BPMN Example: Online Shop Returns Process
A worked BPMN example: an online shop's returns process, from return request to refund. Draw the tasks, an inspection gateway with labelled yes and no flows, and an end event for every path, in the free bpmn.io modeler.
Step by step
Returns process
- Returns, start to end. This example models an online shop's returns process, from the customer's request to the refund. It has one decision: whether the returned item passes inspection.
- New diagram. Start a new diagram in bpmn.io. The thin circle is the start event. Name it Return requested, because that is what starts the whole process.
Tasks
- Tasks. Click the start event, then the rounded box in its small menu to add a task. Name it Receive item. Next the warehouse checks the item. From Receive item, add another task called Inspect item. Name each task with a verb and a noun.
Inspection decision
- Decision. Now add the decision. Click Inspect item, then the diamond, to add a gateway. Name it with a short question: Item OK?
- Yes path. If the item is fine, the customer gets their money back. From the gateway, add a task called Refund customer and label its arrow Yes. Click Refund customer, then the thick circle. That is an end event. Name it after the result: Refund paid.
- No path. If the item is damaged or used, there is no refund. Drag a task from the gateway's menu to the space below it, name it Send item back, and label that arrow No. This path needs its own end too. From Send item back, add an end event and name it Return rejected.
- Decision. Look at the gateway again. One arrow says Yes and the other says No, so the warehouse and the finance team both read the same rule.
- The finished model. Click on an empty part of the canvas to see the whole process: 1 start event, 4 tasks, 1 gateway and 2 end events, so every path finishes.
Recap
- The rules. The rules: start with the trigger, name each task with a verb and a noun, ask one clear question at the gateway, label both arrows, and give every path its own end event.
Common mistakes
- Gateway arrows with no labels. A diamond with two unlabelled arrows doesn't say which way is which. Label each arrow with an answer to the gateway's question, like Yes and No for Item OK?
- A path that never ends. It's easy to finish the happy path and forget the other one. Give each path its own end event, like Refund paid and Return rejected, so every case has a clear result.
- A gateway named like a task. A gateway doesn't do any work. It only splits the flow. Do the work in a task before it (Inspect item), then name the gateway with a short question (Item OK?).
- Vague task names. Names like Returns or Inspection don't say who does what. Use a verb and a noun, like Receive item or Refund customer.
When a business analyst uses this
In a process workshop with the warehouse and finance teams, a business analyst draws the returns process live in bpmn.io. The labelled Yes and No arrows at Item OK? turn the refund rule into something both teams can check and agree on before it goes into the requirements and gets signed off.
Questions people ask
What is BPMN?
BPMN stands for Business Process Model and Notation. It is a standard set of shapes for drawing business processes: circles for events, rounded boxes for tasks, diamonds for gateways, and arrows for the flow between them.
What is BPMN used for?
It is used to map how work moves from a trigger to a result, so business and technical people read a process the same way. Business analysts use it to document current processes, agree on rules and spot gaps.
What is a BPMN model?
A BPMN model is a diagram of one process drawn with BPMN shapes. This returns model has 1 start event, 4 tasks, 1 gateway and 2 end events.
