Use the Process Explorer in Views

In this course, you'll learn all about the Process Explorer in Views - including hands-on exercises!

The Process Explorer (also “PE” for short) is a View component that allows you to discover how your processes really run within your organization. It's especially useful for quickly revealing events occurring beyond the most common ones and identifying how different object types behave and interact.

This course is part of the Use & Interpret Views training track. We highly encourage you to take all the courses in the track, in the order that is predefined for you to help you gain a holistic understanding of Views.

With the Process Explorer, you can…

review events, connections, and objects types.

explore how multiple object types relate to each other and connect across events.

switch between different KPIs.

use the various filtering options.

It will take you about 45 minutes to complete this course.

Are you ready? Let’s get going! 🚀

This content is available in multiple languages: English, German, French, Japanese, Spanish, and Portuguese. To switch your language, use the selector in the top navigation bar.

In Courses: Switching languages will not affect your progress. If you are multilingual, comparing languages can even help deepen your understanding. In Exams: Do not switch the language once you start the exam. If you switch the language when you're already reviewing questions and answers, the page will refresh, causing your exam attempt to end prematurely. (Note: Once inside the exam course, you can switch the language anytime before clicking the Start Exam button.)

If you encounter any technical or access issues during this course, check out our FAQs in the Support area or reach out to us via our Academy contact form.

Accessibility Support

Celonis Academy is committed to providing an accessible learning experience for everyone. Our content is primarily text and video-based; and is also designed to be consumed via audio using screen readers or text-to-speech software.

Tips for Navigating With a Keyboard or Screen Reader

You can navigate the different interactions within this course using standard screen reader functionalities. Generally, you can use the Tab key to move between interactive elements on each screen. Celonis Academy does not implement specific custom keyboard shortcuts for navigation within our courses, allowing you to use your screen reader's default navigation. For a better viewing experience, you have the option to hide the side menu. To move between the pages of the course, you will find "Previous" and "Next" arrow buttons located at the beginning of each page (just below the page title and process line) and at the end of the content.

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Video Captions

Where videos are included, you can enable captions by clicking the "CC" button located in the video timeline. If the course offers content in multiple languages, you will usually have the option to select your preferred language for the captions. If a video does not contain audio, this will be indicated before the video begins.

Further Resources: Discover more accessibility features on Windows or get started with accessibility on macOS.

Note: For an optimal experience, we generally recommend using the Google Chrome browser.

The Process Explorer is a powerful tool to use, especially when taking an exploratory approach in your process analysis journey. It's especially useful for quickly revealing events occurring beyond the most common ones and identifying how different object types behave and interact. It also allows you to narrow your focus on a single event, for example, an undesired event, to examine associated attributes and potential root causes of performance gaps.

Watch the video below to see what you can accomplish with the Process Explorer!

Press O for more options

1:39

The Process Explorer shown in the video is connected to an object-centric data model (OCDM), but it can also be built on a case-centric data model (CCDM). Explore the differences between these two in the tabs below!

Process Explorer connected to an OCDM Process Explorer connected to an CCDM

Process Explorer connected to an OCDM

The Process Explorer connected to an OCDM resembles a subway map, with “stations” representing events and “tracks” indicating connections between them. This layout allows you to view processes from the perspectives of different object types and their separate process flows indicated by different colors.

In this specific example, the four object types - purchase order, purchase order item, vendor invoice, and vendor invoice item - all share the “Record Invoice Receipt” event.

This course and its interactive exercises use a Process Explorer connected to an OCDM. If yours runs on a CCDM, you can still follow along - its core features are the same, and interpreting the component works similarly.

Want to learn more about object-centric process mining? Then visit our Object-Centric-Process Mining Foundations Course! 📌

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Watch this video to solidify your understanding of what the Process Explorer displays. We'll focus on interpreting the numbers noted on events and connections, and find out why they might differ from event to connection.

Press O for more options

1:49

Let’s test your knowledge!

Is this statement true? The numbers displayed on events and connections both display the object count.

Yes

Incorrect - the numbers on events represent event counts (how many times that event was performed in total), whereas the numbers on connections represent object counts (how many objects moved from one displayed event to another).

No

Correct - the numbers on events represent event counts (how many times that event was performed in total), whereas the numbers on connections represent object counts (how many objects moved from one displayed event to another).

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As explained earlier, the initial path displayed in the Process Explorer is just a starting point. Watch this video to learn how to add the next most common events and connections, as well as how to include different object types.

