Towards Feature Interactions in Business Processes

The feature interaction problem is generally associated with conflicting features causing undesirable effects. However, in this paper we report on a situation where the combination of features (as policies) and service-targeted business processes yields non-negative effects. We consider business processes as base systems and policies as a feature mechanism for defining user-centric requirements and system variability. The combination of business processes and a diverse range of policies leads to refinement of activities and possible reconfiguration of processes. We discuss the ways in which policies can interact with a business process and how these interactions are different from other approaches such as the classical view of POTS or telecommunications features. We also discuss the conflicts that can arise and potential resolutions.