A dynamic task assignment approach based on individual worklists for minimizing the cycle time of business processes

To improve business process performances, this study develops a dynamic task assignment approach for minimizing the cycle time of business processes. In particular, considering the quantity of each resource as a new parameter, a formal business process model and a novel approach to estimating the mean cycle time of activities are presented for task assignment based on individual worklists, queuing theory and stochastic theory. Then the mathematical model of task assignment and its solution for minimizing the cycle time are proposed, and the dynamic task re-assignment policy is developed to further reduce the cycle time. The results of simulation experiments and practical applications show our approach has better validity and practical viability than other approaches.