Press O for more options

3:47 ● ● ● ● ● ●

💡 Take Your Process Exploration to the Next Level

There are even more features in Celonis that empower you to explore your processes faster and more effectively. You'll find more details on the next page!

Two Types of Graph Controls in the PE: Slider vs Panel

In the previous videos, you learned how to read numbers on events and connections. Please note that there is a difference in how these numbers are shown on events and connections, depending on which graph control (panel or slider) is enabled in your Process Explorer.

Explore the difference between panel and slider below!

Panel Slider

Panel

If you look to the left of the component, you can see the panel. In panel mode, both direct and indirect connections between events are considered. In other words, if there's a path from one event to another - even if it passes through multiple events in between - it’s still recognized as a connection. The panel is useful for getting a high-level summary of the process when the user is interested in specific events. In this example, you can see that from the “Approve Sales Order” event, 23.6K sales orders moved on both directly and indirectly to the process end.

🧐 Why Does My Process Explorer Look Different?

Your Process Explorer may look a bit different than the one shown in this course. Your Data Analyst can apply custom coloring to the events or define specific groups of KPIs that you can select from. This is how they've tailored your Views to best suit your use case and make it easier for you to find key insights!

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Now that you've mastered the basics of the Process Explorer, let's dive into powerful features that make it even easier and faster to find key insights. Open the tabs below to explore each of them!

Global Slider Hide Events Connecting Multi-Object Processes Process Animation

The global slider is a powerful tool that allows you to add and remove events and connections from multiple object types simultaneously. Instead of making adjustments with each individual slider, you can use the global slider to add the next most frequent event from across all object types at once. This makes it faster to explore and gain a holistic view of your process.

You can still use the individual sliders to add or remove elements for a specific object type. Changes you make with either the global or individual sliders are reflected in the other, allowing you to easily switch back and forth. Adding the next most frequent event may result in more events being added in order to connect the new event being added to the existing process graph.

Watch the video below to see how this is done! (Note: This video has no audio.)

🚀 Stay Up-to-Date!

We're continuously adding new and powerful features to the Process Explorer to make process exploration faster and more intuitive. Make sure to subscribe to our Product Updates Newsletter on Celonis Community to see what's upcoming!

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Are you ready to dive in? Get your hands dirty and experience the Celonis Platform yourself. In the hands-on exercises of this course, you will imagine yourself stepping into the role of a Process Lead in the order management department at SecureNet Data Centers. You will be working with the Process Explorer tab of the View. Please note that in these hands-on exercises you will be working with the slider graph control and not the panel graph control.

For the order management process, you have identified 3 key objects from the data: sales order, sales order item, and delivery. If you are not familiar with these objects, check out their descriptions below.

Sales Order

Originated from the "Sales Order Header Document", containing an agreement between a seller and a customer concerning the sale and delivery of goods, as well as any services that are associated with these processes. The different entries are split into sales order item entities.

Sales Order Item

A line item in the sales order header document detailing a specific piece of a sales order agreement.

Delivery

Originated from the "Delivery Header Document", which is the central object in the delivery process providing general information about goods movement. The different entries are split into separate Delivery Item entities.

The challenge: You suspect that the order processing cycle is slowed down by manual interventions, frequent order changes, and blocks. However, you’re unsure about the impact of these unwanted events, their root causes, or when they occur.

Let’s jump into the exercises to understand what is happening at SecureNet Data Centers. Follow the steps listed on the next page to go to the Business User Training Environment and find the View dedicated to the Use and Interpret Views Training Track!

In this course, you’ll have the opportunity to have hands-on experience using a View in a custom training environment. Go through the following steps to get access.

If you're coming from a previous course within the Use and Interpret Views Training Track, then you can jump to Step 3.

Step 1

Click on the button to be added to the custom training team.

Add me to the environment

Step 2

In the custom training team, go to Apps.

Look for the Space “Business User Training”.

In that Space, there should be an “Use and Interpret Views” Package, which you will use for this course.

Click on it, and you'll open the "Use & Interpret Views - Order Management Hands-on Exercise" App.

The video below shows you how to do it. ⬇️

Step 3

For the exercises in this course, go to the Process Explorer tab within the View.

After completing these steps, you're ready to begin the hands-on exercises! 🚀

If you encounter any issues, you can contact us through the Academy Support Form.

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Next Lesson Hands-On Exercises

Keep this in mind before you start: When working in Apps and Views, there's rarely just one way to find an answer. We provide one solution, but if you got the right result another way, your method is just as valid!

