Service System Modelling Principles
Service System Modelling Workshop
Nikolay Mehandjiev
Centre for Service Research
Manchester Business School

Looking at cooperative assembly of large-scale service systems

Systems comprise convergent services

Aiming to transfer lessons we learned in the automotive domain
Field of Interest

Target area:
Systems Comprising Convergent Services

Target activity:
Collaborative modelling and composition of systems

Aim:
To create a modelling language and a software
system which supports target activity

Approach:
1.
Represent services and their providers as knowledge structures;
2.
Each service provider is supported by a software agent on the software
platform
3.
Construct a system where software agents can collaboratively create a
model of complex service systems, reasoning over knowledge structures
to achieve optimal composition
2
This presentation
A. Establishes motivation and objectives
B. Outlines formative experiences from the
automotive domain
C. Presents our contributions
D. Charts further work
3
A. Motivation
Conventional & Software Services are becoming intertwined into
Convergent Services.
Convergent Service Composition

≟ Virtual Organisation Formation
Using software service concepts and technology to create innovative
Convergent Services [2,3]

Designing better software using ideas from conventional services [4 7]
How to integrate both sides above to deliver efficient and effective
convergent service systems? (this presentation)
4
A. Initial Model of Software-as-a-Service
• Orthogonal (and pre-dating) the SOA
• Enables flexibility of software using ideas from service organisations;
• Provide uniform mechanisms for composing convergent services
service provider
specify needs
propose contract
user
service
negotiate & select
accept contract
atomic service
sub-contractor
“know-how”
provide service
sub-contractor
5
A. Aim and Objectives
Aim:
To create a modelling language and a software
system which supports the collaborative creation of complex
systems comprising convergent services
Approach:
1. Represent services and their providers as knowledge structures;
2. Each service provider is supported by a software agent on the
software platform
3. Construct a system where software agents can collaboratively
create a model of complex service systems, reasoning over
knowledge structures to achieve optimal composition.
Objectives:
1. Start from the meta-model we have created for the domain of
automotive manufacturing;
2. Study specific features of convergent systems which differentiate
them from virtual enterprises in automotive manufacturing;
3. Customise meta-model from (1) into a language for collaborative
modelling and creation of service systems
4. Validate (3)
6
This presentation
A. Establishes motivation and objectives
B. Outlines formative experiences from the
automotive domain
C. Presents our contributions
D. Charts further work
7
B. Experiences in Automotive Manufacturing
(taken from Galbraith (2002))
OEM
Traditional Hierarchy
But also direct
interactions between
OEM and Tiers 2 and 3
Tier 1 Suppliers
(Systems and Modules)
Tier 2 Suppliers
(Automotive Components)
Tier 3 Suppliers
(Raw Materials, Standard Parts)
8
B. Virtual Organization Lifecycle Model (Strader 1998)
9
B. Experiences – Research Programme
MaBE
2002-2005 Agent-based Formation of Virtual Enterprises
€206k
38p/m
CrossWork 2004-2006 Design of cross-organisational workflows (VE)
€280k
50p/m
SUDDEN
2006-2009 Collaborative design of supply networks
€386k
62p/m
Commius
2008-2011 Seamless collaboration between SMEs
€346k
38p/m
SOA4ALL 2008-2011 Semantic Services and End Users
€503k
55p/m
BonFIRE
2011-2012 Composition of Complex Systems
€182k
30p/m
MODUM
2011-2014 Optimisation of transportation services
€514k
56p/m
Collaborators:
Intier, MAN, Hanomag, Atos Origin, SAP, iNet, Profactor, TUe, Linz Uni
And a number of PhD projects, for example:
o Designing agent systems – roles and interactions - MaBE
o Decision-making when outsourcing processes - CrossWork
o Ecosystem-based model for system evolution - SUDDEN
10
B. Experiences – Case Study Illustrations
• Automotive Cluster in Upper Austria
• MAN waterpump
• Technology Cluster Genoa
Commius
• Schneegans Silicon - Oil dipstick
SUDDEN
• Graf Carello electric vehicles
CrossWork
• Magna Intier BMW X series
MaBE
• Hanomag / Härtol / Peddinghaus
11
B. Experiences – focus on VE formation
i. Speed of change
ii. Complexity
iii. Customer demands
a business opportunity
Formation
months
haphazard
Delay
Operation
paperwork
reporting
hearsay
Evolution
reactive
weeks
Dissolution
feedback is
informal
slow
12
B. Experiences – focus on VE formation
i. Speed of change – reducing time to market, rapid evolution
ii. Complexity – automate selection processes, innovative solutions
iii. Customer demands – attention to quality and price
“Instant Virtual Enterprise”
13
B. Integrating Service views in SUDDEN
SUDDEN aims to empower SMEs by enabling them to act as designers and
coordinators of collaborative supply networks within automotive
ecosystems.
Each SME:

offers a number of convergent services with formal semantic descriptions;

has a presence on the marketplace/platform as a service provider; and

is described by a rich profile of capabilities and previous history of
collaborations.
The system combines these services in a virtual organisation / supply network
using a sophisticated process integrating the following mechanisms:
1.
top-down planning using centralised domain knowledge;
2.
bottom-up consortium formation using notice-boards, agents and
decentralised knowledge about value-added by each SME;
3.
SMEs can change their services to fit in with a lucrative opportunity;
4.
evaluation of teams using both individual and collaboration metrics.
15
This presentation
A. Establishes motivation and scope for our work
B. Outlines formative experiences from the
automotive domain
C. Presents our contributions
D. Charts further work
16
C. Our Contributions
1. Organising Framework:
 a recursive model of a VE, plus
 a set of model construction operators
2. Focused techniques and innovative solutions
a)
b)
c)
Creating Convergent Services
i.
innovative service composition using distributed knowledge [9]
ii.
negotiation for service composition [4,5,10]
iii.
holistic support for eProcess negotiation [11]
iv.
cooperation in service procurement negotiations [12]
Adaptation of service supply ecosystems
i.
ecosystem-inspired model of service supply chain adaptation [13]
ii.
flexible interactions between marketplace participants [14]
User involvement in service construction
i.
tradeoffs between risks and benefits of user involvement [15]
ii.
visual Interfaces for creating convergent services [16]
17
C. Contributions: Organising Framework
1.
responsibility-led operationalisation
2.
discretionary process steps
3.
coordination processes
Discretionary Step Definition
Goal
Goal
Process
Process
Decomposition
Decomposition
Operationalisation Choice
Relation
Makes
Chooses
Responsibility
Responsibility
Operationalisation
Actor
18
C. Contributions: Detailed Model and Principles
Discretionary Step Definition
subgoal
Goal
*
0..*
requires
Process
Goal
Process
Coordination Goal
Coordination
1
Decomposition
*
Responsibility
*
Manage
Factor
Competence
*
Assigns Chooses
impact
declares
1
Relation
Dependency
Flow
*
Operationalisation Choice *
*
Actor
Fit
Resource
Sharing
Model principles
I.
II.
III.
Iterative elaboration of goals and appointing service providers
Devolved decision-making – service providers choose services to bind
Situatedness – instantiating some services is left till run-time
19
C. Contributions: Top-Down Service Composition
1. Decompose Global Process.
2. Matchmake at appropriate levels.
20
C. Contributions: Bottom-up Service Composition
1. Suppliers offer capabilities.
2. Global process emerges.
21
Graf Carello – Example
28
C. Contributions Flexible reaction to changes
1. Discretionary steps create space for situated action
2. Switching of suppliers
3. Switching of processes allows for re-planning
4. Switching of coordination processes
Meta-Management
Meta-level
Inter-level
Activities,
Dependencies,
Resources
Factors
Work
Coordination
Supplier Selection
Team formation
System Goals
29
This presentation
A. Establishes motivation and scope for our work
B. Outlines formative experiences from the
automotive domain
C. Presents our contributions
D. Charts further work
30
D. Further Work
MaBE
2002-2005 Agent-based Formation of Virtual Enterprises
€206k
38p/m
CrossWork 2004-2006 Design of cross-organisational workflows (VE)
€280k
50p/m
SUDDEN
