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    Enterprise Architecture 3.0 (EA3.0) - the third wave in Enterprise Architecture approaches

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    ABODE™ business transformation methodology  founded on EA3.0

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    A3 KAM - Triple A(Architectural, Actionable and  Augmented) Knowledge Assets Management

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    Generalized Enterprise Function Framework  (GEFF)

Insight and Vision on Transformation

 

Essence of Organizations

In our definition the essence of an organization – any organization – is that

 

An Organization must create Value

To their Stakeholders

With their Proposition

For this it needs Core Competencies

 

This is applicable to any type of formal social structure. If it doesn’t create value for its stakeholders it has no reason of being (essence), so it won’t survive. Enterprise Architects created a Service Delivery model in which the coherence of the above is expressed.

 

Proposition

A Proposition is the collection of Products, Services (and Resources, etc.) that an organization offers to their stakeholders. The proposition can be modeled into a Proposition Model. As this is one of the most important models in both the architecture (EA3.0™) and the transformation methodology (ABODE™) of Enterprise Architects, it will be explained in more details in Key Topics.

 

Stakeholders

Stakeholders are not only shareholders. Depending on the type of organization, stakeholders can be members, customers, shareholders, institutes, employees, suppliers, or investors. For each of them it is necessary that the organization creates value, although for the organization it can be tacit or explicit value creation. Tacit value creation needs to become explicit when integrating the stakeholders in a more intense way. This can be necessary when the demand or supply chain needs to integrate more in a cross-organizational operation along the different chains. Or when the organization’s culture needs be become more collaborative, etc.

 

Value Creation

Value is a multi-dimensional view on how the organization can optimize their service delivery for or with each type of stakeholders. It is multi-dimensional because it is often not money-related (profit, revenue, margin, etc.), but related to time, waste, quality, etc. Enterprise Architects developed a methodology (see Value Creation Approach) and tools to apply value creation during Process modeling and execution.

 

Core Competencies

The core competencies necessary for the organization to fulfill their strategy requirements and goals forms the foundation of our Competency Management approach. Like value is actually created during process execution, the necessity of special competencies can be can be defined during process modeling.

 

Management Charter

Initially the Business Competencies are based on a seven parts of what is called the Management Charter, also called the Heptahedron:

  1. Core Competencies - competencies necessary to create a positive value with the proposition for the different stakeholder groups and to innovate and transform the organization based on internal and external changes
  2. Organization Knowledge - competencies to constantly cultivate knowledge, change and distribute it with the idea to further improve the core competencies
  3. Organizational Learning - competencies to examine its own operation with a critical view (second loop learning) to improve the work to be done
  4. Value Performance Control - competencies to create the values of the organization and to registrate, abalyze and improve them
  5. Governance - competencies to register, improve and distribute the policies of higher management
  6. Leadership Principles - principles belonging to the level of functions of leaders
  7. Management Principles - principles belonging to the level of functions of managers

 

Translating Strategy

In the Download Area under Plan-to-Capability you can find an explanation in two documents explaining how the strategic plans, visions, and other documents can be of use to structure the different goals of the organization, divisions, or departments. The result is that the goals are translated into Capabilities with defined

 

Developing Capabilities

In the Download Area under Developing-Capabilities you can find an explanation in several documents explaining how the found capabilities during Plan-to-Capability can be structured in more generic capabilities that are necessary to be developed and used for further development of the Enterprise Architecture. Each component related to these generic capabilities can help set up the Enterprise Architecture development plan. Using the Model Flow©  it becomes obvious which detailed components like Business Functions, Generic Tools, necessary Technical or Business Services, etc.

 

Planning the Transformation

Architecture can develop its own plan as seen in Developing Capabilities, that is based on the Strategic Plans. But, most important is that the Strategic, Business, and IT Plans are aligned. Next Architecture should enable that. This means that based on these plans the Architecture plan will need to adapt.

 

Also, new ideas will come up and risk issues or opportunities might get a higher priority that the already planned projects. Scenarios might change also because new developments outside the organization like new innovations offer the possibility that some projects become obsolete, while new projects must be started as soon as possible.

 

The methodology of planning such a complex transformation, based on capabilities and business functions, is still under development.

 

Strategy Alignment

The Business Function Model (BFM) is based on the Generalized Enterprise Function Framework (GEFF™). The BFM has been developed further and has proven that – at the highest levels of Business Functions – it is applicable for any organization. Ranging from organizations in the Telecom sector, Oil and Gas, Governments, Municipalities, NGOs, to SMEs.