1. Focus solely on the green sales order object type and have a look at the connection going from “Approve Sales Order” to the process end. How do you interpret this number?

A: The connection does not account for indirect connections between events.

B: The connection accounts for indirect and direct connections between events.

Answer

A: Since the slider graph control is enabled, the connection only shows the number of objects that move directly from “Approve Sales Order” to the end of the process. There must be other events between “Approve Sales Order” and the end of the process that are not shown yet.

Here is where you find the answer. ⬇️

1. If the panel graph control were enabled in the Process Explorer, would it show the same numbers on the connection going from “Approve Sales Order” to the process end?

A: Yes.

B: No.

Answer

B: No! Unlike the slider, the panel graph control also includes indirect connections going from “Approve Sales Order” to the process end. Therefore, the number on this connection is 25.4k.

Here is where you find the answer. ⬇️

1. Which events will be added if you add more events to the sales order process?

A: "Cancel Sales Order Item".

B: “Set Billing Block” and “Release Billing Block”.

Answer

B: The next two events that are added are “Set Billing Block” and “Release Billing Block.”

Watch the video below to see how this is done! (Note: This video has no audio; detailed solution steps are provided below the video.)

Use the slider to add more objects to the Process Explorer. The next two events that are added are the “Set Billing Block” and “Release Billing Block” events.

1. Select Throughput Time (Average) using the KPI Switcher. How many additional days does setting and releasing the Billing Block add to the order?

A: 13 days.

B: 9 days.

Answer

It takes 9 days from approving the sales order to setting the billing block and 4 days to release it afterward. Therefore, setting and releasing the billing block adds 13 additional days to the process.

Watch the video below to see how this is done! (Note: This video has no audio; detailed solution steps are provided below the video.)

Switch the KPI to Throughout Time (Average) using the KPI Switcher. Notice that while the "Approve Sales Order" event goes directly to the process end, the connection from “Approve Sales Order” to “Set Billing Block” shows 9 days; from “Set Billing Block” to “Release Billing Block” takes 4 days. Therefore, adding a billing block and releasing it adds 13 additional days to the process (9 days + 4 days).

1. Use the KPI Switcher to return to Object and Event Counts, and add the sales order item to the Process Explorer. Do you notice the loop at the “Create Sales Order Item” event? How do you interpret it? Remember to remove any filters previously applied.

A: Sales order items are added to sales orders.

B: Sales orders are repeatedly created due to errors in the creation.

Answer

The “Create Sales Order Item” event is shared between the sales order and sales order item objects. The 27k sales orders pass through this event an average of 15 times, while the 410k sales order items pass through it once. This loop indicates that the 410k sales order items are the individual line items added to the 27k sales orders, with an average of 15 line items per sales order.

Watch the video below to see how this is done! (Note: This video has no audio; detailed solution steps are provided below the video.)

Switch the KPI to Object and event counts using the KPI Switcher. Observe the "Create Sales Order Item" event, which is shared by the sales order item and sales order object types. The loop at this event for sales orders confirms that the 27k sales orders pass through it multiple times, meaning each sales order has multiple line items added.

Congratulations!

You’ve successfully identified that setting and releasing a delivery block adds additional days to the process and located these events in the process flow. Great work! Stay tuned for the following hands-on exercises, where you’ll delve deeper into their impact and root causes.

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At this point you already know how to interpret event and object counts, add events, connections, and object types, and switch between process metrics in the Process Explorer. There's one more feature of the Process Explorer we want to draw your attention to: Filters!

There are many different ways to apply filters in the Process Explorer. Below, you’ll discover where to locate different filtering options in a View - click on the ℹ️ icons to learn more about each!

Filter on objects using events and connections Filter on objects using the filter bar Make use of built-in filters

Get Ready for the Exercises

The following pages include hands-on exercises where you will work with the Process Explorer and Process Discovery tabs in your training environment. If you are already there, simply continue where you left off. Otherwise, follow the steps on the "Set Up Your Training Environment" page to get there.

You can filter on objects by clicking on events and connections. Let’s continue to focus on the “Set Billing Block” event. Click on it to reveal more information about it, and then filter your dataset to show you only the objects that go through this event.

Watch the video below to see how this is done! (Note: This video has no audio.)

In the top right corner of the View, you can always see how many objects are selected - currently 8%. When you hover over the indicator it shows you even more details, like the percentage and total numbers of objects available in the current View. Next to the indicator, you can disable a filter, which allows you to enable it at a later point, or simply delete it for good if you don’t need it anymore. Note that when setting filters the entire View updates to show you the data that corresponds to the subset you have filtered for.

