In Process Mining, what does “discovery” refer to?

In Process Mining, "discovery" specifically refers to the automatic recognition of the actual process flow as it occurs in an organization. This involves using event logs from various systems to visualize how processes are executed in reality, as opposed to how they are intended to operate according to predefined models. Discovery techniques help in constructing a visual representation, often in the form of a process map, which highlights all the paths, variations, and bottlenecks within the process.

This ability to automatically extract the true sequence of events allows organizations to gain insight into their operations, uncover inefficiencies, and facilitate improvements. It is a foundational aspect of Process Mining that lays the groundwork for further analysis, such as conformance checking and enhancement of business processes.

The other choices focus on different aspects of data and process analysis but do not encapsulate the primary function of discovery in Process Mining. For instance, while the exploration of quantitative data (the first choice) may occur during analysis, it is not the same as mapping the actual process. Identifying anomalies (the third choice) is more about identifying issues within the workflow rather than understanding the full process flow. Gathering historical context (the fourth choice) is important for overall process understanding, but discovery is specifically about recognizing the current and