes and policies, training managers cannot conduct an effective training gap analysis in these areas. As a result, the corporate training picture is unclear and instructional needs cannot be accurately determined. The research addressed these problems by recognizing the need for linkages between an organization's business processes, its policies, and the learning objects that package the corresponding training content and deliver it to the workforce. The overall investigation was completed in three parts. In the first study, a thorough examination of the literature was conducted to determine the extent of the research problem and to provide a theoretical foundation for a solution. In the second study an expert panel was used to elicit user needs for a knowledge management system that addresses training management shortcomings in a large law enforcement agency. Another expert panel from that agency validated and prioritized the user needs during the third study. Through a combination of research-based elicitation and validation techniques, an accurate list of natural language software requirements emerged to represent the collective needs of the law enforcement training experts. The software requirements may now serve to analyze the capabilities of existing information technology systems or to form the basis for a request for proposal (RFP) to build the envisioned knowledge management system.