Now, let’s get to work!

Go to the Process Explorer tab in your training environment.

Hands-On Exercise (2/4)

1. Filter on the “Set Billing Block” event. How does setting the filter affect the on-time delivery rate and average delay (in terms of days) after setting the filter?

Hint: Make use of the disable and enable filter button to observe the change in your KPIs!

A: The "Set Billing Block" event increases the average delay and reduces the on-time delivery rate.

B: The "Set Billing Block" event decreases the average delay and increases the on-time delivery rate.

Answer

A: When filtering on the “Set Billing Block” the on-time delivery rate is reduced to 6.12% with an average delay of 12.01 days. Setting a billing block seems to have an impact on our on-time delivery performance!

Watch the video below to see how this is done! (Note: This video has no audio; detailed solution steps are provided below the video.)

Click on the “Set Billing Block” event and select “with this event” to filter on objects that went through it. Observe that the KPIs in the KPI list automatically update to the current selection. The on-time delivery rate drops from 20.24% to 6.12% and the average delay increases from 8.53 to 12.01.

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In addition to filtering directly on events and connections, you can also use the filter bar if it is enabled for you. These filters were created by your Data Analyst, based on what they assume will support you in process exploration.

In this View, we can filter on:

Order classification: If orders are arriving too early, on-time, or too late.

Delivery date.

Organizational details, for example plant or distribution channel.

Order information, for example material group or material name.

Watch the video below to see how this is done! (Note: This video has no audio.)

Remember: When working with filters, it is important to always double-check if you removed or disabled all previously applied filters to ensure you’re exploring in the right direction!

Let’s try it out! Go to the Process Explorer tab in your training environment.

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1. Use the filter bar to compare how often the “Set Billing Block” event occurs for orders delivered “On-Time” versus “Late.”

A: The “Set Billing Block” event only occurs for orders classified as “Late”.

B: The “Set Billing Block” event occurs for 1,516 sales orders delivered “Late” and for 95 sales orders delivered “On-Time.”

Answer

B: The “Set Billing Block” event occurs for 1,516 sales orders delivered “Late” and for 95 sales orders delivered “On-Time.” Setting a billing block seems to impact our on-time delivery performance!

Watch the video below to see how this is done! (Note: This video has no audio; detailed solution steps are provided below the video.)

Increase the number of events shown for the sales order object and open the filter bar. Then compare the count shown on the “Set Billing Block” event depending on if orders are classified as “Late” or “On-Time”.

1. Let’s dig deeper into that! In your daily work, you’ll likely use Views that combine the Process Explorer with various components. Therefore, let’s move to the Process Discovery tab. As always, remember to remove all filters before starting another process exploration. Filter for the “Set Billing Block” event. Which material groups are particularly affected by this event?

A: The “Set Billing Block” event is often associated with the “Backup Power Generators” and “Cooling Systems” material groups.

B: The “Set Billing Block” event is often associated with the "Routine Maintenance" and "Storage Systems" material groups.

Answer

A: The “Set Billing Block” event is often associated with the “Backup Power Generators” and “Cooling Systems” material groups.

Watch the video below to see how this is done! (Note: This video has no audio; detailed solution steps are provided below the video.)

Remove any previously set filters and then navigate to the Process Discovery tab. Add additional events to the sales order object and filter on the "Set Billing Block" event. Focus on the "Material Group" bar chart which shows the material groups sorted by the highest net order value.

1. Keep the filter on the “Set Billing Block” event and drill down further by filtering only for the material groups “Backup Power Generators” and “Cooling Systems”. Then, sort the table by the highest order volume. Which customers have a net order value of more than 2.5M for these two material groups?

A: The customers with a net order value of more than 2.5M are SkyNet Centers, NovaNex, DataFortress, and GridGuardian Hosting.

B: The customers with a net order value of more than 2.5M are NovaSphere Solutions, DataFusion Galore, Synapse Secure Hosting, and TitanTech Hosting.

Answer

A: The customers with a net order value of more than 2.5M are SkyNet Centers, NovaNex, DataFortress, and GridGuardian Hosting.

Watch the video below to see how this is done! (Note: This video has no audio; detailed solution steps are provided below the video.)

Keep the filter on the "Set Billing Block" event. Interact with the Material Group bar chart to filter on "Backup Power Generators" and "Cooling Systems". Then, ensure the table dimension is set to Customer and sort the table by net order value.