 

In Capabilities, which also describe the Business Functions if developed in detail, the strategic and departmental goals are translated into requirements, principals, and quality measures.

 

Knowledge Assets[1]

The Business Function Model (BFM) is based on the Generalized Enterprise Function Framework (GEFF™). Elementary Business Functions can be enriched with three types of functional Knowledge Assets:

  1. Action Knowledge Assets
  2. Architecture Knowledge Assets
  3. Augmented Knowledge Assets

 

Together, these three Knowledge Assets are managed via Business Functions. This is called Triple A Knowledge Asset Management, short A3 KAM™.

 

Action Knowledge Assets[2]

During the design phase Business Functions are enriched with Presentation and Information Services, including Business RuleSets. These three components make the Business Function executable, hence called Actionable. Of course, more is necessary to execute the enriched Business Function like Data Services, Technical Services and a Business Rule Engine.

 

Business Processes can be modeled by “chaining” enriched Business Functions in business models. As each of the enriched Business Functions is executable and the process model can be made executable too, the Processes become executable also.

 

Architecture Knowledge Assets

Business Functions form the heart of the EA3.0™ architecture metamodel. From a Business Function the associations to Business Processes, Business Services, Business Products, LifeEvents, and external Actors and more architectural business components can be made. Likewise, from a Business Function the associations to Presentations Services, Information Services, Technical Services and Business RuleSets can be made. Between Information Services and Data Services there N:M associations. These Data Services can be direct data manipulations on data sets on different databases, or APIs on COTSs (Commercial of the Shelf Systems).

 

Augmented Knowledge Assets

Business Functions are either manually, semi-automatically of automatically used. Enriched Business Functions explain what is necessary to execute these Business Functions (semi)automatically. How they should be handled in other ways can be registered by defining how to use methods, techniques. tools, etc. in documents, movies and through other media.

 

Competencies and Culture

In the Organization domain two important components are relevant. The Core and Individual Competencies and the Culture dimensions. The Core Competencies are ideally derived from the strategic plans. During the development of the organization, especially during process modeling, necessary Individual Competencies necessary to fulfill business activities become clear. These necessary competencies can then be used by HRM for matching, selection, or training reasons.

 

Organization Culture can be divided into fifteen different dimensions by which progress, or degress, of organization culture can be measured (see Van Wely, Organization Culture, 2002, Lemma):

  1. Norms & Values
    • Variation of Work
    • Work Valuation
    • Cooperativeness
    • Openness of Communication
  2. Management Style
    • Goal setting
    • Planning
    • Decision Making
    • Self Esteem
  3. Organizational Climate
    • Organization Structure
    • HRM Policy
    • Working environment
    • Action focus

 

Based on these fifteen dimensions survey questions (items) can be defined for each dimension. By using Item Response Theory (IRT) techniques a psychometric model can be set up rating every score on the items. With the statistical Partial Credit Model the progress or degress of individuals, teams and larger groups can be measure using different items for each survey. Next, interventions and perseverentions can be set up to change the individual, team and group.

 

Key Topics

 

Business Transformation Method

See the Download page under ABODE™ for more information on the Business Transformation Model.

Enterprise Architecture 3.0

See the Download page under EA3.0™ - Aspects and Strategy Domain, and EA3.0™ - Architecture Domains for more information on EA3.0™.

 

Generalized Enterprise Function Framework

The Business Function Model (BFM), the Strategy Alignment, and the Knowledge Assets, are based on the Generalized Enterprise Function Framework (GEFF™). For further information, click the links.

 

Triple A Knowledge Asset Management

See the Download page under Knowledge Assets for more information on the Model Flow.

 

Model Flow

See the Download page under ModelFlow™ for more information on the Model Flow.

 

Service Delivery Approach

The service delivery model as applied in EA3.0™ describes why and how the complete delivery process from requesting Actor to finally used IT generic tools is integrated. With this model it is possible to:

  • Define patterns of service delivery components, thus reducing the tasks of developing each type of delivery
  • Define how value (should be) created during the complete service delivery

Define which capabilities are necessary to support the service delivery.

 

More information can be found in the Download page under Service Delivery Approach© for more information on the Service Delivery.

 

 

[1] This area should only be accessible for people that are community member

[2] These three area should only be accessible for people who are customers