Legacy BPMN to Modern Workflows: Introducing BPMN Importer in Orkes Conductor

BPMN (Business Process Model and Notation) has long been the standard for modeling business processes, but it wasn’t built with modern, event-driven, microservice-based systems in mind. For teams looking to modernize their architecture, BPMN tools often become a bottleneck—rigid, hard to scale, and disconnected from developer-first workflows.

Orkes Conductor offers a better fit for today’s systems: a flexible, cloud-native orchestration engine that lets teams define, version, and run workflows programmatically—supporting asynchronous and event-driven execution, seamless microservice integration, and the agility to evolve without legacy modeling constraints.

With Orkes Conductor v5.0.1, we’re excited to introduce the BPMN Importer—a powerful functionality that lets you directly import BPMN files and instantly convert them into native Conductor workflows. It enables teams to seamlessly migrate existing process diagrams, preserving their structure while accelerating the shift to scalable, microservice-native orchestration.

Why does BPMN importer matter?

Many organizations rely on BPMN-based tools to design and run business processes. These platforms offer modeling capabilities but often lack the flexibility and scalability required for modern distributed systems.

Migrating from BPMN tools usually means developers must manually rewrite complex process logic, slowing down modernization efforts and risking fidelity loss.

With the BPMN Importer, Orkes Conductor introduces a code-free migration path from legacy BPMN tools, significantly reducing time to market.

Conductor’s BPMN importer: Explained

The BPMN Importer is a built-in functionality in Conductor that automates the conversion of BPMN process definitions into Conductor workflows.

It allows you to:

• Upload standard BPMN process definitions
• Automatically generate equivalent Conductor workflows
• Preserve the control flow, branching, and task logic of the original process
• Apply advanced orchestration capabilities to the imported workflow

Whether you’re migrating from legacy tools or working in a hybrid environment, this drop-in, no-code experience ensures speed, accuracy, and seamless adoption.

Key benefits

The BPMN Importer brings immediate advantages for teams modernizing their orchestration stack:

• Fast migration: Convert existing BPMN into Conductor’s JSON-based workflows with minimal manual intervention.
• Zero downtime deployment: Transition incrementally by running legacy BPMN systems and Conductor in parallel before fully switching over.
• Preserved structure: Tasks, gateways, and control flows are mapped to native Conductor constructs.
• No code required: Use drag-and-drop, upload files, or paste XML directly.
• Workflow reusability: Modify, version, and run the imported workflows like any other Conductor workflows.
• Seamless integration with existing services: Easily integrate Conductor workflows with APIs, microservices, and third-party cloud tools.

Getting started with BPMN import

In Orkes Conductor, you can quickly convert BPMN files into workflow definitions. For detailed information, check out the BPMN importer documentation.

Importing BPMN files

You can import process definitions in the .bpmn format or raw XML code.

When you begin the import, Conductor provides a flexible interface with multiple input methods:

• Uploading a .bpmn file from your local device
• Dragging and dropping the files
• Pasting XML content directly into the Code tab

Before finalizing the import, you can also rename the workflow or choose to overwrite existing definitions with the same name.

Your BPMN, reimagined as a Conductor workflow

After importing, the BPMN definition is automatically converted into a fully functional Conductor workflow.

Each BPMN element—such as tasks, branches, and events—is mapped to its corresponding Conductor construct, preserving the original logic and structure.

With the imported workflow in place, you can:

• Edit or enhance the workflow in the visual builder or JSON editor.
• Run the workflow or integrate it into your application logic.
• Apply version control and manage deployments.
• Enhance it with advanced Conductor features like event-based triggers, custom workers, or AI-based logic.

Try it yourself: Import a sample BPMN file

To help you explore the BPMN Importer in a real-world context, we’ve created a sample BPMN file that models an e-commerce order workflow, complete with payment validation logic.

Get Sample BPMN file

Don’t forget to check out the BPMN importer documentation for detailed steps.

Wrap up

Migrating legacy process logic doesn’t have to be painful.

By bridging BPMN and modern orchestration, the BPMN Importer lets teams import process definitions while adopting a more scalable and modular architecture. It’s an ideal solution for organizations looking to transition to event-driven microservices without discarding years of process design investment.

The BPMN Importer is a powerful step for developer productivity and enterprise modernization. It brings together the best of two: the modeling familiarity of BPMN and the orchestration power of Orkes Conductor.

Ready to get started? Try BPMN Importer for free in the Developer Playground.