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BPMN Naming Conventions Best Practices

There are no official naming conventions in BPMN, but here are a few best practices recognized over the years:

✪	Always use keywords that are meaningful to the business

x	Do not use uncommon abbreviations

x	Do not use the element type in its name

x	Avoid articles and pronouns

✪	All Activities should be named

✪	Name Activities using a Verb-Noun phrase

i	Use the present tense of an active verb of meaning to the business

i	Use a qualified noun of meaning to the business

x	Do not name multiple Activities with the same name (except for Call Activities)

✪	Gateways do not perform any work or make decisions; it is simply a visualization of divergence or convergence of flow

x	Do not name converging Gateways

i	Associate a Text Annotation when convergence logic is not obvious

✪	Name diverging Exclusive Gateways with an interrogative phrase

✪	Name Sequence flows coming out of diverging Gateways of type Exclusive, Inclusive and Complex using their associated conditions stated as outcomes

✪	Name Conditional Sequence Flows using their associated conditions stated as outcomes

x	Do not name Default Sequence Flows

✪	All Events should be named

✪	Name Message, Signal, Escalation, and Error Events with a past participle using an active verb

✪	Name Link Event with a noun

✪	Name paired Message, Link, Signal, Escalation, and Error Events using a matching name

✪	Name Timer Events using their schedule

✪	Name Conditional Events using their trigger condition

✪	Name End Events using the name of the end state

✪	All Data Objects should be named

i	Name Data Objects using a qualified noun that is the name of a business object or information object of meaning to the business

✪	Name multiple instances of the same Data Object (which are really Data Object References) using a matching name followed by the applicable State in square Brackets

Participants

✪	Name Participants using a qualified noun or a noun phrase

Roles

✪	Name Roles using a qualified noun or noun phrase

✪	Name Pools using the Participant’s name

x	Do not name Pools using the Process Name

i	In BPMN a Pool is a depiction of a Participant

✪	Name Lanes using the Category’s name

i	Lanes are often used to categorize elements by Roles