1. Save your insights for later by creating a bookmark of the current selection of the View!

Answer

Watch the video below to see how this is done! (Note: This video has no audio; detailed solution steps are provided below the video.)

Click the bookmark button and select "Create bookmark". Then type the name of your bookmark and hit "Create".

1. Export the current selection of the View as a PDF!

Answer

Watch the video below to see how this is done! (Note: This video has no audio; detailed solution steps are provided below the video.)

Click the share or export View button and select "Export PDF". Specify the desired export format and then hit "Generate PDF". Once the export is finished, you'll be notified and you can select the fitting location on your computer to store it.

Great Work So Far!

You’ve uncovered how billing blocks can slow down the order processing cycle at SecureNet Data Centers. Specifically, you identified that:

Setting and releasing a billing block impacts on-time delivery performance.

This event particularly affects the "Backup Power Generators" and "Cooling Systems" material groups.

Key customers - such as SkyNet Centers, NovaNex, DataFortress, and GridGuardian Hosting - appear especially affected due to high order values in these material groups.

Now that you have a clearer picture of where delays are occurring and who is most affected, you can initiate some next steps to address these issues at their source. For example, you could collaborate with the Finance team to investigate the triggers for billing blocks and work toward streamlining the billing process for the affected material groups. You could also coordinate with Contract Management to review contracts with these key customers, understand why billing blocks are being applied, and develop strategies to prevent them in the future.

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Next Lesson Use Built-In Filters

In addition to interacting with events, connections, or the filter bar, you can also use built-in filters. This option doesn’t rely on specific components, making it a quick and convenient choice if you already know what you want to filter on. We continuously expand the filtering options available, and new built-in filters will be added on a rolling basis.

Learn more about built-in filters in the video below!

Explore the tabs below to learn more about the different built-in filters available!

Attribute Filter Process Flow Filter Event Filter Event Count Filter Throughput Time Filter

Using the attribute filter, you can filter on any attribute of your data model, for instance specific materials. Another useful trick, especially when working with a large number of attributes, is the exclude feature, which removes specific events from your selection - sometimes it’s quicker to define the attributes you don’t want to filter on rather than the ones you do. Keep that in mind!

Watch the video below to see how this is done! (Note: This video has no audio.)

Did You Know?

You can find in-depth information on all built-in filters in Celonis Docs.

Hands-On Exercise (4/4)

Let’s continue with the insights from the previous hands-on exercises in mind and use built-in filters to drill down on the affected material groups and customers as well as on block events.

Please make sure to remove any filters you had applied previously, before moving to the next exercise.

1. Use the attribute filter to filter on the"Backup Power Generators" and "Cooling Systems" material groups as well as on the key customers SkyNet Centers, NovaNex, DataFortress, and GridGuardian Hosting. How many sales order are selected?

Hint: Use the tables Customer > Name and Material > Grouptext

Answer

2,843 sales orders with a net order value of 768M € are selected.

Watch the video below to see how this is done! (Note: This video has no audio; detailed solution steps are provided below the video.)

Navigate to the built-in filter button and use the attribute filter to select the key customers SkyNet Centers, NovaNex, DataFortress, and GridGuardian Hosting from the Customer > Name table and the material groups "Backup Power Generators" and "Cooling Systems" material groups from the Material > GroupText.

Please make sure to remove any filters you had applied previously, before moving to the next exercise.

1. Use the event filter to drill down on all objects that go at least through one block event including a billing, credit, or delivery block. How high is the net order value of these sales orders?

Hint: Use "any" to select objects that went through at least one block event.

Answer

The net order value of objects that went through at least one block event amounts to 663M €.Watch the video below to see how this is done! (Note: This video has no audio; detailed solution steps are provided below the video.)

Navigate to the built-in filter button and use the event filter to select all block events. Make sure to click on “Include” and define the connection as “any” to select objects that went through at least one of the selected events.

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You have completed the “Use the Process Explorer in Views” course. 🎉

You are now able to:

Interpret objects and events and their connections.

Add and remove events, connections, and object types.

Explore how objects relate to each other and connect across events.

Switch between KPIs.

Accelerate your process exploration with powerful features like global sliders, hide events, and process animation.

Filter on objects using events and connections.

Filter on objects using the filter bar.

Filter on objects using built-in filters.

Use the Process Explorer in combination with other components of the View to generate insights.

Please feel free to share your feedback with us on the next page so that we can further improve our content.

Thank you!

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