2006-2009 Collaborative design of supply networks
€386k
62p/m
Commius
2008-2011 Seamless collaboration between SMEs
€346k
38p/m
SOA4ALL 2008-2011 Semantic Services and End Users
€503k
55p/m
BonFIRE
2011-2012 Composition of Complex Systems
€182k
30p/m
MODUM
2011-2014 Optimisation of transportation services
€514k
56p/m
• Process-focused service systems composition
• Apply team formation to semantic service composition and transport planning
• Applicability of our flexibility contributions to service adaptation
including ecosystems-based approach
• Integrate with end-user-development focused stream of work
31
References
[1] Centre for Service Research, University of Manchester. www.mbs.ac.uk/research/csr/, last accessed Nov 19, 2009
[2] N. Mehandjiev, P. Grefen et al, Dynamic Business Process Formation for Instant Virtual Enterprises. Springer “Advanced Information and Knowledge
Processing”, expected March 2010
[3] Grefen, P. et al, CrossWork: Internet-based Support for Process-Oriented Instant Virtual Enterprises. IEEE Internet Computing. Nov-Dec 2009
[4] N. Mehandjiev, et. Al. Provider-Composer Negotiations for Semantic Robustness in Service Compositions. In ICSOC 2009, Springer. 2009
[5] F.Lecue, U.Wajid, N.Mehandjiev. Negotiating Robustness in Semantic Web Service Composition. In Proceedings of ECOWS 2009. Eindhoven, IIEEE
CS
[6] Kollingbaum, M., Norman, T., Mehandjiev, N., and Brown, K. 2006. Engineering organisation-oriented software. In Proc. WISER '06. at IEEE ICSE,
Shanghai, China, May 2006). ACM, New York, 23-28
[7] Bennett K. H., Gold N. E., Munro M., Xu J., Layzell P. J., Budgen D., Brereton O. P. and Mehandjiev N.Prototype Implementations of an Architectural
Model for Service-Based Flexible Software. in Proc. 35 IEEE HICSS(2002), Published by IEEE Computer Society, CA,
[8] Nikolay Mehandjiev, Iain Stalker, Martin Carpenter. Recursive Construction and Evolution of Collaborative Business Processes. In Ardagna, Mecella
and Yang, ed. Business Process Management Workshops. Lecture Notes in Business Information Processing. Vol 17. pp. 573-584. Springer, 2009.
[9] M. Carpenter, N. Mehandjiev and I.D. Stalker. Flexible Behaviours for Emergent Process Interoperability. InWETICE 2006, Manchester, UK,
[10] J.C. Chen et al. Managing Supply Chains of Software as a Service through Agent Negotiations, in CEC 2005, München, IEEE CS Press
[11] S Shaikh and N Mehandjiev Multi-attribute Negotiation in E-Business Process Composition. In WETICE 2004) Modena, Italy, 2004, IEEE CS Press.
[12] Abdoessalam, A.M. and Mehandjiev, N. Collaborative Negotiation in Web Service Procurement, in WETICE 2004, Modena, 2004 IEEE CS.
[13] Marín, César A., Stalker, Iain, & Mehandjiev, Nikolay. Business Ecosystem Modelling: Combining Natural Ecosystems and Multi-Agent Systems.
Pages 181-195. in : Cooperative Information Agents XI, LNAI, vol. 4676. Heidelberg: Springer ISBN: 978-3-540-75118-2
[14] Wajid, U and Mehandjiev, N. Using Task-based Dialogues for Multi-Agent Collaborations, in WETICE 2008, Rome, 2008. IEEE CS Press
[15] N Mehandjiev, A Sutcliffe and D Lee, Organisational View Of End-User Development, in End User Development, 2006, Springer, ISBN: 1-4020-4220-5
[16] Abdallah Namoune et al, Composition of Interactive Service-based Applications by End Users. In UGS2009 Proceedings
J. Galbraith, Designing Organisations. Jossey-Bass 2002
Mowshovitz. (1997) On the Theory of Virtual Organization. Systems Research and Behavioral Science. 14(4). Oct-Dec, 373-384..
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