Patent ID: 8560636

Claim:
A computer-implemented method for providing a virtual process context to a plurality of network participants associated with a networked business process, the method comprising: associating a networked business process with the virtual process context, the networked business process defined as comprising a set of interrelated business processes, the set of interrelated business processes performed by at least two different network participants, the virtual process context comprising a delocalized store of context information associated with the networked business process and the set of interrelated business processes, the virtual process context configured to be modified and accessed by the set of interrelated business processes during execution of the networked business process; receiving a first data object from a first business process instance associated with the networked business process, the first business process instance included in the set of interrelated business processes and associated with a first network participant, the first data object received during execution of the first business process instance; storing the received first data object in the virtual process context associated with the networked business process; determining at least a second business process instance associated with the networked business process and the first data object, the second business process instance included in the set of interrelated business processes and associated with a second network participant different than the first network participant; and notifying at least the second business process instance of the stored first data object in the virtual process context.