Basic nodes

The three nodes you reach for in almost every process: the entry point, the exit point, and the work in between.

Start

The start node defines the start of a process. There can be multiple start nodes. It is not mandatory, a process may begin with any node, but explicit start nodes make the intent of the diagram unambiguous.

Alternative terms you might use when describing one: entry, kickoff, beginning.

In BPMN a start event is drawn as a circle with a thin single-line border. It is an event, something that happens at the very beginning of a process, and not work that is performed. Its thin border is what distinguishes it visually from an intermediate event (double border) or an end event (thick border).

Input

START 'text input' NEXT

Input suggestion

START 'Start' NEXT

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Tips

• If you do not explicitly mention a start, assistants such as the in-editor AI will create one for you unless instructed otherwise.
• A START line always carries NEXT: a bare NEXT connects it to the next node, NEXT <target> to a named one.

End

The end node defines the end of a process. There can be multiple end nodes. Use them to close a dead branch and make the end of a flow explicit. An end node cannot have a NEXT.

Alternative terms you might use when describing one: finish, close, stop.

In BPMN an end event is drawn as a circle with a thick solid border. Its thick border distinguishes it from a start event (thin border) or an intermediate event (double border). An end event signals that a path of the process has completed; a process is only fully finished once every active path has reached an end event.

Input

END 'text input'

Input suggestion

END 'End'

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Tips

• If a branch ends without an explicit end, assistants such as the in-editor AI will add an END unless instructed otherwise.
• Because end nodes cannot have a NEXT, they are always terminal in the flow.

Terminate end

The terminate end node ends the whole process at once. Every other active path stops when a path reaches it.

In BPMN a terminate end event is drawn as a circle with a thick solid border and a filled circle inside.

Input

END-TERMINATE 'text input'

Input suggestion

END-TERMINATE 'End'

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Activity

The activity node defines activities executed within a process, something that needs to happen and has a duration. It is the most common node in Instant Process. Use ACTIVITY for general tasks unless you specifically need an event, a gateway, or one of the boundary nodes.

Alternative terms you might use: task, step, action.

In BPMN an activity is drawn as a rounded rectangle. It is the standard notation for a unit of work executed by a participant: the process performs it, rather than simply observing that it happened. When you need to emphasise that something occurs rather than is performed, use an event instead.

Input

ACTIVITY 'text input'

Input suggestion

ACTIVITY 'Task' NEXT

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Tips

• Use ACTIVITY as the default for any work step. Only reach for EVENT variants when the emphasis is on an occurrence.
• Activities can carry data by sitting adjacent to attachments.

Identifiers

A node is referenced by its description. When that is not enough, see Explicit identifiers.